‘Riposte’ is the poetry broadsheet edited and produced for many years by Michael O’Flanagan . For an annual 15 Euro you will absolutely not find greater value: regular issues in which you will find some 14-15 poems of all styles and persuasions and high quality. Well, I would say that, wouldn’t I, being one of the poets featured in this month’s edition received in the post today– but it’s true! ‘Riposte‘ is not just a broadsheet, it’s a great institution and congratulations to allconcerned for keeping it going so long. This edition features poems by Fred Johnson (‘L’Esprite sous Terre’), Frank Murphy (‘The Ties that Bind’), Brendan O’Beirne (‘Growth’), Bernie O’Reilly (‘Gremlins’), Liam O’Meara (‘Requiem for St. Michael’s) and many more. Michael has one himself, ‘Christmas in Thomas Street’. a shopping street embedded in my earliest memories of going shopping with my mother in Duffys, Frawleys and Woolworths (are we old or what?).

You owe it to yourself to subscribe (and contribute) to this wonder-full broadsheet. To get on the mailing list send 15 Euro  to ‘Riposte”, 28 Emmet Road, Kilmainham, Dublin 8. It’ll be one of the best investments you ever made (and one of the safest, considering the state of the bond markets at present!). You’ll get top-class poems sent to you every month. Like, ahem… the following:

LOVE POEM

(‘T-rex find could bring Jurassic Park to Life’ -News report)

Hell Creek, Montana. Fossils found,

and one thigh-bone has broken open, showing

traces of blood vessels. Now,

if we could get a bit of DNA

we might clone up a dinosaur or two–

Imagine the firk of them walking the Earth again,

arm in arm!

Woodvale, Lucan. Many insults hurled,

the ties we thought that bound us broken, showing

wounds we thought were long-forgotten. Now

if we could manage a reconciliation

we might dig up our former selves intact–

Imagine the firk of us walking through Lucan  again,

arm in arm!

Eamonn Lynskey  (Published in ‘Riposte’ Dec. 2010)