A powerfully written amalgamation of narrative nonfiction and investigative journalism, My Fourth Time We Drownedis compelling reading for a wide audience.”— Mail & Guardian

Kafka retold by an Irishwoman in Africa. Read this great book shedding light on a monstrous crime.” —John Sweeney, host of Hunting Ghislaine with John Sweeney My reading of this coincided with all of the recent news in the UK about the Tory government's renewed attempts to stop small boats of migrants crossing the Channel from Europe. The book was already on my radar following it winning the Orwell Prize for Political Writing 2022, and after reading the impressive The Naked Don't Fear the Water: A Journey Through the Refugee Underground last year. My Fourth Time, We Drowned casts light on a dark world that would be only too visible if we cared to look. These are stories that should be heard by everyone.” — Geographical Are all humans human?” Roméo Dallaire, who commanded the UN peacekeeping force during the 1994 Rwandan genocide, asked in a lecture some years later. “Or are some more human than others?” At the time of writing nearly four million people have left Ukraine since the Russian invasion. The overwhelming majority have been welcomed with enormous kindness and care.Hayden’s noteworthy book should be a wake-up call for international aid organizations and world leaders.” — Foreign Policy Readers should not flinch from [anger and embarrassment] but look it directly in the face, and let Hayden’s vital reporting make them reconsider their view of what makes a moral world.” — The Baffler This is the fourth year that The Orwell Prize for Political Fiction, sponsored by the Orwell Estate’s literary agents, A. M. Heath, and Orwell’s son, Richard Blair, has been awarded. The prize rewards outstanding novels and collections of short stories first published in the UK that illuminate major social and political themes, present or past, through the art of narrative. Zeno, Ade. "I messaggi dall'inferno libico e la disgustosa ipocrisia dell'Ue"[The messages from Libyan hell and the disgusting hypocrisy of the EU]. EditorialeDomani.it (in Italian).

An incredible, heart-wrenching, journalistic look at migration from North Africa to Europe, sparing none of the pain of these people's stories. Hayden's straightforward prose hides nothing, from the awful conditions to the ineffectiveness (to put it kindly) of the UN's aid organizations. Be prepared for everything awful that can happen to a person including torture, rape, and death. An essential portrait of a crisis of unfathomable proportions, one that you can only hope will sway those in power to do something. Anything.” — Hippocampus magazine

Success!

What is your current project?: I have a few reporting assignments coming up for The Irish Times and two book ideas that I’m slowly developing. The Orwell Prize for Exposing Britain’s Social Evils 2022: The Cost of Covid – Burnley Crisis by Ed Thomas (BBC News)

Both Sally Hayden and Claire Keegan have, in very different ways, written gripping stories about things that should alarm us: there are awful truths right at the heart of our societies and systems,” Jean Seaton, the director of the Orwell Foundation, said. “However, in their wit, elegance and compassion, these powerful winning books also help us think about the choices we make, and how to make the future better. Orwell would be proud.” Het is geen verhaal om vrolijk van te worden en het toont nog maar eens aan hoe complex en quasi onoplosbaar dit probleem is. I frantically underlined journalist Sally Hayden’s first book, My Fourth Time, We Drowned… Readers should … let Hayden’s vital reporting make them reconsider their view of what makes a moral world.” —The Baffler An insider’s account of the rampant misconduct within the Trump administration, including the tumult surrounding the insurrection of Jan. 6, 2021.Hayden has written for The BBC, [6] TIME, [7] The Guardian, [8] Newsweek, The Washington Post, [9] Al Jazeera, CNN International, NBC News, Channel 4 News, The New York Times, [10] Thomson Reuters Foundation News, Magnum Photos, The Irish Times, [11] The Financial Times, The Daily Telegraph, [12] RTÉ. [5] In 2014, she was staff writer with VICE News. [5] I haven’t followed her before, but thought to learn about this, since pretty much daily, it’s reported in the UK news about refugees, migrant crisis, asylum seekers, boats entering from France, people dying trying to cross Sea(s), as well as the bad conditions in detention centres. It was about time for me to dig deeper and learn more. The painful themes from this formidable book are skillfully written about by Sally Hayden…” — New Lines Magazine Claire Keegan accepts the 2022 Kerry Group Irish Novel of the Year prize, one of the most prestigious prizes in Irish literature, worth €20,000, last month at Listowel Writers' Week Both Sally Hayden and Claire Keegan have, in very different ways, written gripping stories about things that should alarm us: there are awful truths right at the heart of our societies and systems. However, in their wit, elegance and compassion, these powerful winning books also help us think about the choices we make, and how to make the future better. Orwell would be proud.