Margaret Connor is the author of the memoir My Ireland. The book is a factual and descriptive account of Ireland in the 1950s, evoking a nostalgic picture of Ireland’s rural life with its sense of community.
The book begins with Margaret’s childhood to adolescence in Dublin leading eventually to emigration.
What are you up to at the moment?
Working on second book, titled My America
Which writer has most influenced you?
Hemingway, Twain, Steinbeck, McCourt, Tóibín, Edna O’Brien..
What is you modus operandi for writing?
My writing is from my own experiences with minimum research.
What are your Irish roots?
I was born and raised in Dublin.
Which piece of music always sends a shiver down your spine?
Fields of Athenry, Four Green Fields, The West’s Asleep, The Last Rose of Summer.
Heaney or Yeats?
Both are wonderful. I know Yeats’ poems better since Sligo is close to home.
Which recent book has moved you?
Say Nothing by Patrick R. Keefe
Which living writer do you most admire?
Fintan O’Toole
Opera or pantomime?
Opera – Tosca, La Traviata
Which (real) historical figure do you most admire?
President Abe Lincoln
What would be your motto?
Compassion, intelligence, bravery
Have you a favourite quote from any poem you’ve read?
“I will arise now and go to Innisfree and a small cabin build there …”
Have you a favourite quote from any book you’ve read?
“It was the best of times. It was the worst of times …” from a Tale of Two Cities
What’s a favourite line from your own writing?
“What do they need flush toilets for? A lot of flush toilets we had in our day. How will flush toilets help with their learning?”
Mozart or Marin Hayes?
Mozart — I even visited his home in Salzburg
What books are on your bedside table at the minute?
Walking with Ghosts by Gabriel Byrne
In terms of inanimate objects, what is your most precious possession?
Irish linen, a gift from my mother
What do you believe in?
Self-reliance
Who/what is the greatest love of your life?
My parents
