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Dennis O’Driscoll (1954–2012), born in County Tipperary, Ireland, was the author of nine poetry collections, including Dear Life (Copper Canyon Press, 2013), as well as a compilation of nearly two thousand contemporary quotations on poetry. An editor of and contributor to many periodicals in Ireland, the UK, and the United States, he was also the author of Stepping Stones: Interviews with Seamus Heaney. His prizes included a Lannan Literary Award, the E. M. Forster Award from the American Academy of Arts and Letters, and the O’Shaughnessy Award for Poetry. O’Driscoll worked as a civil servant in Dublin.

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Nocturne Op. 2

by Dennis O’Driscoll
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A sad air’s best for night as you mope about
the house, closing windows, checking doors.
Slow, cumulative strokes of the violin bow,
the most ruminative notes that can be coaxed
from the cello, nocturnes unlocked by black piano keys.

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