Writers and readers set for book festival

Contributions from Marina Lewycka, the BBC’s Fergal Keane, John Banville, Joseph O’Connor,  Áine Lawlor from RTÉ, Mary O’Rourke and the Royal Shakespeare Company’s Education Workshop Department are just some of the highlights from the line-up of national and international authors for Ennis Book Club Festival, which will be held from March 1 to 3.

The festival will be opened by Dr Patricia Canning of The Reader Organisation, a UK charity focused on the therapeutic and life-enhancing properties of reading. Over the three-day period, writers, readers and book club members travel to Ennis from all over Ireland and abroad to participate in readings, lectures, debates, music, workshops, exhibitions and walking tours.

Dennis Halliday, the former UN assistant secretary general, will launch Peader King’s book  What in the World, based on the RTÉ television series on developing  world issues. The winner of the Maeve Binchy €1,000 Short Story Competition, organised by Cumann Merriman in memory of Ireland’s most popular author, will be announced and read for the first time. “We are very pleased that Cumann Merriman has chosen this festival to announce the Maeve Binchy Short Story Competition winner and also that the winning story will be heard here for the first time,” said festival chairperson, Ciana Campbell.

Ms Campbell said there is huge interest in the visit of Marina Lewycka, the author of the global bestseller A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian. “So many people have read her incredibly funny book and they want to be in Ennis to see and to meet her. That’s the kind of festival we have. People get to meet and chat with their favourite authors in a relaxed and informal atmosphere,” she said.

The festival organisers are really pleased  the distinguished BBC correspondent and writer Fergal Keane is coming this year. “Fergal has wanted to be with us on several occasions in the past. Fortunately, a window of opportunity has opened and we look forward to two interviews conducted by Seán Rocks, presenter of the RTÉ Radio 1 Arena arts programme, one with Fergal and the other with Marina Lewycka. It should be a great Saturday night,” according to Ciana .

There is a bittersweet dimension to this year’s festival, which has a special tribute to the poet Dennis O’Driscoll, who sadly died at Christmas time. Dennis had agreed to participate in the forthcoming festival. “We have always provided a platform for poets and we were thrilled  Dennis had accepted our invitation. He was such a fine poet and a gentle, encouraging man, we thought it appropriate to organise a tribute, where his work will be read by fellow poets,” said Ciana.

The Royal Shakespeare Company’s Education Department is hosting a number of workshops for local schools and also for the general public. The numbers for these will be limited and early booking is advised. The festival organisers are particularly proud to have snared the world-renowned company to Ennis. The visit of the Royal Shakespeare is made possible by funding from the Arts Council. The Arts Council participation in the cultural programme to mark Ireland’s Presidency of the Council of the European Union is supported by the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht.

Power and Corruption is the subject for this year’s Sunday Symposium. The early morning discussion usually packs Glór Theatre in expectation of lively, entertaining and often noisy interactions between contributors and audience. People are rarely disappointed and this year’s panellists are well equipped to address questions of power and corruption. They include former Minister of Education, Mary O’Rourke; economist Brian Lucey; Elaine Byrne,  Sunday Independent columnist and Irish expert to the European Commission on corruption. The Sunday Symposium is chaired by media consultant Caimin Jones.

Irish Times columnist and author Michael Harding was one of the stars of last year’s Sunday Symposium. He returns to the festival, reading from his new memoir  Staring at Lakes: A Memoir of Love, Melancholy and Magical Thinking. Author and Oxford academic Belinda Jack will focus on a history of women’s reading. Acclaimed author Joseph O’Connor will host a Giant Book Club Gathering, where his hugely successful historical novel Star of the Sea will be discussed. Irish Polar exploration will be recalled in an illustrated talk by Michael Smith, author of the powerful book on Tom Crean  An Unsung Hero while Kate Bateman will conduct a workshop on  How to Read A Novel.

10 Books You Should Read always attracts incredible interest and a huge audience. It owes its popularity to the choices and decisions of the people who have chosen the 10 books. This year, it is the turn of RTÉ’s Áine Lawlor and author and Newstalk presenter Sean Moncrieff to make the choices.

Another event that has great appeal is the Literary Lunch on Sunday. This year’s offering  The Wheelchair on my Face, a hilarious one-woman show performed by Sonya Kelly,  won a Fringe First last year at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. The festival also includes readings and chat from writers Donal Ryan, Conor Brady, Liz Ryan and the poet Tony Curtis.

Book club members, who travel from all over Ireland to the festival are making their plans now and accommodation providers in Ennis offer special packages to readers and book club members. Further information, including the full programme and biographies of authors and contributors, is available on www.ennisbookclubfestival.com.

Tickets for the Ennis Book Club Festival are now available. Booking for all festival events in all venues is through Glór Box Office.