Gordon Snell, a writer whose children's books were published in Canada and the United States and who was married to the Irish novelist Maeve Binchy, has died at 93.
A transatlantic literary partnership
Snell wrote more than 40 books published in Ireland, England, Australia, Canada and the USA and adapted for BBC and RTE radio and television programmes. His work reached North American readers through publishers on both sides of the Atlantic, and Binchy's novels such as Circle of Friends built a devoted following in Canada and the United States.
Best known for his children's stories, Snell's first, The King of Quizzical Island, was published in 1978. It was while he was working for the BBC in London in the 1970s that he met Maeve Binchy, who was working for The Irish Times. They married in 1977 and the couple later moved back to Dalkey in Dublin to a house close to where she grew up with her parents. They were married for 35 years, until her death in 2012.
Children's books reached North American readers
An only child, Snell was born and raised in Singapore and attended boarding school in Australia. In a statement, the Echoes Maeve Binchy Literary Festival, which takes place in Dalkey every October, said the couple "spent their very happily married lives together writing heartfelt dedications to each other in their books & entertaining each other with stories. "Our consolation is that they are reunited together now in love & laughter."
Publisher Ivan O'Brien described Snell as "creative, imaginative and a true gent". O'Brien's press published a number of his books, including The Supermarket Ghost and Amy's Wonderful Nest. Mr O'Brien said: "He genuinely loved telling stories, particularly silly ones, and collaborated richly with his editors and illustrators. "Gordon knew the value and importance of books for children and the world of children's books will be poorer without him."
Binchy's agent, Christine Green, described him as a "hugely talented writer", adding: "He was funny and clever and wise and generous: the world is a chiller place with his passing." Ms Green said: "He loved his adopted country and it loved him back." She described his marriage to Circle of Friends writer Binchy as "close and loving" and said "when she died, he missed her every single day for the rest of his life". Snell died peacefully on Wednesday morning.