Cork City Libraries

This is a blog about books, writing, library events and news written by staff of Cork City Libraries Follow @corkcitylibrary

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Staff Review: The Great Bear

This gorgeously illustrated book for younger children tells a hopeful tale about the majesty of nature and the role of human beings in protecting and preserving it. The titular bear is an ancient guardian of the Arctic ocean, and we open with her peacefully presiding over the animals and plants who live there harmoniously as they have done since the beginning of time. The arrival of human industry first causes confusion, then concern, then catastrophe before The Great Bear shows man the error of his ways and balance is restored through co-operation, sustainable practices and advocacy for human awareness of our place as part of nature.  

The sweeping, colourful illustrations by author Annie Booker (with the cool green, blue and white tones of nature contrasting with the blacks and reds of industry) and fable-like language and structure give this book a beautiful balance of being engaging for parents while delivering its important message in a way children can understand. A coda of information about the Arctic region and ocean, the polar bear, the threats to their existence and very importantly what we can do about it provides a good springboard for discussion with curious young environmentalists. 

Caoimhe McGuinness - Library Staff

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Staff Review: The Buffalo Hunter Hunter

The Buffalo Hunter Hunter is Native American author Stephen Graham Jones’ latest horror instalment. The book opens with Etsy Beaucarne, a struggling Communications professor who is desperate for tenure at her university. Her luck changes when a manuscript belonging to a distant relative is unearthed at a construction site. She begins transcribing the journal of Arthur Beaucarne, which then on becomes the nested narrative through which we experience the story.

Arthur is an aging Lutheran pastor located in Miles City, Montana. We are privy to his thoughts, his weaknesses and a looming shadow of his past. The voice with which he writes is well-rooted in the 1900s, oftentimes uncomfortably so. Though Arthur is a man of the cloth, he is not above the prejudices of his time. It is through his eyes that we meet Good Stab, a mysterious “Indian” man belonging to the Pikuni tribe of the Blackfoot Confederacy. Good Stab wishes for the pastor to hear his confession. This becomes the third narrative voice we experience in the book.

The book, on the surface, is a vampire story. It utilises a near-identical framing device as Anne Rice’s Interview with the Vampire and it incorporates most of the well-established tropes associated with vampires in popular fiction. Jones, however, plays with these tropes, inverts them and reimagines them through the lens of our Native American narrator. The language is visceral, final and hopeless. We experience the wrongness of the affliction of immortality, the alienation from society and the loss of cultural and personal identity.

The true ‘horror’ for us, the reader and for Arthur Beaucarne, the listener, is not that Good Stab is a vampire and does vampire things, it is that he is “the Indian who can’t die… the worst dream America ever had.” an immortal reminder of the genocide inflicted upon his people.

The Buffalo Hunter Hunter  is a beautifully written novel, Native Pikuni words intersperse Good Stabs recollection. There is a sense of delving/spelunking/uncovering as we descend through the three narrative frames, the language eschewing further from familiar each time.  And when we return from our descent, we are left wondering what may have followed us back.

Review by Thomas Talbot

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What We're Reading

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Our Wives Under The Sea by Julia Armfield

Reviewed by Julia Skelly, Blarney Library

Leah is a marine biologist who regularly goes on deep-sea research trips in submarines. On one such occasion, what is supposed to be a three week expedition turns into six months when the tech on board malfunctions, leaving Leah and her colleagues trapped on the ocean floor. When Leah resurfaces from her ill-fated dive and goes home to her wife Miri, she is withdrawn and suffering bizarre symptoms that both Leah and the research Centre she works for insist to Miri are normal side-effects.

The book alternates between Miri's POV in the present day and Leah's POV in the past when she was in the submarine. I loved this book, but I think being marketed as a 'horror' is to its detriment. This is, first and foremost, a love story that just happens to have some horror elements. The focus of the book is the relationship between Leah and Miri and the theme of degenerative illnesses. Besides the obvious symptoms of Leah, a friend of Miri's is also losing her sight and Miri's mother suffered from a long illness until her death, etc.

I even hesitate to call this a 'horror' at all. It's more an undercurrent of uneasiness, unsettling, a creeping dread. It's weird, but in the best possible way. I personally love weird. The mystery of what happened to Leah in that ocean and wondering how this story will end for Leah and Miri had me devour this book in a single day. But if you're coming to this book hoping for terrifying thrills, you will most likely be disappointed.

The real horror in this book isn't the crushing claustrophobia or the Lovecraftian ocean (though it certainly has its moments), it's the very real frustration of being ignored by the systems that are supposed to help you. It's watching the people you love fade, become unfamiliar, and being unable to do anything about it - except be there for them as best you can.

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The Hungry Gods by Adrian Tchaikovsky

Reviewed by Julia Skelly, Blarney Library

I'm going to begin this review with a quote from a video game that I feel is very relevant to the plot of this book.

"I've found those who claim themselves a god can rarely match the title. And experience tells me even gods can fall." - Hollow Knight: Silksong

Amri is our POV character in Hungry Gods, eking out a meagre living on a ruined, poisoned planet. Only scattered tribes of humans remain, each named after various animals that they worship as their patron god. It's a primitive existence with little to no technology, save what precious few ancient relics they can scavenge and the fleeting light of satellites still traversing the sky.

Their way of life is destroyed when four gods crash land on top of them. Three of these gods plan to remake the world in their preferred image, but their plans have no room for each other or the lesser beings that they assumed had died out. Only one god, the 'good god', claims to want to save humanity and so begins the task of raising an army to take down his three brothers. But how does one kill a god?

Amri's role in the story is to bear witness to the battle between these self-proclaimed 'gods'. As the first person to meet and assist the good god, Guy Vesten, she earns his trust, is given the title of his high priestess and is therefore permitted to stand by his side throughout most of the proceedings. Her character arc is subtle but one I found personally satisfying. As a member of the Rabbit Clan, their mantra for survival is to run. If something is strange or new, you run. Amri's way of life and thinking is challenged when the gods arrive and she realises that there is no running from this. She understands that she will have to stop running away and learn to adapt if she wants to survive this new apocalypse. Having a front row seat to the war, being privy to Guy's conversations with his god brothers and meeting the other clan leaders that Guy forms alliances with, all this gives Amri a unique perspective on the nature of these gods, leaving us with the question of what she will do with this information.

Adrian Tchaikovsky often explores the nature of technology through the lens of people who have never encountered such a thing in his books and does so impeccably (his other novella "Elder Race" is another unique perspective on the topic). What is difference between godly divine magic and incredibly advanced science when your world hasn't even discovered electricity?

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What We're Reading

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How to Stay Sane in an Age of Division by Elif Shafak

Reviewed by Caitríona Honohan, City Library

The title of this book jumped out at me in an Oxfam Books on Portobello Road, London. For me, it has echoes of Daniel Levitin’s The Organised Mind: Thinking Straight in the Age of Information Overload, and the phenomenon of information overload is one that I feel very strongly about, as does the author of this book, the British-Turkish novelist Elif Shafak. She highlights it as a key contributor to the “contagious anxiety” that many feel about the welfare of people and the planet in this age of continuous crisis.

According to Shafak, ‘We live in an age in which there is too much information, less knowledge and even less wisdom’ (p. 81). Throughout the book, she calls explicitly for a reversal of this, discussing the proliferation of information on the internet and the damage that it can do, from overwhelming individuals to harming societies. She relates this to themes of voice, identity and silences, highlighting the human need to be heard and the fact that so many people feel voiceless in today’s world, despite social media’s claim that it gives everyone an equal voice.

Regarding information overload, Shafak writes: ‘It is a problem, the endless barrage of information - let alone, misinformation. We cannot process this much, and the truth is, we don’t. In reality, we only skim through the news, scroll up and down our screen, without contemplating, and more importantly, without feeling’ (p. 48). Misinformation and disinformation spread like wildfire on social media daily, and Shafak describes how echo chambers reinforce and amplify fixed worldviews and feelings of ‘us and them’, thus rationing knowledge and limiting wisdom. She highlights the major role that algorithms play in this, writing: ‘algorithms pick our preferences so that the next day, and the day after, they can feed us more of the same, albeit at the same time magnifying and intensifying the messages little by little’ (p. 28). As an alternative, she notes that knowledge ‘requires reading. Books. In-depth analysis. Investigative journalism’ (p. 82).

In her call for increasing wisdom, Shafak highlights the importance of stories and storytelling to bring people together. She clearly illustrates her themes through her own personal stories throughout the book, drawing the reader in time and again. After the introduction, the book’s sections are entitled Disillusionment and Bewilderment; Anxiety; Anger; Apathy and Information, Knowledge, Wisdom, and it includes footnotes for further reading throughout its ninety pages.

For me, this is a book for dipping into time and again, as she ends with hope, writing: ‘No doubt we are living in challenging times and there is a lot we need to deal with - individually and collectively. Yet just imagine, for a moment: a world without books, without storytelling, a world without empathy, would be a much more divided and a lonelier place to exist’ (p. 83). So pick up a book this National Public Libraries Open Day! This one is available to borrow from Cork City Libraries and as an e-book via BorrowBox. Shafak, Elif (2020) How to stay sane in an age of division. London: Profile Books.

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What We're Reading

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Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI  by David Grann

Reviewed by Sarah, City Library

My favourite way to learn about history is reading about real people, real stories. I also really enjoy true crime, so this non-fiction book was right up my street. At a basic level, it tells the story of a series of murders in a close-knit community in America and the investigation that ensued.  You may be thinking that it sounds like any other other crime thriller. However, the mysterious murders were of the wealthiest population in America in the 1920s; surprisingly they were members of the native Osage nation in Oklahoma. The Osage had recently become rich when oil was discovered on the previously undesirable plot of barren land that they had been forced to buy, after the government forced them from their traditional land. Even though the Osage legally own their new land, shockingly the government did not consider them competent to run their own affairs and local courts were permitted to appoint guardians. This, of course, led to corruption as guardians could take ‘royalties’ from them and even take their land if they died.

The story begins with the initial wave of murders – the so called “Reign of terror”. We follow Molly Burkhart and her family, and I was quickly drawn into her story; the fear that the family and community are feeling as they don’t know what is happening, nor who is responsible for the spate of brutal killings. As the plot thickens, we begin to see how subjugated and manipulated the Osage are.

At first the deaths are considered accidents or illnesses by the local police - the seriousness is minimised and ignored, at best. However, as the number of deaths in the same community rises, the national government can no longer ignore the situation, so the Bureau of Investigation is drafted in. This is also interesting as the newly formed organisation is in a shambles without the systems and training of the present-day organisation. The head of the organisation, J Edgar Hoover, is determined to improve its reputation. He selfishly sees the Osage murders as the perfect opportunity to do that. A team, led by an ex-Texas ranger, is sent undercover to Oklahoma to investigate the organisation’s very first murder case.

The book is structured in three parts: the Osage murders, the federal investigation, and then the author’s present-day inquiry; including speaking with descendants of the Osage. I did find that I was not as interested in the final part but on the whole, it is a very well-written, and incredibly well-researched tale of murder and betrayal that reads like a novel but effortlessly weaves in historical information about the case, the treatment of native peoples past and present, as well as showing the beginnings of the FBI.  It’s such a riveting read, with so many twists and turns in the plot, I kept having to remind myself that this is a true story – it’s such a terrible, shameful and previously forgotten piece of American history which needed to be told.

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Join the Book Club Boom

By Thomas Ryan, Executive Librarian, City Library

Books are amazing. Why? If you know you know. Reading is both a seemingly simple act and a revolutionary one, a source of solace and inspiration, information and consolation. A book can be a brilliant companion and amiable friend. Through books we can live vicariously, experience adventure, contemplate the past, and understand the present. It is likely that if you’re reading this, you need no more convincing from me.

It is heartening to hear that, in Ireland at least, reading is thriving like seldom before. To read a book in your spare time, as opposed to scrolling on a smartphone, appears now almost counter-cultural and, dare I say it, cool.

A connected aspect of this reading renaissance is the book-club boom. Book clubs offer readers obvious benefits. What could be better than debating the themes and personal impact of a shared reading experience? Or tapping into the collective wisdom of one’s fellow readers? The experience should be convivial and social (unless someone has a particularly noxious literary ‘hot take’!).

Cork City Libraries have always been a haven for readers and a natural and welcoming venue for book clubs. This year we are launching a particular effort to appeal to as wide a variety of readers and cater to them with as diverse a selection of book clubs as possible. These range from the specialist, such as a music book club in The City Library on Grand Parade, to children’s and teens book clubs, to a Science Fiction, Horror and Fantasy book club I’m establishing myself – first meeting September 20th at 3.30 pm in our central Grand Parade branch. If you can’t find a book club to suit you, start your own! We will offer space, advice, and of course lots of books to read. We’ll see you in the library!

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What We're Reading

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POST MORTEM by Gary Bell.

Reviewed by David O'Brien, Cork City Librarian.

Every so often I pick up a title that surprises me in the level of enjoyment I get from it. That’s something that’s welcome especially if it’s not expected. Post Mortem by Gary Bell is one of those.

The plot centres around Eliot Rook once a petty criminal, now a highly respected QC, with years of legal experience under his belt – and as we will discover he will need them all to see his client acquitted. A batch of tainted drugs has killed thirteen inmates at a London prison, and a vulnerable young prison officer has been charged with smuggling them into the prison. Charli (the officer) insists she is innocent but as our hero begins to investigate a threatening note arrives at Rook's flat, warning him off the case. Rook battles to save Charli and protect himself, aided by his young protégé Zara (who is a really well drawn and shaped sidekick).

Meanwhile Zara herself is under pressure to secure the one tenancy at the legal chambers that will be available to the ever-multiplying mass of pupils after her internship and she is determined that it will be hers. So Zara has taken on her biggest solo case yet that runs in parallel with Rooks case and soon Rook is tangled up in it. As the plot progresses we realise that both cases are intertwined and full of danger and intrigue.

The pace and the way this book is put together makes for a really entertaining read. The author is a barrister with a really chequered past and I’d recommend a look at his bio as you read this book. Fact and fiction are close partners that add to the narrative it seems. Its not earth-shattering fiction but it’s a good yarn well told. Available borrow from the library too.

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What We're Reading

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THE TIME OF MY LIFE by Patrick Swayze and Lisa Niemi

Reviewed by Diana Sipova, City Library

The Time of My Life, written by Patrick Swayze and his life partner and wife Lisa Niemi, is a wonderful memoir full of wisdom and inspiration. I truly enjoyed reading this book and to me, Patrick Swayze was an incredibly admirable and gifted person. Not only was he a talented dancer and actor (not to mention he was a jack of all trades really); he is also a shining example of the astonishing strength of the human spirit. Reading this autobiography was like getting to know him on a deeper level, as a friend. Patrick's enthusiasm, perseverance and zest for life are truly inspiring and you can feel them in each sentence of this book. He loved life, lived to the fullest and never gave up until the very end. His wife Lisa stood by his side through it all – and even despite their ups and downs, never left him. 

What struck me most about this memoir was the authenticity and vulnerability with which it was written. I personally feel that true strength and courage lies in being honest with yourself (and with others, for that matter) and admitting things you don’t like about yourself or are even most afraid of – that is, in self-reflection and becoming aware of your imperfections. Patrick is incredibly open and honest about his own vulnerabilities and insecurities, which is what makes him such a big and beautiful human - a man with humility, integrity and depth.  

Why should you read this memoir? It doesn’t matter whether you’re a fan of Patrick Swayze or not. This book is truly a powerful, inspiring read. Not only does it showcase virtues like hard work, passion and stamina; it also proves that to live your life authentically is what makes you successful – and not only from the worldly point of view. Success in terms of inner peace and loving your life – so that even once it nears the end, you don’t give up on it and are genuinely happy about how you lived it. 

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What We're Reading

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Lady Sings the Blues by Billie Holiday

Reviewed by Aaron Hennessy, City Library

Lady Sings the Blues is a tell-all memoir, written with the help of William Dufty, sifting through Holiday’s life where she reportedly doesn’t tell all. It’s hard to believe she pulled any punches, given the honesty and detail of her addiction and the racism and persecution she suffers at seemingly every turn. She is kinder to others though. Her mother gets off lightly for long periods of neglect. Lester Young is another lifelong favourite.

You might turn to Lady Sings the Blues for facts, as a historical record of the 30s and 40s jazz scene in the States, which it is, but that isn’t the point. The point, of course, is the voice.

William Dufty nails what it must have been like to kick back with Holiday in a smoky room, share a few cocktails (apparently not champagne) and chat. If this book is anything to go by, she was not only her generation’s supreme stage performer, but she was also one its great talkers, and myth makers.

Reading this book, you get the impression that Holiday regaled William Dufty exhaustively with story after story and it was left to him to form a cohesive narrative. Which of course he does, and all without losing the voice of Holiday, which sings through the prose. Dufty may have shaped it, but this is undoubtedly Holiday’s book, Holiday’s voice, and that’s why it’s still read today. Why it should always be read: because she was one of the best to have ever done it, and I’m sure she had a say in the final edit – but perhaps I’m falling into the trap here of belittling Holiday’s contribution. Something which plagued her all through her music career.

She was always more than just a voice. Routinely denied writing credits on songs for both music and lyrics, not only was she the voice of a generation, famous for her phrasing and improvisation, but Holiday was also a natural arranger of music and a gifted lyricist. She was a real artist in ever sense of the term.

Her race and sex went against her, a strong tone of condescension in the label of ‘natural musician’ jars the modern reader. A practically lifelong dependence on drugs, and endless legal tangles with the FBI (she was banned from performing in her hometown of New York for most of her career), also make for tough reading. Never did this brutal treatment shake her belief in herself, though it did add a strong flavour of resentment.

It'll be no surprise then to learn that the book is also, wonderfully, full of slights and petty grievances. She has no qualms dishing on all who crossed her path throughout her career. This is the juiciest of indulgences to enjoy and a pleasure to read.

There are many reasons to read Lady Sings the Blues, but for me it’s a memoir that, through the strength of the narrative voice and pacing, transcends the form and attains the level of literature.

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Shogun (1975) by James Clavell

Reviewed by Rob Deane, City Library

Set at the beginning of the 17th century century, Shogun is a thrilling historical novel based on real characters and events. It centers on John Blackthorne, an experienced maritime navigator, who along with his remaining crew become the first from England to reach Japanese shores. Blackthorne's arrival to Japan, comes at a time when a war is brewing as to the question of who the country's rightful successor is. It's split between Lord Toranaga and Lord Ishido's support of the former ruler's (Taiko) heir. 

I have a personal interest in Japanese history and was intrigued to read the book having watched the recent adaptation of the TV show. I loved the  grittiness, ruthlessness and the drama of the world and alongside it's characters. Neither the show or the book airbrush any of them, making them more human, relatable and intriguing. I'm especially drawn to Blackthorne as a character, his resilience, adaptability and craftiness to survive and succeed in an unpredictable and politically charged climate.

The same can be said for the other protagonists, especially Toranaga, as he subtly navigates a delicate balance between power or annihilation. The novel is sizeable, but Clavell's brilliant storytelling  ability makes the story flow, all the while transporting the reader into a world colliding with modernity. This novel is a real page turner for fans who enjoy the political intrigue as depicted in the Game of Thrones series. 

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Sow. . . Let’s Grow! June 2025

Big announcement from Hollyhill Library this month – we have started our own garden! There has always been a green space on the premises, but it is only now that we have been able to really start treating it as a garden by bringing in soil and planting fruit and vegetables. It has been a huge team effort from everyone here in the library and beyond, from measuring the space to ensure the right amount of soil is ordered, to figuring out what plants and varieties to use, and collaborating with local schools, all while running the library as normal; as you can tell May has been a busy month for us!

In this blog I’ll outline the work we have done so far and what we intend to do with the rest of the garden, so a slightly different format than usual but hopefully just as interesting. The space that we are utilising is a set of tiered steps and it was decided through collaboration with Maria Young from Green Spaces for Health, that we would go with a no-dig method. The Royal Horticultural Society website says ‘Unlike soil cultivation methods such as digging, forking and rotavation, the no-dig method avoids breaking up, lifting or turning the soil. Vegetable beds and flower borders are simply prepared by covering the ground with organic matter, such as garden compost.’ So not only better for the garden but better for our backs! Armed with this information, the next step was to measure all the steps to see how many cubic metres of manure and topsoil we would need to order. The entire area measured at 56.4m2 , with the smallest step being 4.8m2 and the biggest being 14.2m2. I must also note that this project only exists because of a successful application for funding under the Cork City North West Quarter Regeneration Community Chest Funding.

The gate to the garden opens outwards onto the top of the steps and because of this we decided we are going to put clover and echinacea on the first tier. Both of these plants are butterfly and bee friendly.

The second tier is going to be flowers and herbs.

(Fig.1 Above: Hollyhill staff member, Dave, watering the flowers and herbs before planting in tiers 3 & 4).

The third tier is courgettes and strawberries at the moment, with more vegetables to be planted soon, hopefully butterhead lettuce, watercress, garlic, onions and peas.

The fourth tier is all potatoes, a mixture of early maincrop and second earlies, Levante, Twister and Alouette.

The fifth tier is going to be flowers and autumn flowering bulbs so marigolds, foxgloves, snapdragons, cosmos, cornflower, nasturtiums, alliums and sweetpeas.

And the sixth tier is going to be half vegetables and half a tree nursey.

We had a class come in from a local school to help us with the potato planting. The first step was to lay cardboard down on top of the grass so that it wouldn’t grow up through the next layer, which was a mixture of soil enricher and horse manure. Each wheelbarrow had to be filled and there was a great team effort from the class to get this done and dumped onto the cardboard. Once we had a good thick layer, in went the potatoes and that was that! As I write this a couple of weeks later, the leaves of the potato plants have already started to sprout.

(Fig.2 Above: The tiered garden, great work in progress: tree nursery prep on tier 1, potatoes at 4 weeks on tier 2, peas on tier 3 & courgettes on tier 4).

 A couple of days after we put the potatoes in, Maria Young came and helped us plant the courgettes and strawberries, and most recently a lovely lady called Hazel Hurley facilitated a workshop of planting peas with budding gardeners from Horizons Cork. Hazel has since been helping Maria with planning the tree nursery.

It’s so wonderful to see our green space being used, especially for the children who can come and see the fruits of the labour and learn about food and how it’s produced. The groups who frequent our library will also benefit from this greenery as they will hopefully be able to use this space through facilitated workshops and enjoy it while relaxing in our new outdoor seating area.

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Sow... Let’s Grow! April 2025

[Entries marked with an * need to be sown indoors or under cover first and then planted out.]

April is a fantastic month for the garden. I’ve lost count of the number of birds I’ve seen visiting our bird feeder and the buzzing of the bees is becoming an increasingly common sound. These are all signs that spring has well and truly arrived. Some of the seedlings I planted last month have started to grow, including my sweet peas, snap dragons and lettuce. The sweet peas have done so well that I’ve moved them outside into a lovely big pot where I've also planted lilies so that, as the sweet pea is fading in the autumn, the lilies should be in full bloom. Above is a non-exhaustive list of seeds that can be sown in April and below I’ll go through a couple that we have in stock in Hollyhill Library in a bit more detail.

Beetroot: these seeds love fertile soil so adding manure or compost prior to planting will give them the best chance of survival. Make sure the soil is free of clumps and weeds too. A beetroot seed is a cluster of up to five seeds so thinning the seedlings once they’ve germinated will definitely be necessary. Sow the seeds in rows 30 cm apart in drills 2 cm deep and if you can, feed them with a liquid feed at least once during the growing season. You can begin to harvest the beetroot once they are the size of golf balls, this can take between 8 – 10 weeks.

Radish: these seeds are ready to eat in a month, making them one of the quickest growing vegetables. Sow the seeds in rows 15 cm apart and 1 cm deep. Keep them watered and that’s it! You can also use radish tops in soup instead of chucking them in the bin.

Nasturtiums: these seeds are so easy to grow and produce such vibrant flowers that I would encourage even the most timid of growers to try them. Make sure the soil is free of lumps before you start. Sow the seeds around 1.5 cm deep and 10 cm apart and water well. Germination time is approximately 14 days. Once the plant has started flowering, deadhead to encourage more growth. Nasturtiums will self-seed so hopefully you will have wonderful displays of colour for years to come.

Zinnias: these flowers are originally from Mexico so make sure to find them a good sunny spot. Sow the seeds 10 – 15 cm apart and cover lightly with soil. They will flower from July to October and picking the flowers regularly will encourage new growth.

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Sow. . .Let’s Grow: March 2025

The 2025 growing season has begun and we are back! The daffodils are blooming, the birds are returning, and the days are getting longer – Spring has truly arrived. I have spent most of January and February curled up indoors staring wistfully out at the rain and wind as my pots are blown around. But I think (and I don’t want to tempt fate) that we are almost past the frosty mornings…regardless, now is the time to sow your seedlings indoors or in your greenhouse. This year I will be sowing Sweet Williams, Cineraria, Snapdragons, Basil, and Sweet Peas.

[Seeds for March]

Sweet Williams: Also known as Dianthus barbatus, these are a wonderfully colourful and fragrant flower, growing to around 45 cm tall. They can be sown indoors from January through to March. You do not need to cover the seeds with soil as they need light to germinate but do keep the soil moist. Germination takes 10 – 14 days and the seedlings can be planted out once the risk of frost has passed. Seeds can be biennial or perennial depending on what variety you have.

Cineraria ‘Silver Dust’: Also known as silver ragwort, this plant is mostly grown for its unusual silver foliage which can look incredibly striking in a space so full of green. Sow in seed trays using moist compost and leave on a sunny windowsill indoors. Germination can take between 10 – 21 days. As with nearly all seedlings, once the risk of frost has passed, plant out into the garden. I failed miserably with this plant last year, so fingers crossed it works for me this year!

Snapdragons: An instantly recognisable cottage garden classic, these beautiful flowers should be sown indoors in March in a seed tray, covered with a thin layer of soil and placed in a propagator or covered with a clear plastic bag. Plant out after the last frost and with a bit of love and luck they will flower all the way from June to October.

Basil: This plant can be grown indoors and outdoors as it originates from a Mediterranean climate. Sow in seed trays and place on a sunny windowsill or in a greenhouse. Germination takes around 14 days and can be planted out – you guessed it – after the last frost. Alternatively, you can keep the plant indoors and it will be just as happy. Remember to cut the growing tips off the plant as this will encourage outward growth rather than upward growth. You can start harvesting your basil once it is 25 cm tall.

Sweet peas: These can be planted directly into the soil but to give them a bit of head start I prefer to sow them indoors and then plant them out. The only thing with sweet peas it that they have long root and cannot be sown in a normal seed tray. So, you can either use the inner tube of a toilet roll or simply a deeper pot. Push the seed about 1 inch into the soil and cover, ensuring the soil stays moist. Germination is a speedy 7 days. Sweet peas are the hardiest of all the plants I’ve written about in this month’s blog so they could almost be planted out as soon as they have established roots. They can grow up to 2 metres tall so they will need a trellis or a support structure to grow around. Flowers from June to October.

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Staff Reviews

The Profiler by Helen Fields

eAudiobook reviewed by Ruth, Cork City Libraries

The introduction to The Profiler plunges you into the depths of your worst nightmare. The story opens with a gruesome killing which shows the vulnerability of a woman whose kind nature has been taken advantage of. Chloe thought she was careful. Little did she know that evil was watching her every move, and that her end would be painful and disturbing.

“Profile K” is Chloe’s killer. The book introduces us to this cruel man and takes us through the years that have led him to becoming a monster. The range of emotions I experienced whilst listening to this book left me on edge, from the vulnerability of women to disgust at learning of Profile K’s plans and actions. I felt uneasy with Necto, a biotech company, playing with and shaping minds, brainwashing and concealing in a tech-driven world. It seemed realistic. I empathised with Midnight Jones, an analyst trained to understand the human mind, who finds Profile K an anomaly in her system. I was screaming at her to do the right thing and to speak-up, but she was caught in a moral dilemma. Should she choose to care for her dependant sister with the money the job provides… or tell and risk losing her job? Who can she trust?

This book will be one I remember for the images it planted in my head, for the investigative work I did alongside Midnight Jones, and for the fear that lives in us all.

The Profiler is available to borrow on Borrowbox. Library members can access Borrowbox for free! Find out more here https://www.corkcitylibraries.ie/en/online/read-online/

[corkcitylibraries]

So...Let's Grow: December 2024

December for many people is the busiest month of the year and gardeners are no different. It’s cold, it’s wet and nobody really wants to be outside, but a Christmas dinner made with vegetables and herbs you have grown yourself makes it all worth it. But I know that not everyone is as enthusiastic to be out pruning and digging in the pouring rain, so in this blog I’ll recommend some books with nature inspired activities that can be created from the comfort of your kitchen table, some cookbooks to incorporate home grown produce, and a couple of gardening books for those of us who are a little bit mad!

Wreaths and Crafts

Christmas ornaments: 27 charming decorations to make, from wreaths and garlands to baubles and table centerpieces by Chris Myers, Catherine Woram, and Clare Youngs. This book covers a range of festive decorations made from reused and recycled materials found around your home. They avoid using environmentally harmful products like glitter and try to include as little plastic as possible. Some of my favourites include gingerbread salt dough shapes on p31, the dogwood wreath on p60, and the crab apple wreath on p71.

Beautiful wreaths & garlands: 35 projects to decorate your home for all seasons & occasions by Catherine Woram. This book covers wreaths for all year round but has a special chapter for holidays and special occasions. There is a gorgeous leaf and berry Christmas wreath on p105 and a beautiful heart fairy light wreath on p112.

The homemade year: things to make, do and eat at home to welcome every season by Lily Higgins. This book again covers all year round and has a chapter for each month of the year. The December chapter contains wonderful projects such as potpourri, orange pomander, paper snowflakes and a leaf wreath. The winter chapter starts on page 248.

Cooking

Nigella Christmas: food, family, friends, festivities by Nigella Lawson. As with any Nigella cookbook you know you are in for a treat. A firm believer in eating as a social occasion, she has recipes to cover an entire Christmas dinner and Christmas brunch for up to 8 people! On top of this she has recipes for cocktails, canapés and sauces ensuring there is something for everyone of every age and preference.

A very vegan Christmas: plant-based recipes for celebrating in style by Sam Dixon. Don’t let the word ‘vegan’ scare you off, this book is packed full of exciting vegetable-based recipes perfect for people who are tired of the same Christmas turkey every year. The recipes on p55 for a mushroom wellington, p75 for maple & pecan stove-top carrots, and p131 for orange chocolate chip shortbread particularly caught my eye!

Neven Maguire's perfect Irish Christmas by Neven Maguire. This book not only covers the big Christmas dinner but the entire festive season with recipes for all those leftovers, St Stephen’s Day suppers, and New Year’s Eve nibbles. As the head chef and proprietor of MacNean House and Restaurant, you know you’re in good hands with Neven.

Gardening

Your gardening year: how to get the best from your garden, every month of the year, 2023 by Alice Horne. Although it might be last year’s edition, this book is still one I would highly recommend to any gardener. It goes through what to plant, what to sow, what to harvest, and what needs to be done in the garden on a month-by-month basis. Even if you are not knee-deep in mud in December it’s always a good idea to plan and prepare what you are going to do once the weather breaks.

Four-season food gardening: how to grow vegetables, fruits, and herbs year-round by Misilla dela Llana. This book explains how you can have freshly grown produce all year round, yes even during the winter months. By extending the growing season using cold frames or greenhouses and planting perennial fruits and vegetables such as asparagus, artichoke, kale, and rhubarb you can utilise the space you have and keep busy all throughout the year.

Happy Christmas and happy growing!

[corkcitylibraries]

Spaghetti Bowl – Cónal Creedon

Book reviewed by David O’Brien, Cork City Librarian

This book made me smile and was a welcome companion on a recent journey when I had time to savour it. Spaghetti Bowl is quirky and enjoyable a collection of essays by well-known Cork author Cónal Creedon. The inspiration for each individual piece is very much a stand-alone exploration and yet this diverse collection of essays all come together – as a single experience that left me chuckling in parts; and experiencing no little nostalgia for a Cork of the past. He refers to the move to Cork from West Cork by his mother and father (his mother was from Beara and his father was from Inchigeelagh). His essays on Brara and Iveleary outline the ties that are so Irish, family, place and the wider community, in a volume that of work that resonates far beyond the inner-city streets of his native Cork, out into the countryside and beyond. As you read. Creedon’s world view is seen from the streets from downtown Cork City, – where his family has lived and traded for generations. It is very much tied to his own evolution as he treads the path of his life yet done with constant reference to thoughts and musings and the world around him.

His base he calls the ‘Spaghetti Bowl of Streets’. The essays in Spaghetti Bowl take the reader from Creedon’s early days playing football on Devonshire Street to his observations on Cork in the aftermath of covid 19. We learn of the great community spirit in the Spaghetti Bowl of Cork and of the warmth and memories of happy days spent with his uncles, aunts, and cousins and friends.

Dogeen is my favourite piece in this book and if you are a dog lover you will enjoy it – and it may well bring a lump to your throat.

A great read (especially if you can read it in a Cork accent!). Recommended.