Celtic Books

101 beautiful colored PLUS b/w Celtic crosses suitable for tracing and enlarging. Images are small, approx 4"-5" tall, but lovely.

Courtney's Art is just fantastic. This book, as well as all of his other works that I have picked up, is well worth owning. Mr. Davis's designs are inspired and unique. Anyone interested in Celtic art or design should own this book.

"Courtney Davis ....Offers Celtic Art as displays of richness and colour, intricacy and symbolism to equal the world's finest styles" (quoted from "Arts & Crafts Magazine").

I picked up this book of illuminated letters at a museum in Dublin, and if you are interested in Celtic art, both old and new, be sure to check out the artist's web site at awenpress.com. Courtney Davis has published over 50 books on Celtic art, including coloring books and books of Viking and Celtic tattoos.

"101 Celtic Illuminated Letters" is a source book of decorated initials from some of the most celebrated thousand-year-old Celtic manuscripts, including the Book of Kells and the Lindisfarne Gospels.

After a brief introduction, the letters are arranged one to a page, the black-and-white version facing its counterpart colored by Courtney Davis. The letters average around 3.5 to 4 inches high, and are very easy to size up or down using a grid (not supplied).

Beauty is combined with humor in the letters of the Celtic Dog Alphabet, and there are also birds and human faces worked into some of the illuminated letters. This is a lovely and useful source book for anyone who is interested in Celtic knot-work, embroidery, or calligraphy.

Mr. Davis is my favorite author of books on Celtic Design. He is a master of it and besides the designs he has a mind like a color wheel. He is truly talented.

if you love celtic art, check out this book. I have only borrowed from the library, but it is beautiful.

I'm a long time fan of Courtney Davis' celtic art books and this book is even better than I expected it to be.

The designs are from carvings, manuscripts, metalwork and other sources. They are easily adaptable for needlework, painting, fabric painting and numerous other arts and crafts.

The best thing about the book is the duplication of each design, first as a clear black-and-white line drawing and then as a vibrant colour-filled design.

What an inspirational book!

"20 Secrets to Success with Your Child" is the most practical parenting book I've ever read...and the stuff works! I've personally tried "the secrets" and I'm not only a more effective parent, but a less stressed one too. It's easy to read, down to earth, and the author is easy to relate to. You can't go wrong with this book.
Mort Fertel
Author of "Marriage Fitness: 4 Steps to Building & Maintaining Phenomenal Love"
www.YourMarriageFitness.com

I loved this book! And as the owner of a parenting support company, I have read many books of this type. What distinguishes this book from others is the uniquely compassionate approach of the author. Erin Brown Conroy's expertise comes not only from her education, but from the actual hard work of raising 12 children. Her words carry so much authority, and yet are never condescending. She makes good use of anecdotes to get her point across and to enliven her writing. Most importantly, though, her advice is sure to improve the family lives of everyone who reads it.

i liked it. my kids liked it. i love reference books. this isnnt a reference book, but it has all the info on holiday origins i need, so when i want to explain why we celebrate halloween and my kids ask how come some kids think its devil worship, i can just go here, or when they ask how come we have a tree on jesus' birthday, they can even look it up themselves, this book is very kid friendly!

Ancient Celtic Festivals deserves ongoing mention as a fine resource for kids ages 8-12 years, which explains how modern celebrations are rooted in ancient Celtic history and festivals. Links between the ancient rituals and how they are celebrated today require good reading skills but reward with many insights.

Anglo-Saxon Christianity, a book written for the historical and theological layman, is particularly interesting because it covers a subject matter too little explored. Roman Catholicism, historically triumphant, defines formal Christian doctrine today. Celtic Christianity - like all things Celtic, is undergoing a revival today (primarily for cultural rather than doctrinal reasons). But Anglo-Saxon Christianity is vitally important because it would ultimately become the formulation for the Church of England, its language, the Book of Common Prayer, and the King James Bible - which have given a spiritual foundation for much of the modern world.

This book covers a critical time in the history of Christendom when the fundamental doctrines of the faith were still being worked out. England between the time of the Saxon invasion (approx. 550AD) the Norman invasion (1066AD) was politically, culturally, and spiritually unstable. Until Alfred The Great there was no single King nor recognized boundaries. There were military hostilities with the Celts in the North, Welsh to the West, and eventually Scandinavians from the East. In Northumbria Celtic Christianity contended with Roman Christianity and Saxon paganism for the hearts and minds of the people.

I enjoyed Cavill's descriptions of Anglo-Saxon monastic life as not just a place of spiritual separation and contemplation - but a busy center of political, military, and cultural activity - "Celtic Christianity depended, nevertheless, on a radical separation between secular and religious life. English Christianity by the time of Bede had expanded beyond the confines of the monastery, and involved kings and politics, territories, and estates, power and influence. The concern for Anglo-Saxon Christianity was not so much the separation of secular and religious but of integration."

Cavill is a lecturer in Old English. His love of the English language is apparent throughout this book. His reference to and analysis of many famous and not-so-famous works of Anglo-Saxon literature enhance this book and whisper into the ear of modern day Christians reminding us of a glorious past - "Anglo-Saxon Christianity, like that of some later eras, used language with delight and sensitivity, with a creativity that was mirrored in other arts like book production and illumination. Modern Christianity has tended to wed itself to a bland scientism which is suspicious of art and any feeling or emotion other than generalized happiness."

It is apparent both from his text and his publisher, Zondervan, that Mr. Cavill writes from a Christian point of view. But this in no way biases his analysis of the heathen/Christian and Celtic/Roman Christian struggles. I highly recommend this book - indeed I wish it would be more widely read because it is not simply the history of an obscure branch of the church, but the history of Christianity itself analyzed through the history of the language that dominates much of the civilized world.

This must be the best book on Anglo-Saxon Christianity at this time. Though I have no shortage of books about Anglo-Saxons, and Anglo-Saxon poets, this is especially placed in my collection. It is the logical extension of the growing interest in Celtic Christianity that Anglo-saxon Christianity should be popularly explored as well. Ironically, the books on Celtic Christianity, are not as well arranged as this, in its well-written commentary and selection of works explored. The chapters on Caedmon, and on the Synod of Whitby (certainly an important historical event in Christian history which is too often glossed over in classes, if discussed at all) were the strongest parts of the book. Though he relies heavily on Bede at times, he gives commentary on Bede as he does so, putting things into context for those new to this field. His chapter on Beowulf, would certainly be a good introduction to that fine classic of earliest "English" literature, for those who enjoyed Chrichton's appropriation of the story for his Eaters Of The Dead / 13th Warrior. Highlights of course, are the poems, Caedmon's Hymn and The Dream Of The Rood, included with insightful commentary. Also included are a few scenes from Beowulf, and less glorious, yet revealing, documents of the time. If there was one criticism I had of the book, it would be that there was next to nothing on the Anglo-Saxon version of the Apocryphal book, The Acts of Saint Andrew, aka Andreas. A personal favourite of mine, which I am sure Cavill could get a whole book out of. I suspect very much however, that Cavill is not done with this topic, and must leave something for the next book. And there should be a "next book" from Cavill: it is rare to see such scholarly stuff written so well, and so very approachable to the non-expert. A high five.

I haven't had time for more than a brief review of both volumes, but since our family from Derrylehan, Donegal, is descended from the O'Daughertaighs of Inshowen, this work is a treasure of infomation of which I have long known but now for the first time have had access to in an excellent translation. I have traced all references to the O'Dohertys in both volumes, but have not yet had time to trace the grandmother's McMahans of Fermanaugh. These books are a big help to anyone wanting to understand the culture of Ireland from the 11th to the 17th century.

A very impressive work, in 2 volumes, hardbound, with four color frontis and the almost forgotten original map of Irish Family locations. The fold out map is about 20 x 25 and is the best of the genre. The Annals by the Four Masters are perhaps the most noted source in Irish history and this was the first translation into English (1846). The formal text is complete from the 12th to the 17th century. In addition, the annotations cover Irish history from the earliest times. We have been waiting for this edition to be published ! (note that Connellans translation preceeded that of O'Donovan.) Helpful index to the old map has been added for the first time. These Annals are in the English language. A few pages have some age markings on them from the original, and it remains a magnificent set of books. All in all, this is one of a kind, with a distinctive color frontis, some celtic lettering, and a map that has been out of print for over 150 years . If you have been waiting for the Annals as we have,
this is a real treat. Connellan, was a leading gaelic scholar, and this first ever translation laid the groundwork for all that would follow in the field.

This is one of the finest popular histories I have ever read. Whether it is a book about 5th and 6th century British history using Arthur as a organizing principle, or a book about the "real" Arthur using 5th and 6th century history as a backdrop, this book is wholly convincing concerning the reality of Arthur and the historical context in which he lived. The book may actually be too good. The most convincing evidence it cites -- the so-called British Easter Annals -- appear to have been called into question by subsequent scholarship; and the link between Arthur and Mount Badon is not quite as convicing as it seeme to be when Alcock wrote the book. In short, this masterpiece needs updating. But a masterpiece it is. No one who reads this book with any care can fail to come away from it without a vastly improved understanding not only of the British dark ages, but of the nature of historical evidence, scholarship, and truth. This is a great book.

I have researched and researched all over the Internet about
King Arthur, Camelot, and his knights. I found many misleading websites that only talked about the fantasies of Camelot and King Arthur. Now, I found this book that tells the "REAL" side of who was King Arthur, Camelot, Merlin, and many others.
It is a "must" for those who want to know the truth, and nothing but the truth. Leslie Alcock has done an excellent job in this book. I highly recommend it.

Keep in mind that this book is not the place to start if you haven't studied Irish before (or studied other languages from a grammar-intensive perspective). If you are just starting, save this for later and get a basic course that includes audio (you MUST have audio with Irish). If you can find it, Irish on your Own is a good starting place, or if you're really serious, Learning Irish. With that disclaimer, here's my review:

I studied Irish some years ago fairly intensively, and I was always annoyed by the lack of a book JUST LIKE this one. I've had it only a few weeks, but have had a chance to examine it and work through some of the exercises. It is something that has been sorely needed for a long time. If you are familiar with Irish language resources, you may recognize the author's name--Nancy Stenson (she is a linguistics and Irish language professor at the University of Minnesota). She compiled a huge series of worksheets to accompany "Learning Irish" in the early 1990's (I was lucky enough to find and print them out some years ago from an internet server archive). She has now written two Irish grammar workbooks. I don't have the second yet--Intermediate Irish--but soon will.

Stenson's Basic Irish is wonderful. It covers all the basic grammar/structure concepts AND offers page after page of various types of practice problems--filling blanks, sentence manipulation, verb conjugation, sentence negation, translation both ways, correcting errors, and more... just tons of good stuff!

Here's a summary of the sections: Spelling and pronunciation, word order, lenition, mutations, nouns and articles, classes and cases, ... , prepositions, numbers, verbs I & II & III, irregular verbs I & II, copula, verbal nouns, adjectives, pronouns, and a few other topics.

As you can see, a lot of info--and it all has in-depth explanation and tons of practice problems. This is a lot like the types of grammar workbooks that are available for all of the major languages. With some of the latest Irish learning materials available, there is now a pretty rich pool of resources out there and this book, especially, fills a huge void that has been there for years.

I would recommend this book to anyone trying to learn Irish who was not raised in Ireland. It is well written, covers a lot of material. It also has exercises for each chapter with the answers to the exercises. It also answered a lot of questions I had considering the problems with different dialects. There is a lot of good information for the price!

Fabulous illuminations;
I became fascinated with and got attached to those stunningly beautiful initials, the most amazing calligraphy I ever examined in my life. I have been also amazed by and curious about the four Symbols of the Gospel writers, since I first encountered in the Chapel of the Episcopalian Bishop of NC in Raleigh, and was informed that they were influenced by the preaching Coptic Monks to the Celts and Scots.
Only people of developed artistic orientation, could appreciate how beautiful these genuinely original decorations reach out to the overwhelmed reader. Alas that parts of the Gospel according to St. Luke are missing from the original Codex.

Religous Celtic Art:
Long before the coming of St. Augustine of Canterbury in 597, Christianity has been introduced among the Brittons, by Coptic missionaries who reached as far as the British Isles. "We do not yet know how much we in the British Isles owe to these remote Coptic hermits...Everyone knows that the handicraft of the Irish monks in the ninth and tenth centuries far excelled anything that could be found elsewhere in Europe. Their unrivaled illuminations, can be traced to the influence of Egyptian missionaries, we have more to thank the Copts for than has been imagined." Eminent historian: Stanley Lane-Poole.

Kells' mini hardcovers:
The variety of exquisite little hardcover reproduction volumes are reproductions of parts of the original illuminated manuscripts. They are magnificent, with gold-leaf detailing and sumptuous full-color illustrations, making them a perfect gift for all who cherish the rich legacy of Christian art. The original illuminated manuscript, is permanently on display, since the 19th, in the Library of Trinity College Dublin.
It is one of the most beautiful of the world's most famous manuscript. It contains 680 pages (or 340 folios). Just two of the pages are without ornament, while about thirty folios, including some major decorated pages, have been lost. Two volumes can normally be seen, one opened to display a major decorated page, and one to show two pages of script.A CD-ROM version of all 340 folios from the Book of Kells is available for purchase.


Origin of Book of Kells:
The Book of Kells, was most probably copied by hand and illuminated by monks around the year 800 A.D. Its name is derived from the Abbey of Kells, in the Irish Midlands, where it was kept from at least the 9th century to 1541, it was probably begun on the island of Iona. It is uncertainly presumed, that portions of the book were made at Kells, after Viking raids on Iona forced the monastery to retreat to the isolated location. It contains the four gospels, preceded by prefaces, summaries, and canon tables or concordances of gospel passages. It is written on vellum and contains a Latin text of the Gospels in insular majuscule script accompanied by magnificent and intricate whole pages of decoration with smaller painted decorations appearing throughout the text. The manuscript was given to Trinity College in the 17th century and since 1953 has been bound in four volumes.

Book of Columba:
This same Irish manuscript containing the Four Gospels, is known also as the "Book of Columba", probably because it was written in the monastery of Iona to honour the saint. Some small portions at the beginning and end of the manuscript have been lost, but otherwise it is in a very good state of preservation. It was apparently left unfinished, since some of the ornaments remain only in outline. It is written in part black, red, purple or yellow ink, and it has been thought that the hands of two scribes, neither of whom is known by name, are discernible in the writing and illumination of the manuscript.

Book's Beauty:
This is the most copiously illuminated manuscript of the four Gospels in existence. No words can describe the beauty and splendour of the richly coloured initial letters, which are more profuse in the "Book of Kells" than in any other manuscript. The artist possessed a wonderful knowledge of the proportion of colour and the distribution of his material -sienna, purple, lilac, red, pink, green, yellow, most often used, and the shade tinting of the letters was managed with fine taste and skill. A series of illuminated miniatures, including pictorial representations of the Evangelists and their symbols, the Blessed Virgin and the Divine Child, are worthy of notice. It is no wonder that it was believed that the "Book of Kells" could have been written only by angels (very artistic indeed!).

Composition and Loss:
The date of the composition of the book can hardly be placed earlier than the end of the seventh or beginning of the eighth century, It is likely that it is to this book that the entry in the "Annals of Ulster" under the year 1006 refers, recording that in that year the "Gospel of Columba" was stolen. According to tradition, the book is a relic from the time of St. Columba (d. 597) and even the work of his hands, but, on palaeographic grounds and judging by the character of the ornamentation, this tradition cannot be sustained. This must be the book reported at Kildare in the last quarter of the twelfth century, described in glowing terms. Later, it was located at the cathedral of Kells (Irish Cenannus) in Meath, a foundation of Columba's, where it remained for a long time, until the year 1541. Archbishop Ussher presented it to Trinity College, Dublin, In the 17th century where it is the most precious manuscript in its library and by far the choicest relic of Irish art that has been preserved.

Manuscript Ornaments& Designs: The most characteristic ornaments of the Book of Kells, as of other illuminated Irish manuscripts of the period, are the coloured representations of fanciful beings, or of men, animals, birds, horses, dogs, and grotesque, gargoyle-like human figures, twisted and hooked together in intricate detail, a system of geometrical weaving of ribbons plaited and knotted together.
The versatility and inventive genius of the illustrator surpasses all belief. Lines diverge and converge in endless succession, and the most intricate figures, in lavish abundance and with astounding variety of ornament, are combined and woven into one harmonious design. In spite of the extent of the work and its thousands of exquisite initials and terminals, there is not a single pattern or combination that can be said to be a copy of another. The artist shows a wonderful technique in designing and combining various emblems, the cross, vine, dragon, fish, and serpent. The drawing is perfection itself. It has been examined under a powerful magnifying glass for hours at a time and found to be, even in the most minute and complicated figures, without a single false or irregular line.

*Most of this review material are from Trinity web & New Advent