Books

Booksellers ask Taoiseach to be classed as essential retail and allowed to reopen

Eason offer; Saturday’s book pages; Seamus Heaney Award for New Writing; NI Voices

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Martin Doyle
Thu Apr 1 2021 - 15:46

When you buy The Irish Times in any Eason branch this Saturday, you can also save €5 on the normal paperback price of the award-winning Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell.

In The Magazine, Louise Kennedy talks to Rosita Boland about her debut short story collection and Paul Howard reveals 10 lessons he has learned from 23 years of writing Ross O’Carroll-Kelly. In Ticket, Rónán Hession talks to Patrick Freyne about his careers as musician, senior civil servant and now author.

Review are Jess Kav on What White People Can Do Next: From Allyship to Coalition by Emma Dabiri; Mia Levitin on Nora by Nuala O’Connor; Diarmaid Ferriter on The Best Catholics in the World: The Irish, the Church and the End of a Special Relationship by Derek Scally; Matthew O’Toole on Fall: The Mystery of Robert Maxwell by John Preston; Michael Cronin on the nest new fiction in translation; Jonathan McAloon on The High House by Jessie Greengrass; Helen Cullen on My Rock ’n’ Roll Friend by Tracey Thorn; and Sarah Gilmartin on Rachel Kushner’s The Hard Crowd.

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Bookselling Ireland has written to the Taoiseach to ask that bookshops be classed as essential retail and be allowed to open, or be granted special dispensation to offer click and collect services.

Chair Heidi Murphy said: “Bookshops are so much more than a place to buy books – they are cultural hubs that play a unique role in supporting Irish writers, bringing life to our towns and giving readers windows into different worlds when we need it the most. Bookshops have been designated as ‘essential’ in many other European countries and, if we want to continue our great literary tradition, Ireland must surely follow suit.”

The sector’s survival is very much at risk, she said, and the loss of bookshops would be devastating, not only for the individuals involved but for their communities.

The letter highlighted that France and Italy and other countries allowed bookshops to open during lockdown due to the important service offered. Scotland, which has a similarly cautious approach to Ireland regarding lockdown, made bookshops one of the first retail businesses permitted to operate a pre-booked click and collect service, which has proved to be a lifeline for the shops and their customers.

Bookshops in Ireland directly employ over 4,000 people and support many more jobs. The letter also highlights the inconsistencies in how essential retail is defined, underlining the commercial disadvantage faced by bookshops, which are forced to shut while essential retailers that also sell books are allowed to remain open.

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Jim McElroy has won the Seamus Heaney Award for New Writing for his poem Health & Safety. Two of his other poems, Olga Draws the World and Sheep Carcass, had also been shortlisted.

“As someone who was first published in 2018, I hope my selection gives encouragement to beginning poets everywhere,” he said. “My thanks to all those who have helped me get to grips with the fundamentals of craft through creative writing courses and workshops, and to the Arts Council for supporting my writing. Particular thanks to Community Arts Partnership for their hard work in delivering a memorable awards during these challenging times, to the judges for selecting my poetry, and to the Heaney family for gifting such prestige to new writers.”

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The Irish Cultural Centre ais running a series of literary interviews, Northern Irish Voices., which will form part of its spring 2021 cultural programme. Taking part are Mary McAleese, poets Michael Longley and Frank Ormsby, along with award-winning authors Glenn Patterson, Jan Carson and Lucy Caldwell.

The series will begin on Sunday, April 11th , and will run for six weeks. Northern Irish Voices will be available to view online here: www.irishculturalcentre.co.uk/literature

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The National Library of Ireland has announced details of Living with Pride, a year-long flagship programme exploring Irish LGBTI+ identity and experience over the last several decades and into the present day. It includes a physical and online exhibition of the work of activist Christopher Robson, as well as a year-long programme of LGBTI+ online events.

These online events have been co-curated with the National Library by Tonie Walsh, veteran activist, journalist and founder of the Irish Queer Archive – itself housed in the National Library. They include virtual talks, readings, workshops, panel discussions and events for children and young people. The first event, entitled Lived lives: The Irish Queer Archive, took place on Wednesday, with events taking place each month thereafter. nli.ie

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Got the write idea? Red Line Book Festival is seeking submissions from writers and poets with ideas for events for the 2021 festival programme. The closing date for submissions is May 28th. Red Line Book festival will run from October 11-17th. The objective of this call-out is to provide a platform for emerging and established talents to share their work with new audiences. Visit: redlinebookfestival.ie

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The Deborah Rogers Foundation has brought forward the DRF Writers Award to support debut writers in lockdown. Submissions open on April 1st and close on July 1st. Colm Tóibín chairs the panel of judges: Deepa Anappara, Anna James and Ingrid Persaud. The winner receives £10,000 to complete their first book. They will announce the shortlist of three in November and the award will be presented in London on December 7th. The winner of the 2020 Writers Award was Pemi Aguda for The Suicide Mothers, a work of fiction. deborahrogersfoundation.org