Anthony Canavan grew up in North Belfast during the Troubles, in which he lost both family members and friends through violence. He attended St Malachy's College before going on to Queen's University Belfast, where he studied history and politics. After graduating from QUB, he began his career as the Curator of Newry Museum in County Down. While there, he wrote "Frontier Town, an illustrated history of Newry", which was shortlisted for an Irish Book Award in 1990. On his marriage in 1996, he moved to Dublin, where he began work as a freelance editor and reviewer before joining Books Ireland magazine. He is currently Consultant Editor with Books Ireland, after serving as the magazine's editor for a number of years. He is also a regular contributor to History Ireland magazine, and over the years he has written articles for academic books and other publications on history, culture, film, and literature.