Shades of Red by Vivienne McKechnie

0 out of 5

15.00

In this deeply personal collection, Vivienne McKechnie traces the contours of loss and love across the Irish landscape. From the horror of Tuam’s unmarked graves to the tender goodbye at Shannon Airport, from beloved pets laid to rest under apple trees to children building lives across oceans, these poems map the geography of memory and separation. Whether exploring family trauma, climate crisis, or the simple magic of a half moon before a music exam, she finds beauty and meaning in both the monumental and the everyday.

Shades of Red is a collection about the distances between us, between parent and child, past and present, human and animal; and the love that persists across every gap.

(NOTE: Available from Wed 22nd April 2026)

Description

Vivienne McKechnie was born in Dublin and lives in Limerick. She holds
an MA in Creative Writing from the University of Limerick and has
taught English and Creative Writing in Dublin, Kenya, and Limerick. Her
debut collection, A Butterfly’s Wing, was published by Arlen House (2013).
Her poetry has appeared in The Stony Thursday Book, Revival, Washing
Windows: Irish Women Write Poetry, and Windharp: Poems of Ireland
since 1916. She edited Dream of a City (2014) and co-edited A Last Loving:
Collected Poems of Maeve Kelly. Her poem ‘Today’ was featured on the
Leaving Certificate English exam. She serves on the Limerick Literary
Festival committee.
Stuff of Dreams was commissioned by Joseph O’Connor for Dreams, an
anthology celebrating 50 years of Creativity, Culture and Community at the
University of Limerick edited by Joseph O’Connor, Eoin Devereux and Sarah Moore.