Hugo Hamilton is one of Ireland’s most critically acclaimed writers. In his latest book, Conversation with the Sea, a man returns to the west coast of Ireland, last seen on his honeymoon 20 years earlier. His marriage in Berlin is collapsing. His wife is under investigation for her possible role in a student protest; their daughter has stopped eating properly. He brings only a notebook, filling it with images and fragments. The Irish Times said of it: ‘the novel is rendered with a timeless, dreamlike purity’.

In this discussion with the laureate for Irish fiction, Éilís Ní Dhuibhne, Hugo will talk about what lies behind the subtle exploration of truth, illusion and memory at the heart of this captivating story of love and displacement.

Hugo is also the best-selling author of The Speckled People, a memoir of his German-Irish childhood in Dublin, growing up with his German mother and prohibited by his revolutionary Irish father from speaking English. It was translated into twenty languages and adapted for stage at the Gate Theatre. His novels include Dublin Palms and The Pages. His stories have appeared in the New Yorker. Hugo won the Bundesverdienstkreuz order of merit, awarded by the German state for his exploration of cultural diversity. 

Tickets €14/€12 from glór box office on 065 6843103 or online here.

We are delighted to offer an Early Bird discount: book any 5 or more of the 8 listed events together and receive 10% off. This offer is available until December 31st 2025.

All events listed in the offer can be viewed and booked here. 

The full list of Festival 2026 events will be released and available to book in mid-January.

The Ennis Book Club Festival is supported by the Arts Council of Ireland.