Cork World Book Fest will be back in 2024 for our twentieth anniversary! The fest started back in 2005 when Cork was European Capital of Culture. Former City Librarian Liam Ronayne and Ann Luttrell, former Literature Officer at Triskel Arts Centre, decided to mark UNESCO World Book Day (which takes place every year on 23 April, the date on which both Cervantes and Shakespeare died) with Cork’s first ever World Book Day. The Library opened at 10:00 am on Friday 22 April and stayed open through the night and into the following day, 23 April. There were readings, music interludes, and exhibitions. Despite some concerns about the wisdom of staying open through the night, all went well.
As the following spring rolled around, those involved – both Library and Triskel staff – agreed that the experiment should be repeated. From 2006 on, this celebration of books and reading has been called Cork World Book Fest. It has grown in terms of the range of events included – sessions for wannabe writers, translation workshops, and full children’s programme – and in the languages and cultures featured, from Basque to Kurdish to Galician, as well, of course, as better-known languages such as Italian, French, Spanish and Catalan, not forgetting Irish. Writers in the English language have come from this country, United States, Canada, Australia, and well as Britain. Writers who attended Publishing Day events have gone on to become published authors.
We will welcome Irish and international writers to Cork for an extravaganza of books and writing this April, writers such as Booker Prize winner Paul Lynch, debut author Lynda Marron, Palestinian poet Marwan Makhoul and more.
For a list of events check out our events brochure Cork World Book Fest 2024 Events Brochure
Cork World Book Fest 2024 programme
Friday 23 March
First Page Pitch – the submissions
Pitch your first page to literary agents! A panel of expert booklovers will choose 10 of the submissions for the authors to read out loud for feedback from their agents (or if you’re shy, Sam Blake will read them).
It is incredibly useful to hear pitches and the openings of books and what the agents think of them. Even if your work isn’t selected to be read, it’s also a great opportunity to tune in to perfect your own approach, find out what works and what doesn’t! You also never know what will happen as a result – Olivia Hope pitched at our festival a few years ago and she’s now a published author.
The readings and feedback will take place on Saturday 27 April at Cork City Library, Grand Parade.
This event is now closed for submissions.
Tuesday 23 April
Neasa de Bearoid, Singer
Singer Neasa presents The Magic of the Musicals, a choral story of inclusivity, diversity and challenge and the richness of learning that Love is all that matters.
The City Library, Grand Parade | 10am | free |School Event
Pádraig Kenny, children’s author
Enjoy Stitch, an electrifying new gothic adventure about finding your place in the world by Pádraig Kenny, award-winning children’s author of Tin, Pog, and The Monsters of Rookhaven. Meet Stitch and Henry Oaf, brought to life by a genius, experimented on by a wicked scientist, making a daring escape from a world that fears them.
The City Library, Grand Parade | 11am | free |School Event
***Official Launch of the 20th Cork World Book Festival***
Official Opening by the Lord Mayor Cllr Kieran McCarthy
Followed by …
Opening Night: A Medley of Irish Writers & Their Rites: Imagine, Shape, Revise
In conversation with Olivia O’Leary, three of Ireland’s most compelling contemporary authors read from their work and discuss their roles as writers and as women in Ireland today. Evelyn Conlon’s Reading Rites ‘amounts to an alternative history of social change in Ireland’, Mary Morrissy’s Penelope Unbound is ‘a spellbinding speculative history, which unhooks Nora Barnacle from her famous husband, giving her a compelling new voice, with heartbreak and humanity all her own’, while Elaine Feeney’s How to Build a Boat, which was longlisted for the Booker Prize 2023, is ’a heart-stopping read, about love, family and connection, the power of imagination, and how our greatest adventures never happen alone.’ Hosted by award-winning author and journalist Oliva O’Leary, Cork World Book Festival’s Official Opening Event heralds a week pulsing with the finest hearts and minds of our times.
The City Library, Grand Parade | 7pm | free
Wednesday 24 April
Thinking Outside the Box with Georgie Cooney
Young Adult Session
Georgie Cooney is an author, teacher, dyslexia specialist, and podcaster – passionate about creating a positive learning experience for all children. She is Cork Co-ordinator of the Dyslexia Association of Ireland and a trainer for Cybersafe Kids. She is currently working on The Long Way Back podcast with Cork podcaster Timmy Long.
The City Library, Grand Parade | 10am | free | School Event
Launch of The Unfinished Book of Poetry 2024
Features new poems from young writers across Cork City
The newly published young writers are transition year students from Christ King Girls’ Secondary School, St. Vincent’s Secondary School, St. Angela’s College, Coláiste an Spioraid Naoimh and Gaelcholáiste Choilm, Cork.
Moderated: Paul Casey of Ó’Bhéal.
The City Library, Grand Parade | 12.30pm | free
Teen Graphic Novel Launch
Cork City Libraries’ Annual Teen Graphic Novel Publication collects young authors’ and illustrators’ work to make a comic. Over a series of workshops, teen participants devise character, plot, and narrative, with words and imagery to bring a selection of stories in different genres to Cork City’s Reading Public.
The City Library, Grand Parade | 2pm | free
The Cork Art Novel: Narrating Cork as a Creative City
Eimear Ryan, Danielle McLoughlin and Danny Denton. Moderator: Carlos Garrado
The City Library, Grand Parade | 3.30pm | free
Laughter Lines – A Comic Book Workshop
Writer and artist Colin O’Mahoney and illustrator Mari Rolin explore how to use humour, and to tell funny stories in comics.
The City Library, Grand Parade | 3.30pm | free
Spotlight on Literary Journals: 4 Faced Liar, Banshee, Swerve, Waxed Lemon
A discussion with the editors on the rise of literary journals in Ireland
Moderator: Lauren O’Donovan.
The City Library, Grand Parade | 5pm | free
There’s More Sky over No Man’s Land
The no man’s land of exile, of ‘return and no blame’ in the words of Paula Meehan, of hauntings and disappearances, populate these debut collections from émigré poets David Nash and Joe Carrick Varty.
Sharing his time between Chile and Ireland, David Nash brings his ‘auspicious and powerful debut’ No Man’s Land to Cork, in which he divines an ‘exploration and a reclamation of a place at once familiar and strange – the rural landscape of the poet’s formative years’ […] the poet ‘an observer under assault from the passage of time and the overwhelming threat of the present ecological moment.’
Joe Carrick Varty is a British-Irish poet and founding editor of Bath Magg. His debut, More Sky, was shortlisted for the T.S. Eliot Prize 2023, and was an Irish Times Book of the Year. ‘A remarkable and remarkably various debut collection tracking the ways in which the experience of addiction and domestic violence shape a life.’
‘Narrative as camera-shake,’ as one reviewer had it, ‘zoomed-in but out-of-focus, […] these poems are impressionistic recollections of events from Carrick-Varty’s childhood, but superimposed with the adult’s understanding of inherited trauma that was not available to the child.’
Moderator: Keith Payne.
The City Library, Grand Parade | 6.30pm | free
Mike McCormack and Aingeala Flannery in conversation with Sarah Harte
Aingeala Flannery is an award-winning journalist, broadcaster and writer. Her critically acclaimed debut The Amusements was published by Penguin Sandycove in 2022. It won the Kerry Group Irish Novel of the Year at Listowel Writers’ Week and the John McGahern Prize. Aingeala is a graduate of the MFA in Creative Writing at UCD. In 2019, her short story ‘Visiting Hours’ won the Harper’s Bazaar Short Story Prize. Her work has been broadcast on RTÉ as part of the Radio One Short Story Competition and on Sunday Miscellany. Aingeala was awarded Literature Bursaries by the Arts Council of Ireland in 2020 and 2021. She is the current Arts Council Writer in Residence at Dublin City University.
Mike McCormack comes from the west of Ireland and is the author of two collections of short stories Getting it in the Head and Forensic Songs, and four novels Crowe’s Requiem, Notes from a Coma, Solar Bones and This Plague of Souls. In 1996 he was awarded the Rooney Prize for Literature and Getting it in the Head was chosen as a New York Times Notable Book of the Year. In 2006 Notes from a Coma was shortlisted for the Irish Book of the Year Award. In 2016 Solar Bones was awarded the Goldsmiths Prize and the Bord Gais Energy Irish Novel of the Year and Book of the Year; it was also long-listed for the 2017 Man Booker Prize. In 2018 it was awarded the International Dublin Literary Award. He is a member of Aosdána.
Sarah Harte is a prize-winning author of short stories both in Ireland and the UK. She won the Byran MacMahon short story prize and has been shortlisted or longlisted in the Bridport Prize, the Manchester Fiction Prize, The Fish Prize, and the Sean O’Faolain Prize. She is a columnist with The Irish Examiner and is currently finishing a novel. She lives in West Cork.
The City Library, Grand Parade | 8pm | free
Thursday 25 April
Children’s author Nadine Hughes Campbell
Nadine Hughes Campbell, the author behind Noah’s Cork Adventure, swapped the busy streets of her Canadian hometown for the gorgeous landscapes of Cork, Ireland. This children’s author and devoted mother discovered her passion for storytelling upon the birth of her first child, turning each bedtime into a voyage of imagination. Her first book, Noah’s Cork Adventure, invites readers to explore the magic and charm of Noah’s hometown, as he embarks on a delightful day out with family, meeting friends along the way.
The City Library, Grand Parade | 10am | free |School Event
Children’s author Ellen Ryan and illustrator Conor Merriman
Wicklow born writer Ellen Ryan and Dubliner illustrator Conor Merriman introduce Gods Don’t Cry and Girls Who Slay Monsters to a Cork audience.
Gods Don’t Cry reawakens ancient gods, whose tales redefine modern ideas of what it means to be a hero. Mannanán uses his neurodiversity to discover the Otherworld, Méiche finds the courage to accept his illness, Fer Maisse, a monster slayer, gives up glory to become a healer, and Cnú Deróil overcomes bullies with his musical talent. Hurlers and warriors, academics, and activists – these are gods of many abilities, sizes, and skin shades, from every corner of Ireland.
Girls Who Slay Monsters brings these heroes of Irish mythology back to vibrant, magical life. Éire, Ireland’s fierce namesake, and Bé Binn, a giant who overcomes her bullies, to Badb, a gleefully gruesome death prophet, and Bé Mannair, a gender-fluid spy who challenges an entire army. These are goddesses of many shapes, skin shades and sizes, from every corner of ancient Ireland, whose daring still inspires today.
The City Library, Grand Parade | 11am | free |School Event
Leonard and Hungry Paul meet their Italian Translator
UCC Translator in Residence Elvira Grassi in conversation with author Ronan Hession.
Rónán Hession is an Irish writer and musician. He has published two novels: Leonard and Hungry Paul and Panenka, which have been listed for a number of major national and international awards and have been translated into eight languages. Rónán’s story ‘The Translator’s Funeral’ was longlisted for the Irish Short Story of the Year. His album Dictionary Crimes was nominated for the Choice Music Prize for Album of the Year. Rónán reviews fiction in translation for The Irish Times and has been a judge at both the Irish and British Book Awards.
Elvira Grassi was born in Ancona, Italy. She works in Rome as a literary translator, editor and scout. In 2005 she co-founded the editorial and literary agency Oblique Studio based in Rome. She has translated over twenty works of fiction from authors including Anna Burns, Rónán Hession, Ian Williams, Angela Flournoy, Frances Greenslade, Sarah Shun-lien Bynum. She translates mainly for the Italian independent publisher Keller.
The City Library, Grand Parade | 3.30pm | free
The Conversation: Poets Jo Burns & Emily Cooper
The muted muses of Picasso’s portraits finally have their say. In this unique, collaborative poetry collection by Jo Burns and Emily Cooper, we listen in on a ‘conversation held between Marie-Thérèse Walter, Dora Maar and Françoise Gilot, three of Picasso’s lovers and subjects. More often than not these figures were not named, but titled by their actions: weeping, reading, reclining. What Picasso wilfully obscured was the women behind these paintings: their lives and works, their relationships with him, their children and careers that were indelibly marked by their connection to a man considered to be one of the greatest artists of all time’. In collaboration with Doire Press, The Conversation will feature readings from the poets with simultaneous screening of the images discussed in this fascinating elaboration of the ekphrastic poem.
Moderator: Keith Payne.
The City Library, Grand Parade | 5pm | free
Maggie Armstrong and Clemens Meyer with his translator Katy Derbyshire
Moderator: Mairead Hearne
Maggie Armstrong’s work has been published in the Dublin Review, Stinging Fly, Banshee and elsewhere. She has worked as a critic and reporter for various newspapers. In 2023 her story ‘Dinner and a Show’ was long-listed for an Irish Book Award. She grew up in Dublin, where she still lives. Old Romantics, from Tramp Press, is her first collection of stories.
Katy Derbyshire translates contemporary German writers, including Judith Hermann, Olga Grjasnowa and Selim Özdoğan (with Ayça Türkoğlu). Her translations of Clemens Meyer have been twice nominated for the International Booker Prize and she has taught literary translation in New York, New Delhi and Norwich. She lives in Berlin.
Clemens Meyer was born in 1977 in Halle and lives in Leipzig. Bricks and Mortar, his first novel to be published in English by Fitzcarraldo Editions, was shortlisted for the German Book Prize, awarded the Bremer Literaturpreis 2014, longlisted for the 2017 Man Booker International Prize, and shortlisted for the 2019 Best Translated Book Awards. His collection of stories, Dark Satellites, appeared with Fitzcarraldo Editions in Katy Derbyshire’s translation in 2020. While We Were Dreaming, Meyer’s debut novel, was originally published in Germany in 2007.
The City Library, Grand Parade | 6.30pm | free
You Spin Me Round
New anthology of essays on music from contemporary writers. With Peter Geoghegan and Declan Long.
Moderator: Dean Browne.
‘You Spin Me Round is a humming, buzzing, memory-rattling examination of the distorted channels through which music remains meaningful. Funny, wistful, and full of the half-youthful yearning music most ardently permits, each essay echoes with the haunting sound of the songs that vibrate within us, long after their final note has faded.’
– Ian Maleney, author of Minor Monuments
Join Peter Geoghegan as he staples together his fanzine-creating youth in Longford to the soundtrack of Guided by Voices, ‘possibly the most prolific band in pop music history’. And Declan Long who hallelujahs, bar by bar, beat by beat and pause by pause, Laurie Anderson’s Oh Superman: ‘We weren’t so much hearing a song – these mysterious breaths, this sorrowful voice – as overhearing a distant, intimate entreaty. We were listening in to something beyond us, something out there.’
Triskel | 8pm | free but booking required
Friday 26 April
Something Terrible Happened Last Night
The acclaimed author Sam Blake has ventured into the realm of Young Adult fiction. Her latest work in this genre, Something Terrible Happened Last Night, has garnered attention for its intriguing plot and well-crafted characters. Young adult readers are invited to discover how suspense, mystery, and compelling characters are developed in this session with Sam.
The City Library, Grand Parade | 11am | free
Translating Crime Fiction
Workshop with Peter Bush
O’Rahilly Building, UCC, CACSSS Seminar room, ORB g.27 | 11am-1pm | free
Register with: H.Buffery@ucc.ie
Launch of French Book Collection for Children
The Enfants Francophones de Cork Library, a specialist collection of children’s books cements Cork City Libraries’ relationship with the city’s French Community for over twenty years.
The City Library, Grand Parade | 12.30pm | free
Gendering Precariousness
The philosopher, feminist activist and scholar Remedios Zafra will join us for a discussion on the gendered nature of precariousness and cultural labour in a digital age. The event will be bilingual and will include a reading and a Q&A session with the author.
Moderator: Carlos Garrado
Online| 3.30pm | free
To book your place, please do so via the following link Gendering Precariousness Tickets, Fri, Apr 26, 2024 at 3:30 PM | Eventbrite
Sacraments & Little Acts of Vigilance: A Tapestry, an Ailment, the Cure
Miriam Gamble & James O’Leary
Ranging over the youthful manoeuvres in that unmapped territory that are Belfast’s Suburbs, Miriam Gamble’s Little Acts of Vigilance is her debut essay collection, published by The Lifeboat Press. Having published three books of poems with Bloodaxe Books (The Squirrels Are Dead (2010), Pirate Music (2014) and What Planet (2019), winner of the 2020 Pigott Poetry Prize), Miriam has also received the Somerset Maugham Award (for The Squirrels Are Dead), an Eric Gregory Award, the Vincent Buckley Poetry Prize and the Ireland Chair of Poetry Bursary Award. Originally from Belfast, she has lived in Scotland since 2010 and is a Senior Lecturer in Creative Writing at the University of Edinburgh.
James O’Leary is a poet from Cork, Ireland, where he lives with one human (Juliana) and three cats (Nugget, Waffle and Sushi). He received the Poetry Ireland and Cúirt Bursary in 2016, was selected for the Poetry Ireland Introductions Series in 2017, and his first chapbook, There Are Monsters in This House, was published by Southword Editions in 2018. Sacrament of the Sick was published by Well Review Editions, 2023.
Moderator: Molly Twomey
The City Library, Grand Parade | 5pm | free
Launch of Ceoltóirí Chualann: The Band that Changed the Course of Irish Music by Peadar Ó Riada
Peadar Ó Riada and Seán Ó Sé. launched by Martin Hayes. Musical performance too!
A lively and engaging account of the legendary Irish folk music ensemble Ceoltóirí Chualann, and the first time that readers can see the groundbreaking concepts used by Seán Ó Riada and his band Ceoltóirí Chualann as they changed the course of Irish Music.
Written by Peadar Ó Riada, blending memoir and historical narrative, this book draws on the experiences and records of Éamon de Buitléar, Michael Tubridy, and the Ó Riada archives, enriched by Seán Ó Sé’s anecdotes. From the birth of the band to the complexities of their trailblazing musical arrangements, composed by the visionary Seán Ó Riada, this book showcases their ability to blend traditional Irish music with complex orchestration.
The magic of their story unfolds against the backdrop of a changing Ireland, where traditional music, once marginalised, began to find new expression and appreciation as their popularity and influence grew. The book also explores the band’s creative process, featuring details of rehearsals, recordings, broadcasts and a detailed discography. It includes 400 musical arrangements and original scores in Seán Ó Riada’s hand. This is an invaluable resource for musicians and enthusiasts alike and a unique insight into the creative genius of the ensemble.
Ceoltóirí Chualann: The Band that Changed the Course of Irish Music is not just a historical account but a heartfelt tribute to the musicians who redefined Irish traditional music. It’s essential reading for those interested in understanding the profound influence of Seán Ó Riada and Ceoltóirí Chualann on the revival and evolution of Irish music.
Published by Mercier Press, April 2024.
The City Library, Grand Parade | 6.30pm | free
Prophet Song
Booker Prizewinner Paul Lynch with Alannah Hopkin
Paul Lynch is the prize-winning author of five novels: Prophet Song, Beyond the Sea, Grace, The Black Snow, and Red Sky in Morning. He was awarded The Booker Prize 2023 for his esteemed novel Prophet Song. He has won the Kerry Group Irish Novel of the Year and the French booksellers’ prize Prix Libr’à Nous for best foreign novel. He has also been shortlisted for the UK’s Walter Scott Prize, the US’s William Saroyan International Prize, and France’s Prix Jean Monnet for European Literature and the Prix du Meilleur Livre Étranger, among other prizes. Libération has called Lynch “one of today’s greatest Irish writers”. He lives in Dublin.
Alannah Hopkin is a writer and journalist. Her books include travel writing, two novels and a story collection, The Dogs of Inishere (Dalkey Archive Press). In 2020 she was the Frank O’Connor Short Story Fellow at the Munster Literature Centre and University College Cork where she taught on the Creative Writing M.A. In 2021 she published an acclaimed memoir, A Very Strange Man and in 2023 her book about St Patrick and the Irish people was reissued as Patrick: from Patron Saint to Modern Influencer by New Island Books, Dublin. She reviews regularly for the Irish Examiner.
Triskel| 8pm | Tickets €10/€8
Saturday 27 April
Book Market on the Grand Parade
Pop along to the annual Book Market where you will find a fantastic array of literary finds from some of the finest book sellers in the city and county. There will be food to go and some tasty produce and craft stalls. Produced by Goldiefish Markets.
Grand Parade | 10am – 4pm | free
Meet the Agents
Agents Polly Nolan and Simon Trewin in conversation with Vanessa Fox O’Loughlin.
Find out in this in-depth conversation what is required in a submission package and how you can increase your chances of success. Find out the most commonly made mistakes and why following guidelines is imperative.
The City Library, Grand Parade | 10am | free
Baby Sign & Rhyme Storytime
Claire Glynn of Clever Little Handies gives an introduction to ISL baby signing followed by a rhyming story that everyone can follow – no prior experience of ISL is needed.
The City Library, Grand Parade | 10am | free
Milly McCarthy and the Sports Day Shambles
Children’s author Leona Forde and illustrator Karen Harte
Cork author Leona Forde studied English and History at UCC and teaches these subjects to teenagers. Karen Harte is an illustrator and designer based in Dublin. Together, they explore another adventure with Milly McCarthy, the chaos queen from Cork.
The City Library, Grand Parade | 11am | free
First Page Pitch – the readings
The ten selected writers read their first page to the agents and the room to receive feedback from the agents. If you’re shy, Sam Blake will read your pitch.
It is incredibly useful to hear pitches and the openings of books and what the agents think of them. Even if your work isn’t selected to be read, it’s also a great opportunity to tune in to perfect your own approach, find out what works and what doesn’t! You also never know what will happen as a result – Olivia Hope pitched at our festival a few years ago and she’s now a published author.
The City Library, Grand Parade | 11.30am | free
Home in Ireland
Suad Al Darra and Sree Sen in conversation with Peadar King
Home in Ireland
Suad Al Darra and Sree Sen in conversation with Peadar King.
Suad Al darra is a writer and data scientist based in Dublin. She was born in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia to Syrian parents. In 2003 she moved back to her family home in Syria to study software engineering. After fleeing the war in 2012 she lived in Egypt and the US, before eventually settling in Ireland. In 2021, Suad was awarded the Art Councils of Ireland English Literature bursary. I Don’t Want to Talk About Home is her debut memoir.
Sree Sen is from Kolkata, India and lives and works in Dublin city. Her debut poetry chapbook Cracked Asphalt was published in 2022. Sree’a creative works have been published by Poetry Ireland Review, Stinging Fly, Banshee, The Honest Ulsterman, bath magg, and others. She’s the winner of the UCD Maeve Binchy Travel Award 2020, and the recipient of The Cill Rialaig Residency 2020 & Agility Award 2021 by the Arts Council of Ireland.
Triskel | 1.30pm | free but booking required
Lynda Marron debut author from CWBF Get Published sessions
Lynda’s debut novel, Last Chance In Paris, was published by Eriu on 7 February 2024. It was inspired by visits to Paris, the city of love. In 2022, Lynda attended a ‘meet-the-agent’ event at Cork World Book Fest. There, she met an agent, Polly Nolan. Polly liked the book and Lynda got a two-book deal; the second novel will be published this time next year. Polly Nolan will be giving advice again at this year’s Cork World Book Fest.
The City Library, Grand Parade | 2pm | free
Fabiola Lobo Kids Art
Fabiolo Lobo is an artist who makes fun for kids (and grown ups!). She believes Art opens doors to a new world – one of beauty , mystery, the unknown, and most importantly, the freedom of creativity.
Fabiola investigates Spring with children from 6 to 12 years.
The City Library, Grand Parade | 2.30pm | free
Soul Feast: Breaking the Heart Open
Psychology and Literature
Psychologist Tony Bates and Editor Neil Astley in conversation with Thomas McCarthy.
[Due to unforeseen circumstances, Neil Astley will no longer be able to attend this event.]
Editor of Bloodaxe Books, Neil Astley invites us to a Soul Feast here in Cork with his most recent anthology, published with co-editor Pamela Robertson-Pearce. Soul Feast, companion anthology to the hugely successful and inspirational Soul Food, is an anthology of voices ‘of hope and healing, of love and tolerance, of kindness and compassion,’ reminding us across every one of its pages the words of poet Galway Kinnell that, ‘the secret title of every good poem might be tenderness.’ Tenderness is also the watchword from distinguished clinical psychologist Dr. Tony Bates, who will read from his recent memoir Breaking the Heart Open: The Shaping of a Psychologist. Bates’s lifelong career as adjunct professor of Psychology at UCD, head of Dept. of Psychology at St James’s Hospital and founder of Jigsaw, The National Centre for Youth Mental Health has made him one of Ireland’s leading experts in the field of individual and community health. Along with moderator Thomas McCarthy, they will discuss the essential, nourishing role of literature in feeding the mind and the spirit and in creating a space where anything is possible.
Triskel | 3pm | free but booking required
The Holy Hour
Join Cónal Creedon and Molly Twomey for ‘THE HOLY HOUR’.
Callanan’s Bar, George’s Quay | 4pm | free
The Many Voices of Spain
and they say is a dazzling piece of writing by contemporary Galician author Susana Sanches Arins. Suffering is a black stormcloud on a sunny day. The trouble with remembering is it can cause damage. But it can also heal. The translator Kathleen March suggests that and they say (seique in the original Galician) is its own genre and what really matters is telling (recovering) the truth. It is a story of betrayal, an unspeakable cruelty, and the odd (breathless) act of compassion. It is the recuperation of the collective memory of the Spanish Civil War (1936-39) and its aftermath, when fugitives were caught and bodies thrown into ditches, when it was dangerous to answer your door at night. It is an essay that records testimonies, acknowledged and anonymous, of some of the dark nights that characterise this period of Spanish history. It is poetic (if poetry can be cruel). It is also tragic, down to the repeated appearance of the chorus, which seems to reflect on, to reinforce, the central message: memory can be painful, but it is best acknowledged, so that the mourning can take place and the survivors can move on. This book, expertly collated, is a masterpiece of writing, an essential piece in the puzzle of the years of the Spanish Civil War.
Moderator: Martín Veiga
The City Library, Grand Parade | 4.45pm | free
Catalan author Gemma Ruiz Palá with her Translator Peter Bush
The perfect combination of literary fiction & feminist journalism. A warmhearted ode to female friendship.
Originally from China, Wenling arrived in Barcelona looking for a better life. With no knowledge of the local languages, she managed to open a salon. Our unnamed narrator is one of Wenling’s frequent customers, a documentary producer who takes note of everything and everyone around her. As time passes by, a friendship grows between the two women. Through their conversations, Wenling’s story unfolds at the salon, where we also discover the hidden lives of many of her customers. But Rachel Doyle and Tippi Hedren, and their contribution to the beauty industry have also a place in this book, as well as the bunch of hard-working women that made the beauty industry flourish. And just like that, Wenling’s nail salon becomes the crossroad for a myriad of women’s stories and female complicity.
Moderator: Helena Buffery.
The City Library, Grand Parade | 5.30pm | free
REIC Irish Language Spoken Word
Filíocht ó bhéal, rap, amhránaíocht, scéalaíocht agus neart eile a bhíonn le cloisteáil ag imeachtaí REIC. Anocht cuirfidh bean an tí Ciara Ní É fáilte roimh Amano, Tomás Ó Coileáin, is Gormfhlaith Ní Shíocháin Ní Bheoláin, agus beidh mic oscailte ann. Bí ann go luath le do spás a chinntiú!
REIC (pronounced ‘wreck’) is a multilingual spoken word event featuring poetry, rap, music and storytelling. It is a welcoming space where Gaeilge is encouraged. Featuring readings by guest poets and open mic slots, audience participation is encouraged! Turn up early to sign up and secure your space!
Triskel | 7pm | free but booking required
Listen to the Birds
In April 2024, Palestinian poet Marwan Makhoul will visit Ireland with his translator of ten years Raphael Cohen (travelling from Cairo). The visit is hosted by poet and editor Annemarie Ní Churreáin and is receiving support from Poetry Ireland, IMRAM & Cork World Book Fest.
Palestinian poet Marwan Makhoul was born in the village of al-Buqei’a, Upper Galilee, to a Palestinian father and a Lebanese mother. His collections include Land of the Sad Passiflora, Where Is My Mom, and A Letter from the Last Man. His poems have been translated into over twenty languages including English, Turkish, Italian, German, Hebrew, Russian, and Urdu and, for the first time, into Gaeilge. Makhoul has also published prose and drama, including the play This Isn’t Noah’s Ark. During the 2023 Gaza war, lines from Makhoul’s poetry were adopted as a slogan by protestors worldwide:
In order for me to write poetry that isn’t
political, I must listen to the birds
and in order to hear the birds
the warplanes must be silent.
A key focus of this visit is celebrating the poetry of Marwan Makhoul, the shared concerns between the Gaeilge & Arabic languages, the endeavour of translation, and poetry’s capacity to bear witness. Marwan’s work is being translated into the Irish language for the first time with readings by the poet translators Eibhlís Carcione, Louis de Paor agus Áine Uí Fhoghlú.
In collaboration with IMRAM, Ciste Spreagtha, Conradh na Gaeilge, Seachtain na Gaeilge agus Poetry Ireland/ Éigse Éireann.
Triskel | 8.30pm | Tickets €10/€8
Sunday 28 April
POP at Elizabeth Fort
1pm – 4pm: Drop-in all-ages programme
4pm – 5pm: Cork City Spoken Word
5.15pm – 6.15pm: Ben MacCaoilte, Lifting the Gate
1pm – 4pm: Drop-in all-ages programme
Pop-up poetry will take place in the fort at 1.30pm, 2pm, 2.20pm and 3pm. Curated by award-winning poet Molly Twomey with readings from Molly herself (Southword Debut Collection Poetry Award), Cork writer Lauren O’Donovan (Patrick Kavanagh Award, the Cúirt New Writing Prize in Poetry), Cork-based poet and multi-disciplinary artist Michelle Delea (whose writing has featured in The Stinging Fly, Type.ie, Architecture Ireland and Cork City Library’s Poetry in the Park) and Dean Browne (Geoffrey Dearmer Prize in 2021 and winner of the Poetry Business International Pamphlet Competition).
Vital Signs, published by Poetry Ireland, is an anthology of powerful and courageous responses to the human experience of illness and healing. Award-winning poet and writer Eleanor Hooker will be offering 10-minute Poetry S.O.S sessions as poetry pharmacist, selecting and prescribing a Vital Signs poem which participants can bring home and read at their leisure. Running from 1.15pm (last slot 4pm) on a first come first served basis.
‘Nature Tales’ drop-in sessions by Arran Towers at 2pm and 3.30pm. Nature inspired story and crafts with tales will be told inspired by Irish wildlife and clay creatures will be crafted inspired by the tales told. Suitable for all ages.
Calling young readers! One of Children’s Books Ireland’s friendly Book Doctors will be on site from 1pm – 4pm to offer advice to young readers so they go away with a list of potential new books to read and discover. Children (with their parent/guardian) are invited to drop by for a consultation.
Let’s Play Cork will be creating a free pop up play ground in Elizabeth Fort, with a variety of games for the young and young at heart. Come join in the fun from 1pm – 3pm.
On site will also include a pop-up book fair with a wide range of literary finds from some of Ireland’s finest book sellers and Exile’s pop-up bookshop of photography books, illustration and graphic works.
World music group Citadel, who bring together a diverse range of voices from Kinsale Road Direct Provision Centre, will be on stage at 1.15pm, while one of Ireland’s leading guitarists Colm McClean will perform from 2.45pm. Colm has performed at every major concert hall in Ireland including National Concert Hall, Cork Opera House and the Concert Hall Limerick.
4pm – 5pm: Cork City Spoken Word
Ó Bhéal will present a showcase of spoken word performances from four regular Cork City poetry events: Sling Slang, Ubuntu Sessions, The Underground Loft and Ó Bhéal.
Featured performers include: From Sling Slang (emcee: Richard Pierce, poets: Philip Spillane and Alana Daly Mulligan; from Ubuntu (emcee: Outsider YP, poets: Cliff Masheti and Raphael Olympio); from The Underground Loft (emcee: Cian Walsh, poets: Em Egan Reeve and Ciarán Shanahan); and from Ó Bhéal (emcee: Rosie O’Regan, poets: Jim Crickard and Cathal Holden).
5.15pm – 6.15pm: Ben MacCaoilte, Lifting the Gate
Lifting the Gate by bilingual poet Ben MacCaoilte is a storytelling performance poetry and music show that has performed at venues across Ireland, the UK and Europe. Ben had the pleasure of supporting for Declan O Rourke on his Irish Tour 2023.
“Impossibly detailed worlds about people and place are revealed in tight verses wrapped in warm violin strings by Lily Brodie-Hayes”
Elizabeth Fort | free
To book your place, please do so via the following link https://www.eventbrite.ie/e/lifting-the-gate-by-ben-mac-caoilte-tickets-883282691307?aff=oddtdtcreator
Launch of Cork Stories by Lord Mayor Cllr Kieran McCarthy
Cork Stories Anthology celebrates all that is Cork and the great diversity of people who live there. Writers include Kevin Barry, Martina Evans, Danny Denton, Grainne Murphy and many more. Including readings from the contributors. Edited by Madeleine D’Arcy and Laura McKenna. Published by Doire Press.
St Peter’s | 3pm | free
Cork World Book Fest 