William Trevor (Author of The Story of Lucy Gault)

William Trevor鈥檚 Followers (729)

William Trevor

Born

in Mitchelstown, County Cork, Ireland

May 24, 1928

Died

November 21, 2016

Genre

Literature & Fiction

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William Trevor, KBE grew up in various provincial towns and attended a number of schools, graduating from Trinity College, in Dublin, with a degree in history. He first exercised his artistry as a sculptor, working as a teacher in Northern Ireland and then emigrated to England in search of work when the school went bankrupt. He could have returned to Ireland once he became a successful writer, he said, "but by then I had become a wanderer, and one way and another, I just stayed in England ... I hated leaving Ireland. I was very bitter at the time. But, had it not happened, I think I might never have written at all."

In 1958 Trevor published his first novel, A Standard of Behaviour, to little critical success. Two years later, he abandoned sc William Trevor, KBE grew up in various provincial towns and attended a number of schools, graduating from Trinity College, in Dublin, with a degree in history. He first exercised his artistry as a sculptor, working as a teacher in Northern Ireland and then emigrated to England in search of work when the school went bankrupt. He could have returned to Ireland once he became a successful writer, he said, "but by then I had become a wanderer, and one way and another, I just stayed in England ... I hated leaving Ireland. I was very bitter at the time. But, had it not happened, I think I might never have written at all."

In 1958 Trevor published his first novel, A Standard of Behaviour, to little critical success. Two years later, he abandoned sculpting completely, feeling his work had become too abstract, and found a job writing copy for a London advertising agency. 'This was absurd,' he said. 'They would give me four lines or so to write and four or five days to write it in. It was so boring. But they had given me this typewriter to work on, so I just started writing stories. I sometimes think all the people who were missing in my sculpture gushed out into the stories.' He published several short stories, then his second and third novels, which both won the Hawthornden Prize (established in 1919 by Alice Warrender and named after William Drummond of Hawthornden, the Hawthornden Prize is one of the UK's oldest literary awards). A number of other prizes followed, and Trevor began working full-time as a writer in 1965.

Since then, Trevor has published nearly 40 novels, short story collections, plays, and collections of nonfiction. He has won three Whitbread Awards, a PEN/Macmillan Silver Pen Award, and was shortlisted for the Booker Prize. In 1977 Trevor was appointed an honorary (he holds Irish, not British, citizenship) Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (CBE) for his services to literature and in 2002 he was elevated to honorary Knight Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (KBE). Since he began writing, William Trevor regularly spends half the year in Italy or Switzerland, often visiting Ireland in the other half. He lived in Devon, in South West England, on an old mill surrounded by 40 acres of land. ...more

Combine Editions
William Trevor鈥檚 books

Average rating: 3.81 · 41,317 ratings · 5,261 reviews · 171 distinct works 鈥� Similar authors

	The Story of Lucy Gault 3.77 avg rating — 7,786 ratings — published 2002 — 5 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Love and Summer 3.58 avg rating — 4,315 ratings — published 2009 — 53 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Felicia's Journey 3.68 avg rating — 3,989 ratings — published 1994 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	After Rain 4.12 avg rating — 1,985 ratings — published 1996 — 36 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Last Stories 3.95 avg rating — 1,988 ratings — published 2018 — 25 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Collected Stories 4.46 avg rating — 1,734 ratings — published 1992 — 19 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Fools of Fortune by William Trevor, Francine Prose (欧宝娱乐 Author) (Introduction) 3.98 avg rating — 1,322 ratings — 19 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	A Bit on the Side 3.82 avg rating — 1,172 ratings — published 2004 — 40 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Children of Dynmouth 3.98 avg rating — 1,084 ratings — published 1976 — 41 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Death in Summer 3.69 avg rating — 1,162 ratings — published 1998 — 33 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

More books by William Trevor…

Quotes by William Trevor (?)

“I read hungrily and delightedly, and have realized since that you can鈥檛 write unless you read.”
― William Trevor

1351 likes

“I get melancholy if I don't [write]. I need the company of people who don't exist.”
― William Trevor

123 likes

“People run away to be alone,' he said. Some people had to be alone.”
― William Trevor, Love and Summer

tags: loneliness, people

57 likes

See all William Trevor's quotes »

Polls

Ladies it is time to vote on our April Members Choice book. Please vote for the book you like best. Voting will remain open until close of day March 14th.

The Thursday Murder Club

by Richard Osman

16 votes, 27.6%

The Story of Lucy Gault

by William Trevor

8 votes, 13.8%

Vanessa Yu's Magical Paris Tea Shop

by Roselle Lim

7 votes, 12.1%

The Once and Future Witches

by Alix E. Harrow

6 votes, 10.3%

Snow Falling on Cedars

by David Guterson

6 votes, 10.3%

Schindler's List

by Thomas Keneally

4 votes, 6.9%

Becoming Duchess Goldblatt: A Memoir

by Duchess Goldblatt

4 votes, 6.9%

The Cottingley Secret

by Hazel Gaynor

3 votes, 5.2%

Butter Honey Pig Bread

by Francesca Ekwuyasi

2 votes, 3.4%

In an Instant

by Suzanne Redfearn

2 votes, 3.4%

58 total votes

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William Trevor

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William Trevor鈥檚 books