South Dublin County Mayor Pamela Kearns, Annette Bryan , and Joe Duffy
Following a GAA player whose dream is to play for Dublin
“WHAT inspired me to write it was my husband’s optimistic outlook and hard work despite his circumstances,” explains Crumlin-born writer Annette Bryan.
A compelling new Irish novel about the life-changing gift of a kidney transplant was launched at Ballyroan Library, Rathfarnham, on December 3.
The event featured two distinguished guest speakers: legendary broadcaster and journalist Joe Duffy and Cllr Pamela Kearns, Mayor of South Dublin County Council.
Their participation highlighted the importance of ‘Ollie and Me’, Annette’s debut novel.
‘Ollie and Me’ follows Ollie, a talented 26-year-old GAA player whose dream of playing for Dublin ends abruptly when sudden kidney failure turns his life upside down.
With the devoted support of his partner, Sam, Ollie confronts the frightening reality of chronic illness while fighting to rebuild his future.
The book captures the emotional journey of illness, recovery and renewed purpose.
Both Joe Duffy and Mayor Pamela Kearns, long recognised for championing important causes, spoke at the launch.
Their support underscores how urgent and widespread the issue of organ donation is for families across Ireland.
According to the HSE National Renal Office, at the end of 2024 the number of people on the kidney-transplant waiting list stood at 559 — a 4.5% increase over the previous year.
Annette Bryan’s new book cover
‘Ollie and Me’ is a beautifully written story about one family’s experience of hope, waiting and renewal.
It will be an invaluable read for anyone whose life has been touched by organ donation or chronic illness.
Annette describes her love for writing, having joined a writing group in 2010 when she retired. She has since had stories printed in magazines, and one of her poems was published in The Echo.
One of her short stories, ‘666’, was also included in the ‘Circle and Square’ anthology, which won a Carousel Aware Prize (CAP) award for ‘Best Anthology’ in 2017, making her an award-winning writer.
Her husband, Paul, was a board director of the Dublin South branch of the Irish Kidney Association (IKA) for 20 years, and that is partly what inspired this book, as they wish to inspire other patients and raise donor awareness.
She describes her favourite part of the writing process as “getting the book to completion”, and a challenge was trying to put everything together and sort it in chronological order to make sure the story made sense.
Annette extends her gratitude to Caroline Coughlan, who oversees the writing cafe she participates in; Margaret Maguire, who was the first to proofread ‘Ollie and Me’; and her husband Paul, whose encouragement is unparalleled.
She would also like to thank her publisher, Jeremy Murphy, and his team from JM Agency, Listowel.
The consistently 5-star rated ‘Ollie and Me’ is currently available on buythebook.
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