Gerry Sweeney's Mammy
by Dónall Dempsey
is available to buy from this page.
by Dónall Dempsey
is available to buy from this page.
“Gerry Sweeney’s Mammy” is packed with memories of the author’s childhood growing up in the Curragh Camp where his father was stationed for forty years and where Dónall himself served in the Irish Defence Force for six years as a young man. His poems also recall holidays in Co. Cork, where his father’s family come from, and range beyond memory to deal with every aspect of family: birth, loss, family anecdote and inevitably, the fun and humour that exist in all families.
Comments on "Gerry Sweeney's Mammy" 'This is a book of great clarity. Its poems draw strength from the twin securities of family and place before striking out boldly to engage with themes of death and loss. Dónall Dempsey’s new collection deftly shows readers how: ‘[t]he flag of self unfurls / snaps into the lost moment.’ (‘Walking from the Rising Sun to Kildare Town’). This is especially apparent in poems like ‘Follow the Leader’ where the writer’s daughter prompts this unfurling, teaching him not simply to recognise but: ‘to be / the world that she / can see / (half invention / half discovery) …’ Many of Dempsey’s poems take up this ontological challenge, asking us to consider how our being in the world is shaped by complex interaction with close relatives and friends. In short, Gerry Sweeney’s Mammy celebrates our fundamental interconnectedness, the strength of that human chain outlasting the home place or family tree.' Richard Hawtree Gerry Sweeney's Mammy is a study in memory; beautifully and movingly suggests the divides of our life (as the book is in sections) the "then and nows" of our reality. For Donall the death of his brother creates such a high watershed between "then and now". But each reader exploring this pages will discover their 'then and now'. They'll puzzle about what they remember or have been unable to forget.' Paul A W Sutherland 'This is a tender and touching collection of poems. It is at times sad but as a counterbalance there is much humour. Above all these poems are excellently crafted with exquisite use of language. Divided into sections, it broadly deals with the narrator’s childhood in Ireland, the death of a much-loved sister, the love felt for the narrator’s own daughter and the loss in adulthood of his beloved brother. Yet the driving force behind the collection is a zest for life, a passion for language and literature and a genuine interest in people... Throughout the collection, Dempsey makes us see that after the initial acute sense of loss, the death of a loved one continues to reverberate across the years. I don’t think I have encountered poems that so fully and honestly deal with death and its aftermath.' Fiona Sinclair 'A poetry collection which deals, among other things, with the author’s childhood in Ireland, the deaths of siblings and older relations and his fascination with words and reading. It contains numerous references to and quotations from famous writers of the past from James Joyce to Emily Dickinson. Sounds familiar, even commonplace? Forget it. These poems and this collection transcend all expectations of a volumes of sensitive, sly, self-conscious backward looks. Instead this one sparkles with originality, vitality, and the love of life and language.' Michael Farry |
'A poetry collection which deals, among other things, with the author’s childhood in Ireland, the deaths of siblings and older relations and his fascination with words and reading. It contains numerous references to and quotations from famous writers of the past from James Joyce to Emily Dickinson.
Sounds familiar, even commonplace? Forget it. These poems and this collection transcend all expectations of a volumes of sensitive, sly, self-conscious backward looks. Instead this one sparkles with originality, vitality, and the love of life and language.' Michael Farry Mandy Pannett reviews "Gerry Sweeney's Mammy" in SOUTH Magazine #58, September 2018: 'I defy anyone not to be moved to laughter and to tears by these poems that celebrate life, language, love and loss for the memories they bring... This is an outstanding, memorable collection. Mandy Pannett SOUTH Magazine #58, September 2018 Eamonn Lynskey writes about "Gerry Sweeney's Mammy" on his website, http://eamonnlynskey.com/posts-2/ ISBN: 9781907435478
Published 2017 100 poems Perfect-bound paperback 148 pages 21cm wide x 15cm tall RRP £7.99
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