Vona Groarke
Poem of the Week: “Tonight of Yesterday” by Vona Groarke
Tonight of Yesterday for Eve The evening slips you into it, has kept a place for you and those wildwood limbs that have already settled on the morning. The words you have for it are flyblown now as the dandelion you’ll whistle tomorrow into a lighter air. But, tonight, your sleep will be as…
Continue ReadingThe secret is out… Announcing our latest book, The Shack.
Today’s the day! It’s finally here! We’ve been waiting so long to tell you about our newest book, The Shack: Irish Poets in the Foothills and Mountains of the Blue Ridge, that it’s hard to believe we can finally talk about it. In The Shack, contemporary Irish poets reflect on their time in the foothills and mountains…
Continue ReadingPoem of the Week: “Nouns and Verbs”
One thing we love here at the Press is words—both in Irish and English. Vona Groarke’s “Nouns and Verbs” celebrates the love of choosing just the right word.
Continue ReadingIrish poets in New York City this weekend for 6th Annual PoetryFest
This coming weekend in New York City will be an exciting one for the poetry community. The 6th Annual PoetryFest (November 7–9), is a three-day celebration of contemporary Irish and American poetry, featuring lectures, readings and more. Over the course of the weekend, ten poets will be featured, including Vona Groarke, Peter Fallon and Rita…
Continue ReadingPoem of the Week: “Pier” by Vona Groarke
Only a few weeks remain before students return to campus, and our hottest days seem to be behind us. As we desperately hang on to summer, we offer Vona Groarke’s poem, “Pier,” as a celebration of the freedom and elan that summertime allows. Pier Speak to our muscles of a need for joy. …
Continue ReadingPoem of the Week: Away
Away We have our own smallholding: persimmon tree, crawl space, stoop, red earth basement, ceiling fans, a job. Hours I’m not sure where I am, flitting through every amber between Gales and Drumcliffe Road. I paint woodwork the exact azure of a wave’s flipside out the back of Spiddal pier and any given morning pins…
Continue ReadingThe End of the Line
The temperature is high, the pollen is present, and graduation is just around the corner. However, with the arrival of springtime blossoms comes the departure of most of our staff. Interns Nicole, Maura, Amanda, Julie and Mike are all graduating, and Candide is retiring from Assistant Director. And while I feel inclined to use the…
Continue ReadingVona Groarke in The New Yorker
The November 11 issue of The New Yorker includes Vona Groarke’s poem “The Landscapes of Vilhelm Hammershøi” on page 61. Vilhelm Hammershøi (1864-1916) was a Danish painter best known for his low-key, soft portraits and interiors. Enigmatic and secretive, his paintings were described as “highly traditional, but also distinctively modern” in the 2008 London Royal…
Continue Reading‘Tis the season for Poetry Readings
Everyone knows that poetry is best when listened to, so kick back, relax and belatedly celebrate National Poetry Day with some readings from our poets. Conor O’Callaghan reading “January Drought” from his newest collection, The Sun King. WFUP will publish the North American edition in December. Conor will be reading from The Sun King at the…
Continue ReadingA Lil’ Bit of Lit. Crit.: The Vocal Landscapes of Vona Groarke
In the Spring 2010 issue of Poetry London, W.N. Herbert of Newcastle University wrote an article on “Approaching Simplicity” in which he compares the works of poets Billy Collins and Don Paterson to our very own Vona Groarke. Looking at Groarke’s most recent publication with the Press, Spindrift, Herbert writes: “Vona Groarke’s work finds itself…
Continue ReadingChilling with Vona
Lonely, I’m so lonely. I’m the only one working at the Press today, with Candide in Georgia and everyone else doing what they do on Fridays. Luckily I’m not completely alone. I’ve got Vona Groarke right here next to me. On my lap, actually. The never-ending process of proofing for our new anthology has made…
Continue ReadingJudging a Book by its Cover: Vona Groarke’s Spindrift
While an old adage suggests that you can’t judge a book by its cover, in the modern publishing world, that’s often all you have to go by. The ever-expanding digital marketplace uses cover art as an ambassador for the intangible, providing a thumbnail image of the physical book. Similarly, in old-fashioned bookstores, cover art is,…
Continue ReadingSpindrift
Today is a sad day. Not only is it raining and the middle of midterm exams, but the afternoon at the press, I’ve come to realize that book reviewers are a dying breed. Once a set feature in every major publication, the book review has gone by the wayside. Even more so, poetry reviews have…
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