Cillian Murphy shares his 10 favourite books of all time
Before he became one of cinema’s most prolific actors, Cillian Murphy was all set for a music career. He even attracted an incredibly tempting recording contract but changed course at the last minute to pursue a career in the movie business instead. Now, he stands as one of the greatest actors of a generation, bringing a mosaic of weird and wonderful characters to life on screen, including Scarecrow in Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight trilogy and the more recent J. Robert Oppenheimer in Oppenheimer.
As someone who once said, “I’m less interested in the good man’s life, I’m more interested in the conflicted man’s life or the contradictory man’s life”, Murphy’s interest in books comes as no surprise – particularly as many of his favourites tackle subjects like the complexities of human existence. For example, he cites Appointment in Samarra by John O’Hara as one he regards highly after being drawn into “the atmosphere and pressure of what it must have been like to be alive in America at that time”.
Similarly, John Healy’s The Grass Arena makes the cut for the power held over Murphy, who decided to read the book after years of recommendations. “It is the story of determination and rebirth,” Murphy says. “The tale of a chess champion who overcomes a savage childhood to live again. A powerful book indeed”.
One of the more heartbreaking works comes with Patrick McGabe’s The Butcher Boy, which details the story of a young boy who descends upon a fantasy world to escape from his troubling home life. For Murphy, the book left a lasting impression on account of its ability to blend a series of dichotomous emotions: “[It’s] dark, fiercely funny, compassionate, and unashamedly Irish. Its depiction of a young boy’s descent into isolation and madness in small-town Ireland has never left me”.
Meanwhile, one of Murphy’s all-time favourite Irish writers is John Banville, who also became known for his humour and sharp, wintery wit. His 2000 novel Eclipse, while being a complete contrast to The Butcher Boy, also etched its world into the mind of Murphy. “In this beautifully mediative tale,” he says, “Alexander Cleave is a celebrated actor who returns to live in his childhood home. The book seemingly has little or no plot, but the sheer towering beauty of its language, atmosphere and insight make it impossible to put down or to forget.”
The late J. P. Donleavy, best known for his novel The Ginger Man, was an Irish writer who wasn’t afraid to completely disrupt the common consensus. So much so that The Ginger Man was actually initially banned in the United Kingdom and Ireland for its obscenity. According to Murphy, this is a book designed to be “savoured over the course of a life”. He also praises its subject matter, stating that its mischief and humour go perfectly with its empathy, particularly in relation to the “outsider struggling to imagine a purpose in this world”.
Cillian Murphy’s 10 favourite books:
- The Ginger Man – J. P. Donleavy
- The Butcher Boy – Patrick McGabe
- Eclipse – John Banville
- The Sportswriter – Richard Ford
- Rabbit Angstrom – John Updike
- Jeff in Venice, Death in Varanasi – Geoff Dyer
- Grief is the Thing with Feathers – Max Porter
- The Old Man and the Sea – Ernest Hemingway
- The Grass Arena – John Healy
- Appointment in Samarra – John O’Hara
