At the Cork Spring Poetry Festival, which runs in the city from February 12th to 15th,will be John McAuliffe, this paper’s poetry critic, who will read with British poet Matthew Geden, now resident in Kinsale. Eiléan Ní Chuilleanáin returns to her native city to read with Macdara Woods(Wednesday, 10pm, €8/€6). Former US poet laureate Billy Collins reads with Leontia Flynn (Thursday, 10pm, €12/€10). Collins will also give a “craft talk”, (Friday, 4pm, €15/€12). Other guests include Jo Shapcott, Billy Ramsell, Paul Muldoon, Jean Hanff Korelitz, Dermot Bolger and John Sexton. Events are at Cork Arts Theatre on Carroll’s Quay. See corkpoetryfest.net
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Still in Cork, the Lennox Robinson festival takes place in Douglas from February 28th to March 2nd. There will be talks, readings and storytelling. Facebook.com/ Lennox RobinsonFestival.
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In Limerick, the On the Nail literary gathering, organised by the Limerick Writers' Centre, features John Pinschmidt, who will launch his debut collection, Maiden Voyage, and Irish/Welsh poet Patrick Lodge reading from his An Anniversary of Flight, followed by an open mic. (February 4th, the Locke Bar, George's Quay, 8pm.) onthenailreadings.blogspot.com.
Richard Halperin is the guest of the White House Poets on February 26th (White House Pub, O'Connell Street, 9pm, free). He will read from his new Salmon collection, Shy White Tiger, followed by an open mic session. Tel: 086-8657494, e-mail: barneysheehan1@eircom.net.
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The 2014 Over The Edge Poetry Book Showcase is at Galway Arts Centre's Nuns' Island Theatre on February 7th (8pm, free). Galway-based poets who published a new collection in 2013 are invited to read. There will also be readings from anthologies including Watching My Hands At Work: A Festschrift For Adrian Frazier.
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Carcanet poets Tara Bergin and Caoilinn Hughes are returning from Yorkshire and New Zealand respectively for a reading at the Irish Writers'Centre on February 6th (6pm, free). Donal Ryan, author of The Spinning Heart, will read from his latest book, The Thing About December, in the Rathgar Bookshop on February 6th at 7.30pm (€4, booking required, tel: 01-4928600, email: rathgarbooks@eircom.net)
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Literary Lunchtimes at Belfast's Ulster Hall continue with a reading by Chris Agee on February 19th (1pm, £4) and, on February 26th, a reading by members of the Words Alive older writers' group from their anthology, Pen to Paper (1pm, free).
Cathy Dillon is an Irish Times journalist
