Irish-American Books

Great extensive study of a classic epic. Extensive footnotes on a line by line basis make the translation and interpretation of the text easier and more vivid.
For example line 1 "HWAET!", many scholars see this word as part of the metrical dip of 1. I and give it no more accent than a word like 'Now" at the beginning of a modern narrative 'Now we have heard...'. However Hwaet is found at the beginning of some OE poems and sermons, and if we consider the present instance as extra-metrical, then we could regard it as a call to attention. We could even imagine it being accomponied by a chord on a harp or lyre.

Modern punctuation is used to help those approaching the text for the first time,with the use of modern diacritics. A great scholary repreduction and enhancement of the original manuscript.

Great treatment is given to the background in the appendix with Genealogical tables, Archaeology discussion and best of all some related poems.

Great glossary, with translation and page reference.

Overall this is a definate buy. Beowulf in it original treatment ,however I would of liked to have seen an English translation woven in to the text

Beowulf is a tale of glory, courage and death. It starts with a burial at sea, on a boat forever roaming the ocean with a rich hoard of gold and it ends with the pyre of Beowulf himself buried with a rich hoard in a mound to remember the dead king and to be a signal to all sailors about the land they will welcome as a harbour of peace. But the whole trajectory of this tale is founded on three exploits, three killings of monsters. First Grendel the sea monster who is destroyed with sheer muscular strength. Then Grendel's mother at the bottom of the sea in a lair that looks like a womb that has to be purified by the killing and beheading of both the mother and the son, a son that has no father and that is the last descendant of the outcast Cain. It is the perfect Christian rewriting of an old saga, the destruction of all monsters, of the last monsters bringing the end of Cain's line and the redemption of humanity in God by the cleansing of the womb that produced such monsters. It is the killing of the mother that had no husband and her son that had no father, of those unhuman beings that live on preying humanity. All the old legends are thus christianized and Beowulf, the hero, some would have seen a god in him in the old days, becomes a Christian hero who cleanses the womb and christianizes it, who brings the light of God to the world along with glory and peace. But the chistianization of the saga is only complete when a third killing takes place, a killing that will mean the death and sacrifice of the hero. The third monster is a serpent, a dragon, keeping a fantastic treasure under his guard. The monster of flight, fire and also water, the cross of all monsters of water, air and fire, living in a deep burrow in the earth. He associates the four elements and has to be killed for humanity to be free of such menaces. Beowulf will do it though he will die of it. It is the killing of the dragon in the Book of Revelation that opens the road to the New Jerusalem, the City of God. This dragon is also an obvious father symbol. Hence all the monsters are destroyed, and the victory is complete by the killing of the father, though that killing both means the death of the hero and the birth of a new hero who helps Beowulf defeat the dragon. The treasure of the dragon will yet not be appropriated by the winner because it represents the strength of this dragon, of the father, of the hero. The hero will be buried with it and the tomb will become a beaconing symbol of security and welcome for men. This christianization is very subtle. Eight warriors will enter the dragon's lair, eight like Jesus Christ in christian symbolism, but also like the omega of the Book of Revelation. And then twelve warriors will consecrate the burial mound of Beowulf, twelve like the twelve doors of the New Jerusalem, like the representatives of the City of God, of the prediction of the end of the world and the redemption of all worthy men and women after the last call of God who is both the alpha, the beginning, and the omega, the end, of life, of the world, of humanity, of any man's life that has to start with a heroic act and end with another.

The language itself makes it difficult to read but the effort is leading to a worthwhile beauty that no translation can ever achieve.

Dr Jacques COULARDEAU

Captivating...describes this book which is full of adventure the whole way through! Great for all ages, but especially for children who crave adventure. (They'll even learn a little about life in someone else's shoes from back then without even knowing it!) I give it two thumbs up...and it's definitely a "must read!"

I loved how this book shows black British studies as it is taught in the US. Many American professors teach British literature of the last century --but end up focusing only on the modernists or maybe as far as the postmodernists. A lot has happened since then people! These professors must teach fascinating classes, because they cover some of the most interesting and dynamic contemporary writers in Britain and deal with black British political issues that many Americans are simply unaware of.

Published in the US this year by Palgrave Macmillan this collection of essays aims "to provide an international perspective on ways to incorporate black British writing and culture in the study of English literature." Written by two academics in the US, one of whom is from the historically black Howard University this is a text aimed at teachers and lecturers who want their programmes to engage with contemporary black British writing and are open to the authors' "imaginative, theoretically sophisticated and practical strategies" for achieving this aim.

Altogether the eleven essays range from the pedagogical, as in Maria Helena Lima's article `The Politics of Teaching Black and British', through the historical, such as Judith Bryan's `The Evolution of Black London'. There are discussions specifically on novels-`Transformations Within the Black British Novel' by Kadija George Seisay and Jude Chudi Okpala's piece on Ben Okri. There's also a marvellous chapter on verse- Contemporary Black British Poetry by Lauri Ramey begins her discussion by citing and analysing SuAndi's poem `Home'. I found all of these essays interesting and compelling, both as a lecturer and a writer. But the last article by Tracey Walters, "A Black Briton's View of Black British Literature and Scholarship" was particularly immediate and relates to the vexed issue of black communities' largely unhappy relationship with the mainstream UK publishing industry.

In this piece the author talks about her growing up in the UK and now living and teaching in the US, her relatively new engagement with Black British Literature and the way the Windrush celebrations made it possible for her to get better access to such literature in the US. And yet in spite of the cultural activism that made considerable inroads into British publishing Walters remains critical of the British publishing industry which tends to ignore the vast population of black British writers. Of course you will see African American writers' work here in the UK, but that is because they are already published in the US by US publishers so there's no risk involved for what is usually the UK branch of the same company.
The publishing issue is also linked to the fact that Caribbean-born writers tend to enjoy relatively more exposure in the US and the UK, "whereas British born authors like Courtia Newland and Dorothea Smartt do not enjoy the same broad- based reading audience nor the critical attention they deserve." Of course we can think of a few exceptions- I'm thinking of Zadie Smith in particular. It is interesting that she has chosen to set her latest novel, On Beauty in the US. I've talked to some who have read the book and they do wonder to what extent was this move a market-driven decision?

Walters is keen to insure that Black British literature is visible and integral to all understandings of African diasporic literature, (or indeed Asian diasporic literature since at various times the term black has been used in a more inclusive way than it has in the US). She also stresses the importance of writers like Buchi Emecheta, David Dabydeen, Ferdinand Dennis, Hazel Carby and others who not only are terrific writers but who also "work as historians, critics and cultural interpreters".

Black British Writing is a deceptively slim volume. It's a book that opens up discussion and calls for strategic thinking and practical engagement with its ideas. It begs the question over and over again of how can this kind of book get published in the UK? How could it be written, edited and inclusive of Black authors? Not such a book every now and again but regularly and successfully, alongside and in step with the contributions we make to this country and the world.



Anita Franklin

Absolutely one of the best novels ever to come out of Ireland. A love story involving three people, O'Flaherty's story is as wild as the Atlantic waves, as scorching as a baker's oven, as compassionate as a cow with her calf.

No one has ever written about the personal and social ramifications of adultery so feelingly.

Chris Lynch is one of the most brutally honest young adult authors out there.

Mick, an Irish-American kid living in a racially-segregated neighborhood, struggles to define his identity and break away from the hatred and ignorance that plagues his family. Mick faces opposition from every side as he tries to leave the bigotted ways of his neighborhood behind. Terry, his alcoholic, bigotted, and violent brother believes that family honor is dictated by the fist; Mick's parents stand idly and blindly by as Mick is mentally and physically abused by Terry and his friends (ironically, his parents end up buying a bar); even Sully, Mick's best friend, is unable to break away from the ignorance that traps him in his own cowardice.

This book does not make escaping from deep-rooted prejudices and family ties look easy, which is why it seems so real. With each step forward, Mick slips back two or three. Mick does not face an easy challenge, but readers will want to see if he is ever able to break away from the hatred and terror.

This book is wonderful, especially the sections written by Gilbert and Hirshfeld. I have read it and re-read it. I might even buy a few copies to give as gifts!

This beautiful collection of love poems and letters is artfully arranged and perfectly chosen by poet Paul Janeczko, appropriate for Valentine's Day or year round. As best poetry is universal, the variety of authors included demonstrates that love is indeed the same for gay, straight, black, white, old, young, in the past and in the present.

The acknowledgements are meticulous and the introduction invites readers to return to this collection of classic and contemporary works in the various stages of their relationships. Ranging from first glimpse and the newness of love to seasoned passion to the breakup and beyond, romantic words by Shelley, Keats, Bradstreet, Dickinson, Shakespeare, Rumi, Neruda, St. Vincent Millay and more express the experience and emotions love inspires. If high school teachers used this as a basic text for their April poetry units, teens might get more excited about poetry and adult readers of literature might not be on the decline.

Clever black and white photos of prelude each chapter, showing young people taking a plunge, smooching and moping. The script and pink cover screams "girl book!" and it is a shame that romantically inclined young men may miss out on this gem. Recommended for public and school library collections.

Ever wonder from what bare granite peak Wilde's dry paradoxes were born? From what murky night Joyce's jocoserious subtle near invisible laughter emerges? How did Sam Beckett's tragicomic, straightfaced as a brick wall, utterly ironic humor rebound?

Try this book, and you will see.

THe prolific Des MacHAle gathers here a brilliant and valuable collection of the paradoxical, yin and yang, Zen-riddlish ancient wit of the Irish, struggling to preserve the laughing singing all-seeing genius of the Irish heart in the straitjacket of penaly imposed English.

You will not be disappointed by this book. Strewn with some abstruse sayings indeed, which will give you reason to pause and reflect, there is also much to immediately burst out laughing about, and then pause to wonder what was so funny about that.

One word of caution: Do not bring this book with you into choir or other liturgical functions. Do not carry it to court when they charge you with criminal offenses or jury duty. Traffic violations may be okay.

An example chosen at random:
The rainbow is not an optical illusion - it only looks like one.

What seems to be spoken in ignorance actually reflects a deeper wisdom which gives Joyce birth and the ability to enthrall generations of scholars and philosophers. That apophthegme alone deserves ten pages of commentary on the nature of reality, on the "ineluctable modality of the visible", on the nature of our perceptions and interpretations of reality, and on the science of optics, etc., as well.

You may find you carry this precious book with you at all times. It is quite portable and very rich. As powerfully distilled as a wee pony of Jameson's. But do not carry it to class, to court or to choir.

Have a break. Get a life. Have a laugh. Get this book for those you love.

But be sure to cover the unsightly cover.

This is a greatlittle book.It would be easy to pass this book by as just another one of those little edited "gift books";but it isn't.It has something for everyone who has any intrest in Irish humor,history,poetry,culture,literature or whatever.Most of the book is more academic than I first expected while some is quite simple.It is very evident that a lot of effort went into researching and selecting the quotations chosen.I find that little books of this type gives one the impression that they were just thrown together in a couple of hours.This wasn't!
Here,s just a couple of examples:
May his pig never grunt,may his cat never hunt,
May a ghost even haunt him at the dead of the night;
May his hen never lay,may his ass never bray,
May his goat fly away like an old paper kite.
That the flies and the fleas may the wretch ever tease,
And the piercing north wind make him shiver and shake,
May a lump of a stick raise bumps fat and thick
On the monster that murdered Nell Flaherty's drake.
'Nell Flaherty's Drake'
More like a curse than an insult;but good nonetheless.

How about this one:

Here lies,praise God,a woman who
Scolded and stormed her whole life through;
Tread gently o'er her rotting form
Or else you'll raise another storm.
'Grave Humour'

Enjoy ! !