A 'howdie-skelp' is apparently the slap in the face a midwife gives a newborn. We are to understand that this new collection by the much-lauded Irish poet is a Call To Action; although what ... read more
It's the shortest, coldest day of the year and Bill Furlong, a coal and timber merchant in a small Irish town, busies himself with the last few deliveries. An elegant and carefully distilled... read more
When Crane died at 28, he was a star: the adventurous veteran of the Wild West and Cuba during the Spanish American War, the author of a masterpiece (The Red Badge of Courage), and an exile ... read more
A powerfully written novel about a sculptor facing the end of her life, sexual chemistry, confinement and the transformative power of art. The other actor (apart from her new lover) in the n... read more
The melancholic pathologist Quirke and the Dublin detective St. John Stafford find themselves at work in a sun-dappled San Sebastián. Previously Banville published the Quirke crime series p... read more