Poetry Launch - Strange Familiar by Catherine Ann Cullen

If you are around town on Thursday night and fancy attending a poetry book launch, why not pop into Trinity at 6.30 for a literary evening.


The launch of Strange Familiar , Catherine Ann Cullen's second poetry collection is to be held in the Neill/ Hoey Lecture Theatre in the Trinity Long Room Hub which is the new building by the Nassau Street gate, between the Arts block and the 'Book of Kells' building. The launch speech is to be given by esteemed poet Theo Dorgan.

Sample piece from Strange Familiar

Johnny Cash Sings Hurt

You creak out this last confession
walking a sound between prayer and sob,
eyes looking death in the face,
heart on its last throb.

You've always known these bars
you're breaking through, these blues,
the man in black depression,
nothing easy now, all blood and bruise,
mouth twisted into a wound
from which the dark words ooze.

An old train whistles past.
A finger flares on a string.
You trawl the heart's tracks for a last line,
crawl through a burning ring.

Published by Doghouse books in Tralee, Co. Kerry www.doghousebooks.ie

Any good at Haikus? The Royal Canal Haiku Competition 2013

Ever written a Haiku? Ever wanted to write one? Well how about entering a competition to challenge and broadcast your talents. The common practices of Haiku are the use of three lines and seventeen syllables (usually 5-7-5) to create a short poem with allusion to nature or the seasons. But not all haiku adhere to this strict syllable count and many variations can be found.
 

The Royal Canal Haiku Competition 2013,
in association with Haiku Ireland

Haiku Ireland (www.haiku-ireland.com) are delighted to announce the launch of a Haiku Competition in association with the Dublin City North Volunteer Centre (http://www.volunteerdublincitynorth.ie/).

The Centre is planning a Royal Canal Day on Saturday 12 October 2013, which will involve cleaning up the canal as well as celebrating the life and local stories of the canal. For this event, it has been decided to hold a haiku competition on the following theme: canal and city waterways.

Prizes (cash and haiku publications) will be awarded to the winners and the winning haiku will be painted on a wall along the canal.

1. Rules

1.1 Applicants

Eligibility: this competition is open to all (judges excluded) and there is no submission fee.

1.2 Theme

The theme for all entries is canal and city waterways. These words do not have to be in the entry but the theme is to be present in all entries.

1.3 Entries

All entries must be submitted by e-mail to the following address haikuireland@gmail.com with the following subject: Royal Canal Haiku Competition 2013.

-The author's full name, age and postal address must be included.

-Each applicant can enter up to three haiku poems, in one single e-mail posting.

-Entries may be submitted in any language but an English version must be provided. Judges will determine the winners based on English-language versions. All rights revert to the authors after publication of the results.

-All entries must be original to the author and cannot have been previously published. Haiku submissions to this competition cannot be sent to any other publications for consideration until after the announcement of the winners (12 October 2013). Publication is defined as an appearance in a printed book, magazine, or journal (sold or given away), or in any online journal that presents edited periodic content.

2. Deadline

Entries must comply with the above rules and be received by 30 September 2013 (midnight, GMT).

3.         Judges

Gilles Fabre. Gilles Fabre is the editor of the independent bilingual site Haiku Spirit and his haiku have been published in Ireland, France, UK, USA, Japan, Australia, Belgium, India and Canada. Gilles is a founder member of Haiku Ireland and has won the Museum of Haiku Literature Award (British Haiku Society). Because of a Seagull, his first collection published by the Fishing Cat Press, received international critical acclaim.

 

Maeve O'Sullivan. Maeve O'Sullivan has published her haiku and poems very widely, and some have won awards and been anthologised. Her first collection of haiku, Initial Response, was published in 2011 by Alba Publishing and was well-received. Her second collection, Changing the River, will be forthcoming from Alba in 2014. Maeve is a founder member of Haiku Ireland and conducts workshops in haiku with adults and children.

4. Prizes

The winners' results are to be announced on October 12, 2013.

Grand Prize to one winner: €100, and a selection of haiku publications. The winning haiku will be painted on a wall along the canal (by entering the competition, the applicant agrees to this). Second Prize: €50, and a selection of haiku publications. Third Prize: €25, and a selection of haiku publications.

5. Haiku Guidelines

Entries do not need to follow a strict syllable count or to be in three lines. A haiku is a short poem that conveys the essence of an experience of nature or the season intuitively linked to the human condition. Visit Haiku Spirit (www.haikuspirit.org) for more information on haiku, samples and links.

6. Suggested Entry Format

This suggested format includes all requested information.

E-mail subject: Royal Canal Haiku Competition 2013

E-mail text body: 

Full name (i.e. name/surname and first name):

Age:

Postal Address (including country of residence):

E-mail address:

Entries (maximum of 3):

1. 

....

English version of Entry 1 (if applicable):

....

2.

....

English version of Entry 2 (if applicable):

....

3.

....

           

English version of Entry 3 (if applicable)

....

Coppa at the Royal Hibernian Academy

Just a little shout out for the charming staff at Coppa, the new team managing the cafe at the Royal Hibernian Academy on Ely Place, Dublin 2.


Arriving a little warm from my fast paced march over from shopping on Henry Street and running a little late for my meet up with friends, I was greeted by a welcoming smile as I plonked myself at the table and requested a double espresso. It was brought promptly over to our table and a suggestion of "maybe some iced water?" (!) which again was promptly brought over in a bottle with four glasses.

Although we did not eat the array of baked goods looked delish and I will be back soon to give them a try. Ironically we later found ourselves over at Damson Diner, and it was not until later that I found out that Coppa is also run by the Bereen brothers who run Copinger Row and my fave dive Damson Diner, in collaboration this time with DJ/Event Producer Hugh Scully and Italian Restaurant Manager Frederico Riezzo.

The music was cool and surprisingly benefited from some singing along to by the cafe staff who were obviously enjoying themselves. Sandwiches, salads and soups are on the menu and the coffee is very good. It's open from 8.30am so can be popped into for a pre-shop breakfast, pre-work coffee and opens in the evening during show season.

Coppa @  Royal Hibernian Academy, 15 Ely Place, Dublin 2

New Reviews: Tenth of December by George Saunders/ All That Is by James Salter

Catching up on some books published earlier this year I first approached Tenth of December by George Saunders. Wow! What words to describe his original thought and unique story lines? Satire described by the New York Times as 'dark and demented', likened to 'the illegitimate offspring of Nathaniel West and Kurt Vonnegut' these comments go someway o preparing you for the unusual and mind-opening ride that is the experience of reading George Saunders.
  
Tenth of December is a collection of ten short stories published in various literary magazines between 1995 and 2009. Saunders world is both dark and surreal. Unsure sometimes if we really know what is going on, he takes us on journeys that are both unbelievable in their outlandishness as well as being scary in their truth of the potential of human nature in all its guises. Certain stories stick long with you after reading, be it for its disturbing nature or its insight into what could be. With tales ranging from the father who dressed the pole in the backyard for all occasions, internal memos to employees, futuristic drug trials on prisoners to a decorative use for female immigrants.
Daring in approach and stretching the readers mind to accommodate new concepts in storytelling, you experience the extreme feelings of laugh-out-loud and tears of shame.

Tenth of December is published by Bloomsbury www.bloomsbury.com

The publishing of All That Is by James Salter was hailed as 'an extraordinary literary event.' Salter, now in his late 80s has written a novel opening in the US naval battles with Japan and introducing Philip Bowman, a man who returns to postwar America and finds himself in the world of publishing, a literary career in a newly emerging and still somewhat private world. His falling in love and eventual marriage brings him in touch with another world that of the wealthy Anglo Americans but love evades him in reality and he takes time to find true love.
  
Covering important periods of American history and equally important human emotions, Salter is known for his sparse and sometimes haunting prose. The problem with this sparsity is that sometimes it is hard for the reader to get that all important connection with the character, to feel a need to follow their life tribulations. Phrases abound in his praise such as 'elegant' , 'highest artistry' and 'vividly imagined'. All these are true but my patience for Bowman sometimes wore thin in his muted quest for life. The disconnect is all relevant in Salter's writing, as is the affording of the same emotion for common events and tragedy however his more intimate sexual passages are sometimes questionable or even maybe clunky. The wandering between characters and the loose plot cohesion do not do justice to the beauty of the prose and ultimately the reader just does not feel the required sympathy for the main characters necessary to really love this book.

All That Is is published by Picador www.picador.com

Review: Mount Merrion by Justin Quinn

Mount Merrion is poet  Justin Quinn's first novel.  In his acknowledgements he notes 'A novel that covers forty-plus years and touches on details of social life, business and politics incurs obvious debts to history' and this tells you a lot about Quinn's book. It is one that over seven chapters brings the reader snap-shots of a family's life and development, and often leaves you wanting to know more.

   

The novel opens in 1959 in a new County hospital where Declan Boyle has been admitted. The journey travels through the years, each time skipping six to nine years, following the progress of Declan, his wife and their children. The story brings in the recent history of the country and to a certain extent this means that the reader starts to see where the story is leading. The characters are well drawn and believable if a little clichéd. I found myself sometimes frustrated as the story skipped forward when I wanted to know more of that chapter in their life. Declan Boyle's wife Sinéad is an interesting character and the impact of 1970s Ireland on a young lonely mother was a part of the story I would have liked to see developed.

Mount Merrion is an enjoyable read and Quinn's use of reference such as that of historians Diarmaid Ferriter and R. F. Foster amongst others adds real credibility to the story. It has unexpected twists that bring tragedy to the tale, realistic turns that add depth and the return of characters to bring the story full circle.



Mount Merrion by Justin Quinn is published by Penguin Ireland www.penguin.com