2006 Edinburgh International Book Festival

Roundabouts and sofas

Bernard MacLaverty weaved a magic spell at Edinburgh. James Smith was there.

Distinguished yet slightly dishevelled, his thick white hair combed neatly forward, Bernard MacLaverty stepped up to the microphone in the ScottishPower Studio Theatre exuding confidence and bonhomie.

For the next hour, he read from three of the stories in his new collection Matters of Life and Death, holding the attention of a rapt audience.

Twinkly-eyed and blessed with the gift of the blarney he may be, but MacLaverty is capable of jolting his readers and listeners out of their cosy lethargy with the raw power of his writing. He kicked off proceedings with a story about a man who drives his car onto a Belfast roundabout when he sees UDA soldiers beating up a defenceless victim. With the help of his wife, he bundles the victim into the car and drives as fast as he can to the hospital, his children sitting quietly in the back seat, shocked by the blood and violence.

MacLaverty’s writing is spurred on by anger, yet for all its violence 'On the Roundabout' is also about humanity. Bad things happen to people and they cope as best they can, as the author reminded us.

In contrast, MacLaverty’s next reading was a wryly observed piece about a man in his fifties who is referred to a diabetes clinic for tests. Gently humorous, the story ('The Clinic') is a beautifully detailed study of the way in which people cope with the seemingly endless periods of waiting in hospitals. MacLaverty’s patient finds solace in Chekhov and in brief but regular interaction with his nurse as he gives his samples.

Thirdly, he read from 'The Trojan Sofa', a mischievous extract about a dodgy antiques dealer who incarcerates his son in a sofa and then delivers it to the buyer. The next morning, when the residents of the house have left, the boy cuts his way out of the sofa and opens the door for his father, who steals anything of value as well as the modus operandi.

The appreciative audience revelled in the way MacLaverty entertained them, but what was also impressive was the range and depth of these stories. Matters of Life and Death took about five years to put together ('a book is not a bowel movement'), but the most horrendous story ('Up the Coast') has been around for 15 years; MacLaverty said he 'flinched away from it' time and again until he felt ready.

When asked about his influences, he immediately named Michael McLaverty, who was anthologised in his school books. Fired up by a lecture given by McLaverty, and encouraged by a neighbour who was a teacher, MacLaverty began to write, although, as he said, admitting to wanting to be a writer at the time was a bit like saying you liked wanking.

Nevertheless, persevere he did and since then he has produced a much-admired collection of work, as shown by MacLaverty’s reception both in the Studio Theatre and earlier in the day at the free reading he gave in the festival bookshop.

19 August 2006