Getting Irish speakers to read in Irish is a constant challenge. The internet-based Club Leabhar Ghaelchultúr (Gaelchultúr Book Club if you didn’t know!) have decided to meet that challenge by going seanscoil (sorry!) and giving the Irish-reading léitheoir a chance to meet up this Friday to discuss the latest writings in Irish, face to face and béal le béal.
However, not only will the clubleabhar give Irish speakers in the capital a chance to discuss the printed word, they will be also be giving readers in cyberspace a chance to join in. The get together is to be broadcast as it happens on Facebook Live.
The club’s organisers say they have long wanted to gives its members a chance of moving from writing comments online to actually talking together – not only in Dublin but where ever there is a good internet connection.
Clubleabhar’s director, Róisín Adams, says that that they have long had a presence on social media where people can swap literary opinions. However, there is a big difference between posting a comment on a forum and actually being able to discuss a book “in the real world,” she says.
This month's book is Éagóir (Cois Life) by former Language Commissioner, Seán Ó Cuirreáin, a non-fiction work, which expertly retells the story of the Mám Trasna murders of 1882 and the subsequent trial and miscarriage of justice. Not only will club members have the opportunity of discussing the book in Baile Átha Cliath but the author himself will also be taking questions from the global Gaeltacht on Facebook Live.
Earth-bound readers are invited to come along Friday at 7pm to Gaelchultúr’s headquarters at 11 Clare St, Dublin 2, while those enterprising souls – ahem – beaming in from cibéarspás can register online by going to ClubLeabhar.com and following the link to “Cliceáil anseo le clárú”.
It’s a leabhar, Jim, but not as we know it.
