A confession: despite my pledge to read and review #SomeBooksofSummer-ish, I just couldn’t get on with Lisa McInerney’s Baileys Prize-winning debut novel The Glorious Heresies. It’s not you, Lisa, it’s me. Heresies is set in Cork city, where I am more or less from. Not only that, chunks of it take place in my side of… Read More The Glorious Heresies (not really) reviewed
Thinking about my review of The Reader on the 6.27 by Jean-Paul Didierlaurent, the phrase that continuously sprang to mind was ‘very French’. The blurb on the back cover (which I always avoid until after I’ve read a book) compares it to the film Amélie, which was precisely the comparison that kept coming to me. The Reader is similarly warm and… Read More The Reader on the 6.27 reviewed
There was one massive news topic on the literary landscape this week, and that was the controversial keynote speech given by US author Lionel Shriver (We Need to Talk About Kevin) at the Brisbane Writers Festival on the subject of ‘fiction and identity politics’. Far from taking the stance of inclusion expected by the festival organisers, Shriver spoke… Read More The weekly herding: we need to talk about Lionel
Heartbreaking and beautiful, The Light Between Oceans by ML Stedman is one of those perfectly pitched, sweeping period novels you only come across every so often. The story begins in 1918, with young WWI veteran Tom Sherbourne recently returned to his native Australia after serving in the trenches in France. Though uninjured, he is tortured by his memories and… Read More The Light Between Oceans reviewed
I’ve read some very moving editorials today marking the 15th anniversary of 9/11. Given the day that’s in it, I thought I’d share a couple of them instead of my usual writing round-up. Sometimes true stories are more remarkable than anything we can make up. One is a first-hand account in the Independent, which captures the panic and… Read More The weekly herding: 9/11
If you live in the Cork area, you might be interested in a pretty special one-day writing day coming up on September 17. Led by the wonderful Laura McKenna (who facilitates the writing class/group I’m in – we’re not sure how to define ourselves anymore. Collective?) and award-winning poet Afric McGlinchey, it takes place in Glenville Park, a rustic country house… Read More Cork creative writing and poetry workshop
Despite the undeniable glamour of being a Blog Awards contender, I’ve sadly neglected my blogeen of late. But it’s back-on-track time now – back to school, back to the fire, back to the drawing board. That also means back to the weekly herding of any gems I come across in my eternal quest for writing-related tips.… Read More The weekly herding: warnings and advice
