Category: Uncategorized

New York 18 Feb 2016

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Getting geared up for a visit to New York next week… I’ll be reading at CUNY Grad Centre (365 5th Avenue) on Thursday 18th February at 7pm. Hilary Mhic Suibhne from NYU will be introducing me and I’ll be reading some poems from Tost agus Allagar with translations. This bilingual event is kindly hosted by Tomás Ó hÍde and Lehman College, where I taught Gaelic as a Fulbright FLTA in 2007/08.

I’ll also be participating in the conference ‘Litríocht na Gaeilge agus Stair na hÉireann’ which will be held in Lehman College on 19 & 20 February. The papers on Friday will be delivered in English while those on Saturday will be as Gaeilge. You can check out the programme here. I’m particularly looking forward to the Fundraiser Dinner on Friday night where Eileen Houlihan Zurell and Séamus Blake will be honoured for their contribution to Irish life in New York. More information and tickets available here.

Finally, here is a pic of the New York launch of Péacadh fadó fadó…

 

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PS: Date for Galway launch – 25th February… More details to follow…

Book Cover

 

Very excited to see my book cover up on Coiscéim’s website. Many thanks to the artist, Chati Coronel, and Silverlens Galleries for the use of the image, ‘You are what you EAT YOUR IDOLS.’ Much praise is due to the exceptionally talented Eimear Ryan who designed the book (Eimear is a fiction writer – you can read her short story that was recently published in The Long Gaze Back and The Irish Times here.)  Thanks also to Nuala Ní Dhomhnaill and Marcus Mac Conghail for their kind blurbs.

Stay tuned for news of launch(es)…

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Manchu

Here is a link to an article in the New York Times today about Manchu, the language of the Qing dynasty empire. A poem I wrote about efforts to revive Manchu will be included in my new collection, Tost agus Allagar, to be published next month.

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The Stony Thursday Book

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Mary O’Donell is the editor of the 40th Anniversary Edition of The Stony Thursday Book, the poetry journal founded by John Liddy and Jim Burke . I’m very happy to have a poem included in this edition which was launched recently in Limerick city. There is a staggering amount of good poems here. I particularly enjoyed hearing work by Macdara Woods, Maggie Breen, Seán Ó Coistealbha and Úna Ní Cheallaigh at the launch.

My own poem is called ‘Dán do Thadhg’ (translated by Gabriel Rosenstock as ‘Poem for Tadhg’), written for my astonishingly gorgeous nephew. Can’t resist including a pic of the rogue here at Halloween…

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Dromineer Literary Festival

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I’m really looking forward to the Dromineer Literary Festival in Tipperary this weekend. Highlights include the Friday evening reading, George Szirtes, Thomas McCarthy, Pascale Petit and Billy Ramsell. There are workshops on Saturday and a reading by Breda Wall Ryan, Victoria Kennefick and Maeve O’Sullivan. On Sunday, Dave McAvinchey, Caitríona Ní Chléirchín and I will be performing at the Dánta Grádha Reading (Love Poems) with harpist Laura Hogan. There’s also a mindfulness event, a songwriting workshop, a play and a photography exhibition. You can view the full programme here.

What happened, Miss Simone?

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I wrote an article about the new Nina Simone documentary for the Irish Times – you can read it here. ‘What happened Miss Simone?’ is available through Netflix and it’s a good mixture of archival footage and talking heads. Her impassioned playing of ‘Mississippi Goddam’ and the events that inspired it is particularly poignant in light of the Charleston church shooting in June.

The inequality faced by African-Americans in the school system was the subject of a recent This American Life podcast called ‘The problem we all live with’. Simone herself faced discrimination when she was denied a scholarship to the Curtis Institute of Music. I also mention the Black Lives Matter movement as it is impossible to watch footage of Simone in the Civil Rights era and not think of Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown, Eric Garner and Tamir Rice…

Poetry Magazine

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Such a thrill to have two poems included in the Young Irish Poets September issue of Poetry, edited by Patrick Cotter. You can check out the table of contents here. 

Billy Ramsell translated both of my poems and ‘Filleadh ón Antarach’ is available to read online here.

I also contributed to the Reading List Blog where I mention the Selected Poems of Seán Ó Ríordáin, Scapegoat by Alan Gillis, and Full-Bodied Wine, a romp of a story that’s available to downloads for free from Smashwords.

RTE Arena and Merriman Summer School

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I was interviewed about the upcoming Merriman Summer School on RTE Radio 1’s arts show, Arena, on Wednesday 5 August. You an listen back here.

Linda Connolly is this year’s director of the Summer School and she has assembled a great programme on the theme of ‘Cumann agus Céileachas: Love and Marriage Revisited’ encompassing talks on literature, society, folklore, culture and a musical gala.

There are three free poetry readings as part of the Summer School in Glór theatre in Ennis, County Clare called Cúirt an Mheán Lae (12.15pm). I’m reading in English and Irish on Thursday the 13th August, Rita Ann Higgins is on Friday the 14th, and Doireann Ní Ghríofa is on Saturday the 15th.

The always entertaining Cónal Creedon will giving his take on the Summer School’s theme in a talk called ‘Love OR Marriage’ on Friday and Dónal Ryan will be interviewed by Doireann Ní Bhriain on Saturday. I’m particularly looking forward to hearing Máire Ní Annracháin and Pat Coughlan on Thursday morning.

The full programme is available here.

Twitter: @scoilsamhraidh

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