Exemplary Damages

O'Driscoll Dennis

"Exemplary Damages" is as fine and varied a collection as its five predecessors. It captures contemporary attitudes towards life, love and God with unfaltering accuracy in styles which range from the richly sensuous to the mercilessly mordant. Whether depicting a group of middle-aged 'lads' at tea break or struggling to comprehend the English spoken at an EU seminar, Dennis O'Driscoll's skill in observation and metaphor succeeds in conveying humour and pathos with an unsentimental robustness.

About the Author

Dennis O'Driscoll (1954-2012) was born in Thurles, Co. Tipperary. Apart from nine collections of poetry, books published during his lifetime included a selection of essays and reviews, "Troubled Thoughts, Majestic Dreams" (2001), two collections of literary quotations and "Stepping Stones: Interviews with Seamus Heaney" (2008). Among his awards were a Lannan Literary Award in 1999, the 2005 E. M. Forster Award from the American Academy of Arts and Letters and the 2006 O'Shaughnessy Award for Poetry from the Center for Irish Studies (Minnesota). A member of Aosdana, the Irish academy of artists, he worked for almost forty years in Ireland's Revenue and Customs service. He died on Christmas Eve, 2012.

Reviews

Awards won by Dennis O'Driscoll
Short-listed, 2001 Irish Times Literary Prize,Irish Poetry (Weather Permitting)
Winner, 2013 Irish Times Literary Prize, Irish Poetry (Dear Life)

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