The Art of Reading is a monthly book club hosted by Colm Tóibín, the Laureate for Irish Fiction.
This episode features Colm in conversation with Colin Barrett about his latest collection of short stories, Homesickness - watch above.
Each month, the Laureate meets a different library book club to discuss a book by an Irish writer, highlighting outstanding Irish writing and celebrating the reader and book clubs.
The selected titles include new work by contemporary Irish writers as well as work from the past that the Laureate wishes to bring to a new generation of readers.
Speaking of Homesickness, Colm said: "Colin Barrett has the ability to create character and create a scene in a few sentences. His dialogue that seems so spare and clipped manages to establish mood and build tension. His scenes are constructed with great sympathy, but there is also a bleakness in his vision. What is remarkable in his work is the texture of the language, the use of metaphor, the handling of rhythm."
The Art of Reading Book Club is an initiative of the Arts Council and the Laureate for Irish Fiction, in partnership with Libraries Ireland. Find out more here.
