Biographies getting props
New nonfiction takes are drawing praise: Gerard Shannon’s Rory O’Connor biography is getting called ‘rigorous’ and Richard Munson’s Ingenious — a Benjamin Franklin bio focused on his science — is being highlighted in recent roundups. (x.com) (x.com) (x.com)
Gerard Shannon’s Rory O’Connor: To Defend the Republic is being published as the first full biography of the IRA leader, issued by Irish Academic Press / Merrion Press with a February 2026 release. (irishacademicpress.ie) Retail listings and library catalogues list the book under ISBN 9781785375842 and show a Merrion/Irish Academic Press imprint date of 12 February 2026. (blackwells.co.uk) Irish outlets have carried feature coverage and longer reviews since January and February, and the title was discussed on RTÉ’s Today programme when Gerard Shannon appeared to talk about his archival research and the book’s reappraisal of O’Connor. (chaptersbookstore.com) A Belfast launch for Shannon’s biography is scheduled at Áras Uí Chonghaile on 14 May 2026, according to regional event listings tied to the book’s release. (belfastmedia.com) Richard Munson’s Ingenious: A Biography of Benjamin Franklin, Scientist was published by W. W. Norton on Nov. 12, 2024 and the hardcover edition is listed at roughly 256 pages. (kirkusreviews.com) Major reviews and science coverage frame Munson’s argument that Franklin’s scientific work—electricity experiments, inventions and public science writing—served as the through-line that expanded his reputation and enabled his diplomacy. (sciencenews.org) Munson’s book has been picked up in roundups and review outlets including Kirkus, Science News and BookPage for emphasizing Franklin’s experimental methods and practical inventions rather than only his political life. (kirkusreviews.com)
