Poems 1980-2017

‘Something new is happening here and knows that it is happening. O’Loughlin manages to ride the surge of discourses and histories in order to arrive in the free literate domain of the achieved poem.’ - Seamus Heaney Michael O’Loughlin has earned an enduring reputation as one of Ireland’s most important poets and writers. Poems 1980–2015 brings together and celebrates a poetic career spanning nearly four decades, and includes new, previously unpublished poems. Exploring major themes such as identity, language, exile and return, O’Loughlin’s work has an exceptionally strong international outlook and a fierce dedication to social and historical justice. From the youthful poetry of his early Raven Arts collections which ushered in a new urban aesthetic in Irish poetry, to the poetic explorations of European history and identity, and the mature reflections of a masterful poet, this volume finally reveals the true extent of his unique and superbly crafted oeuvre, the work of one of the most original and vital voices in contemporary poetry.