Click any of the books below to be directed to Amazon for purchase.
Books may also be purchased from goodreads and independent booksellers.
For a signed copy, send a message through the Contact page.
Perfectly Round Ripples (made by a jagged stone)
2020 – In his third book of poetry, Johnny Flaherty features his penchant for offbeat storytelling. These poems deal with myriad aspects of life on planet Earth in the human, animal and faerie realms. Some are philosophical, others are fanciful, dissident, or edgy; with both happy endings and tragedies. Included are good guys and bad guys; cats, birds, pirates, banshees, as well as a couple of cameos from Mr. Hyde. The stories tell of successes, failures, and break-evens. Though a native New Englander, Johnny Flaherty’s Irish heritage imbues the book with its endearing individuality and love of language. IndieReader describes it as “a book that strives to deepen the meaning of life and create connection. The lyrical folk-lorish qualities of the poems lend themselves perfectly to spoken word, making them well-suited for listening to in a crowded pub with rippling pint of Guinness in hand.”
Gimme Liberty I Can Smell ! (autonomy for ordinary personage)
2018 – Johnny Flaherty’s second book Gimme Liberty I Can Smell ! is a bold collection of neobeat poetry homaging a motley array of heroes. It’s a maverick’s manifesto that promotes individualism in a world enamored with collectivism. It promotes freedom in a society that values wealth and power above all else. And it promotes pacifism in a country waging perpetual war. Nevertheless, the author is undaunted by this challenge, believing that “to keep a flame burning” is a worthy goal in itself. With the ease of an old-school bard, Johnny blends storytelling with unflinching social commentary spiced with dry wit, satire, and paradox. His tone is often existential, while his outlook is optimistic, encouraging readers to acquire a taste for unflavored truth. His poems explore many ways liberty is experienced and enjoyed; then, too, how it is so often repressed. Neil Dale’s freewheeling illustrations, combining whimsy with drama, augment the book’s spirit. And Kirkus Reviews calls this book “delightfully idiosyncratic . . . a piquant collection . . . rousing poetry.”
Ebbing and Fibbing
2012 – EBBING AND FIBBING is a book of poems on life and liberty and dreams and death. The author, in his early sixties, sees himself entering the third and final stage of his life on Earth, that of Elder. Since this stage must ultimately end in death, the early poems in the book contemplate this ending from a number of different angles, until acceptance is eventually attained. This sets his mind free from dread, and he begins to dream anew. These dreams take him back into the past and on into the future, into friendly pubs, games of chance, and moments of enlightenment. Resolute, he implores: “Open the book to the missing page / let the bird out of the cage.”
Johnny Flaherty Bard 