Read Ireland Book Reviews
Issue 388- 25 August 2007
Sean Scully: Walls of Aran with an introduction by Colm Toibin
Hardback; 30 Euro / 40 USD / 20 UK; 150 pages
In a tiny land where music is sung and played in pubs and in the air daily, these walls are silent. And yet this sculpture is like the music of this place: austere and elemental. – Sean Scully
The Aran Islands, off the west coast of Ireland, hold a unique place in the Irish imagination. For centuries artists and writers have travelled there to record the stark beauty of the landscape or to find inspiration in the mythic way of life. Among them is Irish-born painter Sean Scully, who has made regular visits to the islands over a number of years.
One of today’s most esteemed abstract artists, whose signature style of lines or bands of colour is instantly recognizable, he is also an accomplished photographer, his eye drawn to architectural shapes that have affinities with his painted work. For him the hundreds of ancient dry-stone walls that criss-cross Aran are much more than functional barriers on the land. They are anonymous sculptures that reflect the elemental nature of life on this windswept and rocky terrain.
This book brings together for the first time his sensitive and poetic images of the walls of Aran, revealing the unexpected yet monumental beauty of these centuries-old structures that meander across the austere and exposed landscape.
Like Scully, award-winning Irish writer Colm Tóibín has visited Aran many times over several decades. His evocative text accompanying Scully’s photographs conveys the islands’ mystery and beauty, and considers some of the literary precursors who have made Aran the subject of their work. An account by Scully of his own experience of the islands completes this exquisite book.
Stones of Adoration: Sacred Stones and Mystic Megaliths of Ireland by Christine Zucchelli
Hardback; 25 Euro / 34 USD / 17 UK; 222 pages, 140 full colour photos [Add To Basket]
Ireland’s landscape is dotted with sacred stones, from Maedbh’s Grave in Sligo to the Royal Pillars of Tara in Meath. Since prehistoric times people have acknowledged their special nature. This book explores their secrets and their myths, legends and folktales, which persist to this day. This is a wonderful reminder of our spiritual past, as some of these stones and monuments enter their fifth millennium.
Jack’s World: Farming on the Sheep’s Head Peninsula, 1920-2003 by Sean Sheehan
Hardback; 39 Euro / 50 USD / 25 UK; 230 pages, with full colour illustrations throughout
Jack Sheehan was one of eleven children born into an impoverished farming family on the Sheep's Head peninsula in southwest Ireland. Growing up in hungry times, he stayed on the farm all his eighty-three years, taking it over when his father died and steadfastly caring for its fields through the dormant 1950s and the better times that came in the decades that followed. He lived to see the eclipse of his farming world and to view with dismay the way encroaching property speculators and consumerism were changing the nature of his landscape. Jack Sheehan was born just as the Irish state was coming into existence and his life is as revealing of that country's history as the more familiar accounts of national figures. "Jack's World's" is illustrated in colour with specially commissioned photographs taken by three people, Danny Gralton, Ciaran Watson and Danny Levy Sheehan, who all knew Jack and know his farm. The book is also illustrated with maps, including one showing the farm's fields and their Irish names that were preserved by Jack, and photographs of early documents relating to his farm's history. The book's unique sources, in addition to the memories of friends and family who knew Jack and shared aspects of his world, include diaries kept by Jack from the early 1930s onwards.
History of Dublin Cinemas by Marc Zimmermann
Trade Paperback; 18 Euro / 24 USD / 12 UK; 220 pages, with black-and-white illustrations throughout [Add To Basket]
This comprehensive account of "The History of Dublin Cinemas" showcases in detail more than one hundred and twenty Dublin venues and their often turbulent history in the course of over 100 years of film exhibition. It offers an in-depth view of a significant part of Dublin's social and architectural heritage, and features numerous historic and current photographs.
Social Movements and Ireland edited by Linda Connolly and Niamh Hourgan
Trade Paperback; 22 Euro / 30 USD / 15 UK; 240 pages
Social movements and Ireland is an innovative new text that aims to provide a comprehensive introduction and critical analysis of collective action in Irish society. Participation in social protest in Ireland has become a widely utilized form of political expression and has played a profoundly important role in generating the wide-ranging cultural, political, social and economic changes that have shaped Irish society in the 21st century.
Mother and Child: Maternity and Child Welfare in Dublin, 1922-60 by Lindsey Earner-Byrne
Hardback; 75 Euro / 100 USD / 50 UK; 245 pages
Irish women, as actual or potential mothers, were frequently the direct or indirect targets of much debate and welfare legislation during the first half of the twentieth century. Considerable research has been carried out in relation to welfare development and the centrality of maternal welfare in often Western European countries. This book provides an analysis of maternity policy and provision in Dublin thus adding the history of Ireland's maternal welfare to the growing corpus of international research on the topic. It also places maternity and child welfare in the context of twentieth century Irish history offering one of the only accounts of how women and children were viewed, treated and used by key lobby groups in Irish society and by the Irish state. This book re-evaluates the role of various lobby groups in the formation of welfare policy and reveals a much more complex relationship between church, state, the medical profession, voluntary groups and mothers. It also provides fascinating insights into central personalities in modern Irish history such as Eamon de Valena and John Charles McQuaid. As such it makes a valuable contribution to Irish social, political, medical and gender history.
Diary of an Irish Countrywoman translated and edited by Tomas de Bhaldraithe
Paperback; 13 Euro / 17 USD / 8.50 UK; 158 pages [Add To Basket]
Little St. John's Day. Fair Day in Thomastown. Feast Day of St. Peter and St. Paul, apostles... Cherries and red and black currants for sale at Crois. A sultry day. Hurling on Fair Green. I was knocked down by a young brat, but it was nothing to be ashamed of, as I brought him down as well. Cow-dung oft knocked a good man. Everything is growing now as fast as ferns. Keeping a personal diary was not a practise among writers of Irish before O'Sullivan's time and contemporary Irish scholars saw no future for the language and consequently wrote in English. Hence, Humphrey O'Sullivan (Amhlaoibh O Suilleabhain) showed remarkable originality and courage in undertaking a diary in the Irish language. He lived a full life as a successful businessman, a fearless worker in the cause of freedom and social justice, a lover of nature, an antiquarian, collector of manuscripts and enjoyer of good food and drink. By jotting down notes on daily activities he has left us a lively and frank account of life in a small town during a particularly turbulent and important period in Irish history, which included the struggle for Catholic Emancipation, the Tithe War, the foundation of the National Schools, the secret societies, famine, plague, evictions and faction fighting. O'Sullivan has left us with a remarkable contribution to the social history of Ireland as seen from the inside by a man of wide interests and deep understanding.
Decieved: A True Story by Sarah Smith
Trade Paperback; 16 Euro / 24 USD / 12 UK; 320 pages [Add To Basket]
In 1993 Sarah Smith was a happy and successful student. At her local pub, she met barman Robert Freegard. Peace was shattered when an IRA bomb went off close to her college and in the aftermath of this terrorist attack Freegard revealed his 'true' identity to Sarah and two of her friends - he was a MI5 spy investigating IRA cells in the area. Because of the time they had spent together and their knowledge of his true identity, Sarah, John and Maria were in mortal danger. Freegard convinced the students that they needed to go into hiding or risk being killed. Thus began a spine-chilling story. For Sarah became a fugitive on the run - living in slums, in cars, sleeping rough in parks, half starved - for ten years. During this time she lived under multiple pseudonyms and worked menial jobs. Freegard seemed the only person she could trust; he became her lifeline, her saviour and her keeper. So when, ten years later, police arrived at the house Sarah was cleaning, she could not believe what they were telling her: Freegard was not an MI5 agent, he was a conman and she was one of many victims. He had brainwashed her by using such sophisticated techniques that psychologists are still baffled. He had stolen ten precious years and 300,000 from Sarah, and in the process ruined her life; from others he had conned even more money. This is Sarah's roller-coaster true story. It is a powerful memoir and a profile of a modern-day criminal genius and master manipulator.
Michael O’Leary: A Life in Full Flight by Alan Ruddock
Trade Paperback; 17 Euro / 24 USD / 12 UK; 440 pages [Add To Basket]
Michael O'Leary has made Ryanair the most valuable airline in Europe - and the second most valuable in the world. He has revolutionized the way Europeans travel and the very nature of commercial aviation. But for all the publicity, little is known about Michael O'Leary beyond the carefully constructed image that he chooses to present. In this, the first biography of O'Leary, Alan Ruddock portrays the man in three dimension and examines the business miracle whereby Ryanair's passenger numbers and profits have continued to grow while the rest of the airline industry has been forced to retrench.
A Year at Ballymaloe Cookery School by Darina Allen
Large Format Paperback; 24 Euro / 30 USD / 15 UK; 192 pages, with full colour illustrations throughout [Add To Basket]
"A Year at Ballymaloe Cookery School" is a gastronomic journey through the year with a personal introduction for each season, highlighting Darina's garden and landscape achievements as well as to record the changing scenery of Ballymaloe and which produce are at their peak. Darina offers simple seasonal recipes for first courses, main courses, vegetables and desserts, taking advantage of her local produce, whether it is from one of her favourite fishermen for her Pan-fried Scallops with Beurre Blanc, the surrounding countryside for her Blackcurrant Leaf Sorbet or her bountiful organic garden for a Frittata with Oven-roasted Tomatoes and Summer Herbs. More than just another cookbook, this book focuses on creative new ways to prepare and present meals, while inspiring readers to grow, harvest and delight in good quality produce.
Please note: Prices were correct at time of original posting but are subject to subsequent change without notice.
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