Read Ireland Book Review
Issue 117
Ballymurphy and the Irish War by Ciaran De Baroid (Paperback; 20.00 IEP / 26.00 USD) [Add To Basket]
In Easter 1970 war came to a small Belfast community. Ballymurphy has since been the centre of the Irish conflict, playing a vital role in the developments of the past thirty years. This book examines the conflict and its impact on this area of West Belfast. It is the story of a war told first-hand, as the people of Ballymurphy reveal the truth beyond the media headlines. This new edition is completely revised and updated.
Bog Warriors by John Galvin (Paperback; 6.99 IEP / 9.00 USD) [Add To Basket]
In Dunsheerin, where begrudgery is the most popular hobby, and where grievances get a better nursing than the sick, enemies are easily made. So when local bar-fly Jim Quilter sees John Burns face down in the river, he has a fair idea that he isn't swimming … a Garda investigation into the murder of a well-known local businessman comes up against a web of dark secrets and deep-rooted alliances. But with the arrival of the Dublin Superintendent and his team, the real stories begin to emerge. In Dunsheerin, there are old scores and bitter grudges to be settled, among the suspects, among the villagers, and among the Gardai themselves … This book gives a very fine insight into life in rural Ireland and the use of local knowledge by the Gardai.
Irish Nocturnes by Chris Arthur (Paperback; 16.95 IEP / 20.50 USD) [Add To Basket]
This book contains 18 essays which range in subject matter from the Siege of Derry to Buddhist philosophy, from owls and kingfishers to fear of the dark, from sheepdogs to how we acquire language, from learning things by heart to coping with a sense of exile, form the origin of life to making linen. The author writes: 'These nocturnes are rooted in the same parts of Ireland as I am. They took shape where I was born and grew up. Inevitably, they derive much of their tone and colour from the places, people and events that constitute my background. To the extent that writing has a voice, they speak with the same accent whose inflection and intonation mark every word I utter. I hope this provides a sufficient commonality to justify gathering them together as a book. But though the Irish dimension does indeed provide a linking thread, under-running all the different themes with the same familial bloodline, the nocturnes are the outcome of many intermarriages, brief encounters and unexpected alliances, which often take them far away from their ancestral roots. Kinship does not rule out distance, difference, or diversity, as I hope the pages that follow will illustrate.' This is a thoughtful and thought-provoking, immensely readable and rewarding collection of essays.
Lovers, Queens & Strangers: Strong Women in Celtic Myth by Anne Bernard Kearney (Paperback; 7.99 IEP / 10.50 USD) [Add To Basket]
The women of Irish myth have an extraordinary resonance. Their vitality, strength and sensuality and refusal to compromise testify to their sovereignty - they never bow down to anyone, escaping all superior powers. The author here retells six of their stories for a contemporary audience with reflections on what they mean for women today. This book opens the door to a magical, yet deeply sensual and earthy universe, where women travel with ease between the realms of the everyday and those of magic and wonder.
The Making of the Celtic Tiger: The Inside Story of Ireland's Boom Economy by Ray Mac Sharry and Padraic White (Hardback; 20.00 IEP / 27.50 USD) [Add To Basket]
In this book two individuals who were at the very heart of the dramatic changes which has made Ireland's one of the world's fastest growing economies, here tell the story of this economic miracle. They outline how in 1987, a minority government changed the political rule book by making dramatic cutbacks in spending, thereby winning the approval of the public, the markets and business. The authors explain how the remarkable social partnership between government, unions and business, which underpinned the transformation, was achieved. They tell how the Emerald Isle on the edge of Europe became a European centre for the world's leading companies, as foreign investment became a powerful driving force behind the country's remarkable economic renaissance. And they reveal how Ireland won billions in European Union funding at a crucial point in its economic take-off. In a remarkable case study, this book also recounts how Ireland created a leading International Financial Services Centre as a result of a unique public- and private-sector collaboration. This book will both inform and entertain all those who have wondered about Ireland's economic good fortune of recent times.
No Can Do by Julie O'Callaghan (Paperback; 10.40 IEP / 13.50 USD) [Add To Basket]
This new collection of poetry ranges in tone from the poignant to the caustic and in subject matter from the sublime to the hilarious. Its riotous middle is flanked by two contrasting sections, which brings a fresh subtlety to her celebrated use of monologues as she ventriloquises contemporary concerns through gently satiric and slyly erotic poems set in the court of Heian Japan. The book ends with an affecting sequence of elegiac poems, shocking in its starkness, which will add to her reputation as a highly original and unpredictable poet.
Alice Falling by William Wall (Hardback; 14.99 IEP / 18.99 USD) [Add To Basket]
Alice is falling and all around her friends and lovers are tumbling towards disaster. Married to the rich and dangerous Paddy Lynch, she is no stranger to trouble. All through her life she has had to fight to survive. But she is not prepared to be a victim anymore. In this hypnotic and unsettling tale of emotional damage and revenge, the author depicts the lives of a group of friends and the strategies they adopt to survive in a brash and brutal new Ireland. Wealth and power appear to blind them, but it is wealth gained at an intolerable price and power that is little more than the ability to inflict pain. The world of this novel is full of glittering lies and sordid truths, dangerous loves and distant friendships.
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