"By turns sad and bleakly comic . . . a fine, evocative memoir of a suburban 1980s childhood." —James Cook, The Times Literary Supplement
Praise for A Story That Happens
“A master class in surviving through art.” ― Margaret Gray, The Los Angeles Times
“Powerful . . . . This is a book for our times. It reminds us that theatre is ‘fractured and failing yet
struggling towards the mouth’s translation of the heart’s tongue’. Like [O’Brien], we buzz with
the desire for the ‘chance for more life, and for that most valued of theatrical currencies –
change’.” ― Alice Jolly, The Times Literary Supplement
"Subtly weaving between sometimes harrowing personal reminiscences and perceptive and
astute lessons on the art of dramatic writing, the book is a quiet revelation.” ― Caridad Svich,
Contemporary Theatre Review
Praise for Our Cancers
“Our Cancers is an excellent example of Shelley’s secret alchemy, which turns 'to potable gold
the poisonous waters which flow from death through life.' . . . Writing the truth, [O’Brien] says,
‘saved him.’ And it has produced an exquisite and terrible beauty in these pages.” ― Stephen
Wilson, The Times Literary Supplement
“O’Brien explains that his obligation as a writer is ‘To tell others the truth, as skillfully as
possible. To make art out of pain. To heal.’ Our Cancers tells his truth not only skillfully but
masterfully, making from pain a lasting chronicle of art that traces fragmentary moments of
healing over time.” ― J. D. Schraffenberger, North American Review
“These are sparse and beautiful poems to live by.” ― Sophie Thomas, Magma Poetry
Praise for War Reporter
“A masterpiece of truthfulness and feeling, and a completely sui generis addition not just to
writing about war but to contemporary poetry” ― Patrick McGuinness, The Guardian
Praise for The Body of an American
“Poetic . . . Truthful . . . A lyrical and poignant work of theater” ― Alexis Soloski, The New York
Times
“Hauntings, on a personal and national scale, guilt, obsession and depression form the subject
of this dense, knotty play . . . a play that tightens its grip as it probes where war lives, and
discovers we each carry it inside ourselves.” – The Guardian
“An engrossingly subjective docu-drama which feels psychologically acute and politically
important . . . a really superb piece of theatre.” – The Stage
Praise for The House in Scarsdale
“[A] tour-de-force…in an inexorable forward motion rife with adventure, anger, frustration, and
a certain joy of the chase.” – Stage Stuck
“Dan O’Brien has written an American gothic tale on a par with Pulitzer Prize winner Sam
Shepard’s best works.” – TheaterMania
