The Pawnbroker's Reward

1846. County Cork.

On the barren outskirts of Macroom, Pádraig and Cáit ua Buachalla face a perilous winter after the failure of their blighted crop. At the centre of town, pawnbroker Cornelius Creed sees the poor in their darkest hour, his shop often being their last stop on the way to the workhouse.

Their stories, and those of many others, are woven into a powerful account of the Great Famine’s grip on a single Irish town. At once epic and intimate, this meticulously researched, multi-layered work from one of Ireland’s best-loved songwriter’s delivers a rich, lyrical debut based on real lives and events from this defining moment in Ireland’s history.

'A powerful and gripping piece of writing from a born storyteller.' Joseph O’Connor

‘The narrative is just like his singing voice, full of powerful strength and compassion.’ Michael Harding

‘Lucid, lovingly-written and lyrical.’ Professor Christine Kinealy

In Declan’ O'Rourke's meticulously researched literary debut, the story of the ua Buachalla family is woven into a powerful, multilayered work showing us the famine as it happened through the lens of a single town – Macroom, Co. Cork – and its environs.