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This site includes the postings from the Irish Aires email list. This includes a listing of Irish/Celtic events in the Houston area and other information that the Irish Aires radio program posts.
Saturday, January 14, 2006
Read Ireland
Advert:
Policing Northern Ireland: Conflict, legitimacy and reform
By Aogán Mulcahy (University College Dublin)
This important new book examines the issue of police legitimacy
in Northern Ireland. Against the backdrop of political division
and paramilitary violence, it analyses the means by which the
RUC (Royal Ulster Constabulary) sought the support of the
communities most antagonistic to it – nationalists and
republicans – and considers their responses to these various
reform measures. The book traces the development of these issues
across three distinct time-periods: the years of overt conflict
(1968-94); the subsequent ceasefire period (1994-98); and the
reform programme arising from the Patten Report and the
transformation of the RUC into the Police Service of Northern
Ireland (1998-2005).
It asks key questions about the nature and impact of police
efforts to secure the support of nationalists and republicans:
· what was the nature and rationale of the reform strategies
implemented by the RUC?
· how has the RUC portrayed itself in the positive terms that
might secure public support?
· how have nationalists responded to these initiatives?
· what was the nature of the reform programme outlined in the
1999 Patten Report?
· what impact has the establishment of the PSNI and the ongoing
reform programme had on police-community relations?
The book also makes a powerful contribution to wider current
debates about police legitimacy in divided societies,
police-community relations, resistance narratives, and the
relationship between police reform and conflict resolution
(paperback) €27.50 / £17.99 / US$33.50
(hardback) €60.00 / £40.00 / US$75.00
----------------------------------
Read Ireland Book News – Issue 329
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Atlas of Cork City edited by J. S. Crowley et. al
(Hardback; 60.00 Euro / 80.00 USD / 45.00 UK; 480 pages, with
full colour and black-and-white photos throughout)
A unique project, marking Cork's designation as European Capital
of Culture in 2005, the Atlas provides the reader with a range of
perspectives on the city and its development over time. It is not
an atlas in the conventional sense, as it is not solely reliant
on maps, though there are many of these, both historical and
specially commissioned for the volume. The initial chapters
place the city in its environmental setting. Subsequent chapters
trace its physical and cultural development over time. With over
fifty contributors from a wide range of disciplines offering
forty chapters and a fascinating series of case studies, the
range is remarkable and the topics covered often surprising.
Over 200 maps cover everything from geology, through evolving
street patterns, to the distribution of G.A.A. clubs. Given its
significant maritime heritage, Cork has been shaped by both
external and internal influences, and the cityscape bears the
imprint of the various peoples who have lived and settled there.
Not one story then, but a myriad of stories, some better known
than others, but all contributing to the making and remaking of
the city. It has been a city continually in transition and the
atlas also provides its readers, and planners with an
opportunity to reflect in a more informed way on its future
development.
---------------------------------------
Lady Gregory: An Irish Life by Judith Hill
(Hardback; 25.00 Euro / 30.00 USD / 19.00 UK; 400 pages with an
8-page black-and-white photo insert)
She was the most complicated woman I can think of ...Very
calculating, dutiful, courageous, purposeful, and all built upon
a bedrock of humour and love of fun and a bitter sarcasm with a
vein of simple coarseness of thought and simple inherited
Protestantism.' This new biography of Lady Gregory (1852-1932)
removes her from the shadow of the more famous Yeats (she wrote
almost entirely the great Abbey Theatre hit Cathleen ni
Houlihan, but let Yeats take the credit), and uncovers for the
first time the full life of this key figure of the Irish
Literary Revival. A founder of the now world-famous Abbey
Theatre, she had a profound influence on Yeats and other writers
including Henry James and Anthony Trollope. She herself wrote 42
plays, as well as a biography, essays, stories, poems, and an
autobiography. Married to a man twice her age, she had an
extra-marital affair with the poet and anti-Imperialist Wilfrid
Scawen Blunt and at 60, a brief romance with the New York lawyer
and art patron John Quinn. Placing Gregory securely into the
Ireland of her time, the author shows how Lady Gregory's
Nationalism in politics and literature fundamentally shaped her
life and work.
---------------------------------------
Tony O’Malley: An Irish Artist in Cornwall by David Whitakker
(Paperback; 20.00 Euro / 26.00 USD / 13.00 UK; 100 pages, with
illustrations throughout)
Tony O'Malley (1913-2003) is one of Ireland's foremost painters
of the last 50 years. Born in Callan, County Kilkenny, he was a
late starter and learned his art surreptitiously while working
as a bank clerk all over Ireland for 25 years. In 1955 he
visited St Ives in Cornwall on a painting holiday. He was
astonished to find a thriving and diverse artistic community
there, made up of some of the leading names in the history of
British art including Barbara Hepworth, Peter Lanyon, Bryan
Wynter, Patrick Heron, Terry Frost, Bernard Leach and the poet
W. S. Graham. O'Malley moved there in 1960 and stayed for 30
years. It was a Celtic country where he felt at home and was the
perfect environment for his art to develop. He also met and
married the Canadian painter Jane Harris.
This book chronicles those tremendously creative Cornish years
with a record of the friendships he struck up and the places he
worked, tracing how O'Malley's art developed into his unique and
distinctive style. Also included is a lengthy and entertaining
account, by O'Malley himself, of his early years growing up in
County Kilkenny. The book has 56 illustrations (16 in colour),
most of which have never been published before.
-------------------------------------
The Islands of Ireland by Nutan
(Large Format Hardback; 28.00 Euro / 34.00 USD / 20.00 UK)
A beautifully photographed, revelatory tour of nearly twenty of
Ireland's remotest Islands, by leading Irish photojournalist
Nutan.
---------------------------------------
Without Fear: 25 Years of the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre by Susan
McKay
(Paperback; 15.00 Euro / 18.00 USD / 10.00 UK; 300 pages)
ESTABLISHED IN 1979, THE DUBLIN RAPE CRISIS CENTRE IS A
VOLUNTARY ORGANISATION WHICH PROVIDES COMPREHENSIVE THERAPY
PROGRAMME FOR VICTIMS OF RAPE AND SEXUAL ABUSE.
Susan McKay's history of the center and attitudes to rape in
Ireland coincides with the 25th anniversary of the center, and
seeks to bring the center and the issue of rape in Ireland back
onto the agenda. In 1998 Susan McKay published Sophia's Story,
told by Sophia it recounts the harrowing truth of how it was to
be a daughter of Joseph McColgan.
Susan McKay is the northern editor of the Sunday Tribune. Awards
for her work include Print Journalist of the Year 2000, Feature
Writer of the Year 2002 and in 2001 she won the Amnesty
International Print Journalism Award for Ireland.
Her bestselling book Northern Protestants: An Unsettled People
has been critically acclaimed. She is a regular contributor to
TV and radio north and south of the border .
------------------------------------
The Legends of Irish Rugby by John Scally
(Hardback; 22.00 Euro / 27.00 USD / 17.00 UK; 270 pages, with
8-page black-and-white photo insert)
Immortals such as Jack Kyle, Willie John McBride, Tony Ward,
Brian O'Driscoll, Gordon D'Arcy, and Paul O'Connell bare their
souls to reveal men of vision, passion, and dedication - men
who, through their glories, disappointments and dramatic deeds,
have inspired others to realise their dreams. In this engrossing
and entertaining account of the bitter-sweet history of Irish
rugby, these powerful personalities offer startling insights
into some of the most controversial moments of Irish rugby, from
the assault on Ronan O'Gara, during the 2001 Lions tour to the
sacking of Gary Ella as Leinster coach, and express their
opinions on the most important issues facing the game today:
from Brian O'Driscoll's hair to the role of the coach and the
future of the game itself. Their take on the times is often as
comical as it is insightful. Irish rugby has produced many
extraordinary characters and left us all with a treasure trove
of funny stories, most of which are recalled in this book,
including Peter Clohessy's visit to the dentist and his Frank
Sinatra impression; the curious incident of Mick Galwey's
shorts; Geordan Murphy's unique insights into Austin Healey's
recreational activities; Victor Costello's experience of crime
and punishment; Keith Wood's tall tales and much, much more.
Compelling, informative and above all humorous...
-----------------------------------
The New Hennessy Book of Irish Fiction edited by Dermot Bolger
and Ciaran Carty
(Trade Paperback with endflaps; 15.00 Euro / 18.50 USD / 10.00
UK; 200 pages)
For the past 35 years the Hennessy Literary Awards have proved a
vital launching pad for many of the most exciting writers in
Ireland today. Initially founded and edited by David Marcus, the
New Irish Writing page now appears monthly in The Sunday Tribune.
Writers like Joseph O'Connor, Colum McCann and Marina Carr spoke
to us for the very first time through these pages, edited for the
past seventeen years by Ciaran Carty.
Now The New Hennessy Book of Irish Fiction brings you the
editors' personal selection of stories from the last ten years
of these prestigious awards; some were winners in their years,
others were runners-up. From Blainaid McKinney's IRA informer to
Claire Keegan's Irish au-pair, from June Considine's story of
marriage and betrayal to Kieran Byrne's thief with the Marty
Feldman eyes, this startling collection showcases a vibrant
explosion of new Irish writers.
Edited by Ciaran Carty and Dermot Bolger, and with stories by
such recent successes like Noelle Harrison, Paul Perry and Karen
Gillece, The New Hennessy Book of Irish Fiction takes us back to
the thrilling beginnings of some of our best emerging writers.
---------------------------------------
Recollections of 1916 and Its Aftermath by Jane O’Hara O’Keeffe
(Paperback; 16.00 Euro / 20.00 USD / 11.50 UK; 100 pages, with
photos throughout and an audio CD)
This collection of interviews captures the atmosphere of the
revolutionary period in Ireland. The interviewees are great
storytellers, recalling incidents that impacted on then young
minds and imaginations.
-------------------------------------
Nothing Simple by Lia Mills
(Paperback; 15.00 Euro / 18.00 USD / 10.00 UK; 395 pages)
When Ray left Ireland to follow Dermot to America, she had her
doubts about moving. But Dermot convinced her it was where their
future lay and she was too young and too much in love to fight.
So they settled in a hot and murky Texan suburb where nothing
turned out to be quite what it seemed. Now, ten years and four
children later, recession has hit Texas, Dermot's career like
their marriage has stalled, and he says that the family has to
move back to Dublin. But Ray's not so sure that she can trust
her husband's judgement any more. Then, as they get ready to
leave, their daughter disappears. In the desperate hours that
follow, Ray tries to figure out how she's ended up with a life
that's only beginning to make sense now that everything in it is
under threat.
----------------------------------------
As Others Saw Us: Cork Through European Eyes edited by Joachim
Fisher and Grace Neville
(Trade Paperback; 18.00 Euro / 24.00 USD / 12.00 UK; 427 pages)
This anthology contains views and opinions by continental
writers about Cork from medieval times to the present. The
varied texts include excerpts from travel books, essays,
newspaper articles and memoirs. Each piece has a brief
introduction about its author and the context in which it was
written. The foreign language is on the left hand page and the
English translation opposite. Designed to appeal to the general
rather than specialist reader, the excerpts are short and from
the widest variety of viewpoints.
---------------------------------
Pocket Rocket: Don’t Quit: The Autobiography of Wayne McCullough
(Trade Paperback; 15.00 Euro / 18.00 USD / 10.00 UK; 240 pages)
When, in 2000, following an annual MRI scan, Wayne McCullough
was diagnosed as having a cyst on his brain and told he might
never box again, he began the longest struggle of his
controversial career. The BBBC withheld his licence to fight in
the UK, then, just when it seemed he would never box in Britain
again, the decision was reversed. He returned to his beloved
Belfast in 2002 to defeat Russian Nikolai Eremeev in a dramatic
fourth-round victory. From his early life on the Shankill Road
to training with the great Eddie Futch in Las Vegas, "Pocket
Rocket: Don't Quit!" details the ups and downs of McCullough's
life as a world champion boxer and as an ambassador for his
sport and his country. Raised during Northern Ireland's troubles
in one of Belfast's toughest areas, McCullough chose to use his
fists in the ring. In 1995, he finally achieved his dream when
he was crowned WBC bantamweight world champion, beating Yasuei
Yakushiji in Nagoya, Japan. Bringing a gentleness to an often
gruesome sport, "Pocket Rocket: Don't Quit!" is an honest
account of Wayne McCullough's life in his own words.
---------------
Available Again:
---------------
In Time of War: Ireland, Ulster and The Price of Neutrality,
1939-45 by Robert Fisk
(Paperback; 30.00 Euro / 36.00 USD / 24.00 UK; 650 pages)
When the Union Jack was hauled down over the Atlantic naval
ports of Cobh, Berehaven and Lough Swilly in 1939, the Irish
were jubilant. But in London, Churchhill brooded on the
'incomprehensible' act of surrendering three of the Royal Navy's
finest ports when Europe was about to go to war. Eighteen months
later, Churchill was talking of military action against Ireland.
He demanded the return of the ports and the Irish made ready to
defend their country against British, as well as German
invasion. In Northern Ireland, a Unionist Government vainly
tried to introduce conscription. Along the west coast British
submarines prowled the seas searching for German U-boats
sheltering in the bays; British agents toured the villages of
Donegal in search of fifth columnists, while their German
counterparts tried to make contact with the IRA. This is a
fascinating study of Ireland during the Second World War.
"Anybody interested in Irish affairs will have to get Fisk's
book." - "Literary Review".
------------------------------------------------
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