The selection was limited to ‘laddish’ style bloke guides that did nothing to quell the nerves. When I investigated further on the Internet, I discovered amongst the information, heavily pink mothering sites with only a few tips written by good-hearted mums on how best to support your pregnant partner in ‘her’ pregnancy. I suppose it was this factor which made me think ‘but what about poor little old nervous me? Don’t I feature in all of this?’

This triggered my paternal quest to establish an information hub for Irish expectant dads who could visit a website and find articles written by other dads who were either in a similar boat or whose boat had already docked and could tell tales about their travels.

Dad.ie was formed shortly after we learned that we were expecting our second daughter. Though I had gathered plenty of material for the site prior to this, it seemed more substantiated now that we were expecting again and that the information featured on the site was relevant to where we were in our own pregnancy.

The idea of The Irish Dad’s Survival Guide to Pregnancy & Beyond, was always there really, even prior to launching dad.ie over three years ago. There still existed a gap on the shelf for a pregnancy title aimed at Irish expectant dads that included information appropriate to the Irish marketplace and more importantly, accounts from other Irish fathers about surviving the pregnancy.
I am very fortunate over the years to have made many friendships through dad.ie with other Irish fathers. Many of whom have contributed to The Irish Dad’s Survival Guide to Pregnancy & Beyond. This fraternity of fathers, though professing not to being writers themselves, were wise enough to insist that their surnames be omitted in the final print run – oh the bravery of Irish dads!

In writing The Irish Dad’s Survival Guide to Pregnancy & Beyond, I strived to make the content accessible, fresh and reassuring. When it did call for a more medical approach to certain topics I called on the help of a GP pal (who was an expectant dad at the time too!) to ensure that any terminology appeared in dad-friendly plain speak.

To put expectant dads further at ease, I enlisted the services of a seasoned midwife and lecturer in midwifery who patiently answered all the important questions regarding the delivery including; ‘Where do I stand in the labour ward?’ and ‘What if I feel faint?’…

‘Surviving the first six weeks’ after the birth plays an integral part in the book. Naturally, becoming a dad is probably one of the most important life-changing events to occur in a man’s life. However, in the months leading up to seeing his baby, the dad can often feel side-lined, with the reality of the situation not kicking in until he is cradling his newborn in his arms for the very first time.

Finally, if I could pinpoint the one word that best describes The Irish Dad’s Survival Guide to Pregnancy & Beyond it would be reassuring. Reassuring for any expectant dad that whatever he is feeling is perfectly normal, and that through reading this book he will discover that other Irish dads have gone through the same.

The Irish Dad’s Survival Guide to Pregnancy (& Beyond) by David Caren is available now in all good bookshops and at www.obrien.ie

This was the beginning of what became a very complicated story indeed. One in which I not only scared the pants off myself, but also explored the ideas of identity and self awareness and loss. The idea of looking into your own face and not knowing who you are is a theme that runs strongly throughout this story – not knowing who you are without the network of love and support you’re used to, or the possessions that you had decided defined you. Not knowing who you are because you see yourself one way, while history has decided to portray you another. Physically not knowing who you are due to the ravages of time or disease.

And then of course, there is bravery. The bravery of one brother trying to save another. Of one woman battling to maintain the dignity of another. Of an old man standing up to the world’s idea of what he is or has been. And physical bravery, the courage to step up and shout out and cross over into something terrifying so that another person will not suffer the way you have suffered.

I loved these characters, Pat and Dom, Francis and Laurence, James and Cheryl and Olive and Dave. They were absolutely real to me. As was the Skerries of my childhood and that house – the house with the bunk bed, the rust spotted mirror, the tangled garden, the twisted apple trees, the ghosts of wars long fought and still active – all real.

Many thanks to the CBI Book Awards for including it on the shortlist.

The Children’s Books Ireland Book Awards 2012 will take place on May 28th.

Click here for more information on Into the Grey.

On Wednesday 28th March the launch of Dublin: One City One Book 2012 took place at the Mansion House in Dublin. We were delighted to publish the official edition of Dubliners as part of the Dublin: One City, One Book campaign. Not only is this book integral to Irish culture, the publication also marks the momentous event that James Joyce’s work is now out of copyright. Dubliners was the chosen book as it is the most accessible of Joyce’s work but also one of the most enjoyable. Joyce is one of Ireland’s most celebrated writers so the Dublin: One City, One Book campaign wants all of Dublin (and Ireland!) to read Dubliners for the month of April! The new edition also includes a fantastic introduction by Irish author John Boyne. He is a lover of Joyce and says ‘… Dubliners is interested in all of us, rich and poor, old and young, men and women. It’s filled with humour and love, pain and loss. Above all, it rings out with a love of these streets, of the voices of the people who inhabit them …’

The Dublin: One City, One Book campaign is supported by a huge range of events around the city which are being run by Dublin City Libraries. The highlight is a concert with The Dubliners at the National Concert Hall, on Friday 13th April. This event will of course be tinged with sadness with the passing of the last founding member, Barney McKenna this week, however the group has decided to proceed with the concert and will dedicate it to his memory.

The launch of Dubliners was attended by many well-known faces including John Boyne, John Sheahan of The Dubliners, Lord Mayor of Dublin Andrew Montague and even James Joyce himself! There was music, singing, sunshine and a yummy tea reception! The streets of Dublin couldn’t have looked better bathed in the fabulous sunshine and the fantastic Dubliners banners dotted around the city designed by our superb designer Emma, stood out like shining beacons!

The second launch of the week was for a groundbreaking biographical series about executed leaders of the 1916 Easter Rising. 16 Lives was a huge challenge but one that was taken on with huge relish by all involved with the project. Over the next five years the sixteen books in the series will be released leading up to the centenary of the Rising in 2016. On the night of Thursday 29th March we launched the first three biographies, James Connolly by Lorcan Collins, Joseph Plunkett by Honor O Brolchain and Michael Mallin by Brian Hughes. The evening was a great opportunity for everyone to see how their hard work had paid off. In the most appropriate and awesome surroundings of the G.P.O. on O’Connell Street, the night was a huge success with over 300 people in attendance. Each of the authors and series editors (Lorcan Collins and Ruan O’Donnell) spoke about what their books and the series meant to each of them and it was clear that the audience held the authors in high regard and esteem with the applause that greeted each of them at the end. It was a fantastic way to kick-off the entire series but it definitely set the bar high for the rest of the series! For more photos of the launches visit our Facebook page and for more information on the books click on the links below:
16 Lives

www.16lives.com

Dubliners

I first came up with the concept in 2008 when I was already writing and researching a biography of James Connolly. Around this time I began to consider the relationships between the various leaders, how they were connected and who introduced them to each other. It suddenly dawned on me that there was a gaping hole in the biographical information available on all these individuals. There was plenty on Pearse and Connolly but little or nothing on some of the others. The idea of 16 Lives was to address this issue rather than to wait and hope that someone else would do it. I was reluctant at first about the project and I was under the impression that most publishers would shy away from undertaking such a mammoth task. Thankfully O’Brien Press seems to like a challenge and after a meeting with the publisher and editors we laid our plans. It was a great stroke of luck that Ruan O’Donnell was available to come on board as series co-editor. Ruan has written extensively on Irish history and is a mine of information. He also agreed to write the biography of Patrick Pearse. This means that the first book in the series will be Connolly and it will be closed off with Pearse. There’s something quite balanced and neat about that.

The past few years have been quite busy for me especially as I had to wear a few hats. As I’ve been running the 1916 Walking Tour in Dublin since 1996 I’ve been busy doing tours, researching and writing on Connolly, working on 16 Lives and juggling family life. I can’t thank my wife enough for her support through the difficult writing process. At one stage she booked me into a hotel for a week to concentrate on finishing Connolly, it was exactly what I needed!

One of the difficulties Ruan, myself and O’Brien Press faced was comissioning and confirming the authors for the rest of the series. We needed to maintain a level of secrecy and yet explain to potential authors the concept of 16 Lives. There was a little luck involved too, certainly on my part. I was conducting a 1916 Walking Tour and I got talking to one of the participants, Brian Hughes, who came across as very knowledgable especially on the Irish Citizen Army. It transpired that Brian had written his thesis on Michael Mallin. So, no better man for writing a biography of Mallin. Another night someone introduced me to Honor O’Brolchain. I knew Honor’s grandmother was Joseph Plunkett’s sister and we discussed her book All In The Blood. Honor told me she was researching and writing a book on Joe so she kindly agreed to conisder publishing it with the 16 Lives series. Ruan, who is Senior Lecturer in History at the University of Limerick had a phd student, Laura Walsh, who was researching and is now writing the life of Tom Clarke. He also had colleagues that he was able to encourage to join up, Angus Mitchel (Roger Casement) and John O’Callaghan (Con Colbert). Another couple of people who are related to their subjects were secured by the publisher, Helen Litton (Edward Daly) and Mary Gallagher (Éamonn Ceannt) are two worthy participants in the project. The prolific author T Ryle Dwyer will tackle Thomas MacDonagh and Cork’s own Meda Ryan is the best person to write the biography of the only executed Cork volunteer in 1916, Thomas Kent. Roisín Ní Gharbhí has already unearthed a very interesting side of Willie Pearse and hopes to bring him out of the shadow of his larger than life brother. My walking tour colleague and Trinity academic John Gibney is busily writing and researching on Seán Heuston. Conor Kostick who previously co-wrote a book with me on the Easter Rising will be collaborating with me again as we are co-authoring Michael O’Hanrahan’s biography. Brian Feeney, raconteur, politician and author of Sinn Féin: A Hundred Turbulent Years, will no doubt produce a great work on Seán MacDiarmada. Another prolific writer and well known Galweigan, William Henry, who I have known for some years is researching the life of John MacBride, which I’m very much looking forward to reading.

One of the more rewarding tasks, for me personally, was the picture and image research. We needed a decent stock of good qulaity images so for the past couple of years I’ve been quite active in this area. We ended up with three big photo albums full of images of the destruction visited on Dublin in 1916. Kilmainham Gaol, the Pearse Museum and the NLI proved to be a huge and generous resource. The fact that three of our authors are directly related to their subjects is also a great bonus as they have ready access to family images that have never been published before now.

Working with O’Brien Press on 16 Lives has been very rewarding. I’ve been working for myself for a long time and it was unusual for me to suddenly have colleagues. None of us have been involved in a project of this type before so it has been fascinating to see how people have pulled together. Although myself and Ruan are series co-editors, each individual author also has an in-house editor; Susan Houlden (who edited my book on Connolly with great patience, dilligence and skill), Ide Ní Laoghaire, Helen Carr and Mary Webb are all gearing up for a busy few years ahead. The months leading up to Christmas 2011 were very busy for all concerned as the deadlines for the first three books, Connolly, Plunkett and Mallin approached. The busy period culminated with a gathering of all the 16 Lives authors and editors. It was a great night, seeing and meeting each other, in many cases for the first time and it gave a great sense of cohesion to the whole project. I also felt that all the authors could get a grasp of collective nature of this project – it meant that the authors could get to know each other and would feel enthusiastic about sharing and exchanging research.

I hope 16 Lives appeals to the general reader as well as the serious historian. All the books will be very well researched but they will also be accessible. I hope the events of Easter Week will catch the attention of the new generation and ensure that the legacy of these men and women who gave so much will live on. We all really hope that younger readers will enjoy and collect these books too. Emma, the in-house designer for O’Brien Press has done a magnificent job on producing these books. It was Emma who came up with the idea to splice a large image into 16 strips and place one on the spine of each book. That way if they are all lined up on a book shelf they will produce an image. But I can’t tell you what that image is…you’ll just have to collect all 16 Lives!

James Connolly, Joseph Plunkett and Michael Mallin are onsale now in all good booskhops and online at www.obrien.ie
For more information click on the link 16 Lives or visit www.16Lives.com

Where's Larry? by Phillip Barrett, Image: The O'Brien Press

As a St. Patrick’s Day gift from O’Brien Press, we’ve given you a very special sneak peek of our forthcoming book Where’s Larry by Phillip Barrett!

You can follow Larry the Leprechaun around Ireland, and see if you can find him in Newgrange, at The Rock of Cashel and at The Cliffs of Moher! But it won’t be easy: he is hiding in the middle of Irish dancers, traditional musicians, climbers, tourists, hurlers and many others.

See if you can you spot Larry in the St. Patrick’s Day Parade on O’Connell Street!
WheresLarry

Keep your eyes peeled for Where’s Larry? in shops in June!

We’re really excited about the Marco series; the stories are charming and interesting and have a lot more going on than first meets the eye. The text is complemented beautifully with gorgeous illustrations by the very talented Áine McGuinness. The Marco series is all about the friendship between Patrick and the grizzly bear Marco who escaped from the zoo. (The second book in the series Marco: Master of Disguise is out soon!) We are delighted that now even more children will be introduced to Marco when they buy the flipper book with their special World Book Day vouchers.

And so was the author! This is what Gerry had to say about it: “Any event or festival that gets books and reading onto the radar of young people has to be good. Reading is incredibly important, and to get into the habit of reading at a young age guarantees a lifelong relationship with reading and with books in particular. World Book Day is a brilliant idea and a fantastic event. It brings books and reading right into the centre of children’s lives for that day. There is no doubt in my mind that many children who are not yet readers or who are very occasional ones will find a book on World Book Day that they will love – the first book that they have really engaged with – and that will be the trigger for them to read more. Naturally, I am delighted to have Marco Moves In included as one of the World Book Day books this year. It’s a real honour and I happen to know that Marco is over the moon about it (Patrick, too)”.

Gerry was excited to be able to join in the big World Book Day celebration that happened at Wood Quay in Dublin on Thursday 1st March with loads of kids and authors in attendance. I was also lucky enough to be there and it made me want to be a kid again! Some of the children even dressed up as their favourite book characters, there was Sleeping Beauty, Little Red Riding Hood and even a ninja!
First up to speak was Niamh Sharkey, the fantastic author and illustrator, she got everyone up and singing The Hugglewug Song and then she even taught everyone how to draw a Hugglewug! She made it look so easy but it’s definitely not!
Next, was the fabulous Sarah Webb who asked some great reading and book questions that got everyone thinking!

Then came the live link-up to the Biggest Book Show on Earth! which was being broadcast online from London. We got to see Steve Cole, Holly Webb and Ireland’s own Derek Landy who even had a special message for all the children at the event in Dublin!
Finally, it was Gerry’s turn to talk about Marco and his writing. The children had lots of great questions, like what is your favourite book? How did you get the idea for Marco?

We even had the children’s news programme News2Day there. They were doing a special feature on the event that was broadcast later that day.

The children went home happy, full of ideas for writing books and laden with goodie bags from Children’s Books Ireland and The O’Brien Press.

All in all it was a very successful event that was run fantastically by Maeve at Grapevine Communications, all the gang at CBI and Bob from The Gutter Bookshop.

Remember to keep an eye out for Marco 2 – Marco: Master of Disguise by Gerry Boland coming to a bookshop near you soon!

Nicola Pierce being interviewed, while the school children look on

I had the great privilege of being a ‘fly on the wall’ at one of the most interesting school events I have ever seen in the Ulster Folk and Transport Museum last week. It was a real showcase for what imagination, flexibility and working together can achieve, and the educational value has to be absolutely huge.

For about six weeks classes in four schools from across Northern Ireland had been doing project work on the subject of the Titanic which was, of course, built in Belfast in the famous Harland and Wolff shipyards. As the centenary of the sinking is in 2012, it is a very timely subject. As part of their work (and this is where O’Brien Press come in) they have been reading Spirit of the Titanic by Nicola Pierce, a novel which captures a huge amount of information, history and atmosphere from this most famous of ocean liners.

As the culmination of this work, a two-hour-long live internet broadcast was run from the museum (incidentally, if you have never been to the Ulster Folk and Transport Museum, I would heartily recommend you go – it captures the spirit and atmosphere of a bygone time exceptionally well, and is run by very enthusiastic and knowledgeable people). There was a TV-style outside broadcast truck with all the mixing desks you could want, as well as a satellite uplink! The real magic was that it was a live, two-way event, with the schools also broadcasting a view of the children, who were fascinated throughout.

It started in the print works, where we learned about printing tickets for the ship and where Nicola was interviewed about her book; moved to the post office and finally to an interview with an actor talking about riveting the ship together for a living! The students asked some great questions and a recording of the event will be available to all schools in Northern Ireland through their IT system.

All of which proves that cooperation and thinking outside the box can create some of the most memorable occasions: everybody involved was totally passionate about education, and it showed in the quality of the whole event, which really made history live.

Ivan

While writing the latest Alfie Green book, Alfie Green and the Chocolate Cosmos, for some reason after nine books in the series, I felt the urge to write a fantasy adventure novel for older kids …Yes, I had written three older novels based upon a football crazed character namely Danny Wilde, but fantasy fiction is my first love and I wanted to write something that all the Alfie fans could pick up and read when they felt that they had outgrown Alfie…

I began creating new characters (and one in particular, the most important character in every story – the main character) and that’s when Joshua Bloom first came to life. A thirteen year old boy who was raised by his uncle Henry and Aunt Nell in the quiet and most unadventurous town of Charlotty.

Joshua is a curious character who after discovering magic and mystery in the library of the long lost general Edgar Pennington, then finds himself on an adventure of a lifetime in pursuit of the answer as to where the general had disappeared to. This journey is not only a journey of a new world or magic or new friends and dangerous adversaries but it is also a discovery of Joshua himself – his bravery that he never knew he had, and most of all, his past his present and his destiny that awaits him.

Almost everything I write usually themes around other worlds – magical and dangerous worlds, with enchanting and dark characters. I absolutely love to the bones the concept of being able to find oneself discovering a new world that is so different to the real world and then going on an adventure of a lifetime – an adventure filled with danger and excitement and magical new experiences that would never ever be found in the world we live in.

All of this can be found by just picking up a book and turning page after page and as a writer I understand that in order for your reader to really believe whatever it is you have written, then you must write with complete passion and whole hearted enthusiasm, so that your feelings of excitement and anxiety and fear and sadness, and everything else you felt while writing the story, entraps the reader with every page they turn.

The graduation from writing young fiction for the 6 to 9 age group to older fiction of 10+  has been an exhilarating experience and I’ve thoroughly enjoyed creating the land of Habilon and its dark and dangerous places and characters.

So now that Beyond the Cherry Tree is in the hands of those who have been kind enough, brave enough and most of all, trusting enough, to pick it from the book shelf, I have only one last thing to say……..

Thank you and I do sincerely hope you enjoy travelling Beyond as I have done….

Joe O’Brien………….

We are very happy to report that awards are coming in thick and fast for The O’Brien Press this year!

First we had a Bisto shortlisted title in Dancing in the Dark by P.R. Prendergast. Then P. R. did it again, this time as Peter Prendergast, when The Romanian Builder was shortlisted for the Reading Association of Ireland’s Children’s Book Awards, along with the three other books in the Bridges Series by authors Eithne Massey, Natasha Mac a’Bháird and Enda Wyley. The O’Brien Press received a Special Merit Award at the RAI awards ceremony for the whole Bridges Series.

Then there was the small matter of two OBP authors nominated for the world’s largest children’s literature award! Conor Kostick, author of the highly acclaimed Avatar Chronicles Trilogy and Laureate na nÓg, Siobhán Parkinson, are both in the running for the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award for their outstanding bodies of work. Winners will be announced on 20 March 2012.

Our adult titles were also honoured this year. Edward Hayden’s debut cookery book Food to Love has just won the Kerry Food Book of the Year and Edward will be presented with his award next Wednesday 30th November at a ceremony in Dublin, by Minster Jimmy Deenihan. Edward’s excellent book beat offerings from Rachel Allen, Catherine Fulvio and Donal Skehan!

Ambassadors on Horseback by Michael Slavin and Louise Parkes has been longlisted for the William Hill Irish Sports Book of the Year 2011 and the shortlist will be announced next week!

And rounding things off nicely, The Real Rebecca is the winner of the Irish Book Awards Senior Children’s Book category! Debut author Anna Carey was astounded when it was announced last week at a gala dinner (with Michael D. Higgins, Seamus Heaney and Bill Clinton!) and was also winner of the best surprised face on the night! Two more fabulous OBP children’s books – Sally Go Round the Stars by Sarah Webb and Claire Ranson (illustrated by Steve McCarthy) and Marco Moves In by Gerry Boland (illustrated by Aine McGuinness) – were both shortlisted for the Irish Book Awards this year too.

Enormous congratulations to all our authors. Such a bundle of success really makes it all worthwhile and the recognition is a tribute, not only to our authors, but to the whole OBP team, especially those that are kept hidden behind heaps of paper at their desks – our editors and editorial administrator, designer, production manager, publisher, sales team, accounts and Laura, who packs up all our books and keeps the belly of the OBP ship afloat down in the stockroom!

With an end to 2011 like this, we are looking forward to 2012!

Full details of all these awards can be found on the Press Releases page of our website.

Máire Mhac an tSaoi accompanied by her translators, Michael O’Brien and Micheál Ó Conghaile of Cló Iar-Chonnachta. From left to right: Biddy Jenkinson, Michael O’Brien, Máire Mhac an tSaoi, Peter Sirr, Eiléan Ní Chuilleanáin, Louis de Paor, and Micheál Ó Conghaile.

Last Monday saw the launch of Máire Mhac an tSaoi’s much anticipated poetry anthology, The Miraculous Parish. The definitive collection of the work of  Ireland’s greatest living Irish-language poet was launched in collaboration with Irish publishers Cló Iar-Chonnacht  in the State Departments of Dublin Castle.

Despite some seriously dodgy weather (even by Irish standards) the evening was well attended, with Arts Council Director and Deputy Chair both showing their support, alongside RTE, Raidió na gaeltachta,  TG4, Raidió na Life and Newstalk FM.

The Miraculous Parish is Máire’s first major bilingual collection of poetry, assembled with the help of poet, former editor of Innti and Director of the Centre of Irish Studies in NUI Galway, Dr Louis de Paor.

Máire was interviewed by Fiach Mac Conghail, Director of the Abbey Theatre, and read from her poetry in Irish. Translators Eiléan Ní Chuilleanáin, Peter Sirr, Biddy Jenkinson and editor Louis de Paor also read their own English versions of Máire’s poetry.

Máire talked at length about her extraordinary life and poetry, and her encounters with key figures in the Irish fight for independence, including a young encounter with Eamon de Valera.

The daughter of Irish republican parents (Sean MacEntee, a founding member of Fianna Fáil and Margaret de Brun), and niece to Monsignor Padraig de Brun, a major 20^th Century Irish language scholar, Máire has been steeped in Irish culture throughout her entire life.