“Taking place well after the final exams and providing a vibrant introduction to another Dublin summer, the International Literature Festival Dublin (ILFD) will be running from May 15th to May 21st. Hosted in Merrion Square, the festivities are central enough for anyone to come and see what’s on offer. To build your itinerary well in advance, the University Times’ prospectus, featuring some of the highlights of this decades-long festival, is here to help. Starting off strong, The Stinging Fly Summer Issue launch will be held on May 16th at 8 pm. The Stinging Fly is known to have kick-started the careers of some of the most prominent Irish writers today and will continue this tradition in its launch event, where it will announce the winners of its Stinging Fly/FBA Fiction Prize, dedicated to spotlighting emerging fiction writers. Along with that, readings of pieces in its summer issue will be performed. On the same day, Stinging Fly Non-fiction Editor Emma Dabiri will join British Vogue’s Style Editor Funmi Fetto to discuss Fetto’s fiction debut, Hail Mary. Chronicling stories of nine Nigerian women, her novel is an inquiry into the double standards women face in Nigerian society. Both authors will discuss their perspectives on contemporary womanhood and race. As the Irish language continues to have a renaissance and be featured more and more in our daily lives, contemporary literature is well on its way to reflect it as well. Naoise Dolan is among those pioneering a complete shift into writing and speaking in Irish and will discuss this and more on translation on May 17th at 5 pm. Joined by Emma Ní Chearúil, Dolan will discuss writing in your second language and what that means in an Irish context. Further, on May 19th, the revered Mary Costello will speak about her new release, A Beautiful Loan, along with Sinéad Gleeson. Following a young woman in the 1980s along 20 years of her life through marriage, betrayal and an eventual coming into her own, Costello will discuss her work, her inspirations and writing emotionality and humanness. For anyone following the literary awards, the 20th of May will provide a real treat as Dublin Literary Award-nominated author Elif Shafak will discuss her novel There Are Rivers in the Sky. Her novel spans three largely different stories united only by a single drop of water and connects time periods, cultures, geographies and personal histories. Nominated for the Stanford Travel Writing Award as well as the Orwell Prize, Shafak will provide an in-depth look into her process of storytelling and creation. As per tradition, the winner of the Dublin Literary Award will be presented in person at the Festival, on the evening of the 22nd of May. Announced the day before, the winner will present their work along with a discussion of it at the Festival and will offer some signed copies as well. Though these are just some highlights from the program, the festival will include much more and will feature activities outside of traditional book panel discussions, such as yoga, sound baths or film screenings. For a cultural break, get down to Merrion Square this May and enjoy some of the best Irish literature and arts have to offer!
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