From the early 1970s the Irish midland town of Portlaoise became famous as the home of the country's maximum security political prison. A childhood on the Main Street of that "once congested, now double by-passed town" afforded prize-winning poet Pat Boran a unique insight into its workings at the time, as it did into small-town life in general. Here are extraordinary glimpses of bog men and bogey men, of the town's first colour television and the national debate over its first public toilet... Here too are stories of coming of age, of high jinks and low deeds, of events and characters both wonderful and deeply strange. And here too is the shadow of the northern conflict, seen through the lens of a southern Irish town with claims to being the place where the British Empire began-and the first shots were fired of the 1916 Rising. Part memoir, part social history, part meditation on community itself, The Invisible Prison is a funny, moving, surprising and by times heart-breaking look at Irish life-and Irish family life-and the energies and passions that animate it.

Following his widely acclaimed prose memoir The Invisible Prison (2009), and his New and Selected Poems (2005, reissued 2007), popular Irish poet Pat Boran's first full-length collection of poems in over a decade sees him explore questions of love, belonging and connection in poems that, more than ever, are influenced by song, recognising that small and great challenges alike may be entry points to new beginnings, and that the instinct to sing and praise has seldom been more relevant or crucial. Despite appearing to echo the promise of religious belief, The Next Life of the title is entirely to be found in the here-and-now and the near-to-hand, in the play of sparrows on a lawn, in the mortality-exploring games of his two small children ('Let's Die'), and, against the noise and distractions of the world, in the trust and faith of lovers "whispering together / words never uttered before."

This compilation is an invitation to explore, street by street, one of the world's most famous literary cities through the poems and songs it has inspired both in English and Irish, by contemporary as well as historical writers.

Now in its 21st year, the Dedalus Press is one of the major poetry imprints in Ireland. In Wingspan: A Dedalus Sampler, poet and publisher Pat Boran presents a selection of recent and new work by 28 Irish and international poets on the Dedalus list - among them Fergus Allen, Thomas Kinsella, Dolores Stewart and Macdara Woods - showing something of the range and diversity that is the hallmark of the Dedalus list.

Irish poetry is among the most vibrant language cultures in the world. A decade on from the landmark anthology Watching the River Flow: A Century in Irish Poetry (Poetry Ireland, 1999), Flowing, Still reissues the ten introductory essays from that book-by some of the best-known figures in contemporary Irish poetry, among them Seamus Heaney, John Montague, Nuala N Dhomhnaill, Eavan Boland and Ciaran Carson-adding a number of extended essays which bring the book up to the present day. This new volume aims to provide students and general readers alike with an affordable single-volume introduction to Irish poetry since 1900-in the words of some of its finest living practitioners.

How do writers write? What do they do when they're stuck for ideas? Or how do they take those still vague ideas to the next level, maybe even all the way to publication? Whether you belong to a writing group running low on steam, or are struggling on your own and looking for some helpful direction, this book - now in its fifth reprinting and updated for this new edition - offers all the practical assistance you'll ever need. Covering everything from ideas for generating raw material to form and technique in poetry and prose, prize-winning poet and writer Pat Boran (who has conducted hundreds of writing workshops over the years) takes a hands-on approach to the creative writing process, concluding with a new section for those considering their own first steps towards publication. Accessible, enjoyable and stimulating, The Portable Creative Writing Workshop is an ideal starting point (and travel companion) for anyone setting out on the writer's journey. ABOUT THE AUTHOR Poet, fiction writer and publisher Pat Boran has been conducting writing workshops for many years. In that time he has published more than a dozen collections of poetry and prose and has edited more than a hundred books by other poets and writers. He is a former editor of Poetry Ireland Review, has presented poetry and arts programmes on radio and television, and is a member of Aosdana, the Irish affiliation of writers and artists. His most recent publications are The Next Life (poems, 2013) and the prose memoir The Invisible Prison (2009

Cliona Ni Riordain presents a bilingual English-French selection of the work of four Irish poets published: Pat Boran, Katherine Duffy, Mary Montague and Gerry Murphy. An ideal companion for students of contemporary Irish poetry. "The oral essence of poetry is more marked in Ireland than possibly anywhere else; this is without doubt linked to the bardic tradition, with its reliance on assonance as an aid to memorisation. In Irish poetry, the private nature of poetry is perhaps less important than poetry seen as a form of public art, which includes the recitation of favourite poems and poetry readings given by the poets themselves ... or by readers. The Irish attraction for this type of event is without an equivalent in France" - from the Preface. Brought up in an Irish-speaking family in Cork, Cliona Ni Riordain is a Maitre de Conferences at the University of the Sorbonne Nouvelle, where she teaches translation and Irish Studies (language and literature).

Following his widely acclaimed prose memoir The Invisible Prison (2009), and New and Selected Poems (2005, reissued 2007), The Next LIfe is Pat Boran's first full-length collection of poems in over a decade and sees him exploring questions of love, belonging and connection in poems that, more than ever, are influenced by music and song, aware that challenges of all sizes may be entry points to new beginnings and that the instinct to sing and praise has seldom been more relevant or crucial. Despite echoing the promise of religious belief, The Next Life of the title is entirely to be found in the here-and-now and the near-to-hand, in the play of sparrows on a lawn, in the mortality-exploring games of his two small children ('Let's Die'), and, against the noise and distractions of the world, in the trust and faith of lovers "whispering together / words never uttered before."

An anthology of prose and poetry by some of the best-known living Irish writers, in support of the voluntary body Shine, supporting people affected by mental ill health. Contributors include Colm Toibin, Colum McCann, Claire Keegan, John Montague, Brendan Kennelly, Paula Meehan, Kevin Barry, Thomas Kinsella, Nuala Ni Dhomhnaill and many others. Edited and introduced by Pat Boran with a Foreword by broadcaster Miriam O'Callaghan.