Dreaming of Home

«Gerald Dawe observes in the concluding lines of Dreaming of Home that the writers he admires most are those who convey a sense of ‹the sheer joy in witnessing the world for its own sake.› Those same words could apply to Dawe himself. His readings of seven writers here – Sean O’Casey, W.B. Yeats, John Montague, Patrick Kavanagh, Derek Mahon, Colette Bryce, and Gail McConnell – are animated as much by the sheer joy of reading as by the need to analyse or explain. This is not just a wise book, but a joyous one.»

(Chris Morash, MRIA, FTCD

Seamus Heaney Professor of Irish Writing, TCD)

In this vibrant and accessible sequence of readings, Gerald Dawe explores the meaning of home in the work of Irish writers, including W. B. Yeats, Sean O’Casey, Derek Mahon and Gail McConnell. Providing ample encouragement to think about literary questions in a fresh and engaging way, Dreaming of Home concludes with an afterword of praise for the example of the great American poet William Carlos Williams, who mattered greatly to Dawe’s own development as a poet. Scholarly and stylish in approach, Dreaming of Home is an invaluable study for the general reader and student alike.