The Dublin Writers Festival today begins the first of four days of readings, talks and panel discussions.
The highlight of the festival, now in its seventh year, is a reading by Impac Dublin Literature Award winner Edward P Jones.
On Saturday evening, the Project Theatre hosts readings and discussion with three of the most celebrated names in contemporary German literature: Thomas Brussig, Christoph Hein and Juli Zeh. Proceedings will be chaired by Irish/German writer Hugo Hamilton.
Another 'German' at the festival is rising star, Rachel Seiffert. Born and raised in England but now living in Berlin, her debut novel Dark Roomwas highly acclaimed. She gives a reading with one of Ireland's most acclaimed and unique writers of recent times, Ronan Bennett.
Other highlights include readings by Tobias Hill. The versatile 35-year-old Londoner is a poet and novelist who brings a contemporary sensibility to his work. He is also a rock critic and his novel The Love of Stonesis being developed as a film by Granada Films. His acclaimed collection of short stories, Skinwon the PEN/Macmillan Silver Pen Award
Alongside Hill will be another Brit, Hilary Mantel, whose dark and cutting humour has been favourably compared to Muriel Spark and Edna O’Brien.
The Telling the Truthdiscussion looks at the writing of biography in the company of two skilled practitioners. Sarah Churchwell whose biography of Marilyn Monroe was widely acclaimed, will be joined by Adam Feinstein whose biography of Pablo Neruda is considered the first authoritative work on the great Latin American writer.
As always home-grown talent will be in abundance with tonight seeing celebrated Irish writers Sebastian Barry and Dermot Bolger give readings together at the Project. Some of Ireland’s rising stars will also be in attendance, with Nick Laird and Claire Kilroy among those giving readings.