The wide-awake City of the Tribes

An Urban Sketcher’s Galway

by Róisín Curé (Currach Books, €22.99)

My wife and I often go down to Galway by train to have lunch, then a walk in Salthill by the sea, rounded off with a browse in Charlie Byrne’s Bookshop – truly the best in Ireland.

The city, in our experience has changed dramatically since the 1970s, yet somehow remains true to itself. Róisín Curé in her delightful book with her lively and charming drawings accompanied by her equally interesting text manages to convey that great vitality, sense of fun and adventure that the city seems to have in spades.

I was warmly reminded of the great Posy Simmons’ work. Of course, one is aware there are problems, but among the principal cities of Ireland today Galway is the best place to be, especially if one is in one’s 20. Having just returned from another brief visit I can assure readers that Róisín Curé has the place down to a tee, even to the extraordinary number of raucous sea gulls that pervade the city and decorate her book.

You can purchase the book from Currach Books