Based upon a notorious clerical scandal of Victorian Ireland, Thomas Kilroy’s anatomy of religious violence remains relevant and vital today.

This is a novel about a man, a family and a town. Sometimes tragic, sometimes humorous, The Big Chapel is striking in range. It deals with themes of enduring humanity and dogmatic ideology, while offering private reflections into individual anguish and panoramic portraits of a community in turmoil. In addition to its Booker Prize shortlisting in 1971 it won several awards, including the Guardian Fiction Prize and the Heinemann Prize.

Shortlisted
The Booker Prize 1971
Published by
Faber & Faber
Publication date

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Thomas Kilroy

Thomas Kilroy

About the Author

Thomas Kilroy wrote only one novel, The Big Chapel. It was shortlisted for the 1971 Booker Prize and won the 1971 Guardian Fiction Prize.
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