Pádraig Mac Piarais – The New Study In Review
I’ve been meaning to write a review of the new biography of Pádraig Mac Piarais, “Patrick Pearse: the making of a revolutionary“ byContinue Reading
Category: Books
Britain’s Irish Civil War
In my 2011 review of historian Liz Gillis’ new Irish Civil War study “The Fall of Dublin” from Mercier Press IContinue Reading
Some New Arrivals
In recent months I have been somewhat remiss in posting no new book reviews on An Sionnach Fionn. This isContinue Reading
Colm Tóibín – Not In My Name
Over the years I’ve slowly come to dislike Colm Tóibín. He is one of that closed group of Irish writersContinue Reading
Imram 2012, Leonard Cohen And More
Today’s Irish Times has a lengthy examination by Úna Mullally of the Irish arts scene that is well worth reading:Continue Reading
Swords? Check. Boobs? Check. Giant Gun-Toting Alien Lizards? Check!
I love book covers, as some of you may know (pop over here to see why). I especially love whatContinue Reading
When Is An Irishman Not An Irishman? When The Wikinats Decide He Is British
Even the online encyclopaedia Wikipedia is not free of the extremes of British nationalism and their constant attacks on Ireland and Irishness.Continue Reading
Engineers Of The Holocaust – In Their Own Words
Being a devout atheist (so to speak) I very rarely use the word “evil”. It seems too loaded with connotationsContinue Reading
Christopher Tolkien On The Legacy Of His Father, J.R.R. Tolkien
Christopher Tolkien, the son of J.R.R., is the person who has undoubtedly done the most to explain the background and history of his father’s writing toContinue Reading
Not So Much Revising History, As Rewriting It…
Following on from my post examining the controversy raging around “Terror in Ireland 1916-1923” , the collection of historical essaysContinue Reading
Suddenly You Are Confronted By An Axe-Wielding Orc!
Fighting Fantasy! There is a name to instil some serious nostalgia in a geek of a certain age. Sci-Fi andContinue Reading
The Curse Of Peter Hart Strikes Again
A few weeks ago I linked to a review by the historian John M. Regan on the new publication “TerrorContinue Reading
The Not So-Friendly World Of Harry Potter
Fascinating article by the Israeli translator Gili Bar-Hillel and her experiences of translating J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter books into Hebrew.Continue Reading
Reading The Irish Revolution
Two lengthy but informative articles for you, both from the Dublin Review of Books (or DRB), examining aspects of theContinue Reading
Ray Bradbury 1920 – 2012
A quick post to note the passing of legendary American science-fiction writer Ray Bradbury. From the Guardian: “Ray Bradbury, who has diedContinue Reading
The Dream Of Roger Casement
Nobel prize-winner Mario Vargas Llosa has a short article in the Daily Telegraph (yes, I know, not my usual choiceContinue Reading
Mícheál Ó hAirtnéide
A quick post to mark a review by Theo Dorgan in the Irish Times of a new biography of the Irish poet Mícheál Ó hAirtnéideContinue Reading
Jeremy Brett – The Quintessential Sherlock Holmes
I’ve always been a bit of a Sherlock Homes fan (or the much more impressive Irish form, Searbhlach de Hoilm!),Continue Reading
History And Counter-History In Ireland – Confronting The Apologist Historians
Just a quick post to highlight Protestant Cork 1911-1926, one of the best resources I’ve seen so far on the issue of the alleged declineContinue Reading
Books Culture Fantasy Irish Mythology - Seanchas Teicóg (Geek Culture) The Irish Language - An Ghaeilge
In Praise Of An Hobad – But Why The Awful Gaelicisations?
The J.R.R. Tolkien fansite, TheOneRing.net, carries some news on the release of An Hobad, the Irish language version of Tolkien’sContinue Reading
“An Hobad” – The First Publication In Irish Of J.R.R. Tolkien’s “The Hobbit”
J.R.R. Tolkien’s great work of children’s fantasy literature, The Hobbit, is to be published in the Irish language for the first time. From the IrishContinue Reading
Alice Milligan – An Fíorghael
A national newspaper in Ireland carrying an article praising an Irish Republican and Revolutionary hero? Or in this case, a heroine. WhateverContinue Reading
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