REVIEWS FOR MY BOOKS:

 

ALFIE GREEN SERIES:

'Gorgeous books, beautifully illustrated. Perfect for six to seven year olds.'

SUNDAY INDEPENDANT

'This is a tense and exciting story that will capture the imagination. I love Alfie Green and the Magical Gift. It was excellant. This was the best book I ever read in my life.'

HANNAH MEANEY, 7.....THE CLARE PEOPLE

'For children to read themselves, I'd highly recommend Alfie Green. This is a charming tale full of gentle humour and perfectly pitched even for the most reluctant reader.'

SARAH WEBB....IRISH INDEPENDANT

'Hilarious and full of surprises.'

VILLAGE MAGAZINE

'Bright ,breezy and full of flesh crawling incidents. Young readers will love this.'

VILLAGE MAGAZINE

'Perfectly funny bedtime reading.'

SUNDAY INDEPENDANT

'Readers will hang on every word.'

CBI BOOKFEST

' O'Brien's characteristic mix of adventure, humour and celebration of the natural environment, together with Texier's complementary black and white drawings should particulary appeal to boys of age 6 and 8 and to reluctant readers upto 10.'

INIS MAGAZINE

'A charming hero is Joe O'Brien's Alfie Green.'

SUNDAY INDEPENDANT

'The story rattles along at a great pace.' ****

RTE GUIDE

'Exciting....It has the right pace for newly confident readers to gobble through the pages quickly, which is part of its charm.... A lovely produced book that will pack the right punch for girls or boys.'

INIS MAGAZINE

'Alfie Green and the chocolate cosmos is the latest in Joe O'Brien's charming quirky series. A favourite to read aloud in my house.'

SUNDAY INDEPENDANT

'Just the book for age six plus'

IRISH EXAMINER

'A great read for young members of the family.'

WATERFORD NEWS AND STAR

'Ideal for the newly independant reader.'

CLARE CHAMPION

'Will charm and entertain.....'

SUNDAY INDEPENDANT

 

BEYOND THE CHERRY TREE:

'An adventurous romp through a gory and magical world.'

SCHOOL LIBRARIAN UK

'Joe O'Brien has excelled himself as a storyteller.... A fantastic adventure story.....Sure to appeal to readers in the 9-12 age group..... Habilon has the whimsicality of Narnia together with a strong Middle Earth sense of doom.'

BOOKS IRELAND

'One of Ireland's favourite children's authors, Joe O'Brien, has come up trumps with this mysterious story.'

WOMAN'S WAY

'Fully-fledged magical adventure full of intrigue.'

EVENING ECHO

'A scary story....It has all the classic ingredients: the mysterious old house, the suspicious disappearance of its owner and of a curious kid..... Expect a good read full of laughter, scares and excitement.'

BOOKS IRELAND

'For those with a taste for fantasy, Joe O'Brien's Beyond The Cherry Tree is a quirky somewhat eccentric fantasy which has elements reminiscent of CS Lewis's Narnia series and a strong sense of the natural world.'

SUNDAY INDEPENDANT

'Joe O'Brien is casting his nets wider with a fantasy novel.'

INIS MAGAZINE

'This book is excellant. It has nice descriptive language and is beautifully written.'

MEGAN, AGE 14

 

LITTLE CROKER:

'A good intelligent, contemporary Irish read.'

INIS MAGAZINE

'O'Brien is good at conjuring up the athmosphere of the GAA and the importance that a club has in a local community. Will appeal to football mad boys and girls.'

BOOKS IRELAND

'A sharply executed tale with plenty of humourous characterisations and some serious storylines thrown in.'

INIS MAGAZINE

'Young GAA fans everywhere will want to get their hands on a copy of Little Croker.'

CARLOW NATIONALIST

'Welcome addition to sports literature for youngsters.'

SUNDAY INDEPENDANT

'One young sports obsessive I know sped through the story.....Praised the back-story.'

THE IRISH TIMES

 

FEILE FEVER:

'The story zips along at a cracking pace, never flags and yet manages to deal sensitively with issues that are now a reality with many children - issues such as marital break-up and drinking. Suitable for senior classes in primary schools.'

IN TOUCH MAGAZINE

'A must for all young Gaelic fans.'

SUNDAY INDEPENDANT

'For GAA fans, the fast paced and exciting Feile Fever by Joe O'Brien will hit the spot.'

IRISH INDEPENDANT

'O'Brien captures the spirit of the GAA and of teenage boys in this tale of the outsider fitting in. The book is sure to cement Danny Wilde's place as a teenage literary hero.'

BOOKS IRELAND

'An authentic celebration of youth, the GAA and the Feile.'

IRISH EXAMINER

'O'Brien's authentic depiction of the exciting match action will be enjoyed by all young GAA fans.

CBI BOOKFEST 2009

' The thorough research that Dublin author Joe O'Brien has invested in his GAA storyline pays dividends by giving sporting authenticity to a strong personality led plot... A good crowd-pleaser for GAA fans aged 9 plus.'

EVENING ECHO

 

TIGER BOOTS:

'A charming, well written sport-adventure story for readers 8 plus... Sure to please any young GAA player.'

IRISH INDEPENDANT

'Will be enjoyed by all football fans.....Would encourage the reluctant reader in upper primary school....Though mainly aimed at boys, there is enough to keep girls interested too.'

INIS MAGAZINE

'Full of the usual GAA athmosphere and excitement.'

IRISH EXAMINER

'A tale to hook even the most reluctant young male reader.'

EVENING ECHO

'All about the GAA as a big family that helps each other out.'

BOOKS IRELAND

 

 LEGENDS' LAIR:

 

'What O'Brien captures so well is the aura of the game. He handles with aplomb the sheer fun of playing a game with grace.....O'Brien doesn't avoid the bumps in the road but invests the story with a lightness that suggests not pursuing daunting projects is more burdensome than marching straight into them.

A joyful approach to sports.... and a salute to the importance of understanding history.'

KIRKUS REVIEWS....GOLD STAR

 

'A story of rivalries, old and new, which will appeal to both girls and boys.'

 CBI RECCOMENDED READS 2016

 

'Legends' Lair is a must-read for young football fans this summer.'

IRELAND'S OWN

 

'Football fans of 9+ will love'

IRISH INDEPENDANT

 

'Perfect for young soccer fans.'

PRIMARY TIMES

 

'Football fans will thoroughly enjoy this inspiring story.....Charlie is an excellent character and boys will readily identify with him through his hopes and frustrations. A good way to encourage sports-mad children to enjoy reading.'

PARENTSINTOUCH.CO.UK