A Concise History of the Sunnis and Shi’is by John McHugo (Saqui Books, £20.00) John Bruton A few years back, very few Westerners would have been aware of the distinction between the Sunni and Shia branches of Islam. The aftermath of the invasion of Iraq changed all that. In a timely book, entitled A Concise History of…
Prayerful Ireland by Helena Connolly (Messenger Publications, €19.95) This richly illustrated book (mentioned briefly at Christmas time) is worth a longer notice, for as the summer days draw out (hopefully) the places she mentions may well be worth a visit. Her approach is suggested by the cover itself which shows an unusual view of Lough Derg,…
“Unlike the Eiffel Tower, that other great emblem of Paris,” writes Tom Holland at spectator.co.uk, “Notre Dame provides the French with evidence that their modern and secular republic has its foundations deeply rooted in the Middle Ages.” There’s been much to criticise in The Spectator over recent years, but ‘Thank God for western values’ is…
Listowel, a Printer’s Legacy: The Story of Printing in North Kerry 1870-1970, Vincent Carmody (Vincent Carmody, €35.00; ISBN: 9780992698898; email: info@listoweloriginals.com or call +353 (0) 87 966 7112.) This publication provides an account of the Cuthbertson family who conducted a printing business in Listowel for almost a hundred years. Robert Irvine Cuthbertson was born in…
Priests often have a prophetic role in the Church and society, and nowhere was this more evident than in the words of Fr Martin McGill at the funeral last week of Lyra McKee, tragically shot dead in Derry. Fr McGill’s words to the politicians assembled at her funeral (“Why in God’s name does it take…
Float Like a Butterfly (15A) Imagine, if you will, Rocky Balboa on a beach. As a young woman. And Irish. And a gypsy. Difficult, I know. But it’s what we get here. The feisty spirit of the travellers is endearingly captured in this heartfelt tale of a teenage girl who proves better able to take care of herself…
Protestant and Irish: The minority’s search for place in independent Ireland Ian d’Alton and Ida Milne (Cork University Press, €49.00) This collection of essays provides a comprehensive account of Irish Protestants – their attitudes, the decisions they took and their role in public life – after the Irish Free State was established in 1922. Following the…
The River Liffey: History and Heritage by Christopher Moriarty (Collins Press, €21.99) Dubliners seem to take the Liffey much for granted. It has been flowing, Christopher Moriarty tell us in this very detailed account of the river and its course, for some ten millennia. It seems to have failed only once. In 1452, the old annals…
Mainly About Books by the books editor The other day I was reading a publisher’s announcement of a new book about 1916 (yes, another one, too late in the day we would have thought, with the centenary of the first Dáil upon us). In the article I came upon on a striking error. The…
The voyage of Italy: 200 years of travel guides National Gallery of Ireland 16 March – 15 September 2019 Room 11 | Admission free The National Gallery is currently showing selected items from the Sir Denis Mahon collection of guides and travel books about Italy. Naturally these were bought by the donor for the…
Peter Costello
Greg Daly
Brendan O’Regan
Aubrey Malone