Anne Griffin

One of Goodreads' 43 Most Anticipated Reads of 2019 “Beautiful. Intimate. Tearful. Aching and lyrical. So simply and beautifully told.” –Louise Penny, #1 New York Times bestselling author "I'm here to remember–all that I have been and all that I will never be again." If you had to pick five people to sum up your life, who would they be? If you were to raise a glass to each of them, what would you say? And what would you learn about yourself, when all is said? At the bar of a grand hotel in a small Irish town sits 84-year-old Maurice Hannigan. He’s alone, as usual - though tonight is anything but. Pull up a stool and charge your glass, because Maurice is finally ready to tell his story. Over the course of this evening, he will raise five toasts to the five people who have meant the most to him. Through these stories - of unspoken joy and regret, a secret tragedy kept hidden, a fierce love that never found its voice - the life of one man will be powerful and poignantly laid bare. Beautifully heart-warming and powerfully felt, the voice of Maurice Hannigan will stay with you long after all is said and done.

A Novel

When All Is Said

Grace

Ozge Kara

As Maurice made his toasts I thought of mine. My mom, my dad, my grandma and grandpa, my husband and my unborn child.

I felt this book in my bones.

Louise 

This was a phenomenal story of love, loss & life. I sobbed for 10 minutes at the ending of this book, absolutely heartbreakingly beautiful story that warmed my heart and then broke it in half. 
Loved the writing style and story (the main character reminded me a lot of my own father which made it even more special)!

THE INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER & INDIE NEXT PICK "Griffin's stunning debut, brimming with irresistible Irish-isms, is an elegy to love, loss and the complexity of life." –People Magazine One of Goodreads' 43 Most Anticipated Reads of 2019 “Beautiful. Intimate. Tearful. Aching and lyrical. So simply and beautifully told.” –Louise Penny, #1 New York Times bestselling author "I'm here to remember–all that I have been and all that I will never be again." If you had to pick five people to sum up your life, who would they be? If you were to raise a glass to each of them, what would you say? And what would you learn about yourself, when all is said? At the bar of a grand hotel in a small Irish town sits 84-year-old Maurice Hannigan. He’s alone, as usual - though tonight is anything but. Pull up a stool and charge your glass, because Maurice is finally ready to tell his story. Over the course of this evening, he will raise five toasts to the five people who have meant the most to him. Through these stories - of unspoken joy and regret, a secret tragedy kept hidden, a fierce love that never found its voice - the life of one man will be powerful and poignantly laid bare. Beautifully heart-warming and powerfully felt, the voice of Maurice Hannigan will stay with you long after all is said and done.

Fraser Simons

Absolutely incredible. One of the most well-crafted, thematic voices I’ve encountered in recent memory. The narrative skips around, hunting the dearest memories of an old Irishman. In the recounting of five people, five toasts at his mainstay bar, the story of Maurice is revealed and, often, beautifully interwoven with those around him. 

This book is powerful and elegant in how ostensibly effortless it is to tap into a rich, deeply human experience. I can’t think of a thing I didn’t like about it. Even it’s length was perfect.

Cindy Lieberman

Well written but slow and fairly predictable novel of an older man’s recollections of key individuals and events that shaped his life. Some of the scenes and characters are vivid but many are brush strokes that don’t go too deep or move the plot along.

Moray Lyle McIntosh

This is the story of Maurice Hannigan, as told by himself, as he toasts five of the people he loves the best in a local hotel one Saturday evening, two years after the death of his wife. Maurice is set in his ways, rough around the edges, sharp and shrewd but as he considers his life and his loves he re-evaluates choices long made and a character long-settled and wonders if things might have been different, if he could have been different.

It’s no wonder that When All Is Said sparked a four-way bidding war between publishers. While Anne Griffin’s roots as an award-winning short story writer can be seen in the episodic structure of the narrative (any one chapter would be a beautifully self-contained story in its own right) it’s hard to believe that this is a debut novel. The self-assured writing, so confident in its style and voice is what makes it so powerful and so convincing, that this isn’t the voice of 84-year-old Maurice Hannigan is hard to believe.

The toasts are a clever device, as well as an intensely moving one. They help to break up the stream-of-conscious narrative, telling each story in turn, though not consecutively, and slowly bringing out the connections between people and events and allowing Maurice (and his reader) to reconsider aspects from different angles and see things afresh. This is the very heart of the story as he measures himself against those he has loved the best, and even those he has hated, and considers how they have helped to make him the man his is. There is an often brutal honesty in his evaluation and a lack of sentimentality and self-pity that sometimes bleeds into something like self-loathing but his recollections and his regrets are suffused with such love that it never becomes overwhelmed by bitterness.

Maurice is haunted by regrets and mistakes and even his former triumphs and his character is so multi-facets, flawed and ultimately human that he stays with you long after the story comes to a close. This is a story about love and loss, family and grief with a wonderful texture of time and character. It is a heart-breaking but far from humourless study of humanity and happiness and the difficult road of both.

Grace Emilia Machon

I went in to this expecting little to be honest and the first few pages nearly made me put her down and read something else. But I finished it in 24 hours and honestly, this book will linger with me. It is hard when reading not to want to call all the people you forget to tell how much you love them and say “hello, thank you for existing alongside me” 
I adore Maurice, and I can’t stop thinking about how silently he loved. This book talks about the issues of stoic masculinity, what it means to be a father who is worried his love for a son he doesn’t understand will weaken him. It’s also about loving someone so much you can’t drink tea without them. It’s also about being lonely

If you love someone you take for granted you should read this book and I think that’s everyone.

Jan Talkington

I wasn't sure I was going to like this book when I got started. You know early on how it is going to end and it's not "happy ever after" - but I ended up enjoying the story of Maurice's life. I liked the way it was told by introducing people who had been important to him through his recollections. I'm glad I stumbled across this jewel.

Catarina

Five toasts. Five people. One lifetime. THE NUMBER ONE IRISH BESTSELLER WINNER OF THE SUNDAY INDEPENDENT NEWCOMER OF THE YEAR AWARD SHORTLISTED FOR THE 2021 DUBLIN LITERARY AWARD 'This is how you tell a story' Cecelia Ahern 'An extraordinary novel, a poetic writer, and a story that moved me to tears.' John Boyne 'I'm here to remember - all that I have been and all that I will never be again.' At the bar of a grand hotel in a small Irish town sits 84-year-old Maurice Hannigan. He's alone, as usual -though tonight is anything but. Pull up a stool and charge your glass, because Maurice is finally ready to tell his story. Over the course of this evening, he will raise five toasts to the five people who have meant the most to him. Through these stories - of unspoken joy and regret, a secret tragedy kept hidden, a fierce love that never found its voice - the life of one man will be powerfully and poignantly laid bare. Heart-breaking and heart-warming all at once, the voice of Maurice Hannigan will stay with you long after all is said. 'A hugely enjoyable, engrossing novel, a genuine page-turner.' Donal Ryan 'Beautifully written, unhurried and thoughtful, and a character you love from the off' Kit de Waal 'Masterful storytelling' Graham Norton

Five toasts. Five people. One lifetime.

When All is Said

Shreerag Plakazhi

Hannah Picken

Kaelan Chambers

Alvaro

Alyson Russell

Lisa Lindquist 

Orla callaghan 

Georgie K

Five toasts. Five people. One lifetime. THE NUMBER ONE IRISH BESTSELLER WINNER OF THE SUNDAY INDEPENDENT NEWCOMER OF THE YEAR AWARD 'This is how you tell a story' Cecelia Ahern 'An extraordinary novel, a poetic writer, and a story that moved me to tears.' John Boyne 'I'm here to remember - all that I have been and all that I will never be again.' At the bar of a grand hotel in a small Irish town sits 84-year-old Maurice Hannigan. He's alone, as usual -though tonight is anything but. Pull up a stool and charge your glass, because Maurice is finally ready to tell his story. Over the course of this evening, he will raise five toasts to the five people who have meant the most to him. Through these stories - of unspoken joy and regret, a secret tragedy kept hidden, a fierce love that never found its voice - the life of one man will be powerfully and poignantly laid bare. Heart-breaking and heart-warming all at once, the voice of Maurice Hannigan will stay with you long after all is said. 'A hugely enjoyable, engrossing novel, a genuine page-turner.' Donal Ryan 'Beautifully written, unhurried and thoughtful, and a character you love from the off' Kit de Waal 'Masterful storytelling' Graham Norton

When All Is Said A Novel

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