In this beloved, bestselling novel which has been unavailable for some time, young Draper Doyle Ryan tries to come to terms with the mysterious death of his father as he struggles, in touching, comic fashion, with budding adolescence and the strange demands of his proudly eccentric family.

When first published in 1990, The Divine Ryans received unanimous critical praise and won the Thomas Raddall Atlantic Fiction Award; Wayne Johnston himself was hailed as one of Canada's most distinctive comic talents.

Wayne Johnston is the author of several novels. He has won many prestigious awards for his work including the Books in Canada First Novel Award for his debut novel, The Story of Bobby O'Malley, the Canadian Authors Association Award for Most Promising Young Writer, and the Thomas Head Raddall Fiction Award for The Divine Ryans. Both The Colony of Unrequited Dreams and The Navigator of New York spent extended periods of time on bestseller lists in Canada and have also been published in the US, Britain, Germany, Holland, China and Spain. Colony was identified by the Globe and Mail newspaper as one of the 100 most important Canadian books ever produced (including both fiction and non-fiction).

Wayne Johnston's profile page

"Johnston is an authentic comic genius. . . . His timing and pacing are impeccable. He knows how to . . . create laughter out of a wonderful mixture of emotions."
—The Montreal Gazette

"A very funny and fulfilling read."
—The Globe and Mail
"Divine reading indeed . . . a work of art in its powerful handling of everyday humour and sublime tragedy."
—St. John's Sunday Express

"The Divine Ryans [has] heart, soul and brains. . . . An absolute stunner—achingly funny, needle sharp and packing an unexpected wallop."
—Time Out (UK)