World of Books We may be about to see major changes in the way the major books shops in Ireland – mostly now the property of British companies – are run. Quite how all of this will work out for readers anxious to stay in touch, not just with Britain, as these companies imagine, but…
It was good to see Unreported World back on Channel 4 last Friday night – these short documentaries highlight various unfamiliar stories from around the world, often focusing on justice issues. The first episode in the new series featured the inspiring and moving story of a free ambulance service and voluntary paramedics serving the vulnerable…
Pat O’Kelly Described as ‘unpredictable’ and ‘anarchic’ as well as having ‘expressive intensity’, it may not be surprising to find Gerald Barry’s compositions have something of a controversial streak in them. Born in Clarecastle in Co. Clare in 1952, Barry’s introduction to music came from hearing Handel’s opera Xerxes on the radio. He was…
Ships of Mercy: The remarkable fleet bringing hope to the world’s poorest people by Don Stephens (Hodder & Stoughton, €9.99) The United States is the wealthiest country in the world. Among its citizens are some of the most charitable and generous persons to be found anywhere. This is clear from this memoir by Don Stephens [pictured],…
The National Gallery now has on display the newly restored Jacob Blessing the Sons of Joseph (c. 1620) by Giovanni Francesco Barbieri, better known as Guercino. This is a baroque masterpiece with an interesting history, for it was the very first painting purchased by Sir Denis Mahon, the connoisseur and scholar in 1934 for £120.…
Win: Proven Strategies for Success in Sport, Life, and Mental Health by Brent Pope and Jason Brennan (Hachette Ireland, €16) Peter Hegarty ‘What’s wrong friend?’ said the Samaritans volunteer at the other end of the line. Brent Pope poured out his sadness, describing how low, helpless and lonely he had been feeling. Since his childhood he…
Judging Redmond and Carson: comparative Irish lives by Alvin Jackson (Royal Irish Academy, €30) Felix M. Larkin This dual biography by one of Ireland’s most distinguished historians, Professor Alvin Jackson of Edinburgh University, is premised on the notion that – to quote its author – “the parallel lives of great rivals or great antagonists (or great friends)…
The Cured (15A) If we draw a line from, say, King Kong to The Elephant Man, we can see a pattern. The mistreated ‘beasts’ become the victims of corporate forces trying to wipe them out. In such cases our sympathies lie foursquare behind such pariahs. The problem with The Cured, which focuses on a group of…
At this stage it probably goes without saying that Gaudate et Exsultate, the Pope’s new exhortation on holiness in ordinary life, was always going to be dismissed by some as like the proverbial curate’s egg: good in parts. Writing at catholicworldreport.com, for instance, in a piece headed ‘Pope Francis “takes aim” in Gaudete et Exsultate…
The sense of dread that came over me when Donald Trump was elected President of the USA was heightened considerably last week. There were silly tweets from him about launching missiles “nice, new and smart”, after the reported gas attacks near Damascus. In a sleepless moment last Friday night, on an extended Newsroom programme (BBC…
Peter Costello
Brendan O’Regan
Aubrey Malone
Greg Daly