Due to asphyxiation at birth, Christopher was born with permanent impairment of his "nerve-signalling system, a condition he said is now labelled dystonia".
He played games with Christopher, the toddler, and in so doing noted the child anticipated his actions and informed his mother that he was of sound mind.
When he was young, his father told him stories and read passages from James Joyce, Samuel Beckett and D. H. Lawrence to keep his mind stimulated.
[citation needed] He wrote an account of his childhood, Under the Eye of the Clock, published by St. Martin's Press, which won him the UK's Whitbread Book of the Year Award in 1987 at the age of 21.
[7] It was inspired, he told Publishers Weekly, by the image of "an old woman holding up her skirts as she made ready to jump a rut in a field.
She reviews the book and relates it to James Joyce's Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, in the story, the protagonist leaves his mother in Ireland while he moves on to travel the world.
"And so, in the end, one suspects that he wants Minnie's good-natured, commonplace ways to stand as their own achievement, reminding us that life continues in the places left behind.
"[7] While working on a new novel, on 20 February 2009, Nolan died suddenly, aged 43, in Beaumont hospital in Dublin, after a piece of salmon became trapped in his airway.
[citation needed] Irish president Mary McAleese, upon hearing the news, said:[7] Christopher Nolan was a gifted writer who attained deserved success and acclaim throughout the world for his work, his achievements all the more remarkable given his daily battle with cerebral palsy.Minister for Arts Martin Cullen TD reflected that people should draw inspiration from Nolan's life.
Although an autobiography, it is narrated by a fictional character named Joseph Meehan who details Nolan's life as a third-person biography.
Under the Eye of the Clock shows how Nolan's parents engaged him in conversation and outdoor activities like hiking and horseback riding.
Critics also point out that Nolan's distinct writing style omits articles and uses participle construction other than relative clauses.
The novel spans 80 years of Minnie's life, cutting from present to past to show the individuality of a woman and a mother who is determined to save the family's farm.
"[10] Dam-Burst of Dreams (published 1981), provided Nolan critical acclaim that compared him to the works of W. B. Yeats and James Joyce.
"[2] Nolan's enthusiasm for literature however was largely attributed to his father's appreciation of James Joyce, Samuel Beckett, and D. H. Lawrence.
Rock band U2, whose members attended school with Nolan, wrote their song "Miracle Drug" (from How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb) about him.
Nolan declined the offer and responded:[7] I want to highlight the creativity within the brain of a cripple [...] and while not attempting to hide the crippledom I want instead to filter all sob-storied sentiment from his portrait and dwell upon his life, his laughter, his vision, and his nervous normality.