Kathleen Anne Kenney’s debut novel, Girl on the Leeside, is set in present day rural Ireland. Being born into a large Irish-American family to parents who were avid readers, writers, and interested in travel and history was the perfect wellspring for a writer, as the family was immersed in literature, music, and history. Her parents were generous of spirit, funny and loving, and intensely curious about the world. Kenney is a novelist and playwright with an M.A. in English Literature and Language. She has had several plays presented at Minnesota theatres and was awarded an individual artist grant from the Southeastern Minnesota Arts Council for “The Ghost of an Idea,” a play about Charles Dickens. Her writing has appeared in several regional magazines and newspapers.