Welcome to Watch City Readers! This program is brought to you through a grant from the Waltham Cultural Council and the Mass Cultural Council. My goal is to promote literacy by discovering new books each month, along with behind the scenes views of the literary world. On the second Sunday of each month at 6pm EST, I produce a Facebook live video cast that focuses on a particular genre.
In honor of Saint Patrick's Day, we delved into Irish mythos. We discussed the differences between the Irish gods versus the Greek, Roman, and Egyptian gods, and discovered that Irish mythology, unlike those others, is human centric rather than gods centric.
We read a short story about Lir, an Irish water god, from "Irish Imbas: Celtic Mythology Collection." The story was "Lir," by Coral Atkinson. It told the tale of how a water god and a human married, but through a twist of fate and magic, a curse came upon all involved. What made this retelling unique was that it was told from the first person point of view of a human princess, instead of a third person narrative. The twist at the end, plus the additional link to the St. Patrick's Day holiday, made for a satisfying whirlwind of a story.
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Next, we were joined by East Coast poet Ashley Grant as we read her poem, "Banshee," from her poetry collection "Lament of Midnight." We found similarities between the banshee and a character in the "Lir" story, and learned about what a banshee signifies in Irish lore.
We also chatted about modern traditions for celebrating St. Patrick's Day, including festivals, parades, and green rivers!
Wishing everyone heaps of luck this St. Patrick's Day! Next month we will delve into poetry by award winning local poets for National Poetry Month.
