Tori Amos last night in the Waterfront Hall. Absolute legend.

New books 📚

Very proud Mum 😊

Thanks for sharing x

The new summer programme for HomePlace has been announced. Line-up includes Patrick Radden Keefe, Pam Ayres, Bernard MacLaverty, Lucy Caldwell, Paul Mudoon & Andrew Miller. Tickets on sale on Monday. Get booking!

Soliloquies In 2016, the scholars Anne Rowe and Miles Leeson were invited to inspect papers remaining in Iris Murdoch’s last home in Oxford, and among the cobwebbed

A large hoard of unpublished poems was discovered in the attic after Iris Murdoch's death. What did she think about them?
My review of the latest addition to her oeuvre in this week's @thetls.bsky.social:
www.the-tls.com/literature/p...

Fantastic as always!

Very excited for this! @john-self.bsky.social @praddenkeefe.bsky.social

The Renovation by Kenan Orhan: Exile and memory - A Life in Books Book reviews, snippets of book news, and alerts about books outside the glare of the publicity spotlight.

New on my blog - The Renovation by Kenan Orhan: Exile and memory alifeinbooks.co.uk/2026/04/the-... #BookSky

You are my 100th post of the Month! Thank you

Life and death: #ReadingIrelandMonth26 © C A Lovegrove. Love and Summer by William Trevor. Penguin Books, 2010 (2009). William Trevor’s Rathmoye is a rural town in 1950s Ireland, somewhat like Skibbereen, Tipperary, Youghal or Enn…

My review of 'Love and Summer' by William Trevor, read for #ReadingIrelandMonth26.
#Booksky
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Love that book!

A sustained metaphor: #ReadingIrelandMonth Leucothea: Etruscan sculpture from Pyrgi, ca 350 BC, in the Museo Nazionale Etrusco di Villa Giulia, Rome. The name translates as ‘white goddess’. The White Goddess: a historical gramma…

My review of 'The White Goddess: a historical grammar of poetic myth', by Robert Graves.
#ReadingIrelandMonth26
#Booksky wp.me/sezD85-twg

The Queen of Dirt Island by Donal Ryan #readingirelandmonth26 The Queen of Dirt Island  follows four generations of the Aylward women as they negotiate grief and conflict. On the surface it's a family saga set in one small corner of Ireland but underneath is a tale that speaks to the universal themes of love and friendship. Donal Ryan's seventh novel begins with tragedy and loss. On the day Eileen Aylward gives birth to her first child Saoirse , her husband is killed in a road accident.

The Queen of Dirt Island by Donal Ryan #readingirelandmonth26

The Queen of Dirt Island  follows four generations of the Aylward women as they negotiate grief and conflict. On the surface it's a family saga set in one small corner of Ireland but underneath is a tale that speaks to the universal…

“The Spinning Heart” by Donal Ryan – Book Review #ReadingIrelandMonth26 #IrishFiction #TheSpinningHeart @PushkinPress @SteerforthPress #BookReview I have read several of Donal Ryan’s novels in the past, so I was delighted when offered the chance to read and review his very first work of fiction, “The Spinning Heart”. This de…

"The Spinning Heart" by Donal Ryan - Book Review #ReadingIrelandMonth26 #IrishFiction #TheSpinningHeart @pushkinpress.com @steerforthpress.bsky.social #BookSky #DonalRyan #BookReview
fictionophile.com/2026/03/30/t...

The News from Dublin by Colm Toibin: No duds here - A Life in Books Book reviews, snippets of book news, and alerts about books outside the glare of the publicity spotlight.

The News from Dublin by Colm Toibin: No duds here alifeinbooks.co.uk/2026/03/the-... #ReadingIrelandMonth2026

“The first words of every story tasted fresh.” (Bernard MacLaverty, Midwinter Break) I read Grace Notes by Bernard MacLaverty when it came out in 1997 – nearly 30 years ago! I really loved it and although generally with books I remember themes, atmosphere and how I felt reading it,…

A late in the day post on the blog today as I try and squeeze in another read for #ReadingIrelandMonth2026 hosted by @cathybrown746.bsky.social “The first words of every story tasted fresh.” (Bernard MacLaverty, Midwinter Break) madamebibilophilerecommends.co.uk/2026/03/27/t...

Reading Ireland Month: Two novellas by Clare O’Dea I’m late joining Reading Ireland Month, hosted by Cathy at 746 Books which is such a shame as I really enjoy this event every year. But I’m hoping to squeeze a few reads in before the end of the mo…

Today on the blog: Two novellas by Clare O’Dea for #ReadingIrelandMonth2026 hosted by @cathybrown746.bsky.social madamebibilophilerecommends.co.uk/2026/03/24/r...

Happy launch day to FOUR NIGHT SEAS by Niamh Mac Cabe 🎉 🌊 🐕

Run to your local bookshop to pick up THE debut collection of the year from one of Ireland's most stunning writers (I mean, look at those endorsements!) or join us this evening from 5.30pm at the brilliant @libersligo.bsky.social

Four Night Seas by Niamh MacCabe #readingirelandmonth26 In Four Night Seas, Niamh McCabe presents a formally ambitious and emotionally resonant collection of fourteen stories that explore how people live with guilt, confusion, and moral ambiguity. These…

On 746 Books, I review Niamh MacCabe’s new short story collection, Four Night Seas, a work that is thematically inventive and plays with form and structure to striking and impressive effect.

@lilliputpress.bsky.social @niamhmaccabe.bsky.social

#readingirelandmonth26

746books.com/2026/03/14/f...

“The Women On Platform Two” by Laura Anthony – Book Review @GalleryBooks @simonschuster #TheWomenOnPlatformTwo #BookReview #LauraAnthony Anyone who is interested in Irish history, particularly from a woman’s point of view, will adore this novel.  “The Women On Platform Two” puts an all too human face to the women&#…

"The Women On Platform Two" by Laura Anthony - Book Review #GalleryBooks @simonschusterca.bsky.social #IrishFiction #ReadingIrelandMonth #TheWomenOnPlatformTwo #BookReview #LauraAnthony fictionophile.com/2025/11/14/t...

“Listening Still” by Anne Griffin – Book Review #ReadingIrelandMonth26 @StMartinsPress #ListeningStill #BookReview #BacklistReview When Jeanie Masterson learns that her parents intend to retire and leave her and her husband in charge of the family undertaking business, she is thrown for a loop. This precipitates her having an …

"Listening Still" by Anne Griffin - Book Review #ReadingIrelandMonth26 @stmartinspress.bsky.social #ListeningStill #BookReview #BacklistReview fictionophile.com/2026/03/18/l...

This is a very entertaining companion for St Patrick's Day!

How the Booker Prize has reflected the new golden age of Irish fiction | The Booker Prizes Since the turn of the century, a new generation of Irish writers have cemented their place in the Booker canon. Max Liu uncovers the golden age of Irish fiction

How the Booker Prize has reflected the new golden age of Irish fiction

thebookerprizes.com/the-booker-l...

Dave Allen, who died March 10, 2005:

“I suppose Ireland is the best place in the world for directions. People will say to you, ‘I wouldn’t start from here if I were you.’”

Paperbacks to Look Out For in April 2026: Part One - A Life in Books Book reviews, snippets of book news, and alerts about books outside the glare of the publicity spotlight.

Paperbacks to Look Out For in April 2026: Part One alifeinbooks.co.uk/2026/03/pape... #BookSky

Such a great movie

Like Antigone: #ReadingWales © C A Lovegrove. I Saw a Man by Owen Sheers. Faber and Faber, 2016 (2014). Yesterday, upon the stair,I met a man who wasn’t thereHe wasn’t there again todayI wish, I wish he’d go …

My review of 'I Saw a Man' by Owen Sheers for #ReadingWales.
#Booksky wp.me/pezD85-18u

A Far-Flung Life by M.L. Stedman | Review A Far-Flung Life by M.L. Stedman (March 2026) is an epic read, a cinematic experience, a brilliant book club choice!!

#BookReview of #AFarFlungLife by M L Stedman www.swirlandthread.com/a-far-flung-...

Delighted to be judging the Francis McManus Short Story competition again this year. Get your best stories submitted asap