Celebrating its sixth year, the annual Leaves Literary Festival promises a wonderful variety of Irish writing and music. Next Friday, November 7th, at 8pm, the Laois Arthouse & Library hosts readings from bestselling novelist Donal Ryan and poet Louis de Paor, music by uilleann piper Séan Mc Keon, with author and broadcaster Ann Marie Hourihane as MC.
An evening with Sr Caravaggio, takes place in Castle Durrow Hotel on Saturday, November 8th, at 8pm. The recently published Sister Caravaggio will be brought to life by contributors to the novel Peter Cunningham, Cormac Millar, Peter Sheridan and Eilís Ní Dhuibhne. Castle Durrow Hotel is the setting on Sunday 9th at noon for readings by poet and novelist Mary Ó Donnell, poet Noel Monahan and music by Vocalese. The programme also includes visits to schools by writers including: Sarah Webb, Anne Egan, Nuala Hayes, Mary Arrigan & Manchán Magan.
Tickets for each reading are €12 or €30 for all three. Bookings can be made at the Dunamaise Arts Centre Tel: 057 8663355. dunamaise.ie
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The inaugural Poetry Ireland table quiz is being held on Saturday, November 22nd in Alfie Byrne’s at the Conrad Hotel. Quizmasters Paul Muldoon and Marian Richardson will host the event, which costs €50 for a table of four. Details of how to sign up are on poetryireland.ie. Lots of spot prizes and fun promised, with some proceeds from the evening going towards the Lingo Festival.
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The Irish poet Paul Durcan will receive the Bob Hughes Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2014 Bord Gáis Energy Irish Book Awards on November 26th. Durcan will join the hall of fame of other distinguished Irish writers who have been given the award, including last year’s winner John Banville, Maeve Binchy, John McGahern, Edna O’ Brien, William Trevor, Seamus Heaney and Jennifer Johnston.
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To mark the inaugural Laureate for Fiction Award, the Arts Council will host the first in a series of public events celebrating Irish writing on December 7th. Taking place in the Irish Film Institute in Temple Bar, the event brings together Irish performers and writers to offer an evening of literary focused entertainment. The line-up includes the screening of John McGahern: A Private World (a film by Pat Collins), followed by Irish actors Clare Barrett, Adrian Crowley, Olwen Fouéré, Bronagh Gallagher and Owen Roe reading short stories by Maeve Brennan, Mary Lavin, Frank O'Connor, Sean O Faolain and Liam O'Flaherty. After the readings, musicians Seán Mac Erlaine and Caoimhín Ó Raghallaigh will give their interpretations of the various texts.
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Dubray Books has a number of author events scheduled for November. The children's author Chris Judge will read from his new book Tin, recently shortlisted for the 2014 Irish Book Awards, at Dubray Books in the Blackrock Shopping Centre on November 6th. The Galway-based fitness instructor Pat Divilly came to prominence last year with his bestselling fitness manual 21 Day Jump Start. He will be signing copies of his new cookbook Naked Paleo: Food Stripped Bare in Dubray's shop on Grafton Street on November 8th. Irish hotelier Francis Brennan completes the line-up, with a signing for his new book It's The Little Things taking place in the Grafton Street store on November 15th.
