Meet Stephanie Agnew!
The Secret Diary of Stephanie Agnew is a coming-of-age diary novel by Angeline King.
Stephanie's life could well be a fairytale of romance, charm and poetry, but it's Northern Ireland in the summer of 1995, so there are family disputes and identity clashes aplenty!
This page, a scrapbook dedicated to the novel, includes short diary excerpts and critical responses. Read on to learn more...or click 'start reading'.
Stephanie's Diary Excerpts
7 June 1995
I have lived at the cold, hard edge of Ballygally for a year and a half and did not know that the land here and beyond for many miles back towards Larne was associated with the Ó Gnímh family. Rita has brought a whole new dimension to my life.
Tonight, I walked home in the footprints of poets.
18 June 1995
A soft light illuminated the stairwell as a set of black eyes stared back at me.
Jesus!
There I was lying on Adrian McClements’ stairs in the arms of a three-foot-tall black Jesus carved from oak, and every Protestant bone in my body stiffened from the shock of it.
17 July 1995
We were on the cusp of an anarchic encounter, but he was the conjurer and patient. He clicked play on his CD player, smiled and sang in a formidable voice, ‘There’s a song playing on the radio...’
I can still hear him as I sit here, tortured and expectant in the room allocated to me by a twenty-one-year-old nationalist with a voice like an indie rockstar and Presbyterian minister. I must wait and sample his fine cuisine before jumping off any more rocks holding his hand.
11 August 1995
It’s been a long day, dear Rosie. Tonight, before I go to sleep, I’ll plait your long red hair in ribbons and send you tiptoeing in white gutties across the stars. Just one time so that you can see that you were never meant to be like me or Karen, for you are Rosie McQuillan, descendant of Rory McQuillan of Binn Mhaol Ruairí, the woman in bare feet who set Agnew’s Hill alight in oils and then ripped up the sky.
I have lived at the cold, hard edge of Ballygally for a year and a half and did not know that the land here and beyond for many miles back towards Larne was associated with the Ó Gnímh family. Rita has brought a whole new dimension to my life.
Tonight, I walked home in the footprints of poets.
18 June 1995
A soft light illuminated the stairwell as a set of black eyes stared back at me.
Jesus!
There I was lying on Adrian McClements’ stairs in the arms of a three-foot-tall black Jesus carved from oak, and every Protestant bone in my body stiffened from the shock of it.
17 July 1995
We were on the cusp of an anarchic encounter, but he was the conjurer and patient. He clicked play on his CD player, smiled and sang in a formidable voice, ‘There’s a song playing on the radio...’
I can still hear him as I sit here, tortured and expectant in the room allocated to me by a twenty-one-year-old nationalist with a voice like an indie rockstar and Presbyterian minister. I must wait and sample his fine cuisine before jumping off any more rocks holding his hand.
11 August 1995
It’s been a long day, dear Rosie. Tonight, before I go to sleep, I’ll plait your long red hair in ribbons and send you tiptoeing in white gutties across the stars. Just one time so that you can see that you were never meant to be like me or Karen, for you are Rosie McQuillan, descendant of Rory McQuillan of Binn Mhaol Ruairí, the woman in bare feet who set Agnew’s Hill alight in oils and then ripped up the sky.
Reviews
"Angeline King journals the joyful, mischievous, innocent and infectious voice of teenager Stephanie Agnew, coming of age in the testing terrain of Northern Ireland in 1995. Stephanie has the same crazy daydreams as many of her age: good grades and romance, and poetic ambitions she delves deeper into a love of language, her locale’s fascinating history and an awakening to Ireland’s complex and shared history."
NJ McCarrigle, The Irish Times
"Utterly romantic and very funny. I enjoyed the carefully drawn mixture of light-hearted pathos and the 1990’s Ulster-specific anxiety surrounding the tension between causing offence and remaining authentic to your identity."
Shirley-Anne McMillan, Grapefruit Moon
"Stephanie’s poetic sensibility reveals the area’s historical layers of identity where Gaelic and Scots, unionist and nationalist, Scottish and Irish culture vie with each other but unite in Stephanie’s imagination to create a multi-faceted identity which soars beyond stark stereotypes. An engaging read for anyone fascinated by the shared cultures of Ireland and Scotland."
Billy Kay, author of Scots: The Mither Tongue
"Stephanie is earnest, bright, guiless and prone to mishaps..."
"This bright and often touching book is a worth addition to the mosaic of Troubles novels that are so important for our own understanding of the past, especially given that its Ulster-Scots perspective is still largely underrepresented. Louder, more commercial voices may, however, drown out this quiet tale, which would be a shame but also a mistake. In Northern Ireland, the need still exists to acknowledge experiences that are not our own. If we do, then we — like Stephanie — may be able to fully embrace reconciliation and respect."
Deborah Neill, Fortnight, Issue 498
"Everything she writes is a celebration of the twistiness of place. The fusion of cultures and languages. A love for our differences as well as our common human experiences."
Claire Mitchell, The Ghost Limb
NJ McCarrigle, The Irish Times
"Utterly romantic and very funny. I enjoyed the carefully drawn mixture of light-hearted pathos and the 1990’s Ulster-specific anxiety surrounding the tension between causing offence and remaining authentic to your identity."
Shirley-Anne McMillan, Grapefruit Moon
"Stephanie’s poetic sensibility reveals the area’s historical layers of identity where Gaelic and Scots, unionist and nationalist, Scottish and Irish culture vie with each other but unite in Stephanie’s imagination to create a multi-faceted identity which soars beyond stark stereotypes. An engaging read for anyone fascinated by the shared cultures of Ireland and Scotland."
Billy Kay, author of Scots: The Mither Tongue
"Stephanie is earnest, bright, guiless and prone to mishaps..."
"This bright and often touching book is a worth addition to the mosaic of Troubles novels that are so important for our own understanding of the past, especially given that its Ulster-Scots perspective is still largely underrepresented. Louder, more commercial voices may, however, drown out this quiet tale, which would be a shame but also a mistake. In Northern Ireland, the need still exists to acknowledge experiences that are not our own. If we do, then we — like Stephanie — may be able to fully embrace reconciliation and respect."
Deborah Neill, Fortnight, Issue 498
"Everything she writes is a celebration of the twistiness of place. The fusion of cultures and languages. A love for our differences as well as our common human experiences."
Claire Mitchell, The Ghost Limb
What inspired the book?
The discovery that Larne was once poetic land, owned by the Ó Gnímh bards of Kilwaughter, who also went by the name Agnew. It was written as part of a PhD project.
Is this suitable for teen readers?
Absolutely. The protagonist is 18 years old. While the novel is humorous and romantic, it is also educational. It was written for adults, but it is suited to an educational environment (ideally Key Stage 5). In fact, The Secret Diary of Stephanie Agnew addresses the shortage (absence?) of Protestant and 'British' voices in Irish fiction — Stephanie's father is in the Orange Order, and her mother is a Girls' Brigade captain. It likewise addresses the dearth of literary material for teaching contemporary Ulster Scots literature. (The Ulster Scots in his novel is akin to dialect instead of language, so it is light).This is not young adult fiction, so you would consider the novel with students in the same light as a dialect novel like Alice Walker's The Colour Purple.
How does it connect to Northern Irish history?
The novel provides historical information gleaned from primary and secondary research on the Scottish Agnew family, who came to County Antrim at the time of the Ulster Plantation. It also investigates the likely Scottish roots of the Gaelic bardic family, Ó Gnímh. The novel addresses language and the interaction between Gaelic (both Irish and Scottish) and Scots in the 1600s (now Ulster Scots).
The discovery that Larne was once poetic land, owned by the Ó Gnímh bards of Kilwaughter, who also went by the name Agnew. It was written as part of a PhD project.
Is this suitable for teen readers?
Absolutely. The protagonist is 18 years old. While the novel is humorous and romantic, it is also educational. It was written for adults, but it is suited to an educational environment (ideally Key Stage 5). In fact, The Secret Diary of Stephanie Agnew addresses the shortage (absence?) of Protestant and 'British' voices in Irish fiction — Stephanie's father is in the Orange Order, and her mother is a Girls' Brigade captain. It likewise addresses the dearth of literary material for teaching contemporary Ulster Scots literature. (The Ulster Scots in his novel is akin to dialect instead of language, so it is light).This is not young adult fiction, so you would consider the novel with students in the same light as a dialect novel like Alice Walker's The Colour Purple.
How does it connect to Northern Irish history?
The novel provides historical information gleaned from primary and secondary research on the Scottish Agnew family, who came to County Antrim at the time of the Ulster Plantation. It also investigates the likely Scottish roots of the Gaelic bardic family, Ó Gnímh. The novel addresses language and the interaction between Gaelic (both Irish and Scottish) and Scots in the 1600s (now Ulster Scots).
FAQs
‘Alas for him who has followed his family profession…’
‘The Passing of the Old Order’
Fear Flatha Ó Gnímh (c.1570–c.1645)
‘It is the first day of spring. The council have chopped all the elms down in Elm Tree Avenue.’
The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole Aged 13 ¾
Sue Townsend (1946-2014)
‘Greedy, convulsive, in a jealous agony, she raced for knowledge, panting.’
The Quarry Wood
Nan Shepherd (1893-1981)
About Angeline King
More information on Angeline King can be found here. This about page includes a third person bio, which you are welcome to use for literary festivals or media. The photographs may also be used for any agreed activities.
More information on Angeline's books can be found on her Amazon Page. It is important to note that my books have not been part of organised review campaigns or promotional programmes by Amazon. They have reached readers organically over time, e.g. through literary festivals, media interviews and my own promotional activities, and are supported by independent bookshops, like The Secret Bookshelf and Booknook.
More information on Angeline's books can be found on her Amazon Page. It is important to note that my books have not been part of organised review campaigns or promotional programmes by Amazon. They have reached readers organically over time, e.g. through literary festivals, media interviews and my own promotional activities, and are supported by independent bookshops, like The Secret Bookshelf and Booknook.
