Mike in Finland

Tuesday 21 June 2011

My Forthcoming Reading Events


Here´s the latest news about my forthcoming readings, with dates and venues:

London
Friday 15th July: I´ll be reading in the art gallery of Swiss Cottage library again. This will be a poetry event with fellow-poet, Peter Daniels, heading the programme. Peter has recently published a pamphlet with Happenstance Press called Mr Luczinski Makes a Move. Peter´s well known on the London poetry scene and his new pamphlet contains several prize-winning poems, including the winning poem in the Times Literary Supplement competition, 2010. I´m honoured to be reading with him. I´ll be reading from my collection, Midas Touch, which was published by Ward Wood Publishing last year. Doors open at 18.00 and the reading begins at 18.30. The library address is: 88, Avenue Road, London NW3.

Dublin
Friday 16th September: I´m reading with fellow Ward Wood authors, Sue Guiney, Shauna Gilligan* and Noel Duffy, at the Irish Writers´ Centre, Parnell Square, Dublin. Reading begins at 18.30. I´m not sure yet if this will be a poetry or prose event, or possibly a mixture. The readings will be followed by a question time. I´ll post more exact details closer to the time.

Dublin
Saturday 17th September: With Sue, Shauna* and Noel again, we´re reading at The Twisted Pepper cafe (best coffee in Dublin, I´m reliably informed) at 54, Middle Abbey Street. This will be an afternoon event, start time 15.00.

*I´ve added Shauna Gilligan to the list of Ward Wood writers at these two Dublin events. Her short story collection, The Red Girl, is due next February.

London
Saturday 22nd October: I´m reading at the Poetry Society´s venue, The Poetry Cafe, at 22, Betterton Street, Covent Garden, London WC2. This will be an evening od readings by Ward Wood Publishing poets. I will be reading poems from Midas Touch. I don´t know exactly which other poets will be reading there, but I´ll post more details later.

Wednesday 15 June 2011

Minna Canth Plays from Aspasia Books

Good news for lovers of Finnish literature in English: the wonderful Aspasia Books have just published two plays in one volume by the 19th century Finnish dramatist, Minna Canth. The plays, The Burglary and The House of Roinila, are both early works and both are translated by Richard Impola, who did a magnificent job with Vainö Linna´s trilogy, Under The North Star, also published by Aspasia. And that´s not all. Aspasia plan two further volumes of Canth´s plays in the near future. What a treat!

Some more good news arrived this week: I heard that the Finnish bookshop chains, Akateeminen Kirjakauppa and Suomalainen Kirjakauppa will be stocking my novel, The Finn´s Tale. Akateeminen are stocking it in several stores, including Tampere, and Suomalainen have it in their shop at Hämeenkatu 18, Tampere and may add it in other stores later.