Read Ireland Book Review
Issue 124
The Beat: Life on the Streets by David Fine (Paperback; 7.99 IEP / 10.50 USD) [Add To Basket]
This book is a fascinating and disturbing account of the lives of sixteen women and their struggle for survival in Dublin's underworld. Haunted by the drug-related death of his lover Seema, herself a 'working girl', the author decided to confront his grief head-on. He journeyed into the heart of an invisible and hidden Ireland to find out what it means to be a prostitute. Working as a taxi driver, he got to know the women on the streets, unveiling every aspect of their harrowing lives. Their stories command attention and compassion on every page of this revealing book.
Monto: Madams, Murder and Black Coddle by Terry Fagan and the North Inner City Folklore Project (Paperback; 5.00 IEP / 7.00 USD) [Add To Basket]
This book chronicles the history and reminisences in a part of Dublin rich in the memories of its people. The Monto area, long thought of as simply a place of pimps and prostitutes, is shown here in a different light as those persons who experienced lift around Montgomery Street and its environs are brought to life through colourful anecdotes and humorous tales. Prostitution, however, gave the Monto its notoriety, and provides the background to many of the stories contained in the book. Monto attracted among its many visitors the Prince of Wales.
Seascapes & Angels by Dermot O'Neill (Paperback; 8.99 IEP / 11.25 USD) [Add To Basket]
But for its honesty and insight, this book could seem like any other sailing book. It is the intimate detail of the author's struggles that makes it an account of real-life adventure and profound emotional growth. Confronting the adult fears which threaten what remains of his youthful courage, the author sets out alone to sale the Atlantic from Arklow in Ireland to Barbados in the Caribbean. This is an inspiring book about a critical point in life showing what is possible when an individual is faced with extraordinary circumstances.
The Second Prison by Ronan Bennett (Paperback; 9.00 IEP / 11.25 USD) [Add To Basket]
Hailed as a major debut on its first publication in 1991, this new edition confirms the author as one of the most important Irish writers of his generation. It is a novel of love, fear and suspicion which enthralls and entraps the reader as the hero Kane is entrapped in a web of conflicting loyalties and betrayal.
Nora by Brenda Maddox (Paperback; 10.60 IEP / 13.50 USD) [Add To Basket]
Reissued to correspond with the recently released film, this is an acclaimed biography of Nora Joyce and the enthralling love story of James Joyce and his extraordinary wife and muse. Left in his shadow by the literary world until his biography was first published in 1988 and revealed her as a strong, humorous and complex woman. Born Nora Barnacle in Galway, twenty-year-old Nora turned her back on her traditional upbringing when she left her job as a chambermaid to run off to the Continent with the then little-known writer. It was the beginning of a loyal, lifelong partnership which defied convention and took them to the Paris of the 1920s, where, with 'Ulysses', Joyce was hailed as the master of modernism. Joyce was besotted by funny, irreverent, earthy and sexually uninhibited Nora, who became the inspiration for Molly Bloom, among others, even though she had no interest in the printed word herself. She was as fiercely loyal to her husband as he was dependent on her, despite the difficult circumstances, family tragedies and subversive desires that all threatened to tear them apart. This is the story of their tempestuous and often heroic life together.
Killing Time by K.T. McCaffrey (Paperback; 6.99 IEP / 9.00 USD) [Add To Basket]
This compelling and imaginative thriller centers around Jacqueline Miller and the murder of her husband, politician Alan McCall. There was a time when she seemed to have the world at her feet, but a horrific road accident and a broken engagement changed her life forever. Her affair had offered her hope of happiness; but suddenly that hope has been shattered. The fact that the 'family man' McCall was murdered in his mistress's bed is bad news for the government too, and to avoid a scandal, an elaborate cover-up is set in motion. Meanwhile, his killer goes undetected and will strike again. Investigative journalist Emma Boylan knows that all is not as it seems and as she probes deeper and deeper, an ugly web of deceit is exposed. After a series of unexpected twists and turns and a bloody climax, Emma finally discovers the true identity of Alan McCall's killer.
McKenzie's Friend by Philip Davison (Paperback; 10.00 IEP / 12.50 USD) [Add To Basket]
Harry Fielding has had enough. He's had enough of his adopted city, with its crane-shadows, its coconuts drifting down the river; and he's tired of his flat, which smells of gas and longing. Most of all, though, he's finished with meeting civil servants in motorway cafeterias at two in the morning: he's finished as an understrapper, finished with MI5. Determined to have a new life, Harry re-establishes contact with his promiscuous aunt and plans a fishing trip with his widowed father. But he hadn't banked on an old friend reappearing. Alfie, the crooked politician, is in trouble, and Harry - who wants to leave everything behind - cannot abandon a friend.
The Dealer by Paul Kilduff (Paperback; 10.00 IEP / 12.50 USD) [Add To Basket]
When the multi-billion-pound takeover of Provident Bank is sensationally announced at a West End press conference, life will never again be the same for many influential players in the City of London. A star equities dealer has just brought a million soaring Provident shares - and others wonder how he does it. A London Stock Exchange investigator begins his work. Shortly afterwards a Detective Inspector finds a bloated body in the mud of the River Thames and, unaware of the ultimate consequences, explores a complex web of inter-connected lives in his search for a ruthless killer. This is a slick and punchy thriller by a Dubliner and banking insider, action-packed and full of financial know-how.
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