‘What’s Happening in the Shade’ by Liam Ryan

You could build a wall out of one of Ryan’s poems, or cross a field knowledgeably, or give a haircut — you can learn about love here, you can come to terms with death in these poems, and you can stand quietly, listening, as he holds conversations (and holds his own) with Lorca, Szymborska, Kavanagh and many more. Here are poems that speak with intelligence and grace of the marvellous in the mundane.” —Theo Dorgan

Liam Ryan, Author of What’s Happening in the Shade

About the Book: Liam Ryan canvasses a broad spectrum of subjects in his second collection of poems What’s Happening in the Shade. Part I of the collection visits life, death and God, while Part II examines love in many of its forms: parental love, spousal love and unrequited love. The collection seeks to probe the idea of existence through the mirrors of oblique observation. From straightforward snapshots of a retired block layer and a vacated dwelling house, to the more skewed glimpses at mythological figures such as Orpheus and Porlock; the poems attempt a narrative and a reflection on life today. Ryan provides both objective observations with more emotive thoughts, with a joke or a pun always waiting just around the corner. In Liam Ryan’s debut collection, Touching the Stones, John Montague wrote that ‘these poems recall for me days in a Midland village, Laois or Longford… they explore the deep centre of Ireland.’ In this new collection, Liam Ryan continues to explore themes of memory, transience and the natural world, expressing his delight in playing with the language surrounding these motifs.

About the Author: Liam Ryan was born in Donohill, Co. Tipperary in 1955, but now resides in Co. Laois where he has his own architectural business. He is married with two grown-up daughters. Doghouse Books published his debut collection of poems Touching Stones in May 2009. His poems and reviews have been published in publications such as The Irish Times, Poetry Ireland and The SHOp Poetry Magazine. One of his poems won third prize at Strokestown International Poetry Competition in 2012 and has his work has been included in several anthologies, including the Dublin anthology If Ever You Go. What’s Happening in the Shade is his second collection of poems.

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