IEB: The IE Book Review - May, 1999 Via NY Transfer News Collective * All the News that Doesn't Fit ======================================================================= THE IE BOOK REVIEW _______________________________________________________________________ Editor: Pauline Ferrie May, 1999 Issue No.46 ======================================================================= This monthly supplement to the Irish Emigrant reviews books recently published in Ireland, and those published overseas which have an Irish theme. Back issues are on our WWW pages ======================================================================= (Advertisement) KENNYS IRISH BOOK PARCELS Kennys will send you a selection of books which have been hand-picked by Des Kenny to suit your particular interests and budget. The books are sent directly to your address as requested e.g. every four months. All books are sent fully on approval and can be returned if not required. Choose books from a wide variety of Irish subject areas including: Art & Architecture, Biography, Children's Books, Current Affairs, Cookery, Drama, Fiction, Folklore, Genealogy, History, Irish Language, Literature, Literary Criticism, Local History, Music, Poetry, Politics, Religion, Sport and Women's Studies. To join our unique book club simply send mailto:desi@kennys.ie or check out our web site: http://www.kennys.ie. While there tour our on-line bookshop, visit our art galleries and check out the latest news from Kennys. ======================================================================= > > > > > > > > > CONTENTS < < < < < < < < < Bestseller Lists Reviews: - The Marriage at Antibes - Carol Azadeh - Green English - Loreto Todd - A Wonderful Boy - Kevin Whelan - Crazy Love - Tom Lennon - And Ink on their Hands - Kevin H. Donlon CSsR - Danta Piarais Feiriteir - Trans. Pat Muldowney - The Cistercian Abbeys of Tipperary - Colmcille O Conbhuidhe OCSO - When the Acacia Bird Sings - James O'Halloran - Millennium@drumshee - Cora Harrison - Adamnan's Life of Columba - Trans. John Gregory - Commemorating Saints & Others of the Irish Church - George Otto Simms - The Visitor's Guide to Northern Ireland - Rosemary Evans - A Sense of Humus - Diana Anthony - The Road - Robin Livingstone - Irish Nocturnes - Chris Arthur - Tribe - John F. McDonald - The Irish Chateaux - Renagh Holohan General News: - New book on Jim Larkin - Shortlist for Bisto Book of the Year - John Broderick commemorative weekend - IMPAC winner announced - Irishman elected Oxford Professor of Poetry - New edition of Brian Friel study - Three new publications from Dedalus - First novel from Derry writer - Reissue of book on Tory Island > > > > > > > > > BESTSELLERS LIST < < < < < < < < < Paperback Fiction: 1. Tara Road, Maeve Binchy, Orion - Stg6.99 2. Mary, Mary, Julie Parsons, Town House - #6.99 3. Snap Happy, Fiona Walker, Coronet - Stg5.99 4. The Keeper, Gareth O'Callaghan, Poolbeg - #6.99 5. Amsterdam, Ian McEwan, Vintage - Stg6.99 Paperback Non-fiction: 1. The Junkyard, Ed. Marsha Hunt, Mainstream - Stg5.99 2. Anam Cara, John O'Donohue, Bantam - IR7.99 3. Stalingrad, Anthony Boevor, Penguin - Stg12.99 4. The Informer, Sean O'Callaghan, Corgi - Stg6.99 5. Life after Loss, Christy Kenneally, Mercier - #6.99 Hardback Fiction: 1. Star Wars/The Phantom Menace, Terry Brooks, Century - Stg15.99 2. Score, Jilly Cooper, Bantam - Stg16.99 3. The Ground Beneath her Feet, Salman Rushdie, Cape - Stg18.00 4. The Archangel, Robert Harris, Hutchinson - Stg10.00 5. The Divine Secrets of the Ya Ya Sisterhood, Rebecca Wells, Macmillan - Stg9.99 Hardback Non-fiction: 1. 44: A Dublin Memoir, Peter Sheridan, Macmillan - Stg14.99 2. My Friend's Secrets, Joan Collins, A. Deutsch - Stg16.99 3. Ironing the Land, Kevin O'Connor, Gill & Macmillan - IR14.99 4. Star Wars: The Making of Episode 1: Phantom Menace, Laurent Bouzereau & Jody Duncan, Ebury Press - Stg25.00 5. Healthy Food Directory, Michael von Straten, Gill & Macmillan - #9.99 Children's: 1. Sabrina Magic Handbook, Patricia Svarney, Simon & Schuster - Stg3.99 2. The Rugrats Movie Storybook, Simon & Schuster - Stg2.99 3. Harry Potter & the Chamber of Secrets, J.K. Rowling, Bloomsbury - Stg4.99 4. Star Wars Junior Novelisation, Patricia Wade, Scholastic - Stg4.99 5. The Big Big Sea, Martin Waddell, Walker Books - Stg4.99 > > > > > > > > > REVIEWS < < < < < < < < < THE MARRIAGE AT ANTIBES by CAROL AZADEH - Carol Azadeh had created five remarkable and disparate characters on which to base her stories in this collection, and all the characters experience a form of isolation, a feeling that they don't belong in the milieu in which they find themselves. Only the first of the stories, "The Country Road", has a completely Irish setting; a woman looks back to her eight-year-old self and her devastation when her father dies suddenly. The rootlessness of the eponymous "Bronagh", born in India, brought up in the North and working in Spain, is exposed by her treatment at the hands of the Guardia Civile on her journey back to Ireland. From here Ms Azadeh takes us to Europe, and "A Banal Stain" draws a faintly depressing picture of a decaying house and family where a young student lodger finds herself drawn into the responsibility of caring for her aged landlady, but is at the same time isolated from the secrets shared by the members of the family. "A Recitation of Nomads" continues the tour by following a young couple from Paris to Morocco, but in this case the sense of isolation does not set one person apart from many; rather each experiences an estrangement which eventually leads the girl to travel on without her lover. The final story, from which the book takes its title, recounts the isolation of a young Muslim woman who has married an exile and is living in the south of France with her husband and small baby. The contrast between the interior lives of Khosro and Nasima, and the familiar bustle of Antibes is beautifully drawn as Nasima constantly remembers her home while at the same time enjoying the new delights of the Western world. Through the use of vivid and descriptive language the author draws us into the lives of the characters, though in two of the stories we never learn their names. While there is an overall sense of sadness, of an inability to connect, the quiet joy experienced by the mother and her baby in the final story, "The Marriage at Antibes", left me with a feeling of optimism which somewhat offset the prevailing gloom. (Lilliput, ISBN 1-901866-33-5, pp214, IR7.99) GREEN ENGLISH by LORETO TODD - In examining the influence of the Irish language on spoken English, Loreto Todd sets out three categories, Hiberno-English, Anglo-Irish and Ulster-Scots. Hiberno-English is that spoken by those whose mother tongue is Irish, and is characterised by a Gaelic pronunciation of some consonants which help to produce a recognisable Irish accent. The rhythms of Hiberno-Irish have also been grafted on from the Irish language, in much the same way that Afro-Americans and West Indians speak English with patterns inherited from the African languages. Anglo-Irish and Ulster Scots, were collectively known as Planter English and developed from the series of plantations in both Ulster and throughout Ireland. It is distinguished by the retention of words no longer in use, or with different meanings as, for example, in the phrase "I doubt it will rain", meaning "I believe it is going to rain". Green English, then, is a combination of these three forms of the spoken language and, although Ms Todd makes use of technical language in explaining the differences between these and other forms of English, her book is aimed at and can be appreciated by a lay as well as a professional audience. Giving as it does an overall history of the development of language in Ireland, together with the spread of English as it is and was spoken in Ireland, through the means of missionary work, military campaigns and emigration, "Green English" is a fascinating study which will appeal to anyone with an interest in words and language. Ms Todd concludes with an overview of the extraordinary literary output from this island, and a plea for the Irish language to be saved from extinction. (O'Brien Press, ISBN 0-86278-543-X, pp143, IR16.99) A WONDERFUL BOY by KEVIN WHELAN - Until fairly recently, autism has been little understood, and one of those instrumental in increasing awareness of this particular condition is Kevin Whelan, through his writings and radio broadcasts. In "A Wonderful Boy" he has taken the same subject and has constructed around it a short novel set in 1940s Germany, where not only the Jews were victims of the Holocaust. The fear and bewilderment of the autistic boy, Andi, is made more tangible since the story is told through his eyes. In achieving this the author has been able to draw on his own experiences as the carer of an autistic boy, as he tellingly conveys the absolute desire for order and routine in Andi's life. What first alerts Andi to the changes which are about to take over his life is the missing kerbstone on the route he and his father usually take to the coffee shop. The reader can guess that the stone has been used to attack one of the minority groups, but to Andi it is just a puzzle which might produce one of his mindstorms. And it is just such a mindstorm which leads to an unwelcome encounter with a member of the SS who had been failed as a student by the boy's father. What follows is a descent into brutality and degradation, through a hospital and onto a cattle truck which deposits Andi at one of the camps. The telling is all the more poignant in that it underlines Andi's innocence and his ignorance of the true destination of his "holiday", which ends in "a very dirty shower room" where, characteristically, he begins to count the holes in the ceiling. Kevin Whelan has written a harrowing account of what befell many of those considered retarded or mad by the authorities in Nazi Germany, but he does not fall into the trap of painting all his characters black. Along the way Andi meets with sympathy from the family housekeeper and from some of the doctors and nurses in the hospital to which he is sent for "tests", particularly Dr Hans Huttenbach who makes a vain attempt to save Andi and pays dearly for it. (Marino, ISBN 1-86023-089-X, pp108, IR6.99) CRAZY LOVE by TOM LENNON - Tom Lennon's second novel deals with the dilemma of a young married man who has to face up to the reality of his sexual orientation. Paul and Anne lead an outwardly happy life with their small daughter until the arrival of a new man in the office draws Paul into Dublin's gay world. The lies and deceptions become more and more difficult until he almost wishes his wife would find out the truth. When she does her reaction is predictably violent but gradually a compromise is reached, with each of them gaining a new partner and sharing the custody of their daughter on an amicable basis. (O'Brien Press, ISBN 0-86278-560-X, pp240, IR6.99) AND INK ON THEIR HANDS by KEVIN H. DONLON CSsR - Fr Donlon, the former editor of Reality and Intercom magazines, has here collected his thoughts on a variety of subjects from his family and early years to his experiences as a seminarian, missionary and the religious press. His priesthood spanned the years before and after the Second Vatican Council and Fr Donlon comments on many of the changes which occurred around this time and their effect on both priests and the laity. (Veritas, ISBN 1-85390-472-4, pp153, IR8.99) DANTA PIARAIS FEIRITEIR trans. PAT MULDOWNEY - Dr Pat Muldowney of the University of Ulster's Magee College has produced the first bi-lingual edition of the poetic works of Pierce Ferriter, one of the Four Kerry Poets, who flourished in the 17th century. Ferriter's poems have not appeared in print since Fr Patrick Dinneen published his editions in 1903 and 1934, and Dr Muldowney has included both his own and Fr Dinneen's notes on language and metre. The comprehensive study is completed by an appendix dealing with the 1641 Rebellion, in which Pierce Ferriter participated. (Aubane Historical Society, ISBN 0-9521081-8-6, pp 120, IR10.00) THE CISTERCIAN ABBEYS OF TIPPERARY by COLMCILLE O CONBHUIDHE OCSO - The late Fr Colmcille's work has been collected and edited by Finbarr Donovan in an attempt to carry our the Cistercian's wish to complete two books on the subject before his death. Chapters dealing with the abbeys of Inislounaght, Holy Cross, Kilcooly and Hore are preceded by a general introduction which covers the founding of the Cistercian order in France, and the historical background to the order's presence in Ireland. While a detailed plan is given for three of the four abbeys, I feel the lack of illustrationsmight, perhaps, take away from the enjoyment for the ordinary reader. (Four Courts Press, ISBN 1-85182-381-6, pp335, IR14.95) WHEN THE ACACIA BIRD SINGS by JAMES O'HALLORAN - Although set in Africa rather than Europe, James O'Halloran's tale of a family fleeing from terror is particularly topical in light of the Kosovar crisis. Armand and Salva, with their three children and two friends, flee their village to escape terrorist forces and set out on a trek which will take them across the great Kruger National Park to safety. The suddenness with which death begins to deplete the party brings a sense of reality to the journey, through which both Armand and Salva have been supported by their Christian faith. (Columba Press, ISBN 1-85607-254-1, pp110, IR6.99) MILLENNIUM@DRUMSHEE by CORA HARRISON - This latest in the Drumshee series brings us right up to date with Emma, lonely after having moved from England to her father's ancestral home in Co. Clare, making a new friend via email. Bruce, an Australian and fellow chess enthusiast, also has family connections in Clare and eventually he and his parents come to visit. This seventh book in the children's series includes information on the website (http://www.drumshee.com) devoted to Drumshee fans. (Wolfhound Press, ISBN 0-86327-715-2, pp143, IR3.99) THE LIFE OF COLUMBA by ADAMNAN trans. JOHN GREGORY - John Gregory's abridged translation of Adamnan's original Latin text has a short introduction setting the author in context as the ninth abbot of Iona, having been born 30 years after Columba, also known as Columcille. The text is complemented by the expert photography of Geoff Green showing many aspects of the Scottish isle on which Columba made his home. (Wolfhound Press, ISBN 0-86327-734-9, pp64, IR6.99) COMMEMORATING SAINTS & OTHERS OF THE IRISH CHURCH by GEORGE OTTO SIMMS - This booklet has been produced as a tribute to the former Church of Ireland Archbishop of Armagh, whose notes form the main body of the work. A number of Irish saints and "worthies" are given a short biography, followed by a meditation or prayer by Brian Mayne, Rector of the Lecale Group of Parishes in Co. Down. As well as the more obvious candidates, such as Brendan the Navigator and Columcille, the booklet also includes such less well-known figures as Charles Inglis, the first Bishop of Novia Scotia. (Columba Press, ISBN 1-85607-259-2, pp70, IR3.99) THE VISITORS' GUIDE TO NORTHERN IRELAND by ROSEMARY EVANS - Compiled by the publishing manager of the Northern Ireland Tourist Board, this updated edition divides the area into seven sections and gives details of places of interest including their historical background. Each section includes a clear map and a wealth of photographs and is followed by a short list of additional information. Coupled with the inclusion of a factfile covering such topics as money, climate and accommodation, this is an invaluable guide for anyone visiting the North. (Blackstaff Press, ISBN 0-85640-625-2, pp216, Stg12.99) A SENSE OF HUMUS by DIANA ANTHONY - Diana Anthony, whose garden has been voted one of the ten best in New Zealand where she has made her home, has interspersed her own reflections on a lifetime of gardening with a selection of prose and poetry which takes a self-mocking look at the enthusiasms of the gardener. She has included extracts from such diverse sources as Czech playwright Karel Capek, American 19th century naturalist Nathaniel Hawthorne and an 11th century martyr Trypho of Lamascus who composed a prayer to "caterpillars, snails, slugs" imploring them to leave his plants alone. This is a book to dip into, for both the enthusiast and those whom gardening leaves unmoved. One of the more cynical entries, among a number which are dotted through the book, is a definition from Lord Heathcote-Amory, "Gardening: eleven months of hard work followed by one month of disappointment". (Wolfhound Press, ISBN 0-86327-714-4, pp256, IR9.99) THE ROAD by ROBIN LIVINGSTONE - Subtitled "Memories of the Falls", this record of life in Belfast's Falls Road comes from a man who was born in Grosvenor Road in 1960 and whose large family moved to Lenadoon in 1971. However the scope of the book is far wider, including memories of his extended family and photographs dating back to the turn of the century. In his introduction the author details the many facets of life "on the Falls" from housing to school to sport and entertainment, and there follows a varied series of photographs illustrating many of the places and events he has listed. This is a fascinating collection of memories from a place which has become all too familiar to those who have never set foot in Belfast, and will be particularly welcomed by "Loney hoppers", people who can claim the Falls as their native place. (Blackstaff Press, ISBN 0-85640-632-5, pp 154, Stg10.99) IRISH NOCTURNES by CHRIS ARTHUR - These thought-provoking essays have been arranged by their author to reflect the 18 nocturnes of Irish composer John Field with which, he hopes, there are "sufficient resemblances of mood" to justify the form. Each essay starts from a specific object or experience and develops this as a symbol of some aspect of our lives. In the first, "Linen", a piece of linen worked by his great-grandmother leads the author to reflect on the way in which our lives are a continuous thread through the generations, and how one small change in circumstances can alter for ever the lives of future generations. In "Herdings" Arthur takes as his starting point an encounter with a sheepdog and from this develops the idea of our own urge to impose order on the world around us, be we financiers, doctors or farmers. He further contends that we must all help "to round up, tend, protect our civilisation's hard-won flocks as assiduously and honestly as we can". Each of these 18 essays represents a lyrical interpretation of a facet of the Belfast-born author's life through his childhood to his work as a nature warden and his experiences as an emigrant. This immensely readable and rewarding collection will be available in the summer. (Davies Group Publishers, , ISBN 1-888570-49-0, pp246, $14.99) TRIBE by JOHN F. MCDONALD - In his first novel John F. McDonald challenges the reader by using a quartet of languages, English, Cant, Irish and Four-letter, the latter providing this reviewer with the greatest challenge. However it is a tribute to the book's vitality and the absorbing storyline that such reservations are overcome after just a few pages. "Tribe" deals with Owen McBride, a young man living and working in London who is torn between the life of a gypsy or traveller and the conventional world into which his girlfriend, Ann, is trying to draw him. The son of a travelling man and a settled woman from Connemara, Owen moves among an eclectic cast of characters from systems analysts to Mongolian horse-trainers, becoming embroiled in the London underworld as he staggers between his two different worlds. The author writes with conviction of the displacement felt by one such as Owen who seems to belong to neither world, but also writes with a great deal of humour. (Wolfhound Press, ISBN 0-86327-720-9, pp272, IR12.99) THE IRISH CHATEAUX by RENAGH HOLOHAN - Renagh Holohan has subtitled her book "In Search of Descendants of the Wild Geese" and she introduces the subject by defining how this group was made up. They were not, as is popularly believed, simply the group of people who left Ireland as part of the Flight of the Earls at the beginning of the 17th century. Nor were they confined to military men who joined foreign armies to fight against England. Merchants and sons of merchants who sought greater opportunity overseas can also be included in this category of emigrants, and these latter figure prominently in the book's catalogue of chateaux in France which have strong Irish connections. Such well-known names as O'Mahony, Hennessy and MacMahon feature along with descendants of members of the Irish Brigade, the Dillons, O'Briens and McCarthys. Numerous sketches of the chateaux and a map pinpointing their positions complete this detailed study. (Lilliput Press, ISBN 1-901866-34-3, pp188, IR9.99) - Of books mentioned in the Bestsellers List which we have not reviewed, "The Keeper" is Gareth O'Callaghan's second novel; and "Life after Loss" is ex-priest Christy Kenneally's guide to coping with bereavement. > > > > > > > > GENERAL NEWS < < < < < < < < < - A book on Jim Larkin edited by Donal Nevin, a former general secretary of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions, is the final project in a two-year commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the Labour leader's death. "James Larkin - Lion of the Fold" was launched in Belfast earlier this month. - The ten books shortlisted for this year's Bisto Book of the Year, which concentrates on authors and illustrators of children's books, are: Pat Boran for "All the way from China"; "An Rogaire agus an Scail" by Gabriel Rosenstock; "Bert's Wonderful News" by Sam McBratney; Caitriona Hastings' "Dea-Sceala"; "Please Be Quiet" by Mary Murphy; "Ride a Pale Horse" by Tom McCaughren; "The Long March" by Marie Louise Fitzpatrick; "The Moon King" by Siobhan Parkinson"; and two from Niamh Sharkey, "The Gigantic Turnip" and "Tales of Wisdom". - The 10th anniversary of the death of John Broderick will be marked in Athlone by a commemorative weekend organised by the local Rotary Club. Taking place at the end of the month, the weekend will include an exhibition of books and memorabilia, a seminar and visits to the author's two houses in the town. - The winner of this year's IR100k IMPAC Award is British writer Andrew Miller for his first novel, "Ingenious Pain", which has been published in more than 30 countries. His second novel, "Casanova" has recently been published. - Paul Muldoon was this month elected Oxford Professor of Poetry, a position formerly held by fellow-Northerner Seamus Heaney. The five-year tenure calls for one major lecture to be delivered each year. - University College Dublin Press has issued a second edition of Richard Pine's work on playwright Brian Friel, which includes explorations of the three plays written since 1990 as well has dealing with a radio play dating from 1960. The new edition is entitled "The Diviner - the Art of Brian Friel", while the first was "Brian Friel and Ireland's Drama". (ISBN 1-900621-23-1, pp409, IR19.99) - Among recent publications from Dedalus are two works of Thomas Kinsella in the Peppercanister series, "The Familiar" and "The Godhead", and "Working for the Government", a second collection from Gerard Fanning. - Launched this month in Belfast was "Shadow-Box", the first novel from Derry-born Antonia Logue who received a Stg66k advance from publishers Bloomsbury on the strength of the first six pages. - "Stories from Tory Island", first published ten years ago, has been reissued in paperback by Town House and Country House. The author is Dorothy Harrison Therman, a frequent visitor to the island who drew on the memories of some of the older inhabitants. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= The Irish Emigrant - Book Review Cathedral Building, Middle Street, Galway, Ireland. Editor: Pauline Ferrie Tel: +353-91-569158 email: ferrie@emigrant.ie Fax: +353-91-569178 =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= ================================================================= NY Transfer News Collective * A Service of Blythe Systems Since 1985 - Information for the Rest of Us 339 Lafayette St., New York, NY 10012 http://www.blythe.org e-mail: nyt@blythe.org ================================================================= nytire-05.28.99-23:16:27-32320