Read Ireland Book Review
Issue 327
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 This study, the first ever biography of Eoin O'Duffy, draws on unpublished archival and personal papers to trace his journey from revolutionary republicanism to fascism.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 [Add To Basket]
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 [Add To Basket]
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 [Add To Basket]
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.
Dance With Life by J.M. Hurley
Paperback; 10.00 Euro / 13.00 USD / 7.00 UK; 140 pages [Add To Basket]
Do you know what it means to be alive? Have you ever asked yourself if there's more to life than this? But you're busy...You have a career, a family, a social life and all that inner peace stuff looks so time consuming. And surely it means trekking to off-beat locations? Well it doesn't! Inner peace is a lot more simple than you think. In 'Dance with Life' a very modern Mira explores the realm of the heart under the practiced eye of a life-changing teacher. The journey is within, she doesn't even have to leave her front room! Travel with her and you might find that you'll never look at life in quite the same way again.
Lions of Ireland: A Celebration of Irish Rugby Legends by David Walmsley
Paperback; 12.00 Euro / 15.00 USD / 8.00 UK; 235 pages [Add To Basket]
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 [Add To Basket]
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 [Add To Basket]
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 [Add To Basket]
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.
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