Claire-Louise Bennett

Checkout 19

Checkout 19

‘A book to shake the world anew’ Sebastian Barry

Summary

A New York Times 10 Best Books of 2022 Selection

'Extraordinary . . . radiant' Sunday Times
'An existential tour-de-force' Eimear McBride
'Elatingly risky' Guardian

'We read in order to come to life.'


With fierce imagination, a woman revisits the moments that shape her life; from crushes on teachers to navigating relationships in a fast-paced world; from overhearing her grandmothers' peculiar stories to nurturing her own personal freedom and a boundless love of literature.

Fusing fantasy with lived experience, Checkout 19 is a vivid and mesmerising journey through the small traumas and triumphs that define us - as readers, as writers, as human beings.

* A 'Books of 2021' pick in the Guardian, Daily Mail, Daily Telegraph, Irish Times Culture and New Statesman *

'This is her new book to shake the world anew' Sebastian Barry

'Mesmerising, whip-smart, full of genius . . . It is also very funny' Elaine Feeney

'Her voice is all her own' Anne Enright