2010-03-02 12:26:29 - The organisers of the fourth annual Ennis Book Club Festival say that tickets are selling fast and many of this weekend’s events have already sold out or are close to capacity.

Supported by Clare County Library, this weekend’s three-day programme of events is expected to attract hundreds of Book Club members and book lovers from all over Europe and North America. The Festival programme features author visits, readings, lectures and workshops, exhibitions, walking history tours, musical entertainment and chocolate tasting in various venues around Ennis. It also includes Ireland’s first ‘Book Club of the Year Award’ and a professional development workshop for library staff.

While some events have already sold out, eventorganisers say that tickets are still available for Professor Alan Titley’s Irish language reading entitled, “Scríbhneoirí faoi Chaibidil ‘Grow-it-yourself ’ founder Michael Kelly’s talk entitled “Taking the ‘self ’ out of self-sufficiency a reading from Paul Howard, the creator of Ross

O’Carroll-Kelly; and David McWilliams’ reading and questions and answers session.

Among the contributors to the 2010 fourth annual festival are Lionel Shriver, prolific journalist and Orange Prize-winning author of ‘We Need to Talk About Kevin’ and ‘The Post-Birthday World Joseph O’Connor, journalist, screenwriter and author of ten Irish number one bestsellers including ‘Star Of The Sea ‘Cowboys and Indians ‘Desperadoes ‘The Salesman’ and ‘Inishowen Tim Pat Coogan, biographer, historian, journalist and writer of “Michael Collins” and ‘Ireland in the Twentieth Century Diarmaid Ferriter, author, historian, and university lecturer; Paul Howard, journalist, author and creator of the cult character Ross O'Carroll-Kelly; and Fiona Looney, columnist, playwright, scriptwriter and media personality.

Other participants include multi-award winning poet, Paul Durcan; Irish historian, crime novelist, journalist and broadcaster, Ruth Dudley Edwards; Irish author of ‘Tenderwire Claire Kilroy; US essayist, poet, short stories writer, funeral director and winner of the American Book Award and The Heartland Prize for Nonfiction, Thomas Lynch; historian and author of 1916 Rising novel ‘Blood Upon the Rose', Gerry Hunt; American poet Knute Skinner, Irish journalist, columnist and politician, Senator Eoghan Harris; poetry group Clare Three-Legged Stool Poets; editor of Irish magazine ‘Rí-R�, Aidan Courtney; Ennis-based graphic novel analyst David O’Leary; and journalist, broadcaster, author and founder of Grow-It-Yourself Ireland, Michael Kelly.

Academic contributors to the festival include Dr. Paul Delaney, School of English at Trinity College, who will lead a discussion on popular writer Colm Tóibín's work; Alan Titley, author, playwright, poet and Professor of Modern Irish and Head of Department at University College Cork; and Niall MacMonagle, reviewer, editor and English teacher at Dublin’s Wesley College, who will present a workshop entitled ‘How to Read a Novel

Claire Keegan, award-winning short story writer and author of “Antarctica” and “Walk the Blue Fields” in reading and discussing her writing with join Clare-based author Niall Williams. One of the highlights of the festival weekend will be The Sunday Symposium, during which Tim Pat Coogan, Ruth Dudley Edwards Senator Eoghan Harris and Diarmaid Ferriter will partake in a panel discussion on the subject of “Reading History The session will be chaired by experienced broadcaster, journalist and communications consultant, Caimin Jones.

Meanwhile, the Festival is inviting library staff nationwide to a free workshop on how to start, develop and challenge a Book Club. The professional development workshop, which will be presented by Anne Downes of Opening the Book, has been designed specifically for library staff who are interested or involved in book clubs and will cover areas such as managing group dynamics, injecting new life and bringing new ideas to reading groups

The inaugural Ennis Book Club Festival was held in 2007. Past participants include Patrick McCabe, John Boyne, Carlo Gébler, Edna O’Brien, Joanne Harris, Brian Keenan, Roddy Doyle, Diarmuid Gavin, Hugo Hamilton, Allan Guthrie, Jennifer Johnston, John Connolly, Dermot Bolger, Salley Vickers, Fintan O'Toole, Gerard Donovan, Lorna Landvik, Gerry Adams and the late Nuala O Faolain. Previous festivals have attracted literary enthusiasts from all over North America and Europe, including members from many of Ireland’s 150 Library Book Clubs and more than 300 Private Book Clubs.

Tickets for all events are on sale at Glór Box Office 00353656843103 / boxoffice@glor.ie. Further details on ticket prices and the festival are available from (web) www.ennisbookclubfestival.com, (t) www.twitter.com/ebcf, (e) info@ennisbookclubfestival.com and (t) 087-9723647/085 7842822.

-ENDS-

Notes To Editor:
- Ciana Campbell, Festival Chairperson is available for interview on 00353-879723647.
- High-resolution images may be downloaded from www.dunphyprimages.com/search/label/Ennis%20Book%20Club%20Festival%202010
- Contributor images and biographies are available on request. Interviewees with individual Festival participants may be arranged on request, subject to availability. Please contact Mark Dunphy of Dunphy Public Relations on 086-8534900 or media@dunphypr.com