John Boyne: “Life is short; I feel no compunction to finish a novel that is boring me. I’ll read something else.” Photograph: Dave Meehan
Author Maggie O’Farrell: I had a teacher at school who took the register, called my name and said to me, ‘Are your family in the IRA?’
Gambling Man by Lionel Barber: A lively account of the rollercoaster life of SoftBank’s billionaire founder
My Animals and Other Animals by Bill Bailey: Tales of the comedian’s feathered, furred and scaled friends
I went to the cinema to see Small Things Like These. By the time I emerged I had concluded the film was crap
Truck driver fired for clocking off for night leaving concrete load to go hard wins €2,000 for unfair dismissal
Ireland weather: Storm Bert set to batter the country as Met Éireann issues orange warning for three counties
Ireland weather: orange warnings for Galway, Kerry and Cork with Storm Bert to bring strong winds and rain
