Ahern, Cecelia 1981-

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AHERN, Cecelia 1981-

PERSONAL:

Born 1981; daughter of Bertie (a politician) and Miriam Ahern. Education: Graduated from Griffith College (journalism).

ADDRESSES:

Home—Dublin, Ireland. Agent—Marianne Gunn O'Connor, Suite 17, Morrison Chambers, 32 Nassau Street, Dublin 2, Ireland.

CAREER:

Writer.

WRITINGS:

PS, I Love You, Hyperion (New York, NY), 2004. Rosie Dunne, Hyperion (New York, NY), in press.

ADAPTATIONS:

PS, I Love You was optioned by Warner Bros.; it was also adapted as an audiobook by Books on Tape.

SIDELIGHTS:

Cecelia Ahern, the daughter of Irish Prime Minister Bertie Ahern, caused quite a splash with her first novel, PS, I Love You. The novel tells the story of a young Dubliner widow, Holly, whose husband, Gerry, recently died of brain cancer. Before he died, Gerry mailed Holly a set of ten small envelopes, each containing one thing that he wanted Holly to do to help her get on with her life. Each month, from March through December, Holly opens one envelope and carries out the task. Family members include Holly's colorful—in both personality and hair color—younger sister, who cheerfully bares her buttocks at a family dinner to show off her new tattoo, and her brother Declan, an aspiring filmmaker who tapes Holly and her friends on their drunken pub crawl to celebrate Holly's birthday and turns the footage into a "Girls Gone Wild"-style movie titled Girls and the City.

While some reviewers criticized the book's plot as contrived and maudlin, others praised Ahern for creating a likable heroine and for adroitly handling a difficult subject. "Ahern has a way with funny, sparkly dialogue," Bernice Harrison commented in Irish Times, and she "perfectly balanced" the humor and the heartbreak. Ahern also "boasts a natural storytelling talent," declared a Publishers Weekly contributor, "resulting in a compelling tale sparked by an unusual premise."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Booklist, February 15, 2004, Kristine Huntley, review of PS, I Love You, p. 1034.

Bookseller, May 28, 2004, "Summer Love," p. 15.

Boston Herald, February 6, 2004, Raakhee P. Mirchandani, review of PS, I Love You, p. 30.

Guardian (Manchester, England), February 5, 2004, Angelique Chrisafis, "'I'd Never Even Heard of Chick Lit'" (interview), p. 8.

Houston Chronicle, February 1, 2004, Shawn Pogatchnik, "Book Turns Leader's Daughter into Ireland's Literary Darling" (interview), p. 48.

Irish Times, January 27, 2003, "Cecelia Ahern Secures E1m Film Rights Deal," p. 6; July 3, 2004, Bernice Harrison, review of PS, I Love You, p. 62.

Kirkus Reviews, February 1, 2004, review of PS, I Love You, p. 95.

Mail on Sunday (London, England), January 25, 2004, Louette Harding, "The PM's Latest Vote-Winner" (interview), p. 30.

Mirror (London, England), January 21, 2004, Fiona Wynne, "I Won't Say Sorry My Books Have Made Me a Million … I Worked Too Hard" (interview), p. 12.

People, March 8, 2004, "The Writing Irish: Take That, James Joyce! Cecelia Ahern, Daughter of Ireland's Prime Minister, Quits School and Reaps $1 Million for Her First Novel," p. 106.

Publishers Weekly, December 22, 2003, review of PS, I Love You, p. 34; February 16, 2004, Natalie Danford, "Chick Lit Wears Black: Young Widows Are in Vogue This Season, but It's Tough to Stand out from the Crowd," pp. 59-60.

Rocky Mountain News, April 20, 2004, Vicky Uhland, review of PS, I Love You, p. D12.

Sun (London, England), December 21, 1998, "Will They Be the New B*Witched?" p. 11.

Sunday Times (London, England), January 25, 2004, John Burns, "New Chick on the Block Likes to Stay in Next" (interview), p. 5.