Public vote sees Vicky Phelan's memoir named Irish book of the year
Overcoming by Vicky Phelan has been named as the Irish Book of the Year.
It was chosen by a public vote from a list of category winners at the An Post Irish Book Awards.
The book, which was ghostwritten by Naomi Linehan and published by Hachette Books Ireland, tells the story of one of the biggest medical and political scandals of our times and Vicky's own remarkable personal journey.
We're delighted to announce that the winner of the An Post Irish Book of the Year Award for 2019 is... Overcoming by @PhelanVicky!
— An Post Irish Book Awards (@AnPostIBAS) January 30, 2020
Massive congratulations to Vicky Phelan, and a special thank you to everyone who cast a vote! 🥳#ReadersWanted #APIBAS pic.twitter.com/bnYL6GKkRW
"I’m truly honoured that my book Overcoming has been voted An Post Book of the Year," Vicky said.
"I could not have done this without my wonderful ghostwriter, Naomi Linehan, who brought life to my story on the page in a way that I did not think was possible. To my publisher, Hachette, thank you for taking a chance on me and to all the booksellers, thank you for championing my book. Finally, a huge thank you to the public, for whom I wrote this book, who supported and voted for me."
The mother-of-two rose to national prominence when she lifted the lid on how hundreds of smear tests had been misread.
Despite having a terminal diagnosis, Ms Phelan has campaigned on behalf of the women and families affected by the scandal, which resulted in an independent report into CervicalCheck and ill women are able to access the potentially life-saving drug Pembrolizumab.
