Alvy Carragher Poetry & Books

Library

Sometimes I wonder why she brought us there,

so religiously. She was young and thwarted

but she knew to do that much, to show us books

full of lives other than the one we were living.

Maybe all some people can give you is a way out.

Maybe forgiveness is understanding that’s enough.

Look, I read for thirty years and ended up here.

A life built from books. I’ve turned myself

inside out and nobody died or pricked a finger.

Imagine this, I was once so scared I wouldn’t speak,

there was a wall between what I felt and others heard.

I couldn’t translate, until I pressed pen to paper.

Here was my mother tongue. I put down my life

and walked through the covers to another.

About Alvy

Alvy Carragher is the author of three collections of poetry, the most recent being What Remains the Same, which was shortlisted for the Farmgate National Poetry Award. Her work has been recognised with the Eavan Boland Award and has received the support of several Arts Council Literature Bursary Awards. Her fourth collection, The Only Fear I've Ever Had Is Standing Still, is forthcoming with The Gallery Press. She writes about survival, childhood trauma, family, and myth.

Born in Galway City, Alvy spent much of her early childhood living in Portumna in County Galway, before moving to Birdhill in County Tipperary for her teenage years. She has been a resident in a number of other places, including Louisiana (USA), Goheung (South Korea), Vancouver and Toronto (Canada). She currently lives in Dublin.

A selection of videos from a series of readings for the National Poetry Archive, as well as some short videos recorded for the launch of her third poetry collection What Remains the Same. You can find plenty more readings by searching on YouTube.