Ana Kinsella

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Photograph: Sophie Davidson

Books

Books

Ana Kinsella is an Irish writer living in London. As a journalist she has written for the Guardian, Frieze, Dazed, n+1, AnOther and others. She studied at Trinity College Dublin and Central Saint Martins. Her first book, LOOK HERE: ON THE PLEASURES OF OBSERVING THE CITY, was published by Daunt Books in May 2022.

Praise for LOOK HERE (2022):

'I loved strolling through London with Ana Kinsella, noticing all the things she notices, what people are wearing on the Tube or at the Tate Modern, listening in on her chats with the locals, reading about the history of Embankment, the privatization of public spaces, or the pandemic passeggiata. And the shoes! A whole anthropology of London through its footwear. Look Here renewed my desire to get up and out into the streets of the city I now call home, but not without first practicing that other great and under-appreciated act of joy and self-determination: deciding what to wear when I hit the pavement.' Lauren Elkin, author of Flâneuse

'[An] idiosyncratic mashup of interviews, memoir and flanerie, all shaped by the same sharp, empathic gaze that characterises her loyally followed newsletter, The London Review of Looks. Here is a book to make you love London – with all its synchronicity and serendipity, with the sheer sense of possibility generated by being part of a population of 9.5 million. To traverse its twisting streets, she writes, is “to move through time itself” – and not just history but personal history, too.' Hephzibah Anderson, Observer

'I loved Look Here for for many reasons, in particular, for allowing us into Kinsella's shifting embodied and emotional experience of the city as a space in which we can deepen our understanding the world and also, ourselves. A nuanced and intimate portrait of a life lived in cities in distinctive and gorgeous prose that kept me eagerly turning pages to see where Kinsella would take me next.' Rebecca May Johnson, author of Small Fires: An Epic in the Kitchen

Look Here is a luminous ode to cities and their people. Sharp and precise, yet full of feeling, Ana’s unique, infectious way of seeing the world transforms the most mundane train ride or walk into an act of creativity. This wonderful book is an invigorating reminder that style is not only about fashion or tends, but an essential, timeless form of self-expression for everyone, everywhere.’ Lisa Owens, author of Not Working

‘A quiet, thoughtful homage to London life in all its kaleidoscopic glory. Above all, this is an ode to the simple, but rewarding pleasures of people-watching. Time spent pounding the pavement in Kinsella’s company is time well spent.’ Jini Reddy, author of Wanderland

'It’s a gentle, meandering but compelling read – I saw my own city through new eyes, its sparkle, its dark corners and felt that Ana had captured both its effervescence and its quietude. I felt drawn in, somehow a willing, readerly witness to her lone perambulations. The city’s embrace. It felt both familiar and strange, the words as carefully paced as her footsteps as she walked the city, saying "on we go".' Claire Wilcox, author of Patch Work