Unladylike: A History of Ladies Gaelic Football by Hayley Kilgallon (New Island, €24.95 / £19.50) Beginning in the final quarter of the twentieth century, despite medical, religious and social objections, there was a remarkable increase in the number of girls and women participating in what were traditionally regarded as men’s sports. This trend was particularly noticeable…
D-Day: The Oral History by Garrett M. Graff (Monoray / Octopus Publishing, £25.00 / €30.00) D-Day was the turning point in World War II. On that day, June 6 1944, 160,000 troops stormed the Normandy beaches. They set up a battle front of more than sixty miles over five different beaches – their code names forever…
The Companion to Irish Traditional Music edited by Fintan Vallely (Cork University Press, €69.00 / £65.00 / $75.00 ) This is a magisterial study of Irish Traditional Music. At the outset the author defines this genre of music. For him it is a body of melody, song and dance and associated activities that comes from the period…
Irish Doctors in the Second World War by PJ Casey, KT Cullen, and JP Duignan (Merrion Press, €29.99/£25.99) This is a comprehensive account of the Irish doctors who served with the Allied forces in World War II. This is for all intents and purposes an untold story, but one that needed to be told for…
Dane Jeross: The Irish Private Eye who Operates Hollywood Noir Style, by Cyril McHale (Available from Amazon Media Eu: kindle edition, £9.99; paperback, £11.00.) Every classic Hollywood film is essentially a story and all of human life is to be found in those stories. They range from stories about the ‘Wild West’ to accounts…
John Moriarty: Grounded in Story, Edited by Amanda Carmody and Mary McGillicuddy (The Lilliput Press, €25.00 / £21.50) The mystic John Moriarty is one of modern Ireland unique writers, but he achieved this position through a life of varied and equally unique experiences. John Moriarty was born in Moyvane, near Listowel, Co. Kerry, on…
This book is a labour of love. At the outset the author reveals how he first became aware of the existence of Gordon Brewster.
Autumn Blooms: A Selection of Stories, Poetry and Parable by Paddy Glavin, Cyril Kelly, John Fitzgerald (Copies are available from Woulfe’s Independent Bookshop, 7 Church Street Listowel, Co. Kerry; email: woulfesbookshop@gmail.com; phone (068) 21021; €12, with a special postage rate of €6.80). Listowel Writers Week, the premier locally led and sustained literary festival in Ireland is…
Consecration to St Joseph: The Wonders of Our Spiritual Father, by Donald H. Calloway MIC (Marian Press, £13.60) This is a book promoting devotion to St Joseph, making it very suitable reading in this week after the celebration of the Feast of St Joseph the Worker. The steadfast member of the Holy Family, Joseph…
Going for Glory, Irish Style Chasing Sam Maguire; The All-Ireland Football Championship 1928-1977 by Dermot Reilly and Colm Keys, foreword by Larry McCarthy (The O’Brien Press, €34.99 / £32.99) This is a comprehensive account of the All-Ireland Senior Football finals from 1928 to 1977. On each occasion the teams competed for the Sam Maguire Cup.…