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GET YOUR BOOKMARKS ready, because the Dublin: One City One Book title for 2014 has been announced.
This year’s choice was the novel Strumpet City, which tied in with the centenary of the Dublin Lockout, but next year’s selection is something completely different.
Dublin City Libraries and Dublin UNESCO City of Literature have announced that they have selected If Ever You Go: a map of Dublin in poetry and song as the One City One Book choice for April 2014. The project has been running since 2006.
This is the first time a poetry book has been chosen for One City One Book, and Jane Alger, Director of Dublin UNESCO City of Literature, told TheJournal.ie: “That’s the very reason we chose it – we’ve had novels all the time and this is something completely different.”
She said that Irish writers “are so strong in poetry and so well-known for poetry that we wanted to bring poetry to people’s attention”. She added that people can tend to have certain views about poetry and “we want to change some of those views”.
“We want to bring poetry into people’s lives,” said Alger.
Poetry and song
If Ever You Go: a map of Dublin in poetry and song is described as “a collection of poems, ballads and songs from a range of literary luminaries connected with Dublin”.
It is arranged street by street, carrying the reader “on a virtual tour of the City of Words”.
Margaret Hayes, Dublin City Librarian, said that this is an exciting first for One City One Book. “The poems, songs and ballads in the collection are also ideal for the public readings, performances and theatrical events which animate One City One Book,” she said.
There will be a full programme of associated events throughout the month of April to mark the choice of the book.
If Ever You Go is edited by Pat Boran and Gerard Smyth and published by Dedalus Press, and will be available to borrow from libraries and to buy in bookshops from February 2014.
The book includes writing from both historical and contemporary figures, including Swift, Synge, Yeats, Joyce, Kavanagh and Ó Direáin as well as Seamus Heaney, Eavan Boland, Dermot Bolger, Paula Meehan, Nuala Ní Dhomhnaill and Derek Mahon.
It also includes songs and ballads from the city’s colonial past, as well as verses by leaders of the 1916 Rising. Plus, elements of the modern city such as the Spire and Luas tram are also featured – as well as the post-Celtic Tiger challenges faced by the capital.
Will you read the One City One Book choice next year?
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Would gladly take a pay rise thanks very much. That way i can afford funnier friends
It’s all about work life balance for me.
I’ve worked shift work all my working life which includes nights and earlys and weekends included.Last year took on a project in work that meant i only worked days for 6 months ,tuesdays to fridays and no weekends.I dropped a considerable amount of money due to loss of shift pay but it was the best 6 months i’ve spent working in my life due to the weekends off ,no nights and sociable hours.I would gladly take a pay cut to work it permanently but in my line of work its not feasable.Theres way more important things to a job than money for sure
+1 million
Took a decent pay cut in recent years but now work a 3 day week most weeks and non anti social hours. Wouldlnt go back to the old way even if I was offered double my salary, work is a means to an end
….says anyone that’s getting a nice wage in the first place!
BS! I’d work with satan himself if I could have a pay rise!
Wait… I already do…
So when does the Landsdown Road pay restoration kick in? Ta
Getting paid more is far more desirable than office fun.
Sounds like a survey commissioned to discourage pay rises in place of bean bags and space invader machines.
Thanks the reason that the government gave themselves a pay rise is because they don’t have any craic in their work place
Obviously those surveyed are on good money, for most though a pay rise would be the preferred choice, its ridiculous to say the craic is more important than a proper wage.
Having the so called Craic can be sexual harassment, bullying, gossip mongering and depends who is doing it sociopaths or psychopaths…
The term craic can mean so many things to so many people including racism?
*crack
“Craic” drives me mad too. Or maybe it’s just that I’m no crack.
I highly doubt they’re saying that crack cocaine is better than craic with people!
Might make the day pass faster though! A bit of crack to help deal with the craic!
It’s not an Irish word. It has an unusual history; The English ”crack”was borrowed into Irish as craic in the mid-20th century and the Irish spelling was then reborrowed into English.
It may not be As Gaeilge but craic is an Irish word.
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