Thomas McCarthy (poet)
Encyclopedia
Thomas McCarthy is an Irish
poet, novelist, and critic, born in Cappoquin
, Co. Waterford, Ireland. He attended University College Cork where he was part of a resurgence of literary activity under the inspiration of John Montague
. Among his contemporaries, described by Thomas Dillon Redshaw as "that remarkable generation," there were Theo Dorgan
poet and memoirist, Sean Dunne
, poet, Greg Delanty
, poet, Maurice Riordan
poet and William Wall
, novelist and poet. McCarthy edited, at various times, The Cork Review and Poetry Ireland Review
. He has published seven collections of poetry with Anvil Press Poetry, London, including The Sorrow Garden, The Lost Province, Mr Dineen's Careful Parade, The Last Geraldine Officer ("a major achievement", in the view of academic and poet Maurice Harmon)and Merchant Prince, described as "an ambitious and substantive book". The main themes of his poetry are Southern Irish politics, love and memory. He is also the author of two novels; Without Power and Asya and Christine. He is married with two children and lives in Cork City where he works in the City Libraries. He won the Patrick Kavanagh Poetry Award
in 1977. His monograph "Rising from the Ashes" tells the story of the burning of the Carnegie Free Library in Cork City by the Black and Tans
in 1920 and the subsequent efforts to rebuild the collection with the help of donors from all over the world.
In his work "the ludicrous and the homely go hand-in-hand but the relaxed, conversational style can switch from emphatic narration to literary observation, as when the poet quotes Henry James’s remark, ‘As the picture is reality so the novel is history/And not as the poem is: a metaphor and closed thing."
Thomas is also a contributer to their series of special podcasts "A Writers's Passage" in which 10 Irish authors take a personal tour through the locations of their books. The podcast based on The Gardens of Remembrance is just one of over 180 podcasts available free on this site.
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
poet, novelist, and critic, born in Cappoquin
Cappoquin
Cappoquin, also spelt Cappaquin or Capaquin , is a small town in west County Waterford, Ireland. It is on the Blackwater river at the junction of the N72 national secondary road and the R669 regional road. It is positioned on a sharp 90 degree bend in the river and nestles at the foot of the...
, Co. Waterford, Ireland. He attended University College Cork where he was part of a resurgence of literary activity under the inspiration of John Montague
John Montague
John Montague may refer to:*John Montague , Irish poet and writer*John Montague , baseball relief pitcher*John Montague , golfer and con man...
. Among his contemporaries, described by Thomas Dillon Redshaw as "that remarkable generation," there were Theo Dorgan
Theo Dorgan
Theo Dorgan is an Irish poet, writer and lecturer. He currently lives in Dublin.- Career :Dorgan's poetry collections are The Ordinary House of Love ; Rosa Mundi; and Sappho’s Daughter...
poet and memoirist, Sean Dunne
Seán Dunne (poet)
- Career :Dunne edited several anthologies, beginning with "The Poets of Munster" and finishing with the "Ireland Anthology" which was completed posthumously by George O'Brien and his partner Trish Edelstein. He released 3 collections of poems...
, poet, Greg Delanty
Greg Delanty
Greg Delanty is an Irish poet. He is artist-in-residence at St. Michael's College, and current President of the Association of Literary Scholars, Critics, and Writers....
, poet, Maurice Riordan
Maurice Riordan
Maurice Riordan is an Irish poet, translator, and editor. Born in Lisgoold, County Cork, Riordan has published three collections of poetry: A Word from the Loki , a largely London-based collection which was a Poetry Book Society Choice and shortlisted for the T. S...
poet and William Wall
William Wall
William "Bill" Wall is an Irish novelist, poet and short story writer. He was born in Cork City in 1955, but grew up in the coastal village of Whitegate. He received his secondary education at the Christian Brothers School in Midleton. He progressed to University College Cork where he graduated in...
, novelist and poet. McCarthy edited, at various times, The Cork Review and Poetry Ireland Review
Poetry Ireland Review
Poetry Ireland Review is a journal of Irish poetry published quarterly by Poetry Ireland, the national Irish poetry organization.Poetry Ireland Review publishes the work of both emerging and established Irish and international poets. In line with keeping the journal fresh, vibrant and progressive...
. He has published seven collections of poetry with Anvil Press Poetry, London, including The Sorrow Garden, The Lost Province, Mr Dineen's Careful Parade, The Last Geraldine Officer ("a major achievement", in the view of academic and poet Maurice Harmon)and Merchant Prince, described as "an ambitious and substantive book". The main themes of his poetry are Southern Irish politics, love and memory. He is also the author of two novels; Without Power and Asya and Christine. He is married with two children and lives in Cork City where he works in the City Libraries. He won the Patrick Kavanagh Poetry Award
Patrick Kavanagh Poetry Award
The Patrick Kavanagh Poetry Award is an Irish poetry award for a collection of poems by an author who has not previously been published in collected form. It is confined to poets born on the island of Ireland, or of Irish nationality, or a long-term resident of Ireland. It is based on an open...
in 1977. His monograph "Rising from the Ashes" tells the story of the burning of the Carnegie Free Library in Cork City by the Black and Tans
Black and Tans
The Black and Tans was one of two newly recruited bodies, composed largely of British World War I veterans, employed by the Royal Irish Constabulary as Temporary Constables from 1920 to 1921 to suppress revolution in Ireland...
in 1920 and the subsequent efforts to rebuild the collection with the help of donors from all over the world.
In his work "the ludicrous and the homely go hand-in-hand but the relaxed, conversational style can switch from emphatic narration to literary observation, as when the poet quotes Henry James’s remark, ‘As the picture is reality so the novel is history/And not as the poem is: a metaphor and closed thing."
Poetry
- 1978 in poetry1978 in poetryNationality words link to articles with information on the nation's poetry or literature .-Events:* L=A=N=G=U=A=G=E Magazine, edited by Bruce Andrews and Charles Bernstein, first published...
: The First Convention, Dolmen Press, Dublin - 1981 in poetry1981 in poetryNationality words link to articles with information on the nation's poetry or literature .-Events:* Jane Greer launched Plains Poetry Journal, an advance guard of the New Formalism movement....
: The Sorrow Garden, Anvil Press, London - 1984 in poetry1984 in poetryNationality words link to articles with information on the nation's poetry or literature .-Events:*December 19 - Philip Larkin turns down the British Poet Laureateship, and Ted Hughes becomes Poet Laureate....
: The Non-Aligned Storyteller, Anvil Press, London - 1989 in poetry1989 in poetryNationality words link to articles with information on the nation's poetry or literature .-Events:* Dead Poets Society, a film incorporating excerpts from many traditional poets, ending with the title and opening line of Walt Whitman's lament on the death of Abraham Lincoln, "O Captain! My...
: Seven Winters in Paris, Anvil Press, London - 1996 in poetry1996 in poetryNationality words link to articles with information on the nation's poetry or literature .-Events:* National Poetry Month was established by the Academy of American Poets in April 1996 as way to increase awareness and appreciation of poetry in the United States.* The movie Dead Man, written and...
: The Lost Province, Anvil Press, London - 1999 in poetry1999 in poetryNationality words link to articles with information on the nation's poetry or literature .-Events:* July 1 — Scotland's Parliament opened with the singing of Robert Burns' "A Man's a Man For A'That", instead of "God Save The Queen"...
: Mr Dineen’s Careful Parade: New and Selected Poems, Anvil Press, London - 2005 in poetry2005 in poetryNationality words link to articles with information on the nation's poetry or literature .-Events:* October 7 — Celebrations marking the 50th anniversary of the first reading of Allen Ginsberg's poem Howl were staged in San Francisco, New York City, and in Leeds in the UK...
: Merchant Prince, Anvil Press, London - 2009 in poetry2009 in poetryNationality words link to articles with information on the nation's poetry or literature .-Events:* January 5 – The Turkish government announces it will posthumously restore the citizenship it had stripped from influential poet Nazim Hikmet, a Marxist who died in 1963 as an exile in the Soviet...
: The Last Geraldine Officer, Anvil Press, London
Fiction
- 1990 in literature1990 in literatureThe year 1990 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:*J. K. Rowling gets the idea for Harry Potter while on a train ride from Manchester to London. She says "I was staring out the window, and the idea for Harry just came. He appeared in my mind's eye, very fully formed...
: Without Power, Poolbeg Press, Dublin - 1993 in literature1993 in literatureThe year 1993 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:*Professor Stephen Hawking's book, A Brief History of Time, becomes the longest running book on the bestseller list of The Sunday Times....
: Asya and Christine, Poolbeg Press, Dublin
Video
Watch a video of Thomas McCarthy reading at the National Gallery of IrelandPodcasts
You can hear an interview with Thomas McCarthy and listen to him reading from his work all recorded in March 2010 at http://www.podcasts.ie/featured-writers/featured-poets/thomas-mccarthy/Thomas is also a contributer to their series of special podcasts "A Writers's Passage" in which 10 Irish authors take a personal tour through the locations of their books. The podcast based on The Gardens of Remembrance is just one of over 180 podcasts available free on this site.