As she nears 80, Mary O’Rourke reflects on her life and its universal themes through letters.

To the Athlone Fianna Fáil Women’s Group … to a future female politician … to a young couple embracing on a bridge … to a past professor … to a niece in America …

On the eve of her 80th birthday, Mary O’Rourke has written a letter to 20 people, past and present, close and distant, living and deceased. Every letter is heartfelt; every letter offers gratitude for the difference the recipient made to Mary’s life. At once universal and deeply personal, Letters of My Life offers an illuminating insight into one of Ireland’s best-loved figures.