Joseph O’Connor, author of Star of the Sea and Redemption Falls, talks about his new novel, Ghost Light, the Irish diaspora, and why he doesn’t write historical fiction. The Aran Islands appeared recently on the cover of the New York Times magazine – green, quaintly barren, and lined with stone walls. The accompanying feature was by an Irish-American writer, John Jeremiah … [Read more...] about The Power of the Past: Joseph O’Connor
Literature
What Are You Like? Kevin Barry
Writer Kevin Barry on fancy chocolates, Cuchullain’s heroic diet, and naked seething ambition. Kevin Barry’s novel, City of Bohane, has just been published in the U.S. It was shortlisted for both the Irish Novel of the Year and the Costa First Novel Award in 2011. His debut story collection, There Are Little Kingdoms, was awarded the Rooney Prize for Irish Literature in 2007. … [Read more...] about What Are You Like? Kevin Barry
Review of Books
Recently published books of Irish and Irish-American interest. Recommended: Bloodland In a genre that may seem to have exhausted all possible plot-lines, Alan Glynn’s new thriller, Bloodland, is refreshingly unpredictable. An out of work journalist researching a dead socialite, an American senator attacked in the Congo, a drunk former-Taoiseach, and an Irish real estate … [Read more...] about Review of Books
Barney Rosset:
1922-2012
He helped change the course of publishing in the United States by championing avant-garde writers and beat poets. He defied censors in the 1960s by publishing D.H. Lawrence’s Lady Chatterley’s Lover and Henry Miller’s Tropic of Cancer. He brought European writers such as Jean Genet and Samuel Beckett under his Grove Press imprint. He passed away on February 21 at the age of 89. … [Read more...] about Barney Rosset:
1922-2012
Malcolm O’Hagan, Founder of the American Writers Museum
“It has to be spectacular or not at all,” said Malcolm O’Hagan, about the American Writers Museum he is founding to “help people understand the power of the word, how much it influences our culture and identity as a nation.” Born the day before St. Patrick’s Day in Co. Sligo, 71 years ago, O’Hagan, who holds a doctorate in engineering, admits that it wasn’t until he moved to … [Read more...] about Malcolm O’Hagan, Founder of the American Writers Museum