books | Marita Conlon-McKenna

Marita with Shane Hegarty and Sarah Webb in Dalkey Library

All the crowds came out for this years Dalkey Book Festival which had a brilliant line up of speakers and ran over four days. Politics and world affairs were to the fore front along
with the best of Irish and International writing including Paul Lynch, Colm
Toibin, Anne Enright, Paul Murray, John Boyne and Claire Keegan.

I was talking in Dalkey Library on Thursday evening with authors Sarah Webb and Shane
Hegarty about our favourite thing… books … Irish books we remember and loved
from growing up and the best of the brilliant crop of new Irish books that we have read and recommend. There was a lovely crowd of young and some older readers and it was part of the Discover Irish Children’s Books campaign to get readers choosing a book by an Irish author.

I was back again on Saturday to attend a thought provoking panel discussion of experts about the upcoming US election and the possible outcome of another Trump presidency or a defeat. But the highlight for me was getting to hear my favourite writer Claire Keegan discuss her work in an honest ones and direct interview with Rick O’Shea.Her precision with words and way of forming story were illustrated by a perfect reading form her new book So Late in the Day

Thanks to everyone involved in running the Dalkey Book Festival. I do love festivals and will be down in Skibbereen at the end July for their Arts Festival and will also be taking part in the Fingal Festival in late September.

Author Claire Keegan with Rick O Shea.

Talking to classes in Scoil Mhuire in Newbridge, Co Kildare

Happy World Book Day to everyone!

I hope you all have a brilliant and fun time as there are lots of events in schools, bookshops and libraries all over Ireland with book quizzes, fancy dress, design a book cover or book mark or character competitions and book swaps.

There is no better time to pick up a book! To help you along there are 15 special mini World Book Day Books that you can purchase with your special Euro 1.50 or £1 tokens or you can put them towards another book you want to buy in the bookshop…. If so maybe you can try to buy an Irish Children’s book.

The Discover Irish Childrens Books campaign continues and I was delighted to see Safe Harbour feature in the latest bestselling list from around different parts of the country. I think the lovely new cover has definitely helped.

For us writers it is a busy time and in the last few day I have talked to the First Year boys in Oatlands Senior School in Stillorgan, in Dublin , the 4 and 5^th classes in the Gael Scoil in Greystones in Co Wicklow and the 4, 5^th and some of the 6^th classes in Scoil Mhuire in Newbridge. I love meeting all my amazing readers and cannot believe the range of my different books that you are reading. It makes me so happy that I am a writer.

After talking in Greystones I went to lunch down at the seafront and bumped in to the wonderful English author Frank Cottrell Boyce who had been visiting a school in Delgany. We both love meeting our readers and talking about books!