The Lit Review |102| ILFD and Irish Novel of the Year
News
Diverse events planned for the International Literature Festival Dublin
With the newly released details regarding a few of the events for the International Literature Festival Dublin, it’s hinted that the festival is taking a diverse direction this year. German writer and director Werner Herzog is the biggest name to be announced so far, and is a bold choice. Herzog has written and directed over 70 films and known for his provocative and perplexing work often inspired by literature and opera. Former footballer, musician and financial analyst turned crime writer Jo Nesbo, who has sold over 33 million copies worldwide and has been translated into fifty languages, has also been announced as a guest.
This year the ILFD festival will introduce a new concept; ‘Stories from the City,’ a festival event held in the home/workplace of anyone who has an idea for one. Part of the event involves the host sharing a part of their life story with the attendants, which can be done through spoken word, poetry, music, video/film, books, or any other medium that enables the host to connect to their audience. Anyone interested sends their proposal to the festival coordinators and the selected entrants are paired with a mentor/artist to develop the idea into an event. Playwright Shaun Dunne, novelist Sarah Maria Griffin, illustrator Holly Pereira, poet Kerrie O’Brien, singer-songwriter Luan Parle and comedian Kevin Gildea are listed as being involved.
Kerry Group Novel of the Year Award Shortlist Released
The shortlist for the Kerry Group’s award for Irish Novel of the Year was released this week. Established and acclaimed Irish writers Mike McCormack and Emma Donoghue are in the running for the €15,000 prize,but it is impressive that this year the majority of nominees are debut novels. The nominees are:
Solar Bones, Mike McCormack
The Wonder, Emma Donoghue
My Name is Leon, Kit de Waal (debut)
Nothing on Earth, Conor O’Callaghan (debut)
Inch Levels, Neil Hegarty (debut).
Events
The Mountains to Sea Dun Laoghaire Book Festival kicked off yesterday, with events continuing until Sunday. The festival has a ton of events, with something to interest everyone. This evening there’s ‘Heroes: Irish Writers Pay Tribute,’ chaired by Sinéad Gleeson; former Poetry Ireland Review editor Vona Groarke and poet Paula Meehan are in conversation tomorrow at 6:30pm, Tim Parks and Mike McCormack are in conversation on Saturday morning, and you can also catch Roddy Doyle, Eoin Colfer and Ryan Tubridy on Sunday. Information, times and tickets can be found here.
