Mícheál McCann has published Lives of the Saints, a poetry collection that places ordinary people alongside figures traditionally recognised as saints.

McCann, a poet and schoolteacher from Derry who lives and works in Belfast, draws on his own family experiences to examine how everyday actions can be viewed in elevated terms.

The book includes poems about his grandfather taking him to the Pennyburn dump and speaking to people he passed, and about Sister Mona, a teacher who planted a rose garden in a west Belfast school.

McCann also writes about his father's encounters with authorities during a journey to Dublin Airport in the mid-1980s.

The collection removes the title 'saint' from canonical figures, allowing figures such as Francis and Brigid to appear alongside named individuals including Marie, Michael, Niamh, Julian and Teresa.

McCann states that the work encourages readers to view ordinary people in the loftiest terms and to imagine saints in contemporary settings.

Lives of the Saints is published by The Gallery Press.