Praise in Which I Live and Move and Have my Being

A book filled with contemporary life, but the poems also have a way of evoking enduring human values, in all their odd tones and surprising textures, as much as the contemporary moment – Colm Tóibín * Guardian Books of the Year *Whatever the subject, venue or city, and no matter how bitter the moment, Durcan has wit, charm and spark. Poetry is his – and our – rescuer… These poems are a pleasure to read * Observer *A poetry of encounter, of sidelong glances and exuberant strangeness. There will be many pleasures here for Durcan fans and aficionados – Paul Perry * Irish Times *Superbly composed, uneasy, desperately witty and often startling… At his best, which he often surpasses in this book, he produces what blue, green and red make when mixed: a pure white light, the noble glow of true praise. In contemporary literature, and not just Irish poetry, Durcan is flying high. Noble may yet become Nobel – Brian Lynch * Irish Independent *One of the few genuinely popular poets of recent decades, a vital presence in Irish culture…entertaining, edgy, and with enough ironic self-awareness to make from such quirky subjects more than superficial reflections on his life and times. Durcan is the recording angel who preserves what could be lost, who brings tidings of change in some of the darker moments of history * Guardian *He is a prolific poet, and as he nears a venerable three-score years and 10, his prodigious output shows no signs of slowing… There will be many pleasures here for Durcan fans and aficionados – Paul Perry * Irish Times *It was mesmerising and spellbinding and deeply affecting each poem received in awed silence – Alan Taylor on Paul’s Edinburgh event * Herald *A personal journey through places and people I know – Kathleen MacMahon * Irish Times *

Paul Durcan was born in Dublin in 1944. His first book, Endsville (1967), was followed by more than twenty others, including The Berlin Wall Cafe (a Poetry Book Society Choice in 1985), Daddy, Daddy (winner of the Whitbread Award for Poetry in 1990), Crazy About Women (1991), A Snail in My Prime- New and Selected Poems (1993), Give Me Your Hand (1994), Greetings to Our Friends in Brazil (1999), The Art of Life (2004), The Laughter of Mothers (2007), Life is a Dream- 40 Years Reading Poems 1967-2007 (2009), Praise in Which I Live and Move and Have My Being (2012), and The Days of Surprise (2015). In 2001 Paul Durcan received a Cholmondeley Award. He was Ireland Professor of Poetry from 2004 to 2007. He was conferred with a DLitt by Trinity College Dublin in 2009 and by University College Dublin in 2011. In 2014 he was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Irish Book Award. He was a member of Aosdana.

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