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Sunday, November 27, 2005

Read Ireland

The Landed Gentry and Aristocracy of Meath by Art Kavanagh (Hardback; 50.00 Euro / 60.00 USD / 40.00 UK; 240 pages, with black-and-white photos throughout) This book about the Gentry & Aristocracy of Meath is the 6th in the series and explores the background and history of 19 families. The book is packed with detail and anecdotes and sets the family histories against the larger canvas that is the history of Ireland from the 12th century to modern times. The many illustrations are aptly chosen and many have been printed in book form for the first time. Only 1000 copies of this book have been printed and so it is a limited first edition. It is a ‘must’ for anyone interested in Meath history. Families feautured in this Publication: Aylmer of Balrath Barnewall of Crickstown Barnewall of Trimlestown Bligh of Clifton Lodge (Earls of Darnley) Bolton of Bective Abbey Briscoe of Bellinter Conyngham of Slane (Marquesses Conyngham) Corballis of Ratoath Manor Everard of Randlestown Fowler of Rahinston Hamilton of Hamwood Langford of Summerhill (Barons Langford) Plunkett of Dunsany (Barons of Dunsany) Plunkett of Killeen Preston of Ardsallagh & Bellinter Preston of Gormanston (Viscounts Gormanston) Taylour of Headfort (Marquesses of Headfort) Tisdall of Charlesfort Watson of Bective -------------------------------------------- Read Ireland Book News – Issue 328 - History -------------------------------------------- Easter 1916 by Charles Townsend (Hardback; 25.00 Euro / 30.00 USD / 20.00 UK; 440 pages with 8-page black-and-white photo insert) Before Easter 1916 Dublin had been a city much like any other British city, comparable to Bristol or Liverpool and part of a complex, deep-rooted British world. Many of Dublin's inhabitants wanted to weaken or terminate London's rule but there remained a vast and conflicting range of visions of that future: far more immediate was the unfolding disaster of the First World War that had put home rule' issues on ice for the duration. The devastating events of that Easter changed everything. Both the rising itself and - even more significantly - the ferocious British response ended any sense at all that Dublin could be anything other than the capital of an independent country, as an entire nation turned away in revulsion from the British artillery and executions. As we approach the 90th anniversary of the rebellion it is time for a new account of what really happened over those fateful few days. What did the rebels actually hope to achieve? What did the British think they were doing? And how were the events really interpreted by ordinary people across Ireland? Vivid, authoritative and gripping, Easter 1916 is a major work. --------------------------------------- Northern Ireland: The Origins of the Troubles by Thomas Hennessey (Hardback; 30.00 Euro / 36.00 USD / 24.00 UK; 450 pages) Northern Ireland's Troubles are the tragedy of modern Irish history. Thomas Hennessey's study traces the long course of events that led to the climactic events of October 1968 and ends with the decision of the Provisional IRA to go to war with the British state in 1970. Many of Hennessey's conclusions are controversial. The Troubles were the product of a long inter-communal dispute between Unionist and Nationalist. From the start, Nationalists in Northern Ireland never accepted the legitimacy of the state while Unionists regarded Nationalists as a disloyal fifth column. But by the early 1960s it seemed that this old pattern of distrust was being replaced by a growing rapprochement between the two communities. A new generation of political leaders in Belfast and Dublin opened a dialogue that held out great promise. But the liberal temper of the times proved to be an illusion. The old antagonisms were too enduring. By 1969, when British troops were deployed to prevent civil war, the sectarian genie was out of the bottle. Soon the Troubles mutated into an insurgency against British rule in Northern Ireland. The result was tragedy. ----------------------------------------- British Voices: From the Irish War of Independence 1918-1921 by William Sheehan (Hardback; 23.00 Euro / 27.00 USD / 18.00 UK; 250 pages, with black-and-white photographs throughout) The Irish War of Independence has generated a wealth of published material but very little from a British perspective. Many British soldiers, sailors and airmen who served in Ireland from 1918-1921 left accounts of their service. Most describe military operations, views on the IRA, the Irish, the actions of their own forces, morale and relationships with local communities. Secret contacts between the British and the IRA and the use and abuse of intelligence are described. The author has gone deep into British military archives to unearth never before published accounts. ---------------------------------- Killarney: History and Heritage edited by Jim Larner (Hardback; 25.00 Euro / 30.00 USD / 20.00 UK; 320 pages, with full-colour and black-and-white photos throughout) Despite the popular perception of a crowded, commercialised tourist destination, Killarney and the beautiful landscape around it have a rich and varied history and heritage. To mark the 250th anniversary of the founding of Killarney town, a team of experts was commissioned to contribute to this first book detailing its history and heritage. --------------------------- New Gill History of Ireland --------------------------- The Gill History of Ireland originally appeared in eleven volumes between 1972 and 1975. It was succeeded by a proposed six-volume series entitled New Gill History of Ireland in 1990, although in the event only five volumes were published. Now the revised and re-written series is published in its entirely. --------------------------------------- Medieval Ireland by Michael Richter (Paperback; 18.00 Euro / 23.00 USD / 12.00 UK; 217 pages) Medieval Ireland: The Enduring Tradition is an overview of Irish society from the coming of Christianity in the fourth century to the Reformation in the sixteenth. Such a broad survey reveals features otherwise not easily detected. For all the complexity of political developments, Irish society remained basically stable and managed to withstand the onslaught of both the Vikings and the English. The inherent strength of Ireland consisted in the cultural heritage from pre-historic times, which remained influential throughout the centuries discussed here. Irish history has traditionally been described either in isolation or in the manner in which it was influenced by outside forces, especially by England. This book strikes a different balance. First, the time span covered is longer than usual, and more attention is paid to the early medieval centuries than to the later period. Secondly, less emphasis is placed in this book on the political or military history of Ireland than on general social and cultural aspects. As a result, a more mature interpretation of medieval Ireland emerges, one in which social and cultural norms inherited from pre-historic times are seen to survive right through the Middle Ages. They gave Irish society a stability and inherent strength unparalleled in Europe. Christianity came in as an additional, enriching factor. ------------------------------------- Sixteenth Century Ireland by Colm Lennon (Paperback; 18.00 Euro / 23.00 USD / 12.00 UK; 400 pages) In 1500, most of Ireland lay outside the ambit of English royal power. Only a small area around Dublin was directly administered by the crown. The rest of the island was run in more or less autonomous fashion by Anglo-Norman magnates or Gaelic chieftains. By 1600, there had been a huge extension of English royal power. First, the influence of the semi-independent magnates was broken; second, in the 1590s crown forces successfully fought a war against the last of the old Gaelic strongholds in Ulster. The secular conquest of Ireland was, therefore, accomplished in the course of the century. But the Reformation made little headway. The Anglo-Norman community remained stubbornly Catholic, as did the Gaelic nation. Their loss of political influence did not result in the expropriation of their lands. Most property still remained in Catholic hands. England's failure to effect a revolution in church as well as in state meant that the conquest of Ireland was incomplete.The seventeenth century, with its wars of religion, was the consequence. ------------------------------------ Nineteenth Century Ireland by D. George Boyce (Paperback; 18.00 Euro / 23.00 USD / 12.00 UK; 425 pages) Nineteenth century Ireland began and ended in armed revolt. The blood insurrections of 1798 were the proximate reasons for the passing of the Act of Union two years later. The ‘long nineteenth century’ lasted until 1922, by which time the institutions of modern Ireland were in place against a background of the Great War, the Ulster rebellion and the armed uprising of nationalist Ireland. The years between 1800 and 1922 were an attempt to make the union work. The hope was that, in an imperial structure, the ethnic, religious and national differences of the inhabitants of Ireland could be reconciled and eliminated. The search for stability proved elusive. Nationalist Ireland mobilized a mass democratic movement under O’Connell to secure Catholic Emancipation, before seeing its world transformed by the social cataclysm of the Great Famine. At the same time, the Protestant north-east of Ulster was feeling the first benefits of the Industrial Revolution. Although post-Famine Ireland modernized rapidly, only the north-east had a modern economy. The mixture of Protestantism and manufacturing industry integrated into the greater United Kingdom and gave a new twist to the traditional Irish Protestant hostility to Catholic political demands. In the home rule period from the 1880s to 1914, the prospect of partition moved from being almost unthinkable to being almost inevitable. Nineteenth-century Ireland collapsed in the various wars and rebellions of 1912-22. Like many other parts of Europe then and since, it had proved that an imperial superstructure can contain domestic ethnic rivalries, but cannot always eliminate them. ------------------------------------ Twentieth Century Ireland by Dermot Keogh (Paperback; 18.00 Euro / 23.00 USD / 12.00 UK; 598 pages) Twentieth-Century Ireland is a revised and extended study of the long twentieth century, surveying politics, administrative history, social and religious history, culture and censorship, politics, literature and art. It explores central but neglected features of modern Irish history, presenting an inclusive narrative. This is a book about the establishment and consolidation of the new Irish state. Dermot Keogh highlights the long tragedy of emigration and its effect on the Irish psyche and on the under-performance of the Irish economy. He emphasises the loss of the new-found opportunities for reform of the 1960s and early 70s. Membership of the EEC, now EU, had a diminished impact due to short-term and sectionally motivated political thinking and an antiquated government structure. The despair of the 1950s revisited the country in the 1980s as almost an entire generation felt compelled to emigrate, very often as undocumented workers in the United States. Dermot Keogh also argues that the violence in Northern Ireland from the late 1960s had a major hidden impact on the government of the Irish state. He presents the crisis as an Anglo-Irish failure which was turned around only when the British government acknowledged that the Irish government had a vital role to play in the resolution of the problem. Dermot Keogh extends his analysis to include a wide-ranging survey of the most contentious events - financial corruption, child sexual abuse, scandals in the Catholic Church - between 1994 and 2005. -------------------------------------- Breaking the Mould: The Progressive Democrats by Stephen Collins (Hardback: 28.00 Euro / 34.00 USD / 20.00 UK; 280 pages) Stephen Collins' authoratitive history is based on his many years as one of Ireland's most distinguished political journalists; on interviews with leading figures in the Progressive Democrats over its twenty years; and on a close observation of the party in power. --------------- Available Again: --------------- 1916: The Easter Rising by Tim Pat Coogan (Hardback; 20.00 Euro / 25.00 USD / 15.00 UK; 190 pages, with photos throughout) Tim Pat Coogan writes an account of the Rising by introducing the major players, themes and outcomes of a drama that would profoundly affect 20th-century Irish history. The day-to-day events of the Rising are detailed in this remarkable story and enhanced by photographs, maps and historical documents of Dublin during those bloody six days. The result is not only an important history of a turning point in Ireland's struggle for freedom, but also a testament to the men and women of courage and conviction who were prepared to give their lives for what they believed was right. An illustrated account of the events, personalities and repercussions of the Irish rebellion. ---------------------------------------- Irish Civil War by Tim Pat Coogan and George Morrison (Large Hardback; 25.00 Euro / 30.00 USD / 20.00 UK; 290 pages with photos throughout) It began in June, 1922, with the ratification of a treaty between Great Britain and the fledgling Irish state that called for an oath of allegiance to the king, a governor general appointed by the crown, and the partition of six counties in Northern Ireland. And during the eleven months the conflict lasted, brother fought against brother, sundering families for generations, and opening a divide in the country's politics that only now is beginning to fade. This unrivaled pictorial record and remarkable history of the war's passage pays poignant testimony to the courageous men and women prepared to fight to the death for what they believed morally right. It also serves as a sober reminder of the excesses of political zeal and how they came to haunt future generations. --------------------------------------- The Big House in Ireland by Valerie Pakenham (Hardback; 20.00 Euro / 25.00 USD / 15.00 UK; 192 with colour photos throughout) The idiosyncratic splendour and tragic decline of the Irish country house and its colourful denizens over 400 years. The big Irish House has haunted the Irish landscape and Irish imagination for nearly four hundred years. Gaelic poets cursed or celebrated its power. Irish historians have debated its role for good or ill in the countryside. And generations of Irish novelists have made it a central presence in their books. In this anthology the idiosyncratic life in the Big House is portrayed in a chronological structure creating a documentary history full of splendour and tragedy. This fascinating book is illustrated with contemporary drawings, engravings, maps and paintings and by Thomas Pakenham s evocative photographs. ---------------------------------- Highlights from the Previous Issue: ---------------------------------- Eoin O’Duffy: A Self-Made Hero by Fearghal McGarry (Hardback; 35.00 Euro / 42.00 USD / 25.00 UK; 440 pages, with 20 black-and-white photographs) Eoin O'Duffy was one of the most controversial figures of modern Irish history. A guerrilla leader and protege of Michael Collins, he rose rapidly through the ranks of the republican movement. By 1922 he was chief of staff of the IRA, a member of the Irish Republican Brotherhood's Supreme Council, and a Sinn Fein deputy in Dail Eireann. As chief of police, O'Duffy was the strongest defender of the Irish Free State only to become, after his emergence as leader of the Blueshirt movement in 1933, the greatest threat to its survival. Increasingly drawn to international fascism, he founded Ireland's first fascist party, and led an Irish Brigade to fight under General Franco in the Spanish Civil War. He died in wartime Dublin, a Nazi collaborator, and a broken man. This study, the first ever biography of Eoin O'Duffy, draws on unpublished archival and personal papers to trace his journey from revolutionary republicanism to fascism. It examines the importance of cultural forces, including the legacy of the Irish-Ireland movement, Catholicism, anti-communism, and O'Duffy's ideas on sports, morality, and masculinity to explain his descent into extremism. McGarry peels away the public persona to reveal a complex picture of the motives, which drove this extraordinary career. A crusading moralist and advocate of teetotalism, obsessed with the need to counter public immorality, who was at the same time a closet homosexual and alcoholic, O'Duffy's remarkable life was characterised by self-aggrandisement, fantasy, and contradiction. This fascinating biography explores themes as diverse as cultural nationalism, violence, sectarianism, militarism, and masculinity to shed new light on Irish republicanism and the politics of interwar European fascist movements. It is essential reading for anyone seeking to understand the complexities of culture, politics, and society in interwar Ireland. ----------------------------------------- The Story of Chicago May by Nuala O’Faolain (Trade Paperback; 15.00 Euro / 18.00 USD / 11.00 UK; 307 pages) Nuala O'Faolain received critical acclaim for her candid memoirs Are You Somebody? and Almost There. Here, she embraces the life of a notorious criminal, an unrepentant and enigmatic daughter of Ireland Chicago May. Legend says that May was a mesmerizing beauty, with startling blue eyes and hair spun of red and gold who captured the hearts of men wherever she went. At nineteen, she stole her family's savings and ran away from her home in rural Ireland to America, arriving first at Nebraska. May then travelled to Chicago and onto New York where she worked in a variety of unsavoury jobs and was soon hailed in tabloids as a Queen of the Und erworld'. But this was nothing in comparison with what was to follow. In 1901, May had fallen in love with big-time criminal Eddie Guerin and followed him to Paris where together, they robbed the American Express. But they were both caught and sent to prison. She survived, returning to America to reinvent herself again and again until her death in 1929. ------------------------------------- As I Saw It: Reviewing Over 30 Years of Fianna Fail and Irish Politics by Padraig Faulkner (Trade Paperback; 15.00 Euro / 20.00 USD / 10.00 UK; 196 pages, with 8 page black-and-white photo insert) This book is a powerful and unique contribution to the history of Irish politics. From his early days as deputy for Louth, to serving in the governments of Lemass, Lynch and Haughey, Padraig Faulkner was a Government Minister and distinguished Ceann Comhairle during pivotal periods in Ireland’s history. For the first time, in this book, Faulkner gives his personal account of behind-the-scenes meetings and events throughout his long career, including the turbulent times of the Arms Crisis, 1969-71, the Northern Troubles, the Fianna Fail leadership battles and the often-clandestine inner workings of the party. -------------------------------------- Alleluia America!: An Irish Journalist in Bush Country by Carole Coleman (Trade Paperback; 15.00 Euro / 20.00 USD / 10.00 UK; 220 pages) Irish journalist Carole Coleman made world headlines when she interviewed President George W. Bush on live television, challenging him on the war in Iraq in a way that few journalists had dared. The results made for compelling viewing. Her first book, 'Alleluia America! An Irish Journalist in Bush Country' is equally gripping. With Pollsters declaring that the 2004 Presidential election was swung by moral values and the Republican strategy of courting religious voters, Carole decided to explore for herself the largely un-chartered territory of ‘Bush Country’; States where religion is now the driving force that motivates people’s lives and where a president who unashamedly declares, "I don’t see how you can be President…without a relationship with the Lord" is met with widespread and sincere approval. Travelling deep into the heart of Bush’s America, in an attempt to tap into the psyche of those all important ‘religious voters’ Carole talks to Baptists, Evangelical Christians, Catholics, Mormons, Amish, Jews, Muslims and many shades between. Poignant, amusing and insightful the result is a rare and fascinating outsider’s glimpse into the heart of a peculiarly American phenomenon. --------------------------------- All-Ireland Dream: Interviews with GAA Greats by Seamus McRory (Paperback; 15.00 Euro / 20.00 USD / 10.00 UK; 310 pages) Featuring over 25 in-depth interviews with GAA all-stars, this book gives a rare insight into many of the people who have made the GAA on of Ireland’s premier sporting organisations. From famous footballers and hurlers, such as Brian Corcoran, Trevor Giles and 1940s’ icons Murray and Higgins, to leading GAA officials, team managers and referees, this book unfolds six decades of Gaelic Games’ achievement. ------------------------------------ Time Added On: The Autobiography of George Hook (Hardback; 23.00 Euro / 28.00 USD / 17.00 UK; 250 pages) In his autobiography George Hook will tell his amazing life story for the first time, from his childhood in Cork right through to his emergence as one of the sharpest and most outspoken media commentators of today. Hook tells with painful frankness of his life and his failure as a son, as a father, as a husband and as a businessman. He also tells about his career in catering and the constant struggle to keep the banks, his creditors and a nervous breakdown at bay. He found solace in rugby. Here for the first time is his account of how he gave Eddie O'Sullivan his first big break, how they made a success of Connacht, and how the relationship changed. It covers his controversial days coaching London Irish and how he prepared the USA for the first rugby World Cup. He writes with a sometimes unsettling honesty about the impact it all had on his life and the lives of those he was closest to, and how he both saved his marriage and found happiness and redemption in the career for which he was made. ---------------------------------------- Irish Media Directory and Guide 2005 edited by Helen Shaw (Trade Paperback; 30.00 Euro / 36.00 USD / 24.00 UK; 360 pages) At last! The definitive guide to the entire media sector in Ireland. "The Irish Media Directory and Guide 2006" combines over-views of every branch of the media - broadcasting; national, provincial and community newspapers; books; film; advertising and new media - together with a full directory of all media sectors and a detailed listing of every media company and media related service in Ireland. This annual publication also lists all the academic and training courses available in Ireland and tracks media trends and statistics, including revenue, audience and market analysis. You'll find details on media awards and festivals. There is even a list of ancillary services and people: agents, lawyers, financial advisors and a core directory of key media contacts overseas. In short, whether you are studying or working in the media sector, "The Irish Media Directory and Guide 2006" is the essential companion. ---------------------------------- Lions of Ireland: A Celebration of Irish Rugby Legends by David Walmsley (Paperback; 12.00 Euro / 15.00 USD / 8.00 UK; 235 pages) Look at the Lions record books and you will find Irishmen at the top of almost every list, from Willie John McBride and Tony O'Reilly to Ronnie Dawson. No nation has provided more leaders of the Lions. In "Lions of Ireland", these greats tell their stories of life on some of the longest, hardest roads in sport. Those featured include world-class players and characters who have contributed to Lions folklore, such as Karl Mullen, Jack Kyle, Fergus Slattery, Tom Kiernan, Mike Gibson and Syd Millar - and the account is brought up to date with contributions from the likes of Keith Wood and Brian O'Driscoll. This book includes a complete reference section featuring every Irish player to have represented the Lions in Tests since the first united tour of 1910. It recalls the powerful personalities and relives the most dramatic deeds in the Lions' long history - from 1971's groundbreaking triumph in New Zealand to success against the odds in South Africa in 1997 and this year's highly anticipated tour of New Zealand. ------------------------------------ The History of the British and Irish Lions by Clem Thomas (Paperback; 12.00 Euro / 15.00 USD / 8.00 UK; 325 pages) In this celebrated book, author Clem Thomas traces the origins of the Lions, tracks the team's development over the years and investigates the social and political issues that have played a part in the evolution of one of the world's most formidable touring forces. The book includes exclusive interviews with, and profiles of, some the most celebrated Lions over the years, which highlight the fulfilment, pride and passion that every British or Irish player feels upon being selected to play. Meticulously researched and interspersed with full statistics and squad lists for each tour, "The History of the British and Irish Lions" also provides an in-depth commentary on the machinations and preparations behind every Lions tour since 1920. Already widely recognised as the definitive account of the game's most prestigious and world-renowned team, this new edition will be fully revised and expanded to include all the action from the 2005 Tour. ----------------------------------- Summer in the City by Pauline McLynn (Trade Paperback; 14.00 Euro / 17.50 USD / 11.00 UK; 300 pages) Lucy White can't quite believe what's happened to her happy, ordinary life. Ending up homeless - not to mention husbandless - has come as an almighty shock. All she wants to do is lie low for a while, but when she arrives in a quiet street in South London she's in for a surprise. The residents of Farewell Square are anything but quiet. There's a housewife with a secret that needs to be shared, a publicist whose behaviour outside office hours would shock his clients and an artist who can't seem to control her lodgers. They're as intrigued by Lucy as she is by them, and as she's drawn into their midst, she realises that life can be kind as well as cruel. And that no one has to be lonely if they don't want to be. --------------------------------------- Old World Colony: Cork and South Munster 1630-1830 by David Dickson (Trade Paperback; 30.00 Euro / 36.00 USD / 24.00 UK; 730 pages) This ground-breaking study traces the fortunes of one of Ireland's wealthiest regions between 1630 and 1830. South Munster's strengths were its agricultural resources and its prime Atlantic location, and the rise of the city of Cork from insignificance to international importance was critical in the exploitation of this wealth as well as being symbolic of a new commercial order. Cork's wholesale hinterland embraced much of Kerry, Waterford and Co. Cork itself, and the study eaxamines the whole of the region. 'Old world colony' traces how rural society and farming evolved, and surveys the world of landowners and of the marginalized, of wealthy merchants and the teeming masses of the towns. It seeks to integrate what is usually set apart - social, economic and political history - in a fresh and unfamiliar panorama of material and public life across the heartlands of 'the Hidden Ireland' from the era of civil war and expropriation in the seventeenth century to the era of Catholic resurgence in the 1820s. Colonization and commerce transformed the region, but change came at a price. Many of the problems of pre-Famine Ireland - gross income inequality and land scarcity - were precociously evident in South Munster. This study therefore sets the more familiar landmarks of the nineteenth century - agrarian conflict, structural poverty, and the collapse of food supply - in a new and more complex historical framework. (Hardback Out of Print – One Copy Remaining in Stock, priced at 50 Euro) -------------------------------------------- Thank you for your continued support. It is vital for the continuation of this service! I respectfully request that if you are considering ordering any of these books that you do so through Read Ireland. I very much appreciate your patronage. To order books from the Read Ireland Book Review – simply return the Newsletter by clicking your reply button. Please DELETE the books you do NOT want and LEAVE the books you DO WANT to order. Alternatively, you can send an email to the order department at: gregcarr@readireland.ie Please be sure to include your full mailing address and credit card details including expiration date. You might like to split this information into 2 or 3 emails for security. You can of course also post your order to: Read Ireland, 392 Clontarf Road, Clontarf, Dublin 3,Ireland. Telephone and Facsimile number is: +353-1-853-2063. Read Ireland Web Site Home Page: http://www.readireland.ie/ or http://www.readireland.com/ I have added a new feature to the Read Ireland website. It is a page listing ONLY the newest books added to or updated on the website. This new feature page will itself be superseded at least 3 times per month (last updated 21 November). Checking this page on the Read Ireland website is an ideal way to keep abreast of what is happening in the world of Irish Interest publishing. Please visit often! If we can be of any further assistance, please do not hesitate to contact me. Thank you very much for your continued support and custom. Sincerely, Gregory Carr @ Read Ireland
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