The March Book Club will be meeting via Zoom
Monday, March 8th • 6:30 PM ET / 11:30 PM GMT via Zoom
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Galway Stories is an engaging contemporary collection of short fiction set in the city and county of Galway by writers who live, or have lived, in Galway. It includes many of Ireland’s most acclaimed short-story writers, including Mike McCormack, Kevin Barry, Mary Costello and Julian Gough; local favorites, such as Geraldine Mills and Alan McMonagle; and up-and-comers, including Hugo Kelly and Aileen Armstrong.
The twenty stories included in the collection take the reader on an intimate tour of Galway, the cultural heart of Ireland. From the top of Eyre Square to the prom on Salthill, from the bogside of Cashel to the stone walls of Kinvara, each of the stories explore the neighborhoods and the people who live there. Some stories — such as Jim Mullarkey’s ‘Encounter on Buttermilk Lane’ or Olaf Tyaransen’s ‘Don’t you know who I am?’ — present a vivid portrait of the neighborhoods using specific landmarks and detail; others — including Edward Boyne’s ‘The Sculptor’ or Nuala Ní Chonchúir’s ‘Cri de Coeur’ — convey the atmospheric spirit of the neighborhoods and their inhabitants. The stories in the anthology offer a distinct array of content and theme, voice and style, celebrating also the diverse talent of Galway writers.
Galway Stories also includes photos and background information on each neighborhood, as well as maps displaying the location of each story to further provide an evocative snapshot of Galway.
By touching the pulse of some of the highways and byways of the city and county, the authors of these twenty stories bring into sharp relief Galway’s human heart and soul in all its joy and sorrow, in all its aspirations and disappointments, in all its victories and defeats. It is, in effect, the alternative guide to this beloved city and county of ours, filling in all the gaps left out by the official guides, giving a real sense of what makes it the magical place it is to live in.’”
– Des Kenny
About the Author
Lisa Frank was born and raised in Los Angeles but lived in the Pacific Northwest for several years before moving to Ireland in 2007. She received her MFA in Creative Writing from Eastern Washington University and has published fiction, poetry, creative non-fiction and screenplays. She has taught Creative Writing in a variety of settings and worked as a freelance editor for many years. In 2015 she was joint winner of the Irish Writers’ Centre Novel Fair and in 2016 she won second place in the Francis McManus Competition. She is also co-director of Doire Press.
