"The Sea and the Silence" by Peter Cunningham

Peter Cunningham's latest novel is set in 1945 in Monument, the scene of three of his previous books. The war in Europe has just ended and change is about to sweep away the old order. The war had adversely affected Ireland in terms of food shortages, rationing, trade and way of life. The Sea and the Silence tells the story of Iz, a beautiful young woman, as she settles down to try and make a life on the south-east coast with her new husband. Times were harsh and the circumstances that have brought her to Monument are shrouded in mystery. Iz is trapped in an unhappy, adulterous marriage, and haunted by a great love in her past. Soaring across the decades that follow Ireland’s newly won independence and through the class and land issues that once defined Irish society, The Sea and the Silence is an epic love story set amid the fading grandeur of the Anglo-Irish class. Vincent Banville says of it, 'Cunningham, a magician with words, has penned a vast panorama of a novel’, while Roddy Doyle says that ‘it's a terrific novel - moving and hugely entertaining'. Peter Cunningham will read at the Ennis Book Club Festival from 12.00 – 1.00 pm on Saturday 7th March. To book contact Glór Box Office. Tel. 065 6843103. Further festival details at www.ennisbookclubfestival.com or phone 087 2262259.

LexisNexis and Vision-net now available at your local library

An Comhairle Leabharlanna (The Library Council) is now providing free access through Irish public libraries to two major online services.

Vision-net provides information on all companies and businesses registered with the Irish Company Registration Office (CRO) and their registered documents.

LexisNexis is a searchable archive of content from newspapers, magazines, legal documents and other printed sources designed specifically for professionals in the legal, risk management, corporate, government, law enforcement, accounting, and academic markets.

Both resources can be accessed free of charge through the Internet PC service in public libraries in Clare.

The Twilight Craze - the biggest thing in books in Ireland since Harry Potter

Outside the USA, Ireland has the highest teenage readership of Stephenie Meyer’s "Twilight" books. Written by a 34 year old mother from Phoenix, Arizona, the books have catapulted a new heroine, Bella Swan, into the lives of Irish teenagers. A young adult herself, Bella’s life is turned upside down when she falls in love with Edward Cullen after she moves to a new town. Nothing unusual about that you might say… but Edward Cullen is a vampire and it could be very dangerous for Bella to get too close! Stephenie Meyer is currently outselling Marian Keyes, Cecelia Ahern and even JK Rowling in Ireland.

Romantic Novel of the Year Award

Cecelia Ahern’s novel Thanks for the Memories is among the six titles shortlisted for the Romantic Novel of the Year award. Organised by the Romantic Novelists’ Association, this award – previously won by Irish writer Cathy Kelly – was inaugurated in 1960 to raise the profile of romantic novels and enhance the standing of the genre. Last year’s winner was Freya North’s Pillow Talk.

The six shortlisted books for the 2009 award are:
Thanks for the Memories - Cecelia Ahern
The Last Concubine - Lesley Downer
Star Gazing - Linda Gillard
East of the Sun - Julia Gregson
Sophia’s Secret - Susanna Kearsley
Before the Storm - Judith Lennox

Books and Oscar

Three films based on books have been received Oscar nominations for 2009. They are The Reader, Slumdog Millionaire and Revolutionary Road.

"The Reader" –in which Kate Winslet stars – is an adaptation of Bernhard Schlink’s novel. The Reader is a brief tale about sex, love, reading, and shame in postwar Germany which raises questions about our ability to understand and forgive. The film has received nominations in the Best Picture, Best Actress, Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay categories.

"Slumdog Millionaire" - an uplifting tale of a boy from the Mumbai slums – is based on the book Q and A by Vikas Swarup. It is about a boy who wins a billion rupees on a quiz show and he finds himself thrown in jail as the organizers do not believe that he could possibly have won without cheating. In recounting his life story to his lawyer, we learn of the events in his life that provided him with the answers to the questions. The film was nominated in the Best Picture, Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay categories.

"Revolutionary Road" - directed by Sam Mendes and featuring Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet - is based on the 1961 novel of the same title by Richard Yates. Described as a masterpiece of realistic fiction for its rendering of the malaise at the heart of the American Dream, it is also a timeless portrait of youthful disillusionment. It's the story of Frank and April Wheeler, a bright, beautiful, and talented couple who see themselves as special. Determined not to be trapped by the social confines of the era, they move to France. As their relationship deteriorates into an endless cycle of squabbling, jealousy and recriminations, their trip and their dreams of self-fulfillment are thrown into jeopardy. Michael Shannon has been nominated for the Best Supporting Actor Award for his part in the film.

The Academy Awards ceremony takes place on February 22.

"The Book of Lost Things" by John Connolly

John Connolly's fairy tale for adults relates the adventures of David, a 12-year-old boy growing up near London during World War 2. His mother has died of cancer and he is struggling to cope with a new stepmother, a new half-brother and a father who, working on the war effort, is rarely at home. David feels rejected, angry and alone with only the precious books in his room for company. He finds some solace in the myths and fairytales once introduced to him by his mother. When his books begin to whisper to him in the darkness he takes comfort in his imagination and, gradually, he finds that the real world and the fantasy world have begun to merge. This fantasy world at the bottom of his garden is full of the characters he has read about but is much more frightening. Bad things start to happen. The evil Crooked Man arrives and David finds himself in a land of heroes, wolves and monsters as he attempts to find the legendary Book of Lost Things. We are spared no detail as we are drawn into a dark and bizarre world where good does not always conquer evil. Along the way David learns lessons of loyalty, bravery, acceptance, sacrifice and, finally, the power of love and family. The Book of Lost Things is a moving tale of grief, loss, and discovery and of a boy becoming a man. Skillfully told, it is a story that reinforces the enduring power of stories.

John Connolly will launch the Ennis Book Club Festival on Friday 6th March and will host a Giant Book Club gathering to discuss his novel The Book of Lost Things.
Further details at www.ennisbookclubfestival.com or phone 087 2262259.

"Just Henry" by Michelle Magorian

Michelle Magorian’s book Just Henry is this year’s Costa Children’s Book Award winner beating off stiff competition from Keith Grey’s Ostrich Boys, Saci Lloyd’s The Carbon Diaries 2015 and Broken Soup by Shirley Valentine. The classic Goodnight Mister Tom is probably the best known of her books and is a former Guardian Children’s Fiction award-winner. The Costa Book Awards is the only prize which places children’s books alongside adult’s. The five categories are: First Novel, Novel, Biography, Poetry and Children's Book. The winner in each category receives £5,000. The children’s book has an equal chance of being named the Book of the Year, in which case it stands to receive a further £25,000. The 2008 winner of the Costa Book of the Year will be announced at an awards ceremony in central London on Tuesday 27th January 2009. Whereas Goodnight Mister Tom was set at the beginning of World War 2, Just Henry is set in post-war Britain. It tells the story of a young boy whose only escape from the harshness of life and especially from his annoying step father is going to the cinema. It is there he meets Mrs. Beaumont who also loves films and lends Henry her camera for a school project. Henry’s dead father of whom he’s fiercely proud was a war hero. This pride becomes an obstacle when Henry makes friends with Jeffries whose father deserted. Through his relationship with this boy and another called Pip, Henry learns that friendship is not defined by any rules. He will need his friends when he develops the film in Mrs. Beaumont’s camera because what he discovers will turn his world upside down.

Costa Award Winners 2008

Costa, the UK's largest and fastest-growing coffee shop chain, has announced the Costa Book Awards 2008 winners in the Novel, First Novel, Biography, Poetry and Children's Book categories. Each category-winning author receives £5,000. The Costa First Novel Award winner was Sadie Jones for her bestselling debut novel The Outcast described by judges as “a riveting and heartbreaking read”. The Costa Novel Award went to Irish author Sebastian Barry for The Secret Scripture, which was also shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize 2008. The Costa Biography Award was won by Diana Athill for her memoir Somewhere Towards the End. At the age of 91, Diana addresses what it means to be old and to face death every day, but still have the strength to strive for life with an unquenchable curiosity for all that it brings. The Costa Poetry Award Winner was Adam Foulds with his debut work of poetry about the Mau Mau uprisings in Kenya, The Broken Word. The Costa Children's Book Award went to Michelle Magorian, the popular author of Goodnight Mister Tom, for Just Henry, her first new book in ten years. These five writers will now go forward for the ultimate prize, the Costa Book of the Year, to be announced at an awards ceremony on 27th January.

Most Popular Childrens’ and Teenage Books of 2008

Horrid Henry stole the show in 2008 with six titles in the series generating the most library issues of children’s books. Horrid Henry and the Bogey Babysitter was the most popular read followed by five other titles in the series that provided a generous helping of mischief and fun for the thousands of Francesca Simon fans who love this wayward character.

Where’s Wally? The Fantastic Journey also ranked among the top ten. Created by British illustrator, Martin Handford, the object of all the books in this series is to find Wally, the bespectacled little man in the red and white shirt and shellfish hat, who carries a walking stick. Look at the books and you’ll see what a difficult task this is.

Other popular titles were Safe Harbour by Marita Conlon McKenna, Benny and Babe by Eoin Colfer of Artemis Fowl fame, Danny the Champion of the World by Roald Dahl and the Captain Underpants books by Dav Pilkey. Lemony Snicket’s Series of Unfortunate Events books are still earning their place on the shelves of Clare libraries and best-selling authors Jacqueline Wilson and Darren Shan continue to maintain their popular status year after year.

The most popular teenage reads were The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas by John Boyne Starting Over by Cathy Hopkins, Stephanie Meyer’s Twilight saga and Divine Madness by Robert Muchamore. Meg Cabot, Darren Shan, Cathy Cassidy and Jacqueline Wilson are consistent favourites year after year.

The Catcher in the Rye also featured as one of the most popular books for young adults. The classic by J.D. Salinger who is 90 this month, is still regarded by many as the authoritative work on teenage angst and Holden Caulfield, the venerated icon of teenage rebellion.

Authors Roisin Meaney and Karen McCombie visited libraries in Clare during Children’s Book Festival in October. Their books were also among the most borrowed in 2008, an encouraging sign for festival organisers, proving that meeting an author still has very positive effects on the reading habits of young people.

New book promotion - Around the World in 22 Books

Clare County Library has launched a new travel book promotion entitled Around the World in 22 Books. This promotion aims to bring together a selection of the best in travel writing, whether well-recognised classics of travel literature from authors such as Freya Stark and Wilfred Thesiger or prize winning authors such as Richard Grant and Ma Jian. Leaflets have been produced to accompany the promotion in which a short description of each book is provided. The promotion, containing five copies of each book, will tour all of the branch libraries beginning in De Valera Library in Ennis where it will remain for 3 months. It is hoped that this collection will capture the hearts of devout armchair travellers as well as those unfamiliar with the genre. In these recessionary times, at least we can read about exotic destinations even if we cannot afford to actually go there!

New Music and Film Collection in Ennistymon Library

Clare County Library’s music and film collection has been extended to Ennistymon Library and is proving very popular among members there. This service has been available in De Valera Library in Ennis for a number of years and was extended to Shannon and Scariff libraries in 2007. The film collection includes classics such as Casablanca, foreign films such as The Apu Trilogy and recent releases such as There Will be Blood. Each adult member of the library may borrow two DVDs as part of their overall allocation of 8 items. The genres covered in the music collection are Popular, Classical, Jazz and Blues, Traditional, Country and World Music and should provide something to suit everyone’s taste. Adult members of the library may borrow four music CDs at a time and keep them for up to four weeks.

BBC World Service’s World Book Club

World Book Club has been uniting millions of readers from all corners of the globe every month for more than five years. The programme takes the form of a discussion chaired by the highly regarded Harriett Gilbert. Listeners send questions to an internationally acclaimed author about one of their particularly well-loved books. Past guests have included Salman Rushdie (Midnight's Children), Vikram Seth (A Suitable Boy), Isabelle Allende (The House of Spirits), Amy Tan (The Joy Luck Club), Doris Lessing (The Grass is Singing), VS Naipaul (A House for Mr Biswas), Michael Ondaatje (The English Patient), Ian McEwan (Atonement), Umberto Eco (The Name of the Rose) and Moshin Hamid (The Reluctant Fundamentalist). Kate Grenville will be talking about her award-winning novel The Secret River on February 5th.

Patrick Hillery: the Official Biography by John Walsh

Dr Patrick Hillery, one of County Clare’s most famous sons, was not only a formidable politician, but also one of the most creative public figures in recent Irish history. In this official biography, John Walsh recounts both the personal life and the career of one of the major Irish politicians of the twentieth century. He describes his childhood in Miltown Malbay, his education there, in Rockwell and UCD, and his family life. Walsh details his rise through the political ranks from his first election to the Dáil in 1951, his time as Minister, European Commissioner and eventually his election as President in 1976. He also considers Dr Hillery’s impact on significant turning points in contemporary Irish history, including the arms crisis in 1970 and Ireland’s accession to the European Community. Hillery’s recollections of the most controversial events of his career, notably the Papal visit in 1979 and attempts by Charles J. Haughey to draw the presidency into party politics in the early 1980s, are analysed for the first time. The book is based on a number of in-depth interviews with Dr. Hillery and on unrestricted access to his private papers. The work provides a comprehensive and balanced portrayal of one of the most important figures in the development of contemporary Ireland. Patrick Hillery: the Official Biography by John Walsh was published by New Island in 2008.

Ennis Book Club Festival 2009

The Ennis Book Club Festival 2009, in association with Clare County Library, will take place in the County Clare capital from 6-8 March next. The festival programme will feature visits, readings, lectures and workshops by internationally acclaimed authors, along with drama, musical entertainment and chocolate tasting. Contributors include John Boyne, author of The Boy In The Striped Pyjamas; Mark O’Halloran, award winning writer and actor; Salley Vickers, best selling British novelist and author of Miss Garnet’s Angel; John Breen, author of Alone It Stands; Jennifer Johnston, Booker Prize nominated writer; and Allan Guthrie, Scottish crime novelist. Other festival participants include Gerard Donovan; author of the Booker Prize nominated Schopenhauer's Telescope; Aifric Campbell, author of The Semantics of Murder; Órfhlaith Foyle, critically acclaimed poet and author of the debut novel Belios; Gerard Stembridge; novelist, film director, playwright and co-author of the satirical radio show Scrap Saturday; and travel writer Manchán Magan.

One of the highlights of the weekend will be the Sunday Symposium during which the theme of "Reading Politics" will be explored by journalist and political analyst Conor O’Clery, Public Relations consultant Terry Prone and Labour politician Michael D. Higgins. Elsewhere, journalist and broadcaster Kevin Myers and Maria Dickenson, head of book buying in Eason will host “10 books you should read”; Georgina Byrne, of South Dublin Libraries, will discuss e-books; author/TV producer Anna Heussaff will present a workshop on enriching your Book Club; broadcaster and author Denis Sampson will discuss his book on John McGahern, entitled Outstaring Nature’s Eye, and broadcaster and journalist Rachael English will chair an interview and reading session with John Boyne and Salley Vickers.

Poetry will also feature prominently at the festival. Winner of the Rooney prize for Irish Literature, Medbh McGuckian; founder member of Aosdána and winner of the Marten Toonder prize for Literature, Micheal O'Siadhail, awarded an Irish American Cultural Institute prize for poetry in 1982 and in 1998 the Marten Toonder prize for Literature; Dublin-based Russian poet, Anatoly Kudryavitsky; winner of the 2003 Cúirt Festival Poetry Grand Slam, Kevin Higgins; and poet and dramatist Rita Ann Higgins, whose many accolades include the Peadar O’Donnell Award, will all delight and challenge their audiences during the Festival.

Meanwhile, students from Trinity College Dublin will stage an exclusive performance of “The Trial of Oscar Wilde” at Ennis Courthouse. The only other enactment of the trial, which led to Wilde’s public disgrace and two year imprisonment for acts of "gross indecency”, was held at Trinity College in April. The festival launch will include a "giant book club gathering" featuring a mass reading and discussion of “The book of Lost Things" by Irish novelist John Connolly. The festival presents a unique opportunity for book club members from Ireland and beyond to get together to share their joy of reading, to meet authors, to discuss books, and to have a weekend break with friends.

Tickets are on sale at Glór Box Office 00353 65 6843103 boxoffice@glor.ie. Further details on the festival at www.ennisbookclubfestival.com
email info@ennisbookclubfestival.com or contact 00353879723647 / 00353857758523. Click here for programme of events.

Most popular books in 2008

More than 440,000 books were borrowed from Clare County Library in 2008. So what are the people of Clare reading? Khaled Hosseini, Cecelia Ahern and Jodi Picoult each have 2 books on the list of the top ten fiction books issued from Clare libraries in 2008. The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini has featured on the top ten list since 2006 and is joined this year by his A Thousand Splendid Suns, also set in Afghanistan. The Kite Runner – Hosseini’s first novel – was a word-of- mouth phenomenon which took the literary world by surprise and his second novel was eagerly awaited by his fans. All five of Cecelia Ahern’s books have made the top ten list since her first publication – PS, I Love You – in 2004. She published a new title The Gift just before Christmas – don’t be surprised to see that on the list next year. Cathy Kelly has featured on the top ten list of most borrowed fiction books from Clare County Library since 1999. She has not published a new novel since 2006 when Past Secrets was published yet she remains hugely popular. Deirdre Purcell is another Irish author who is consistently popular among Clare readers. Thriller writer James Patterson, who writes a number of books every year, is estimated to have sold more that 150 million books worldwide. He always features among the most popular male authors with readers in County Clare. American author Jodi Picoult is a newcomer to the top ten fiction list. Although her first novel was published in 1992, it’s only in recent years that her popularity has surged on this side of the Atlantic. She writes highly readable page-turners tackling hot issues such as teenage suicide and date rape.

Top ten most popular adult fiction books in 2008:
A Place Called Here by Cecelia Ahern
The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
Past Secrets by Cathy Kelly
Book of the Dead by Patricia Cornwell
Salem Falls by Jodi Picoult
Step on a Crack by James Patterson
A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini
Where Rainbows End by Cecelia Ahern
Tell Me Your Secret by Deirdre Purcell
Keeping Faith by Jodi Picoult

The Official Driver Theory Test has topped the list of the top ten non-fiction books borrowed from Clare County Library branches since 2002. It was joined this year by Conor Faughnan’s Pass That Test as changes to the provisional licensing system were implemented. The non-fiction list is dominated by cookery books, all by celebrity chefs, including Rachel Allen and Neven Maguire. Maybe a sign that staying in really is the new going out. 2007 was the first year since 2001 that a book on house plans did not make the top ten list and 2008 saw a further decline in the popularity of these books reflecting the current economic situation. Irish biographies and autobiographies are always favourites among readers in County Clare. Following her death in May 2008, there was renewed interest in Nuala O’Faolain’s autobiography Are You Somebody? which reached fifth place on the list.

Top ten most popular adult non-fiction books in 2008:
Official Driver Theory Test
Pass That Test by Conor Faughnan
Rachel’s Food For Living by Rachel Allen
Rachel’s favourite Food at Home by Rachel Allen
Neven’s Real Food for Families by Neven Maguire
Are You Somebody? by Nuala O’Faolain
Jamie’s Dinners by Jamie Oliver
Avoca café Cookbook 2 by Hugh Arnold
Nigella express by Nigella Lawson
The Parish by Alice Taylor

Q & A by Vikas Swarup

"I have been arested. For winning a quiz show. They came for me last night, when even the stray dogs had gone off to sleep. They broke open my door, handcuffed me and marched me off to the waiting jeep with a flashing red light." So begins Vikas Swarup’s story about the orphaned, penniless waiter from Mumbai who answered thirteen questions correctly on a TV quiz show to win one billion rupees. The producers have him arrested, convinced that he has cheated his way to victory. In telling his life story to his lawyer, he explains, via flashbacks, how various events in his life provided him with the answers to the 13 questions. Fighting to stay alive and make a living in "Asia’s biggest slum... amid the modern skyscrapers and neon-lit shopping complexes", through Ram’s life story Swarup portrays the difficulties of life for the underprivileged in India. Gangsters kidnap and maim children to use as beggars; vain film stars flail against their fading celebrity; policemen line their pockets; gamblers fix cricket matches; pimps incarcerate their own sisters. But it is also a story about friendship and loyalty and the lengths that people are willing to go to for those they love. Q & A has been adapted for the big screen under the title Slumdog Millionaire. Directed by Danny Boyle, the movie is due to be released in Ireland this month. Q & A by Vikas Swarup was published by Black Swan in 2006.

Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance by Barack Obama

Before Barack Obama became a politician he was, among other things, a writer. Dreams from My Father, written long before his election as President, is a refreshing, revealing portrait of a young man asking the big questions about identity and belonging. The son of a black African father and a white American mother, Obama recounts an emotional odyssey. He retraces the migration of his mother's family from Kansas to Hawaii, then to his childhood home in Indonesia. Finally he travels to Kenya, where he confronts the bitter truth of his father's life and at last reconciles his divided inheritance. The book illuminates not only Obama’s journey but also our universal desire to understand our history, and what makes us the people that we are. A recommended introduction to the man who is about to become the forty-fourth President of the United States.

Inkheart by Cornelia Funke

Inkheart, the recently released film, is based on the first book of the Inkworld trilogy by Cornelia Funke. Twelve year old Meggie Folchart’s life changes dramatically when she realizes that her father, Mo, who works as a bookbinder has a rare gift. Mo can cause characters from books to live in the real world when he reads aloud. One such character, Dustfinger, comes to warn Mo that someone is searching for him and all three journey to Italy. Places and people feature strongly throughout the book as they run from the secrets of Mo’s past. A book with such colourful characters, and a brilliant story of nail-biting drama was quite rightfully destined for the big screen. Now that the film has whetted your appetite why not read all three books in the trilogy, Inkheart, Inkspell and Inkdeath.

New Children’s Book Awards & more

Two new Children’s Book awards were launched in the past year. The Big Picture Campaign was aimed at promoting picture books and their illustrators. Art schools, teachers, libraries and literary festivals became involved in choosing ‘new’ picture book artists, all of whom were first published in or since the year 2000, to become the top ten illustrators in the field of Picture Book illustration today. Three of the best known authors who were included in the list of Top Ten Picture Book Illustrators are Oliver Jeffers, Emily Gravett and Mini Grey. Acclaimed children’s picture book author Shirley Hughes sums up the importance of this prize… “In an era in which we are bombarded by moving electronic imagery, looking at picture books is not only a vital part of learning to read but offers a lifelong pleasure in itself.”

The winners of the inaugural Roald Dahl Funny Prize were announced in London on November the 13th. The winner of the Funniest Book for Children Aged Six and Under was The Witch’s Children go to School by Ursula Jones and the winner of the Funniest Book for Children Aged Seven to Fourteen was Mr. Gum and the Dancing Bear by Andy Stanton. Meanwhile Dublin author, Derek Landy, was chosen as the overall winner of the Red House Children’s Book Award, the only children’s book award voted for by children, for his book Skulduggery Pleasant, which will be released on film in 2010.

And in the coming year….

Ribblestrop by Andy Mulligan is to be the next big children’s book if we are to heed the previews in the British Press. A story about a bunch of kids in a boarding school, "Andy Mulligan’s Ribblestrop is a hilarious and morally questionable tale about a disastrous school whose pupils can be counted on the fingers of one hand" The Independent. It is already long-listed for the Waterstone’s Children’s Book Prize 2009 along with The Thirteen Treasures by Michelle Harrison, which is being marketed as a dark faerie fiction with a classic feel. A new series of Horrible Histories will be launched in 2009. The new editions will be called High Speed History and will feature historical tales in a comic-strip format. Terry Deary will be writing and recording the text for a new "Ruthless Romans" computer game planned for Nintendo DS and Wii and PCs. Look out for it in the gaming shops in 2009.

'Scéal Eile' photographic and sculptural installation

The Courthouse Gallery in Ennistymon presents 'Scéal Eile'- the first solo show of London-based Clare artist Valerie Driscoll from the 10th to the 29th January, with the opening reception on Saturday the 10th of January at 4pm. According to Driscoll, 'Scéal Eile' is an exhibition of photographic and sculptural installation that tells the story, as a courthouse might, of something that is hidden. The daily engaging in the private domestic procosses is played out in the gallery as home. Driscoll explores the dichotemy between domestic realities and public display. Phrases such as 'behind closed doors' and 'airing dirty laundry',she says add to the ambiguity as well as to the curiosity. The inherent hardship, banality and private experience of the Irish domestic situtation is exposed and shown to be infused with hope. A series of photographs entitled 'A few things around my father's kitchen' is an intimate portrait that reveals a quirky and private universe. Driscoll uses object and image to reveal experienced as well as created environments. Driscoll worked as a teacher in London for 10 years. She recently gave up teaching to persue a career in photographic art. Driscoll has exhibited in London at the Sassoon Gallery and Nolias Gallery. She also showed work at Isaacs in Cork City during the European City of Culture.