Irish-American Books

While visiting Castlebar, County Mayo, compiling facts about the history of Ireland, I had the opportunity to meet Anne and her husband.This book is well written, in excellant form with accurate documentation of facts about a near extinction of the Fitzgerald clan. Each chapter holds the reader spellbound and with anxiety to get to the conclusion as soon as possible.

Grace's Card provides an insight into the way in which 1,200 Catholic landlords, who survived the confiscations and fortfeitures of Cromwell's plantation and the Williamite settlement, struggled to survive and keep their estates intact. The author, who was 83 when the book was published, appears to have a thorough grasp of this interesting period in Irish history. Apart from the general overview of the period and an analysis of the situation facing Catholic landlords, Charles Trench provides information about particular families and their descendants. As a social history, Grace's Card is fascinating, particularly the anecdotes about individuals. The book is beautifully written, with a lightness of touch that belies its sombre tale. Trench provides many examples of families keeping their heads down, and their lands intact, despite the provocation and draconian laws enacted against them as a class, based on fears of treason and religious bigotry. There are a number of amusing incidents involving duelists and swordsmen and family feuds. In attempting to strike a balance in telling this story, Trench appears to adopt a less critical attitude to the penal laws, claiming that they were laxly enforced. Yet, by the end of the period he documents, they had largely achieved their goal of wiping out the Catholic gentry and reducing them to the peasantry. Within 50 years of 1690 it seemed most of the Catholic landlords had conformed to the Protestant faith to preserve their estates from being divided up among their sons, or claimed by any one of them who 'conformed'. many of these early conversions were thus not the result of true religious conviction but politically motivated, and driven by a desire to protect the family inheritance and pass it on to the following generations. Trench puts much of the blame for the loss of Catholic estates on the families who continued to live above their means, according to custom, and continue wenching, drinking and dueling their way towards bankruptcy. Highly recommended to readers interested in this aspect of irish history.

In this book, James Quinn writes about several members of his family, among other subjects. He describes them with love, humor and respect. The poems written to Pat, his wife, show a real flair romance. Two of the poems commemorate the marriages of his sons. What a wonderful welcome to the family for the two lucky brides. Every one of the poems is a joy to read.

I have read many books on the Duke of Marlborough, and this is hands-down the best. Lengthy discussion of logistics, strategy, and tactics are boiled down to a manageable and lay-man-accessible size. Fair and balanced evaluation of costs of battles and judgement on the part of the commanders involved, this book is first-rate!

Vincent Sherry is a master of the English language. His latest book is simply brilliant: beautifully written, well researched and incisive. A must read for the scholar and student, Sherry's analysis is a huge achievement.

This interesting book centers around the construction of the original Ferris Wheel, built for the Chicago World's Fair in 1893. It shows that America is unique in its freedom and opportunity for hard-working people from many different nations. I have read this book several times and have found it to be well-written and well-illustrated. I would recommend it for all ages.

Greatest Irish Americans Of The 20th Century is a fascinating, 196-page compendium of short biographical sketches of notable, famous, and sometimes infamous Irish Americans. These Irish Americans are drawn from all walks of American life from entertainment, science, and politics, to literature, art, and religion. Profusely illustrated, the list of characters ranges from Nellie Bly, James Cagney, and Maureen Dowd, to John Fitzgerald Kennedy, Audie Murphy, and Sandra Day O'Connor. A delight to browse, Greatest Irish Americans Of The 20th Century is a great gift idea and a highly recommended addition to school and community library collections.

This is the definitive reference for all things Irish in the New England States. Whether you're looking for events, education, artists, organizations or just a pub, here's the place to begin. It's very handily divided up by state and by category. The alphabetized index is extremely helpful too.

I read this book as part of a graduate project on H.D. It was very informative about the nature of H.D.'s poetry, especially as it concerns encoded language. The comparisons drawn between Sappho's writing and H.D.'s poems show a linear connection between the poets in their subjects, speech and rhythms. H.D.'s images can be understood as a continuation of an ongoing conversation with the ancient Greek poet. H.D.'s interest in palimpsests is another interesting connection and influence in her writing. H.D. was lyrically attuned to Sappho's intent, and many of her poems are enriched by this layer of understanding. Collecot focuses on several poems in depth to capture the sense of what H.D. was trying to do with her work.

Drummond's poetry and prose was a palpable bridge between Anglo- and Franco-Canadian culture. He illustrated the beauty of the Quebecois life with a style that no longer exists in the modern day.