Read Ireland Book Review
Issue 111
Celtic Threads: Exploring the Wisdom of Our Heritage edited by Padraigin Clancy (6.99 IEP / 10.00 USD) [Add To Basket]
Ireland in the late twentieth century is seeing a new turning towards matters Celtic, including a marked interest in Celtic spirituality. This book is a collection of essays on that subject. Edited by the Irish Folklorist, it features contributions from well-known scholars and personalities, including Sean O Duinn (Benedictine monk), Nuala Ahern MEP (Green Party), John Moriarty (philosopoher/storyteller), Noirin Ni Riain (female vocalist), Mary Condren (feminist theologian), and Michael Rodgers (of the Geldalough Retreat Centre). Drawing from the pre-Christian and Christian 'Celtic' story, the collection moves through the wonders and the darkness of the Celtic tradition. It asks: Is Celtic Spirituality soul food or junk food? How can it be of value today? Why is the archetype of war pre-dominant in the Irish psyche? What about the quality of mercy? How can Celtic spirituality contribute to the process for peace? The book also includes an extensive resource list on Celtic spirituality in Ireland.
Celtic Rituals: An Authentic Guide to Ancient Celtic Spirituality by Alexei Kondratiev (Paperback; 12.95 IEP / 17.50 USD) [Add To Basket]
Certain aspects of Celtic tradition offer resources to those who are attuned to it that will help them renew their deep links with the living reality of the Land they live on. This beautifully written book is devoted to suggesting guidelines for the establishment and running of Celtic ritual circles. It outlines possible rules for membership, the need to become conversant with Celtic culture and mythology and at least one of the surviving Celtic languages. As outstanding feature is the actual formula of words given for each of the Celtic rituals and visualisation sequences. The rituals are closely connected with the passage of time, especially the four seasons with their solstices and equinoxes, as well as other feast days.
Ireland After History by David Lloyd (Paperback; 14.99 IEP / 18.00 USD) [Add To Basket]
This collections of linked essays draws on a range of theoretical resources, from Walter Benjamin and the Frankfurt school to subaltern historiography and Marxist critiques of ideology. This volume addresses a wide variety of Irish cultural phenomena, from politics to cinema, from poetry to murals, but focuses primarily on the tired dichotomies of nationalism and revisionism in order to establish alternative possibilities, both theoretical and practical, from the understanding of the past and the shaping of the future. This book is an outstanding contribution to Irish studies; it is innovative and challenging, and it should provoke much debate.
Dublin Metropolitan Police by Mary Scanlon (Paperback; 7.25 IEP / 11.00 USD) [Add To Basket]
In this fascinating and concise study, the author traces the history of the Dublin Metropolitan Police - through troubled times for Ireland to the force's eventual demise.
Lie of the Land: Journeys Through Literary Cork by Mary Leland (Paperback; 12.99 IEP / 17.50 USD) [Add To Basket]
The rich literary heritage of Cork city and county is brought to life in this engaging new guide to the region which will be indispensable to visitors and citizens alike. Each chapter is divided by geographical location inviting the reader to follow in the footsteps of writers who have been profoundly influenced by the unique landscape of Cork. Political rows, literary discords, romantic tragedy, and a host of heroes and heroines are to be encountered in this volume. The first legends, the bardic poets, the scribes and recorders, editors, collections and antiquarians join a vast array of well know writers united in their shared relationship with the landscape.
100 Years of Derry by Roy Hamilton (Paperback;13.50 IEP / 18.50 USD) [Add To Basket]
Set against the dramatic backdrop of the Inishowen mountains, Derry has one of the most beautiful and panoramic locations of any Irish city, with its steep streets rising high about the River Foyle. Dating from a small monastic settlement in the 6th century, its strategic position meant that by Elizabethan times it was a fortress city, making it witness to some of the most bitter conflicts in Irish history, right down to the very recent past. All of this have given Derry and its people a unique, robust identity, an identity that is vividly captured here in over 200 black-and-white photographs of the city in the 20th century. Accompanied by lively and informative captions and text, and arranged by decade, the photographs depict emigrant ships leaving for America, hiring fairs, the First World War, the depression, the Second World War, visiting showbands, civil rights agitation and the outbreak of the Troubles, Bloody Sunday, President Clinton's visit and the recent regeneration of a city now poised self-confidently on the threshold of the new millennium.
Private Ireland by Simon McBride and Karen Howes (hardback; 30.00 IEP / 40.00 USD) [Add To Basket]
This book opens the door on a unique style of living and gains entry into the castles, fine Georgian terraces, farmhouses, provincial cottage and eccentric follies that make up so many of the country's private homes. A visual exploration of Irish living style, both north and south, this book documents the setting, the character and idiosyncrasies of each featured home - whether an historic abbey, a romantic castle, a Dublin townhouse, or a simple white-washed cottage by the sea. The houses and studios of some of the country's most interesting and creative spirits are included here, from writers, artists and musicians to artisans, architects and designers.
A Season of Sundays: Images of the 1999 Gaelic Games by the Sporstfile photographers (IR)(Hardback; 19.99 IEP / 26.50 USD) [Add To Basket]
This book embraces the very heart and soul of Ireland's national games as captured by the award winning team of photographers at the Sportsfile photographic agency. With text by Sports Journalist of the Year, Tom Humphries, it is a treasured record of the 1999 GAA season to be savoured and enjoyed by players, spectators and enthusiasts worldwide.
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