'An unforgettable, freewheeling masterclass'
Michael Magee, Nero Book Award-winning author of Close to Home
'Funny, nerve-wracking and utterly compelling'
Colin Barrett, Booker Prize-longlisted author of Wild Houses

'Extraordinary... A writer with a rare gift. I feel changed by it'
Belinda McKeon, author of Solace

'I was floored by the power and beauty of this book'
Donal Ryan, author of The Queen of Dirt Island

'Tim MacGabhann writes with piercing honesty, humour and tenderness... Prepare to look into The Black Pool and see a little part of yourself reflected back'
Jan Carson, EU Prize for Literature-winning author of The Raptures

'A reading experience of the highest order'
Wendy Erskine, author of Dance Move

'Extraordinary'
Lisa McInerney, Women's Prize for Fiction-winning author of The Glorious Heresies

A raw and powerful memoir of addiction and recovery, across three continents and multiple drugs, from early childhood through adulthood.

Following an obsessive mind trying (and failing) to find relief, The Black Pool is a gripping thrill-ride through violent, chaotic underworlds. Tracing the roots of an illness through the failures of youth and adolescence and finally back to childhood, it's about all the wrong places where addicts look for transcendence - from work, to relationships, to writing, to anger.

It shows what happens when everything falls apart. It shows us rock bottom and the start of the journey to recovery from there. It's a memoir shot full of holes and shocking clarities. And towards the end, it achieves something like serenity - something like recovery.

'Raw and powerful' Irish Times, Books to look out for in 2025

'A vibrant, darkly humorous writer' Irish Independent, Non-fiction highlights for 2025

'A gripping and personal story of addiction' Irish Examiner, 2025 Books to Read

'Unflinchingly honest, heart-wrenching and life-affirming' RTÉ, 10 books we're looking forward to reading in 2025

"Raw and powerful" - Irish Times

"Unflinchingly honest, heart-wrenching and life-affirming" - RTÉ

"A gripping and personal story of addiction" - Irish Examiner

"MacGabhann traces the roots of addiction and illness through his youth and childhood, writing about where he tried to find solace and what happened when everything fell apart. A vibrant, darkly humorous writer" - Irish Independent

"The Black Pool is an unforgettable, freewheeling masterclass of confessional writing. It's brutal and devastating, politically and intellectually engaging, and written with such verve and an unrestrained joy for language that we cannot help but be swept along with its rapacious momentum. What a book, and what an incredible testament to the potentials of the form." - Michael Magee, author of CLOSE TO HOME

"Tim MacGabhann writes with piercing honesty, humour and tenderness. Peppered with keen observations, beautiful images and perfectly placed anecdotes, The Black Pool is a memoir which revels in the personal yet speaks to a bigger, more universal sense of loss, loneliness and the need for community. Prepare to look into The Black Pool and see a little part of yourself reflected back." - Jan Carson, author of THE RAPTURES