The best books of 2021 so far: Novels, memoirs, short stories and more

Authors and critics choose the books that have moved and impressed them this year

Top Irish authors contribute to new book to help adult literacy

Publication in plain English marks 40 years of the National Adult Literacy Agency (NALA)

Ríona Judge McCormack wins Hennessy New Irish Writer award

Chris Connolly wins Emerging Fiction prize, Jane Clarke wins Emerging Poetry award and Éilís Ní Dhuibhne inducted into Hennessy Literary Awards Hall of Fame

New John Montague poem published to mark Poetry Day Ireland

‘Bird Boy’ by acclaimed Irish poet is published as part of national poetry day, which features 50 events around the country

Poetry: Shock of the new in a slew of selected poems

Tom Paulin, Harry Clifton, Noel Monahan and Paul Perry all have new collections

Heavyweight hit thriller shows big can be bountiful

The massive success of Jöel Dicker’s 600-page murder mystery proves that rumours of the demise of weighty tomes have been greatly exaggerated

Prowling the mean streets of Moscow in search of justice

Historical, classical and biblical references litter the novel but ‘Tatiana’ is a contemporary tale that lifts the lid on the power struggles of modern Moscow

Prowling the mean streets of Moscow in search of justice

Historical, classical and biblical references litter the novel but ‘Tatiana’ is a contemporary tale in which Renko’s investigation lifts the lid on the power struggles of modern Moscow

Imagination in the classroom – and how, in the past, schools destroyed creativity

Forget the inspirational teachers and creative encouragement that many writers experienced at school. Playwright Frank McGuinness recalls a schooling in the 1950s and 60s that sickens his stomach, and ‘beat the lining out of any love for exploring the intricacies of language’

My Running Life: Paul Perry