Home Stretch: The powerful Sunday Times bestselling novel of exile and belonging from the author of FRANKIE

Name: Home Stretch: The powerful Sunday Times bestselling novel of exile and belonging from the author of FRANKIE
Rating: 4.557575702667236 (165 reviews)

Graham Norton

Oct 2020 · Hachette UK

165 reviews

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368

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Eligible

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Home Stretch: the moving, wise story of shame, acceptance and finding your way back home
'Full of heart and humanity . . . I loved every single page'
ELIZABETH DAY

'Beautiful and heartbreaking'
PANDORA SYKES

'Intelligent and tenderly observed'
THE TIMES

It is 1987 and a small Irish community is shattered by a terrible accident. Young Connor is one of the survivors, but staying among the angry and the mourning is more than he can bear. He leaves the only place he knows, taking his secrets with him.

Travelling first to Liverpool, then London, he eventually makes a home for himself in New York. The city provides shelter and possibility, somewhere Connor can forget his past and start a new life. But the longings and regrets that have come to haunt those left behind will not be silenced. And before long, Connor will have to confront his past.

'A subtle portrait of small-town Ireland . . . a kind, wise, perceptive novel'
DAVID MITCHELL

'The kind of warmth and magical storytelling that puts me in mind of the late, great Maeve Binchy . . . a writer of real strength and talent'
LORRAINE KELLY

'One of those books that stays with you so long after you've finished it'
NIGELLA LAWSON

Readers adore Home Stretch

'A treasure of a book' ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐

'A story that will stay with me for a long time' ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐

'Honest, moving, unputdownable. I didn't want it to finish' ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐

'The best yet. The writing is so beautiful' ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐

Home Stretch: the moving, wise story of shame, acceptance and finding your way back home 'Full of heart and humanity . . . I loved every single page' ELIZABETH DAY 'Beautiful and heartbreaking' PANDORA SYKES 'Intelligent and tenderly observed' THE TIMES It is 1987 and a small Irish communit...

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Ratings and reviews

165 reviews

Kay Julian

July 9, 2026

Insightful, beautifully written, with richly portrayed characters, I loved this book. It made me laugh and brought tears to my eyes. I look forward to reading your next novel.

Debbie Worship

July 17, 2024

Another masterpiece from Graham Norton. He creates such profound characters that, love them or hate them, you are totally invested in what happens to them. I couldn't put this one down. An inspiring story beautifully told.

Grace J. Reviewerlady

October 1, 2020

Smart, sophisticated and very satisfying - this is a memorable read! When a car goes off the road in a small town in Cork, the reverberations have long lasting effects. With three dead, the community make it clear they have no place for young Connor, the driver, among them. So he is packed off to Liverpool, then London, he eventually makes half a life for himself in New York, but always wonders about those he left behind, whilst his family mourn the loss of a son and a brother. But things are never are clear-cut as the first appear, and there are secrets which have been buried - but for how long? In his latest novel, Graham Norton has really brought his writing talents to the fore and shows himself to be a skilled and talented author. Adroitly planned, the secrets are well hidden and revealed in a timely manner. This is such a compelling story, demanding the reader's full attention from the very first and entertaining all the way through. A tale of a changing Ireland, beautifully told and completely original; the kind of book I particularly love as I could finish reading with a sigh of total satisfaction. Such an inspiring and multi-layered novel demands no less than the full five sparkling stars which I'm delighted to give it, along with my highest recommendation to all those who love an absorbing story.

14 people found this review helpful

About the author

Graham Norton is the author of five hugely successful novels, all of which have been bestsellers in the UK and Ireland and have won or been shortlisted for the An Post Irish Book Awards. His writing has won him critical acclaim in media and from the literary community across the world. Graham's debut novel Holding was made into a high-profile TV drama in 2022, and Home Stretch and Forever Home have both been optioned for major TV series. He is a five-time BAFTA TV Award winner for The Graham Norton Show, which has been running for almost two decades, and is known internationally for commentating on the Eurovision Song Contest and as a recurring judge on RuPaul's Drag Race UK.Graham Norton is one of the UK's most treasured comedians and presenters. Born in Clondalkin, a suburb of Dublin, Norton's first big TV appearance was as Father Noel Furlong on Channel 4's Father Ted in the early 1990s. He then secured a prime time slot on Channel 4 with his chat shows So Graham Norton and V Graham Norton. Known for his quick wit Graham began hosting a variety of talent shows on BBC One from Strictly Dance Fever and Andrew Lloyd Webber's How Do You Solve A Problem Like Maria? to The Eurovision Song Contest and BAFTAs. Graham was soon approached by the BBC to front his own self-titled chat show The Graham Norton Show in 2007. Graham Norton has won 9 BAFTAs for Best Entertainment Performance, and Best Entertainment Programme. He presents The Graham Norton Show on BBC1, a show on BBC Radio 2 every Saturday, and is a judge on RuPaul's Drag Race UK. Norton won the Special Recognition Award at the National Television Awards in 2017.Graham's third novel will be published in hardback, eBook, and audiobook in October.

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