Magnum Mysterium

Born in Chicago in 1954, Julie O'Callaghan has lived in Ireland since 1974. Her collections of poetry include Edible Anecdotes (Dolmen Press, 1983), a Poetry Book Society Recommendation; What's What (Bloodaxe Books, 1991), a Poetry Book Society Choice; No Can Do (Bloodaxe Books, 2000), a Poetry Book Society Recommendation; Tell Me This Is Normal: New & Selected Poems (Bloodaxe Books, 2008), a Poetry Book Society Recommendation; and Magnum Mysterium (Bloodaxe Books, 2020). Her books of poetry for older children include Taking My Pen for a Walk (Orchard Books, 1988), Two Barks (Bloodaxe Books, 1998) and The Book of Whispers (Faber & Faber, 2006). She has received the Michael Hartnett Award for poetry and is a member of the Irish academy of arts, Aosdána.