Coming 13 May: I Want to Know That I Will Be Okay by Deirdre Sullivan

Covers designed by Anna Morrison

We’re thrilled to reveal the covers for the next book from Banshee Press: I Want to Know That I Will Be Okay, a collection of stories by award-winning author Deirdre Sullivan. The book will be released on 13 May 2021, and is available for pre-order. We are also excited to be partnering with Kennys.ie on a hardback exclusive – pre-order the (yellow) hardback here!

In this dark, glittering collection of short stories, Deirdre Sullivan explores the trauma and power that reside in women’s bodies. A teenage girl tries to fit in at a party held in a haunted house, with unexpected and disastrous consequences. A mother and daughter run a thriving online business selling antique dolls, while their customers get more than they bargained for. And after a stillbirth, a young woman discovers that there is something bizarre and wondrous growing inside of her.

With empathy and invention, Sullivan effortlessly blends genres in stories that are by turns strange and exquisite. Already established as an award-winning writer for children and young adults, I Want to Know That I Will Be Okay marks her arrival as a captivating new voice in literary fiction.

‘Banshee was one of the first literary journals to publish my short fiction and it has been such a privilege to take this journey with them,’ says Sullivan. ‘Revisiting old stories and making new ones for I Want to Know That I Will Be Okay has provided me with a welcome refuge at this strange time, and I’m very grateful for the chance to share my short fiction with readers.’

‘We’re giddily excited to be bringing this book to readers in 2021,’ says Claire Hennessy, co-founder and editor at Banshee Press. ‘Deirdre writes exquisitely and tenderly about the small and big hurts in women’s lives, merging the everyday and the otherworldly in these fourteen unsettling, compelling tales. It’s been such a pleasure to work with her on this collection – you will love it.’

Deirdre Sullivan is a writer and teacher from Galway. She has written seven acclaimed books for young adults, including Savage Her Reply (Little Island 2020), Perfectly Preventable Deaths (Hot Key Books 2019), and Tangleweed and Brine (Little Island 2017). She was the recipient of the CBI Book of the Year Award in 2018 and the An Post Irish Book Award for YA in 2020. Her short fiction has appeared in Banshee and The Dublin Review. I Want to Know That I Will Be Okay is her first book for adults.