Madam, – Regarding the supposed lack of book festivals in Dublin, David Smith (August 22nd) and your readers might like to know that the Imram Irish Language Literature Festival opens on September 10th, and runs to September 29th, including a Homage to Máire Mhac an tSaoi and a special concert of Bob Dylan’s songs translated by leading Irish poets and performed by Liam Ó Maonlaí and others. There are also workshops, film, debates and book launches. – Yours, etc,
Madam, – Madeleine Keane (August 25th) lists an impressive array of authors for Books ’09. Not an Irish-language author in sight. Tim Carey (August 25th) writes to you about the Dún Laoghaire Book Festival, Mountains to Sea. Again, an impressive list of authors. Again, not one creative writer in Irish.
What is the nature of this blind spot? Might it be worthy of investigation? Is it related to the poor profile of Irish-language books in our bookshops and libraries? Has it something to do with the ridiculously small amount of Irish-language books which get reviewed in the national press and media? Has it something to do with the fact that the international reputation of Irish-language writing has suffered because so few writers have been widely translated?
Looking at the larger picture, everyone is familiar with posters and other items which depict Irish writers. Irish-language authors are usually excluded from this pantheon. I think we may have to look at the way we manufacture our literary lists and artifacts, both for home and foreign consumption.
Somebody put a list together recently of living Irish-language authors. It was in the region of 300. They can’t all be bad, can they? – Yours, etc,