The Best of Myles

Book Description

Cultural Writing. The great Irish humorist and writer Flann O'Brien, aka Brian O'Nolan, aka Myles na Gopaleen, also wrote a newspaper column called "Cruiskeen Lawn." THE BEST OF MYLES collects the best and funniest, covering such subjects as plumbers, the justice system, and improbable inventions.

Customer Reviews:

The real thing........2005-04-19

Before there was Monty Python, there was Myles. He was by far the crankiest, most learned and original comic genius of 20th-century English prose; there's simply nothing else like him. (Well, maybe there are 3 or 4 moments in "Duck Soup" that are like him.) And when you realize that this is the same guy who, under a different name, wrote "At Swim-Two-Birds" (one of the five or so funny novels for whose sake the Lord does not destroy the Earth)-- well, it's time to just surrender and enjoy.

Plus, the current Dalkey Archive edition (the publisher's name is itself a Myles reference) is handsomely made... good-quality paper and so on, don't you know. It makes a difference.

Mise, le mas, ....

Brilliant.......2002-01-01

Flann O'Brian is absolutely one of the greatest practitioners of language. This collection of his work, "The Best Of Myles", is some of the finest writing I have ever had the pleasure to read. Gaelic, English, French, German, and Latin, are 5 languages he writes fluently. He is the personification of all that is famous of Irish Wit. There appear to be few topics he did not comment upon or release a withering appraisal with pinpoint precision.

Mr. O'Brian wrote for a daily newspaper until his death in 1966. The volume and quality of the written material he produced is amazing. This 400-page book is one of five that are available and that I intend to read. There is virtually nothing about his personal history in this volume, so hopefully there is a biography in print documenting the time he spent learning and practicing his craft. The only downside to this book is that some is in Gaelic with no translation, and there are many articles that will seem to exist in isolation if the reader does not have some knowledge of Irish History. Even if these commentaries were removed, the balance of the work would still be a remarkable literary performance.

Some of the best pieces were his comments on the affectation in so many facets of daily life. And his specific attacks on, "bores", and all the pretensions of the world of modern art, and those who would pretend to posses knowledge of which they are bereft. He creates institutes and foundations and companies dedicated to servicing frauds and exposing the truth. Much is for pure fun, but like all humor contains truth. He offers the services of a company that will come to the home of any illiterate with a library, and his people will either rummage through your books for a pittance, or for a more substantial sum, will dog-ear pages, write brilliant marginalia, and leave tickets and programs to various cultural events as though they were misplaced bookmarks. And for those who have the funds, books will receive forged inscriptions from their authors, and letters of thanks to the book's owner for their help with a particularly difficult passage.

This book came at the end of 2001 for me. I hate lists of the best of the year; however nothing I have read this year surpasses this book, absolutely nothing!

The best of Flann.......2001-09-24

Good humour is something everybody likes and I yearn for. For quite a long time I thought that there could hardly be anything better, or at least as good as Ephraim Kishon's short satires or Douglas Adams' space phantasmagories. It was hard even to imagine something like that because I was sure my stomach would disintegrate after something like that. And than I ran into Flann O'Brien's The Best of Myles. Indeed, that was the first time for me to get familiar with him and certainly the best possible. His columns are far than hillarious, obviously because he plays with things we consider as common, everyday problems, and maybe not even problems. All the wild thoughts one could get in moments of being very bored O'Brien would write down and bring to their final reductio ad absurdum. He wouldn't wait to be stopped, he would just carry on scribbling complete nonsense, dipping even into some other languages like Latin or Gaelic in a wild rage of an admirable inspiration.
Yes, one more thing that admire him for. He would deal with Gaelic and even write in it, he would mock with politics and politicians, with history and society and even so, he managed to stay completely non-political. At least he left his columns that way. The Best of Myles is best to read before his longer and more ambitious works like The Third Policeman or At Swim-Two-Birds. And also after them.

Five for peerless Myles; zero for the editing........2001-02-22

this compilation contains, without qualification, THE funniest writing of the twentieth century, so it seems churlish to list complaints. Some of these are unavoidably the nature of the material - Myles na Gopaleen wrote a regular column for an Irish newspaper for a quarter of a century, so the very local concerns discussed in some of the pieces render them impenetrable to all but Irish historians.

The biggest problem is with the editing, or lack thereof. There are no explanatory notes offering historical, social or political context; there are no translatoins of the many German, Latin, Irish etc. interpellations. One could argue that this leaves us in the same position as those first newspaper readers, but Myles' predominantly middle-class audience could boast a sound classical education and a greater familiarity with the allusions so liberally scattered here than we do today.

Finally, the decision not to print the pieces chronologically (none of them are dated), but by subject, distorts the work, handicaps its versatility and can lead to repetition and tedium.

That 'the Best of Myles' remains one of the last century's few genuinely important books is entirely due to the indestructible persona(e) of Myles himself, hypercultured, alcoholic, visionary verbal contortionist with pretensions to aristocratic heritage. His phlegmatic invective at local problems such as sewage systems and the civil service are less valuable than his assault on language as it had (has?) degenerated into cliche and received opinion in the culturally sterile Ireland of the 1940s and 50s; and in his post-modern project of demolishing hierarchies of linguistic and artistic endeavour. Reading Myles has a bracing effect - he forces you out of habitual mental laziness; forces you to think HARDER.

YES! I Can Finally Own My Own Copy!.......1999-10-31

A friend lent me his copy (an Irish edition) of this book five or more years ago, and I've been searching for my own copy ever since. I'm delighted to find it's been reprinted and I just placed my order.

I envy anyone who has not yet read this book of collected columns and essays -- the outrageous details of the Ventriloquists' War, the intricacies of the Catechism of Cliche, and the wisdom of the Brother all await your delighted discovery.

Book Description

From the internationally bestselling author of London and Sarum -- a magnificent epic about love and war, family life and political intrigue in Ireland over the course of seventeen centuries. Like the novels of James Michener, The Princes of Ireland brilliantly interweaves engrossing fiction and well-researched fact to capture the essence of a place.

Edward Rutherfurd has introduced millions of readers to the human dramas that are the lifeblood of history. From his first bestseller, Sarum, to the #1 bestseller London, he has captivated audiences with gripping narratives that follow the fortunes of several fictional families down through the ages. The Princes of Ireland, a sweeping panorama steeped in the tragedy and glory that is Ireland, epitomizes the power and richness of Rutherfurd’s storytelling magic.

The saga begins in pre-Christian Ireland with a clever refashioning of the legend of Cuchulainn, and culminates in the dramatic founding of the Free Irish State in 1922. Through the interlocking stories of a wonderfully imagined cast of characters -- monks and noblemen, soldiers and rebels, craftswomen and writers -- Rutherfurd vividly conveys the personal passions and shared dreams that shaped the character of the country. He takes readers inside all the major events in Irish history: the reign of the fierce and mighty kings of Tara; the mission of Saint Patrick; the Viking invasion and the founding of Dublin; the trickery of Henry II, which gave England its foothold on the island in 1167; the plantations of the Tudors and the savagery of Cromwell; the flight of the “Wild Geese”; the failed rebellion of 1798; the Great Famine and the Easter Rebellion. With Rutherfurd’s well-crafted storytelling, readers witness the rise of the Fenians in the late nineteenth century, the splendours of the Irish cultural renaissance, and the bloody battles for Irish independence, as though experiencing their momentous impact firsthand.

Tens of millions of North Americans claim Irish descent. Generations of people have been enchanted by Irish literature, and visitors flock to Dublin and its environs year after year. The Princes of Ireland will appeal to all of them -- and to anyone who relishes epic entertainment spun by a master.

From the Hardcover edition.

Customer Reviews:

The Princes of Ireland.......2007-10-11

This novel was better than The Rebels of Ireland. It is rich with the history of Ireland. However, some of the charaterters were repetitious.

Rutherford's books.......2007-08-06

Rutherford does a great deal of research and manages to weave a lot of real history into a fictional story with finesse. The sequel, "The Rebels of Ireland", taught me more about Ireland's current culture than reading a stack of history books would have done.

Lackluster indeed.......2007-06-16

I had trouble finishing this rather boring history of Ireland. The characters are two dimensional and the whole story lacks connectedness. It was more fits and starts and then a change to a totally different time. It seemed the author was unsure if he was writing a novel or history and tried to cover too much ground at one time.

Formulaic but not bad.......2007-04-08

This is my first read of Edward Rutherford and based on several other reviews of this work, it appears that measured against the standard of his previous work, this one is perhaps not as powerful.

Not having the benefit of those previous reads, I come at this perhaps from a different point of view.

As an amateur historian and genealogist, I came to this work expecting it to give some context and progression toward a better understanding of the history of Ireland and perhaps some insight into the lives and issues of its inhabitants. I was not disappointed in that regard.

In terms of comparison there certainly is a close parallel to the works of James Michener. It also reminded me of some of the works of Morgan Llewellyn, "Lion of Ireland" although, this work doesn't quite capture the reader's imagination in terms of the development of each character.
All that said, this work doesn't quite rise to the levels of the standard-bearers in terms of the genre or the region.

Still, it is not bad. The use of recurring themes, the character continuity across generations and the use of literary devices such as a drinking skulll passed through one of of the families is done reasonably well. Interesting as well for the genealogist. is the development of the character names over time, illustrating the development and change in family names that is typical of the region.

Not 5 star material, but again, not bad. The reader looking to benefit from the reading of this book in terms of their understanding of the history and the region will not be disappointed. The reader looking solely to be entertained, may find it more work than pleasure.

I personally enjoyed it, while recognizing it probably is not Rutherford's best work.

Better Than A Sleeping Pill.......2007-02-08

I've read Sarum, London, & The Forest and really enjoyed them. This book is not nearly as good. It's just plain boring. I kept reading with the hope that the book would improve in the next chapter - needless to say my hopes were dashed! I will probably give his next book a chance, after all, every author should be allowed a "dud" now and then.

History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1)

Average customer rating:

Calculations are only as good as your numbers
Pants on fire?
Accepted History & Chronology Must Be Changed.
Very Interesting
History as Science Fiction

History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1)
Anatoly Fomenko
Manufacturer: Mithec
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 2913621058

Book Description

Recorded history is a finely-woven magic fabric of intricate lies about events predating the sixteenth century. There is not a single piece of evidence that can be reliably and independently traced back earlier than the eleventh century. This book details events that are substantiated by hard facts and logic, and validated by new astronomical research and statistical analysis of ancient sources.

Customer Reviews:

Calculations are only as good as your numbers.......2007-08-03

Yes, we can all agree that mainstream history is nearly 100% BS due to politics, economics, ego, problems with dating techniques, and various conspiracies. Agreed. But, I've been researching the distinct possibility that human history (in terms of civilizations) are much more ancient than we've been told, so coming across this book was very interesting to me. I wondered how Fomenko could be wrong (if at all) because he is very persuasive in his presentations. Then it dawned on me. If at previous times in prehistory, due to the various catastrophies that are well documented (comets, asteroids, planetary disruptions, plasma discharge, pole reversals, etc) the Earth was in a different position in relation to the sun, different tilt on its axis, different orbit, different rotation (in terms of velocity and DIRECTION), and the continents were in different positions, then would this not cause the ancients to see the sky (constellations) differently? In other words, is Fomenko making erronious assumptions about the physics of the Earth in pre-history, which then corrupt his data with regards to dating the relevant astrology? The last event to seriously disrupt our planet occured roughly 3500 years ago, according to other good researchers, so is it possible Fomenko has been confused by this? The vastly different physics of our planet in the not so distant past may explain this confusion, which is not to say the "mainstream" version of history is correct; on the contrary. I am not an expert in these fields, but wanted to see if this idea could spark discussion.

Pants on fire?.......2007-07-19

Will people ever read before spamming? Yes, Jesuits could not rewrite world history alone, they had help. Anyway, Dr Prof Acad A.Fomenko does not point to jesuits as the driving force of world wide history manipulation in published volumes 1,2,3;, actually he barely mentions the poor devils. Check it with 'Search inside' feature, please. China is rarely mentioned either, in fact, Dr Fomenko is completely eurocentric. Right, his theory contradicts all mainstream schools of history, because in their actual state they are all built on blatantly erroneus chronology. You don't need a mysterious cabal (conspiracy) to falsify history, the falsification is its modus operandi. It is inherent to history(ians) to falsify (distort) events, as it is inherent to humans to boast as it is inherent to power (authority) to legimize itself by referrring to glorious past made to its own order. Dr Prof Fomenko and team have identified scores of instances of such manipulation in Russian, European, etc.. history, and delivered valid statistical proof thereof. His own 'reconstruction' is completely another story. Forget c14 as a valid method of dating. W.Libby has initially discovered a brilliant method of INDEPENDENT dating. Too bad, c14 method has become a joke after a forced marrige with dendrochronology with consensual chronological scale inbuilt. Radiocarbon method can't stand blind tests, but is so very productive as a rubberstamp.

Accepted History & Chronology Must Be Changed. .......2007-04-09

There is no doubt that history as most know it is a sham, & institution's version of History both University & Church is fradulent & inaccurate. Everything was established with an agenda, The real "Dark Ages" are now when we have access to incredible amounts of information past authorities & more important 'common folk' didn't have but our institutions & educators are slow to evolve because of what has ignorantly & arrogantly been taught for too long. This is on many subjects not just Chronology.

For anyone to question "Why would a Mathematician have anything credible to say of History?" The answer is from Dr. Fomenko's preface in the book: "It would be worthwhile to remind the reader that in the XVI-XVII century Chronology was considered to be a subdivision of Mathematics." These volumes could possibly be some of the most important works to date & should be read by everyone with an interest in History, especially professors & educators who have a duty to the public. I have read both books & must say that 'Chronology 1' has some very eye opening & revolutionary information. Even if these volumes are part true the implications are profound & opens the doors to further investigations & questions which must be done. I speak several different lanquages & must say the logic Dr. Fomenko uses with "inflection" of words & words being read from left to right in one region & right to left in another then written backwards, the removal of vowels & get down to basics of words, or different cities & locations having the same name etc. is correct. Vowel usage has always been optional & varied, actually complicating linquistics & study. The first thing one has to understand is that words never had a fixed spelling in history like we do now, the spelling of words was mutable & regional, as well as names & titles of people were vast, varied & changed, NOTHING WAS FIXED or understood linear. Matters of Life & Death as well as financial profiteering yesterday & today were & are made with ignorant, illogical & conspiratorial views of history & reality, it's time people get closer to the Truth & society collectively grow up.

Very Interesting.......2007-03-07

It is a good proposal and I believe it will mature into something even better in the future. I think it deserves to be read.

History as Science Fiction.......2007-01-10

Anatoly Fomenko has written a very intriguing book, full of pictures, charts, and computer 'proof' of his thesis: backwards of AD900 we don't really know what happened or when. Between AD900 and AD1600 there is more certainty, but there is still a lot of fuzzy ground, and things don't get reliable until we get past the 1600's where the printing press made it very difficult for the perpetrators of this timeline manipulation to change anything that had been committed to print. The Dark Ages did not happen. Books were burned for a reason. One organization has doubled the actual length of its existence by expanding the real chronology. Read why.

I had always wondered why Christ died about AD33 and yet men waited until the 11th century to form the Knights Templar, the Cathars, etc and go after the Holy Land by force. Why the 1000 year gap? Turns out there wasn't more than a 10-12 year gap and he proves it using astronomy. This also implies that the planet is not as old as we have been told, and current Christian and other creationist scientists are already championing that idea without being aware of Fomenko's book. The two groups, creationist scientists and the Russian mathematical analysts corroborate each other. Fascinating.

Of course, all this flies in the face of what we have been told traditionally is the 'proper' chronology of western civilization, and most readers will experience 'cognitive dissonance' in reading this book. It means that our history going backwards from AD1600 becomes progressively more incorrect and unreliable until it cannot be trusted at all... in the space of 700-800 years.

Naturally, the curious, open-minded reader will want to know WHO did this, WHY, and did any of the events we think of as really ancient ever happen?
Dr. Fomenko is a respected scientist/mathematician at Moscow State University who has already answered these questions to the satisfaction of his initially skeptical colleagues. Most of them are now believers, a few still refuse to believe (the usual diehards), and of course the western press has ignored Fomenko's work -- for obvious reasons when you read the book. The ones who perpetrated this chronology ruse have a lot to answer for. They are still with us. That's why this book is a well-kept secret.

I gave the book a 4-star rating because I was unable to check out some of his claims; those I checked were as he said. But if even 1/3 of his claims are true, this punches a big hole in what we think is our history, the meaning of western civilization, our educational process (for repeating the ruse as gospel), and the trustworthiness of the organization that perpetrated this ruse, well-intentioned or not.

This book relates to current research into a Young Earth paradigm, to John Keel's discoveries about our planet, and Fr Malachi Martin's insights (in his now out-of-print books). We are indeed sheep who are manipulated and kept ignorant -- for a reason. While knowing what these men have to say may be the "booby prize" (as in: 'what can you do with this knowledge?'), it will provide interesting reading. Didn't someone say: "...and the Truth will set you free."?? For you to judge if this book contains the truth.

Enlightening the World: Encyclopedie, The Book That Changed the Course of History

Average customer rating:

Easy Reading Generalizations But Not Bad
Encyclopedie
The real importance of the Encyclopedie comes to life in this history of its controversies
A good read
Before the Wikipedia...

Enlightening the World: Encyclopedie, The Book That Changed the Course of History
Philipp Blom
Manufacturer: Palgrave Macmillan
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 1403968950
Release Date: 2005-04-21

Book Description

In 1777 several of the world's greatest men gathered together to create a book that would champion rationalism, free thinking, and secularism--the Encyclopédie. Such leading minds as Diderot, Rousseau, and Voltaire conceived of a work that would tear down the social order dominated by the Crown and Church, a brave act at a time when heresy could still be punished by death. During the years it took to produce all twenty-seven volumes, the writers faced exile, jail, and censorship. But when they were done, they had created a book that would provide the foundation for the Enlightenment and change the world forever. Novelist and historian Philipp Blom presents the story behind the sixteen-year struggle to create the Encyclopédie, the men who wrote it, the powerful forces that tried to suppress it, and the tremendous impact it had on the world.

Customer Reviews:

Easy Reading Generalizations But Not Bad.......2007-03-10

This volume is a bit thin as history but an easy read and useful for those who want an easy way to get their head around d'Alembert and Diderot's Encyclopedie project. I like the book but don't consider it "high book" scholarship. With those qualifications, however, I'd recommed for the casual reader. D'Alembert's Preface to the Enclopedie is far "deeper," and provides a better summary. This is a nice book, worth having, but a bit of a coffee table edition, perhaps.

Encyclopedie.......2006-12-17

Philipp Blom is a delightful writer and this is a fascinating and highly entertaining history of the great French Encyclopedie created over the course of 25 turbulent years in the mid-1700s. Despite the title, this is really a book about people, with the encyclopedie as thread to tie the stories together. I have very little background in 18th C European/French history Blom makes it entirely accessible for novice and expert alike (although I suspect many of the stories here are well worn, but new to me, and well told). Probably the greatest compliment is I want to learn more about those involved, probably starting with a biography of Rousseau. This book easily sits besides Simon Winchester's "The Meaning of Everything" and Henry Hitchings "Defining the World". As another reviewer mentioned, anyone with an interest in Wikipedia will find it fascinating.

The real importance of the Encyclopedie comes to life in this history of its controversies.......2005-12-03

What was the real significance of the 'Encyclopedie' by Diderot and d'Alembert? Many will say its size and date of appearance marked it as special: Philipp Blom reveals its significance lie in its blend of politics, honesty and ideas which went against the Church and Crown alike in its effort to provide unbiased truth. Its publication was to underwrite the values of two centuries to come, with philosophers Denis Diderot and Jean-Jacques Rousseau and medical scientist Louis de Jaucourt living through arrest, imprisonment, attacks and more for their achievement. The real importance of the Encyclopedie comes to life in this history of its controversies.

A good read.......2005-09-04

Not the usual turgid history book of pre-revolutionary France but instead a very good, readable depiction of the trials and difficulties of creating the Encyclopedie. The prose is fluid and the book almost reads like a novel.

Before the Wikipedia..........2005-08-10

At a time when postmodern critiques of the Enlightenment downplay its significance it is useful to look at the phenomenon beyond abstraction in its particulars and vivid detail. Here the history of Diderot and his Encyclopedia brings the moment to life, and is a reminder of what the philosophes wrought in world still dominated by Church and King. The immense task of the work against the perils of censorship is close to a working miracle, and the tribulations of Diderot from the first lettre du cachet that put him in Vincennes prison are heroic. Diderot's dissatisfaction with his labors seem irrelevant now since this world-historical contribution to the Information Revolution is his great legacy.

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A Complex, Enlightening and Generally Superb Journey

Family Romance: A Love Story
John Lanchester
Manufacturer: Putnam Adult
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0399153004

Book Description

A memoir by the acclaimed novelist The Wall Street Journal called "blessed with a sense of history, a feeling for place, an observant eye for detail, and an elegant no-frills style."

In their particulars, the Lanchesters were not Every Family. The father was an international banker, the mother a former nun. Yet in the dynamic of family life, their patterns are instantly recognizable. The heart of that dynamic is a built-in tug-of-war: to a young child, a sense of loving protection becomes, as he matures, a set of barriers to be overcome. In his richly told story, John Lanchester brings this dynamic to life, and in the process makes us think about our own family story and about the legacy-emotional, social, intellectual-our parents pass on to us, generation to generation, the bitter with the best.

It was only when his mother died that Lanchester realized how little he really knew his parents. That, too, is in the nature of families: parents keep secrets from their children, and children are happy to acquiesce, not wanting to disturb their universe. But with Julie Lanchester's death-and the cache of papers and letters she left behind-Lanchester set out to reconstruct just who his parents had been. In doing so, he gained extraordinary insight into his own nature, and a deeper understanding of theirs. And because he has the wisdom to see the universal aspects of his story, Family Romance resonates for anyone who has ever felt the push-pull of family love.

Part detective work, part remarkable evocation of character, Family Romance is, above all, compelling storytelling.

Customer Reviews:

A Complex, Enlightening and Generally Superb Journey.......2007-10-13

Most families have secrets. Sometimes those secrets are held BY family members; other times they are held FROM family members. And sometimes a bit of both. John Lanchester explores the circumstances and consequences of these dynamics in this genuinely wonderful book.
He begins with his grandparents, and takes us on a complicated journey through the generations that followed. The geography of the book is broad and interesting in itself - Africa, Ireland, England, Australia, Burma, even Brunei, and - perhaps especially - Hong Kong.
Lanchester tells his mother's story, then his father's, and then the story of their marriage and his childhood. It is as interesting for the things he didn't know about and/or took for granted as it is for the chronology and analysis of his early life.
We know from the book's jacket that his mother took on a new identity after leaving the convent. The ease with which she managed this early case of identity theft is staggering and, in an odd way, admirable.
However, there was for me a major twist as the story developed; it involves Lanchester himself, and the struggles he has had coming to terms with life, with writing and just being in the world. I found his story intensely moving and honest - almost a story within the story, but still fitting the overall context.
By chance, I read this book while on holiday, and the other book I read was Bill Bryson's memoir, "Life & Times of the Thunderbolt Kid." Bryson announces that "growing up was easy. It required no thought or effort on my part." This is a long way from the experience of John Lanchester, and while Bryson is a witty jotter, Lanchester is a deeply insightful and (yet?) very readable author.
Fans of his fiction will love Family Romance, and new readers will warm to him very quickly. I hope he gives us more of himself in the years ahead.

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Captivating
An Inspiring Story
Wish I had Read it Sooner!!
A delight to both to the palate and the mind
a heart warming story

Pomegranate Soup: A Novel
Marsha Mehran
Manufacturer: Random House Trade Paperbacks
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Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0812972481
Release Date: 2006-09-12

Book Description

Beneath the holy mountain Croagh Patrick, in damp and lovely County Mayo, sits the small, sheltered village of Ballinacroagh. To the exotic Aminpour sisters, Ireland looks like a much-needed safe haven. It has been seven years since Marjan Aminpour fled Iran with her younger sisters, Bahar and Layla, and she hopes that in Ballinacroagh, a land of “crazed sheep and dizzying roads,” they might finally find a home.

From the kitchen of an old pastry shop on Main Mall, the sisters set about creating a Persian oasis. Soon sensuous wafts of cardamom, cinnamon, and saffron float through the streets–an exotic aroma that announces the opening of the Babylon Café, and a shock to a town that generally subsists on boiled cabbage and Guinness served at the local tavern. And it is an affront to the senses of Ballinacroagh’s uncrowned king, Thomas McGuire. After trying to buy the old pastry shop for years and failing, Thomas is enraged to find it occupied–and by foreigners, no less.

But the mysterious, spicy fragrances work their magic on the townsfolk, and soon, business is booming. Marjan is thrilled with the demand for her red lentil soup, abgusht stew, and rosewater baklava–and with the transformation in her sisters. Young Layla finds first love, and even tense, haunted Bahar seems to be less nervous.

And in the stand-up-comedian-turned-priest Father Fergal Mahoney, the gentle, lonely widow Estelle Delmonico, and the headstrong hairdresser Fiona Athey, the sisters find a merry band of supporters against the close-minded opposition of less welcoming villagers stuck in their ways. But the idyll is soon broken when the past rushes back to threaten the Amnipours once more, and the lives they left behind in revolution-era Iran bleed into the present.

Infused with the textures and scents, trials and triumph,s of two distinct cultures, Pomegranate Soup is an infectious novel of magical realism. This richly detailed story, highlighted with delicious recipes, is a delectable journey into the heart of Persian cooking and Irish living.

From the Hardcover edition.

Customer Reviews:

Captivating.......2007-09-18

Being of Irish heritage, I wanted to read this book from an outsider perpsective. It captivated me from the get go.

An Inspiring Story.......2007-08-19

Pomegranate Soup is the encouraging story about three Iranian women who escape before the Revolution and who do great things with their lives. I have read other stories about women living in Iran: Not Without My Daughter and Reading Lolita in Tehran. Both of these are are biographical accounts of the traumas women have gone through since the Revolution. Pomegranate Soup is a fictional story, but the author is Iranian, so this novel has a very real feel to it. So even through the Marjan, Bahar, and Layla go through some rough times in Iran, this book shows the positive things they do to improve their futures. I love the positive message this books sends about making lemonade when given lemons. It is nice to read an account about Iranian women that is uplifting and not discouraging. However, the other two book I listed are interesting and informative, and I encourage others to read those as well.

The recipes in this book are so good and I encourage everyone to try these. Marjan's character is so comforting because she is the oldest sister and the mind and hands behind the Babylon Cafe. She often puts her own needs aside to attend to her over emotional sister Bahar and to keep an eye of the energetic teenager Layla. Marjan finally learns that she does not have to be in charge of everything, but I will let you read the novel to figure this out.

Bahar is an emotionally sensitive character and you just have to love her. At first it seems she has been more sheltered than Marjan, but as the book progresses, we learn that she has gone through things that have made her the reserved person she is today. Through the story Bahar has many growing pains, but she is learning to become a stable woman.

Layla is the youngest sister and she has been haunted by the memories of the past, but she is also more carefree because most of her life has been spent in the UK. She is the only one of the girls who has ever been able to have the freedom to just be a teenager and come and go as she pleases, and this troubles Bahar a little bit. However, everyone loves Layla and as you read the book you will learn why. I thought it was clever how the author incorporated parts of the legend of Persian legend of Layla into the modern day character of Layla. I had never known that Eric Clapton's song about Layla was based on the fable of a man who is deprived of the woman he loves, so I learned something new.

This book is a true joy and it shows all the wonderful things that can happen to people who are willing to make the world a better place.

Wish I had Read it Sooner!!.......2007-08-12

The year is 1986 and the Aminpour sisters, Marjan, Bahar and Layla have traveled from their birth home, Tehran, Iran (via Lewishan, London) to the small village of Ballinacroagh, Ireland. The home they have left behind was at the height of revolution and unsafe for three parentless young women. They escaped with their wits, a few possessions and memorabilia, and a few bruises (inside and out).

The tight-knit family opens up the Babylon Café featuring Persian food to entice and enliven the senses of the villagers. They choose to open the restaurant on the Iranian New Year (first day of Spring) for luck. Traffic is slow to non-existent at first but soon they are attracting a lively array of patrons.

I fell in love with these three sisters and the quirky folk whose lives they touched and vice versa. Marjan Aminpour is the eldest at 27. She acts as the surrogate mother since the early demise of both their parents. She is a natural cultivator and food preparer. Bahar Aminpour is 24. She jumps into things quickly, including assumptions. At times she seems like a deer caught in the headlights. And if that wasn't enough she suffers from stress-induced migraines caused by always looking over her shoulder for the abusive husband she left in Iran. Layla is the youngest at 15. She is also the most beautiful of the three. Her natural cinnamon rose scent is an aphrodisiac for men who pass by. Within her heart she carries the hope of the future.

Between each chapter is a special recipe, thirteen in total and as you delve into each chapter you find further details relating to the recipe, cooking, and anecdotes on the spices or herbs used. So far I've only tried the baklava and red lentil soup (fabulous) but I'm collecting the ingredients to try more. I've also been inspired by Marjan's efforts into starting my own herb garden. What a great concept incorporating recipes into a novel.

Here is a listing of the recipes tucked within Pomegranate Soup's pages:

-dolmeh
-red lentil soup
-baklava
-dugh yogurt drink
-abgusht
-elephant ears
-lavish bread
-torshi
-chelow
-fesenjoon
-migraine headache remedy
-pomegranate soup
-after dinner lavender-mint tea

Marsha Mehran is a good story teller and her words are effortless, uncluttered and smooth. This is one of my favorite books this year. I enjoyed this book so much I wish I had read it sooner. This is the first book in a series Mehran plans to continue and I look forward to reading more about the Aminpour sisters and the Ballinacroagh crew. Reviewed by M. E. Wood. Full review at the Literary Fiction site at BellaOnline.com.

A delight to both to the palate and the mind.......2007-03-08

With unlikely characters in backcountry Ireland, (three Iranian sisters fleeing the Iranian Revolution and a haunting past). The author invites you to taste what it is like for the sisters escaping the far reaching dangers of what they left behind in Tehran and introducing a Persian Cafe to a steak and potatoes town in the late 1970s. The result is both comical and riveting. The author has a gift in depicting true country Irish dialect and the Persian recipes included are simple and an absolute delight to the palate. I read this book for a woman's book club and enjoyed it so much I bought three additional copies to give as gifts to friends and family who enjoy not only a good novel but the love of cooking and what warmth scrumptious recipes can bring.

a heart warming story.......2006-11-07

the kind of book u want to read when its snowing outside and ure snuggled up under a warm blanket drinking a hot sweet cup of chai....

The Celtic Heroic Age: Literary Sources for Ancient Celtic Europe & Early Ireland & Wales

Average customer rating:

Good literal translations, many source texts in one central place
The Celtic Heroic Age
An Interesting Read
THE sourcebook for serious Celtic studies
An invaluable resource for students of Celtic history

The Celtic Heroic Age: Literary Sources for Ancient Celtic Europe & Early Ireland & Wales

Manufacturer: David Brown Book Company
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 1891271091

Book Description

This is the fourth edition of an invaluable collection of literary sources, all in translation, for Celtic Europe and early Ireland and Wales. The selections are divided into three sections: the first is classical authors on the ancient Celts-a huge selection including both the well-known - Herodotos, Plato, Aristotle, Livy, Diogenes Laertius, and Cicero-and the obscure -Pseudo-Scymnus, Lampridius, Vopsicus, Clement of Alexandria and Ptolemy I. The second is early Irish and Hiberno-Latin sources including early Irish dynastic poetry and numerous tales from the Ulster cycle; and the third consists of Brittonic sources, mostly Welsh. This edition includes three new early Irish tales, translated by Máirín Ní Dhonnchadha: The Birth of Áed Sláine; Fingal Rónáin, and the Story of Mis and Dubh Rois.

Customer Reviews:

Good literal translations, many source texts in one central place.......2005-12-26

"The Celtic Heroic Age" is billed as an introductory text for Celtic studies, but I would be nervous about that without more of an understanding of the world in which it's set. It's a series of translations of Celtic texts and references to them in Classical lore. In almost all cases, it's just English, though some of the shrine inscriptions have the original tongues side by side. The translations are very prosaic, as far as I can tell. They convey the information just fine, but for poetic resonance, Kinsella eats them for breakfast. The focus here seems to be on rendering the text as literally as possible, not in telling a good story. That's fine by me -- the book is intended as a reference, and it's often extremely useful to have a minimally interpreted version.

Reading the Classical sources, it helps *immensely* to have an understanding of the biases and agendas of the Classical world, and to have read some of the archaeological references. It helps you separate historical fact from Roman propaganda. The text does not do this for you; it's your job to figure out that Caesar was trying to conquer Gaul, and that these missives were his newsletters to home. There's no background on what the Greeks thought of barbaroi in general, or what qualities they esteemed before they condemned people in entirely unflattering terms. Knowing these things will help set the texts in perspective.

I enjoyed rereading new (to me) translations of many familiar stories. I still have a hard time wading through all the repetitive descriptions of each warrior's clothes, chariot, leg hair, etc., but it's at least less dull now that I catch some of the allusions and intended associations/meanings each time through. I would recommend this book as a reference to Celtic geeks -- it is damn handy to have so many source texts in one place. It's predominantly Irish texts, so it's most useful to insular Celtic folks, but there are Welsh texts and a scattering of Continental inscriptions and references in there too.

The Celtic Heroic Age.......2000-06-02

This book is a brilliant kick off point for anyone interested in the real ancient celts. It consists in the main of translations of historical texts. Most people are reasonably au fait with the insular texts thanks to the romantic movement, but fully half the book is dedicated to the comments that the ancient Greeks and Romans made about them. These "first hand" accounts are otherwise difficult for the beginner to find which is sad as I feel that they show what these great people were really like. A great read.

An Interesting Read.......1999-12-29

Although I don't have any formal academic background in Celtic Studies, I found this book to be very approachable. It gives easy-to-follow translations of the original text alongside fascinating insights on ancient Britain and Ireland. For the hobbyist it can be hard to find books on Celtic lore which both are readable and have substance -- this does both nicely.

THE sourcebook for serious Celtic studies.......1999-03-20

I have used this book in my classes on Celtic literature and mythology, and have found nothing else comes close for classical and medieval sources on the Celts. It is a collection of translated original material to be used by those interested in real, as opposed to fanciful, Celtic studies.

An invaluable resource for students of Celtic history.......1998-10-04

I studied under Prof. Koch in college and was among the "guinea pig" group who used the first printing of this book in class. I wisely kept the book after I graduated, and it has come in very handy for personal research and reference when arguing minutiae of Celtic history with other dilettantes. There is a wealth of uncommon and obscure information in the book, all free of editorialization and personal biases or opinions by the editors.

Readers looking for books to curl up with, be warned: this isn't a straight narrative, but consists instead of fragments and annotations from primary and secondary sources dating back 2,000 years, from the first encounters with the people from mainland Europe whom the Greeks called "Keltoi" to Medieval stories about the Cornish King Arthur and his knights.

Average customer rating:

brilliant but slightly bogged down

If you've not been there, go.

Good, not great, worth a quick read...

Understated Look at Belfast

Would have been five stars if not for the big words.........

Eureka Street: A Novel of Ireland Like No Other
Robert Mcliam Wilson
Manufacturer: Ballantine Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Cal Cal

Resurrection Man: A Novel

Opened Ground: Selected Poems, 1966-1996

The Vintage Book of Contemporary Irish Fiction

ASIN: 0345427130
Release Date: 1999-02-22

Amazon.com

Romantic Ireland is definitely dead and gone. With the exhilarating Eureka Street, Robert McLiam Wilson cheerfully and obscenely sends it to its grave. Jake Jackson, his thoughtful anti-hero, finds Belfast's tragedies are built on comedy: Catholics and Protestants so intent on declaring their differences "resembled no one now as much as they resembled each other…. That was what I liked about Belfast hatred. It was a lumbering hatred that could survive completely on the memories of things that never existed in the first place." He spends a certain amount of time worrying about seeming too Catholic and an equal amount worrying about not seeming sufficiently Catholic. Sometimes, after several drinks, Jake forgets that he's not a Protestant. Each position is as dangerous, and absurd, as the other. His best friend is less torn up. Chuckie Lurgan is a chubby Methodist whose only accomplishments so far have been shaking Reagan's hand, appearing in the same photo as the Pope, and having "an intense and troubling relationship with mail-order catalogues." But Chuckie suddenly surprises Jake with his first entrepreneurial scheme. Though he's placed an ad for an enormous sex toy in Northern Ireland's "only mucky paper," he hasn't any intention of ever fulfilling an order. Instead, he follows legal protocol and sends each disappointed customer a refund check, in the proper amount, stamped GIANT DILDO REFUND. The gamble is that most people will be too embarrassed to cash them. "Chuckie smiled the smile of the just-published poet." And soon he has more than 40,000 pounds in the bank and a lust for big money. He also has a rich, new girlfriend: "He hoped his dreams wouldn't suffer from all this reality."

Jake is more preoccupied with the day-to-day. His construction site job gives him ample opportunity to consider his romantic failures and the ever-present symbols of war. There's also a new graffito that has sprouted among the various deadly acronyms. IRA, UVF, and UDA make no more sense than OTG, but at least everyone knows what they stand for. OTG becomes a puzzle to all of Belfast--is it, the authorities wonder, a new terrorist group? (Jake also notes several other phrases, FTP, FTQ, and FTNP--the "T" stands for the and "P" and "Q" for Pope and Queen. The "N" is for Next.) Despite his love for Belfast, Jake loses heart with its zealots and fanatics and, halfway through, Eureka Street threatens to slide into windy bathos. It's only a momentary lapse amid energetic, colloquial poetry and comic realism.

Book Description

In a city blasted by years of force and fury, but momentarily stilled by a cease-fire, two unlikely friends search for that most human of needs: love. But of course, a night of lust will do. Jake Jackson and Chuckie Lurgan--one Catholic, one Protestant--navigate their sectarian city and their nonsectarian friendship with wit and style. Chuckie, an unemployed dreamer, stumbles into bliss with a beautiful American who lives in Belfast. Jake, a repo man with the soul of a poet, can only manage a hilarious war of insults with a spitfire Republican whose Irish name, properly pronounced, sounds like someone choking.

Brilliant, exuberant, and bitingly funny, Eureka Street introduces us to one of the finest young writers to emerge from Ireland in years.

Customer Reviews:

brilliant but slightly bogged down.......2006-04-02

At the outset, I was enthralled by the character of Jake. His first-person-narrative is engaging, humorous, perceptive, and acutely witty. Throughout the book Jake's surprising awareness and recognizable psychology never cease to beguile me, and I almost wish that Wilson had written a novel of Jake and not a novel of Ireland. However, even the narration of the ridiculous life of Chuckie is entertaining enough to keep me reading. Wilson's incisive depiction of Belfast is informative and heartfelt, but slightly saccharine. I appreciate his insider's opinion of a city with which the greater world isn't generally acquainted, but too often his descriptions turn into rambling. Chapter ten is particularly effusive on that point.

The development of his male characters is intelligently and smoothly done, and the unfolding of events during the first half of the book is compelling. He also elocutes very well the inescapable politics governing the lives of his Northern Irish characters. Sometimes the author's self-assured political rants are irritating, and at other times the reader is left floundering in the deluge of unbelievable political scenarios in which Chuckie is placed. Unfortunately, when Wilson's politics wash up in America, they take on a familiarly cliched ring. His America is naive, vapid, and predictable. He was clearly as investigative of the United States as those who propagated the idea that America was full of cowboys and Indians in bygone days. While he succeeds at capturing something that a foreigner can appreciate as an earnest examination of Belfast/Ireland, his sloppy and banal illustration of the U.S. goes only so far as to capture the essence of an America created by television and chic rhetoric. The past of his female American character, Max, is filled with none other than sex, drugs, and self-inflicted abuse. Like all of the book's female characters (except for, perhaps, Chuckie's mother, Peggy), Max is depthless and ill-conceived.

The idea motivating the book was admirable, but the product was something less than I think Wilson was hoping for. His purpose would have been much better served if he had provided us with something simpler by giving a singular perspective (namely, that of the most interesting character: Jack) and if he had kept the politics subtle. Whatever its flaws, the novel has some brilliant attributes that make it too good to dismiss, and I won't be surprised if Wilson's other attempts have a bit more success with me.

If you've not been there, go........2006-04-01

Wilson's description of Belfast is, in itself, one of the most beautiful pieces of regional description you'll ever find. Now, take that and put in stories of the silliness and sadness that humans do in the name of whatever's handy and you can't help but be engrossed. If you know Belfast, you'll be at home. If you don't, maybe this'll be the book that gets you off your duff.

Good, not great, worth a quick read..........2005-08-07

I love the setting and the way that Wilson indulges his obvious love for Belfast as place. I also enjoyed the perspective that his characters support- the supposition that war and strife are bad is a difficult one to say yet again but his zealous and very human spin on this theory nearly pulls it off. But most of all this book has so much high octane wit (at least in its first half) that it makes a mere sparring partner out of the heavy subject matter. Quite a trick, that- to make palatable such stomach turning material is homage to the author's scythery, when he keeps focus.
Unfortunately the wheels fall off when the attention lazily turns to the sappy and not fully dimensioned second person "chuckie" character. I don't know if the Author OD'd on too much Vonnegut or something during his brief stint in America but the detached humanistic satire becomes very sloppy as the plot veers into far fetched territory. The lazy depiction of America-as-viewed by a fresh off the boat irishman is neither clever nor original nor even all that funny. Chuckie calls back to Ireland to tell his friend that he's already been mugged twice is just plain silly.
I wonder some times what happens to an author's concentration level that a startlingly crystalline narrative is given up in favor of gloppy second person omniscient been there done that satire.

Maybe Wilson has a start to finish actually great book in him yet. Hope so.

Understated Look at Belfast.......2003-09-11

Wilson's "Eureka Street" is a look at Belfast that is not redily available in the U.S. The character's are not. They are people with definative characteristics. The interwoven tale using different narration techniques lets the story unfold and does not overload the reader with unending minutia that is, unfortunately, all too common in fiction today.
A great book that would be five stars, but I'm waiting for his next book, which I'm sure will not dissapoint.

Would have been five stars if not for the big words................2003-02-11

Robert McLiam Wilson attended Cambridge so I should cut the obvious intellectual some slack; however, I can't get past his usage of enormous words every few pages in this book.

The book, overall, is hilarious, well-crafted, witty, and extremely entertaining. It is introspective and thought-arousing. The theme is based on a peculiar friendship set in extremely peculiar times in northen Ireland. The two men in the friendship - one a Catholic, one a Protestant - find themselves looking out at the nightmarish battle plagued streets where they desperately try to find meaning and purpose in their everyday lives. I loved the plot and you will too, but be warned, you will find such words as(get ready):

elocutionary, incongruous, aggregate, bourgeois, desultory, wintry, lissom, quandry, protozoic, copiously, opprobrium, ecumencial, lexical, coquetry, litany, cuckolded, cerebrospinal, pallid, suffused, goaded, pugilistic, volubly, galvanized, reticent, ominously, osculate, and many, many more. Also take note: all of these words can be found in the first one-hundred pages of the book!

Now, before you Cambridge grads barbeque me too bad, please understand that most of us - your everyday bums from your everyday places - don't use words like litany, mannish, proletarian, incongruous, or ecumenicalism in our everyday vocabulary. Most people I know - and there are many - would be hard-pressed to use a word like "mundane, nonchalance, or imperative." Something tells me that Mr. Wilson doesn't use all these words either - although he just might.

Book Description

The Tain Bo Cuailnge, centre-piece of the eighth-century Ulster cycle of heroic tales, is Ireland's greatest epic. It tells the story of a great cattle-raid, the invasion of Ulster by the armies of Medb and Ailill, queen and king of Connacht, and their allies, seeking to carry off the great Brown Bull of Cuailnge. The hero of the tale is Cuchulainn, the Hound of Ulster, who resists the invaders single-handed while Ulster's warriors lie sick. Thomas Kinsella presents a complete and living version of the story. His translation is based on the partial texts in two medieval manuscripts, with elements from other versions, and adds a group of related stories which prepare for the action of the Tain. Illustrated with brush drawings by Louis le Brocquy, this edition provides a combination of medieval epic and modern art.

Customer Reviews:

Cuchulainn.......2007-06-15

To keep it short and sweet this is a must read for anyone interested in Irish history and culture, Celtic Heathenry, Odinism, mythology or general Celtic studies. One of the most essential texts for learning about any of these things but besides that the saga of Cuchulainn is a great entertaining story too.

Unoriginal.......2005-10-05

Lots of killing but not a very deep story and it just keeps going and going.

Very Interesting.......2005-08-01

This is a very readable translation of a major pre-Christian Irish epic. Conventionally translated as the Cattle Raid of Cooley, The Tain is the story of a raid into the Kingdom of Ulster by the warriors of Connacht led by their King and Queen. The epic itself is presented with some ancillary tales that introduce several of the major figures in The Tain. Several aspects are similar to the Iliad and other epics originating in non-literate societies. There is the prominence of individual warrior-heroes, usually figures with semi-divine attributes. Most of the action consists of individual combats and the language features repetive poetic figures, a strong emphasis on description of weapons and individual possessions, and generally patriarchal mores. While the language is interesting, this is certainly not the poetic masterpiece that the Iliad is. The most interesting aspect is the role of Medb, usually translated as Maeve, the Queen of Connacht. While the world of the Tain is clearly a strongly patriarchial society, Medb is a powerful monarch, essentially co-equal in authority with her husband and his superior in charisma. She is independent even in sexual matters. Well worth reading.

Best of Ancient Mythology.......2004-04-01

This is one of the greatest mythological tales recorded. Unlike what the summary says, it is not the 'closest thing Ireland has to a national epic'. The Irish national epic would be the Leabhar Gabhala, the Book of Invasions, or possible the Fenian Cycle. It is the certainly the great epic of Ulster, however, and I don't mean to reduce it at all.
The literary wealth, the humor, violent single combat, and glimpse into Gaelic culture makes this a must-read for anyone who wants to understand the ancient (and modern) Irish.
Beir bua!

Much easier to read than the direct translations.......2002-08-16

This is a great story.

Average customer rating:

Truth and Beauty
Semantics
Chuig an mé mhuinta scafóideach
Yerra, Be-Jaysus, not another one of the lot
A brilliant story, richly told

In the Province of Saints: A Novel
Thomas O'Malley
Manufacturer: Little, Brown and Company
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0316110396

Book Description

An unforgettable first novel about a young boy growing up in rural Ireland, in the shadow of a dark secret.

Customer Reviews:

Truth and Beauty.......2006-05-07

As the New York Times and The Washington Post suggest, this is, indeed, a beautiful, heartbreaking tale in which the lives of real people in difficult circumstances are explored. This may, truly, be depressing to readers who have never had to endure hardship or poverty or experience violence in their lives but O'Malley has a need to explore people whose lives aren't as comfortable as ours, people who endure and succeed despite the hard choices that they must make-this seems such an integral and necessary function of the human condition and of living and O'Malley captures this fully. Perhaps those readers (I'm amazed by the reviewer who critiques the book without even finishing it?) who have never had to experience hardship or never been witness to it are merely more complacent than some of us and desire fictions that offer a safe, alternative perspective to this reality. That is entirely their choice. Myself, I eagerly await O'Malley's next work!

Semantics.......2006-04-20

A number of reader reviews have used the word "heartbreaking" to describe this book. I have not finished reading it yet, but I'm not sure about "heartbreaking": I'm finding it downright depressing. The writing is magnificent: O'Malley's powers of description are formidable - darkly poetic and even magisterial. But the gloom is relentless. In the hope that it will begin to soar as it reaches its resolution I'll persevere.

Chuig an mé mhuinta scafóideach .......2006-03-16

In the Province of Saints is an exquisitely written book that reveals the real Ireland that many of us Irish experienced in the years before the Celtic Tiger. It's too bad that the reviewer, Seaghaan Mar, cannot see past his petty prejudices to truly read and appreciate this beautifully crafted book. Perhaps he was reading a book other than this one? It is clear from his comments that he has no real understanding of the Irish or of our experiences (hardly folklore). O'Malley's characters are rich and fully realized, and every moment of rural life is captured with such precision and authenticity that one feels the author's love and respect for these people. There is darkness here and the hardships are those that many Irish have experienced, but this does nothing to dim this distinct vision nor does it lessen the worth and meaning of such hardships. O'Malley writes without a shred of self-pity or sentimentality and this is a testament to his maturity, and that in the very dark yet very real moments of these character's lives O'Malley casts light, tenderness, and hope. He shows us all the darkness so that we may see the light, something every person (Irish or otherwise) can understand. With In the Province of Saints, O'Malley reveals his authority and command as a writer, a writer mature beyond his years, and already, it seems, masterful in the form. No wonder Booklist has chosen this book as one of the ten best first books of 2005 and the New York Public Library has picked it as one of the best twenty five books from last year, in their Books to Remember for 2005.

I look forward to reading more from this promising writer.

Yerra, Be-Jaysus, not another one of the lot.......2006-03-09

Another dreadful sceal on mBealoideas e seo (a story from the folklore this is)about the horrors of Loife in Oul' Oireland, the bogs, mud, eternal rain, crucified mothers, drunken, good-fer-nothin' Da's, poverty so crushing it could be called Gaelic, emotional poverty so deep it's a wonder everyone doesn't commit suicide. Except they are Catholic, with all of those penitential burdens. They just run off--to Sasana, Boston. This story needs Myles na gCopalin to do it justice. Are any people as deeply self-deprecating as the Irish? Are they soon to be done with this penitential flogging of themselves in books and go back to ascending Croagh Patrick barefoot? My relatives came out of County Galway, Irish speaking, long ago and had as much good as bad to say about the Old Country. I wish this guy, who can write, at least in short bursts, would lend his story-telling more balance.
That said, he has promise when he matures.

A brilliant story, richly told.......2005-12-14

Thomas O'Malley's In the Province of Saints is a novel to savor. It tells the story of Michael McDonagh, a young boy in a poor, broken family rural Ireland in the late 1970s, from the time he is 9 or 10 until he is 13 or 14. The novel is told in heartbreakingly beautiful prose that is completely absorbing; as a reader, you will feel you are there, in Michael's skin, watching the clouds brood on the horizon and smelling the pigs in the yard.

The novel concerns Michael's confrontation and struggle with, and ultimately his understanding of his father's repeated abandonment of his mother and his family, first through his philandering and later through his departure for America; his mother's growing illness and imminent death; Michael's own sexuality; and finally, his sense of responsibility for his family and for himself. This is a world in which right and wrong, historically spelled out by the church, social hierarchy and the family, are ostensibly black and white. But in the late 20th Century, it is a world in which right and wrong are often reversed, and in which survival and even salvation depend upon violating traditional boundaries. Thus, we see, time and again, a cycle of transgression, punishment, penitence and redemption that Michael, his father, other members of his family and those around him not only endure but embrace both to get along day to day and to grow beyond their circumstances. For example, we see Michael at the age of 9 or 10, stealing eggs and bread from the neighbors because the family is in arrears with the dairy man. His mother discovers his wrong, and slaps his face in punishment, but the boy stands fast, and despite her rebuke, the mother keeps the stolen food. The scene is rich in moral ambiguity and the struggle of both characters to find what is right. Much later in the novel, this transgression is echoed by Michael's blatant vandalism of a neighbor's shed -- payback for the neighbor's exaction of penitence from Michael's father. The spiral goes on, with Michael eventually witnessing the ultimate transgression by others, which places him in the position of deciding whether to step into the role of judge and mete out punishment or to take another path.

The story is both compelling and moving. One of O'Malley's many great accomplishments in this novel is a portrayal of a land and characters that is panoramic in scope -- with respect to both the exterior and interior landscapes. Likewise, young Michael's growth from a boy to a young man is meticulously, yet subtly drawn, even down to the language, which early on seems deliberately (and rightly) hesitant and tentative, but which becomes bolder and more forceful as Michael matures.

This is a novel that will engage you completely, that will absorb you with the richness of its language and that will endear you to its noble, fallible characters.

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