One of my favourite things about the process of assembling this book was the sense of navigating a conversation between multiple versions of myself. The ‘me’ of now was, in a way, listening closely to what a sequence of other, older versions of me had to say.

Doireann Ní Ghríofa

Lies

Doireann Ní Ghríofa

2018 Dedalus Press

One of my favourite things about the process of assembling this book was the sense of navigating a conversation between multiple versions of myself. The ‘me’ of now was, in a way, listening closely to what a sequence of other, older versions of me had to say.

Doireann Ní Ghríofa

Description

When does a poem tell the truth? When is it a lie? In Lies, intimate moments carefully re-appraised (first dates, break ups, young parenthood, etc.) are the raw material of these vivid and wholly engaging poems, written in Irish, and translated here by the author – a process that itself raises questions about poetry and truth. But a great deal of the power of Ní Ghríofa’s work comes from the way her personal history links her to the wider world – to the imaginative encounters that prompt so many of the poems, to an acute awareness of the restless nature of language itself, and not least to the women who preceded her and who remain a steadying and guiding presence throughout.

 
Interviews
Prizes & Awards

More like this