Irish-American Books

This novel is a cross between literature and a soap opera, in that there is constant character drama, and often some terrible decisions being made, but if you are able to suspend disbelief the characters are likable and will draw you through it. Basic plot: members of a family look over three generations and try to discover love. Artistic content: some transcendent realization outside of form. Is it good? Yes, it's good - not great. It's very easy to read, although the latter half of it has some sections that need to be skimmed for their utter lack of relevance. Napolitano uses common English to craft an inoffensive narrative. I enjoyed this book and would recommend it to anyone wanting mainstream literature, with the caveat that it does wax sentimental quite frequently.

The first 1/3 of this book was just fine. The characters were portrayed realistically, with subtle enough evidence that this family was not what it appeared to be. Then the characters-mostly the female ones took 360 degree turns that were so unrealistic they became laughable, or at least shake one's head vigorously. When I reached for this book at my Barnes and Noble, it literally was within arm's reach (it was on the highest shelf). Frankly, I wish is was unreachable, I might have found a better book that day.

OK so was I the only one that thought this novel was depressing? I found the characters to be weak individuals and all frightened of each other; they have to tiptoe and walk on eggshells at every turn. Who has that many regrets and self doubts about EVERY SECOND of their lives? Not the enjoyable summer reading I was expecting. Do not bother with this one!! If I could this would get zero stars

Within Arm's Reach is a fictional novel set in New Jersey and told from the view points of six different people. Of course everyone is dealing with their past as well as the problems of the present. An Irish-American Catholic family, they are thrown into a crisis when unmarried Gracie becomes pregnant. The author does an excellent job of walking the reader through the maze of complex relationships between the characters as each shares their life story and point of view. For readers who thrive on a well-written family saga and the typical soap opera fare they will enjoy Within Arm's Reach and find it a recommended read.

What a beautifully written book! Moving and wonderful. I recommend it and look forward to more from this author.

'Away' is an excellent book. The story is about a family's life and what happened to them. It seems as though each generation faces big adjustments and obstacles they must cross and/or overcome. The book is very complicated, but very intense, too. I would recommend this book to any of my friends or realtaives or to anybody.

I enjoyed the historical aspect to this book, particularly the description of the potato famine in Ireland. I read up on it a little on the Internet while going through the book and it seems Urquhart describes it accurately. The story, although partially fictitious, of D'arcy Mcgee was also interesting. I thought the obsessive love Eileen had for Aidan was over-emphasized and was dwelled upon for too long. I got the point long before she wrapped up the story. Considering we had already encountered an obsessive love through Mary in the first half of the book, it seemed somewhat redundant to go into that much detail of this obsessive type of love again through Eileen.

When Garcia MArquez wrote "One Hundred Years of Solitude" he found out that magic is the real event that changes the world. Urquhart uses the same premise to create a wonderful book, full of phantastic stories written in one of the most aesthetic proses I've ever read. Even though it is not very original (nothing is after Shakespeare and Cervantes), the book is ot only very readable, but also an enjoyable choice for anyone looking of a world so phantastic that seems absolutely familiar.

This novel is ultimately a disappointment because it starts off with such potential. Indeed, if Ms. Urquhart had simply made a novella out of the first chapter and entitled it A Fish On A Pool, it would be a first rate artistic achievement. Instead, she drones on in two subsequent chapters in a lyricism that eventually fails through repetition, a plot that grates through being, well, the same blasted plot repeated three times and a theme that becomes not a little over the top in its literary feminism.

This review is not the place to go into all of Ms. Urquhart's gifts and how she has wasted them after the first, astounding chapter. She has a lyrical gift that owes much to Yeats. -In fact, the words "changed utterly" occur twice in this book-which, if you are a lover of Irish poetry and, ergo, a lover of Yeats, cannot fail to strike a chord. Hint: Read his Easter 1916. There are also passages like these in the first chapter, "Dark morning birds lifted away from the earth she walked on, her words spinning in the sky then flying over the fields to the shore". The first chapter is thematically wild and entrancing and lyrically virtuosic.

But then......who knows? Maybe her publisher demanded a certain number of pages. In any event, she goes on in two flat, pat chapters about the same thing with less magic and more of an axe to grind. She flirts with feminist propaganda near the end. Only the woman can receive the enchanting gift of being "away" it would seem. And men turn out to be destroyers of themselves and/or the land around them, unless, of course, they happen to be American Indian and go by the none too subtle name of "Exodus".

Still, the book is worth it. Just stop after the first chapter while you're still enchanted and before disillusionment has set in, while you're still "away."

In this acclaimed novel by Canadian writer Jane Urquhart, the story is second to the language used. Urquhart writes with such grace and mastery that one is often compelled to re-read large sections just to absorb her words.

The story is very compelling, about an Irish family who immigrate from Ulster during the Great Famine. But there have been many other books written on this topic, none of which are remotely as enjoyable to read. It is the unique strength of Urquhart's voice that makes this novel so fine.

A novel certainly for any reader interested in Irish and Irish-Canadian heritage, but also very worth reading by any who enjoy good language and style.

After reading The Poisonwood Bible and being so involved with the family in that novel, I thought Moira's Crossing would be along the same lines. While I really got into the book and couldn't put it down (it took me only 3 days to read this book in the little spare time I have), I felt like some of the characters were not developed enough so I didn't really feel anything for them. Plus, when I got to the end (and if it's a really good book, I want to get to the end as soon as possible and then when it's over, I'm sad it's over because I will miss the characters), all I thought was "huh?" And I must have missed the point somewhere -- what WAS Moira's Crossing?

Moira's Crossing left me in awe of Shea's lyrical prose and ability to draw out complicated emotions without overstating them. This book explores the complicated nature of sisterhood in a quiet, careful way. It does not hit the reader over the head with its statement. It is a sophisticated read, a powerful depiction of family troubles, and ultimately it is a book about redemption and resolution. Readers expecting an easy, obvious read will not necessarily find it here; readers looking for something more subtle (but more powerful)will love Moira's Crossing.

Well written story about two Irish immigrant sisters and how their experiences created distinctively different people. The "sister bond" is beautifully developed as well as the "silence" that quietly exists still today in Irish descendent households (the powerfully unspoken moments). The story is well crafted througout. A strong debut novel!

In the late 1920s, Ellis Island is seeing the last of its great waves of immigrants. Among these are two Irish sisters who bring with them little more than the clothes they wear and their late mother's hope chest. Moira and Julia O'Leary appear as different as can be - one light and the other dark; one strong and bold, and the other frail and quiet. The two young women share a strong bond, however - one that is nearly as much about shared guilt as it is about family.

Within days of their arrival in Boston, the two find employment in domestic service. Julia faithfully attends mass each Sunday morning, while Moira - having abandoned religion after the untimely death of their mother - cleans out the coal stove. Four years into their new life, a chance meeting with one of their fellow Irish passengers results in marriage for Moira and yet another new life for both women.

Moira's Crossing follows the O'Leary sisters, and the family that takes shape around them, for more than forty years. Although the story is essentially hers, Moira remains somewhat enigmatic to the reader. Still, she claims our empathy and our hearts, for her weaknesses and her strengths are our own. We understand her as well as we understand ourselves.

Left with a misshapen face from a forceps-assisted birth, Julia never marries, instead focusing on her faith, her intensive study of homeopathy, and, most of all, on Moira's family. The sisters need one another for very different reasons. Despite a reserved nature and ill health, Julia possesses an inner strength on which Moira relies heavily. Julia's self-realization is achingly gradual and would never happen at all were it not for her devotion to - and subtle rivalry with - Moira.

Through narrative so sensitively crafted that it often seems to flow straight from the minds of her characters, Christina Shea ushers us into the lives of real people whose loves, triumphs and heartbreaks mirror our own. Moira's Crossing is a book to be read from start to finish in one sitting.

Several months ago I read The Nature of Air and Water by Regina McBride. Set in Ireland I found this book to be sad, eerie and poignant and surprisingly a rich and ultimately most rewarding read. When I came upon Moira's Crossing by Christina Shea, again set partially in Ireland, I looked forward to a similarly engaging read. Unfortunately I was sadly disappointed with this book. Yes, it was poignant and described raw emotions but somehow it missed its mark for me and I found myself frustrated with this book since it could have been so much better.

Beginning in the year 1921 we watch two sisters as they deal first with their mother's death during childbirth and then the death of a young sister. We watch them leave their father in Ireland as they cross the seas to America to make better lives for themselves. Arriving in Boston they become domestics and eventually move to the coast of Maine. All the while through marriages, illnesses and loves they remain close although there are secrets well kept from both.

While we are introduced to characters who might have become memorable, we really never get to know them or their motivations for the things they did or will do. And this in my opinion is the greatest failure of the book. Both sisters seem to be severely isolated both geographically and socially. The bonds of the two sisters never fully remove them from Ireland or from events which happened there. And at the end one feels as though they may have wasted much of their lives with their closeness, secrets and yearnings.

This is the first book written by Christina Shea and while I didn't entirely enjoy it, there were enough possibilities, which left me hopeful for future books or writings by this author. I certainly am curious enough to read her next book hoping it will include fully developed characters who will remain in my memory the way the characters from The Nature of Air and Water have all these months later.

Book contents: foreword - 2pp, table of contents - 4 pp, text -344pp (including 5 maps), timeline of Scotland - 3pp, notes -16pp, bibliography - 19pp, and index - 5 pp.

Overall the book was very good, particularly for someone like myself who wasn't certain his roots were Scotch or Scotch Irish. It was well researched.

The maps of America were not particularly helpful. It was not immediately clear how they fit into the colonies as a whole, and it was sometimes difficult to picture migration patterns. There were no arrows on the maps or other indications of patterned settlement or movement to complete the text descriptions.

The timeline was helpful, but it was only of Scotland up to 1690. A timeline for the Scotch Irish from 1610 forward would have been more germane.

The book first covers Scottish culture prior to the migration of Lowland Scots to Northern Ireland. Then in 1610 King James of England opened Northern Ireland, aka Ulster, to both English and Scottish settlers at the expense of the native Irish. This act set the stage for the current strife and political separation of Northern Ireland.

Through four generations, the Scottish settlers in Northern Ireland became culturally separated from the Scotland of their origin. Then many of them immigrated to America in five great waves between 1717 and 1775, entering colonial America primarily through Pennsylvania and migrating south through the Virginia valley. Initially, these people were commonly referred to as Irish. The term "Scotch Irish" was later invoked to distinguish them from the Irish immigrating to America from the southern part of Ireland.

The lives and contributions of the Scotch Irish in America are described. Separate identity of the Scotch Irish essentially ends with the American Revolution, after which these people meld into the overall cultural fabric of the United States.

Pros: Works extremely well as a general study, is written in a way that will appeal to several different kinds of audiences.

Cons: Is too absorbed with presenting the national character of the Scotch Irish.

This book really gives such a full understanding of the Scotch-Irish people. This is largely because it takes into account their full experience -- it begins by showing what life was typically like in Scotland for the people who would later come to be called "Scotch-Irish". It suggests reasons for why they came to Ireland and shows how their experiences in Ireland both changed and did not change them. It details their experience in Ulster and only then turns to their journey to America and their experiences there. Leburn does a particularly good job of showing how the Scotch-Irish contributed to American frontier culture.

The book is also very well written. It has enough meat to it to appeal to people who have read a bit on the subject while still being explanatory enough for those who haven't. One would think that a book that covers such a broad topic would barely touch on specifics, but Leyburn does a very good job of focusing the chapters so that the book gets quite detailed at times.

However, there is a niggling concern that I had many times while reading this book. Despite Leyburn's apparent dislike of the idea of a Scotch-Irish "race", he seems very intent on assigning them national personality traits, both good and bad. Leyburn presents the Scotch Irish as hard working, hardy, stubborn, religious, uncivilized, independent, and brutal. He seems to want to pigeonhole an entire people into this vision and he immediately dismisses any evidence which contradicts it or which would provide a more complex picture. This does not, by any means, destroy my enjoyment of the book, as this attitude only shows up at times and seems completely absent at others. It is, however, very pervasive in a few of the chapters.

Leyburn and the Scots-Irish
Leyburn's book (1962) is now "the grand old man" of Scots-Irish historiography, having easily displaced Henry Jones Ford's "The Scotch-Irish in America" (1915) - a book that was the previous generation's best study of the subject. Leyburn was one of the earliest authors to seriously investigate the Scottish background of the Scots-Irish, and did a wonderful job of not overpraising or overly denigrating the Scots-Irish (as a number of previous authors had done). Unfortunately, his book has an important flaw: he did not think very highly of Scots in general, and compared them unfavorably with their more successful (in modern terms) English cousins just about every chance he got. In other words, he did not understand the anthropological concept of culture at all; he was a historian after all, and largely a very good one. However, there is more to understanding the Scots-Irish than documents and written records, as is explained more fully below.

Scots-Irish Historiography
One of the most interesting aspects in Scots-Irish studies is how different schools of thought have risen and debated each other over the course of the last century and a half. There are four primary schools of thought. 1) The Ancestor Worshipper historians were the first to investigate the subject and brought a huge amount of forgotten information to the public eye between circa 1850 and today. Their primary limitation was that they believed that every great thing accomplished by Americans - representative government, education, religion, etc - had their origins with Scots-Irish traditions and heritage. These authors included those included in the volumes published by the Scotch-Irish Congresses, Charles Hanna, Ford, Maude Glasgow, W.F. Marshall, Wayland Dunaway, Rory Fitzpatrick, Billy Kennedy, and many others. 2) The Irish Catholic Historians wrote in strong reaction against the Ancestor Worshippers, saying that the Scots in question originally came from Ireland (which is historically accurate), so it was really Ireland that was responsible for so many great American ideas and traditions. These authors included John Francis Maguire, Thomas Hamilton Murray, Joseph Smith, John C. Linehan, Michael J. O'Brien (long associated with the American-Irish Historical Society), Kerby Miller, and others. The bitter warfare between these two schools over cultural origins itself caused a reaction amongst mostly academic scholars of the subject by about 1950, when 3) the Pragmatist Historians arose. These authors - who included T.W. Moody, Leyburn, R. J. Dickson, E.R.R. Green, E. Estyn Evans, M. Perceval-Maxwell, Raymond Gillespie, Maldwyn Jones, Kenneth Keller, and many others - believed that debates over culture did not matter, and that only the facts of written history should be investigated and reported. The Pragmatists probably did more than any other school to bring forgotten documents in Ireland and America to light. However, their disdain for cultural origins left a big opening for those who disagreed and thought that culture (in the anthropological sense of the word) did indeed matter, and the 1970s witnessed the rise of 4) the Celtic Thesis Historians. These writers believed that Celtic culture survived into modern times in rural areas of Britain and Ireland, and that despite the loss of nationhood among the Scots and Irish, this culture was transmitted to North America through the emigrations of the Scots-Irish in the 18th and 19th centuries. These authors included Grady McWhiney and Forrest McDonald (the originators of this viewpoint), Ellen Shapiro McDonald, Rodger Cunningham, Leroy Eid, Michael Hill, and to a lesser degree David Hackett Fischer and Bernard Bailyn. Today all four of these schools of thought are still in existence, and their adherents continue to publish books on the Scots-Irish. One author alone combined the best from all four schools in his treatment of the subject, and eliminated the worst, making him worthy of especial mention - especially since he is really the only author that cannot be pigeonholed. David Noel Doyle's "Ireland, Irishmen, and Revolutionary America" (1981) was a much needed synthesis when it appeared. Today a new synthesis combining the best from all four schools - and the many books and articles published in the last 25 years - is once more needed. Scots-Irish historiography is a fascinating study in itself, and deserves much serious attention from future authors. Let us hope that the subject is studied and debated for a long, long time, and that a new synthesis and historiographical study is out there waiting somewhere in the wings!

Prof. Leyburn obviously did some study on his subject, and it shows in this book. He is able to recount in fair detail the history of "the Scotch Irish", but it is plain how little he thought of them. It seems that his underlying goal is to correct the "overpraise" the Ulster Scots have received from some quarters. His descriptions of the Scots could have been penned by the most bigoted English historian. Leyburn has used such disparaging accounts of the Scots in their homeland that one would be lead to believe that Cro-Magnons could teach them some things about hygiene and manners, but due to the lack of Cro-Magnons, God gave the Scots the English to help them.

His contention that the Ulster Scots did not remain Ulster Scots but became "Americans" is not wholly true. While those states with a large number of people with Scots ancestry have always been among the first to defend this country and stand up to the rest of the world as Americans, they have also been very rooted in the history of their people and their family. I grew up in the South in an area of heavy Scots/Ulster Scots ancestry, where the current use of words from Scotland and Ulster continues by the elder generation. The people there have all been born in America, but they are quicker to point out that they are "Scotch Irish" than they are to say American. They raised their children to be the same way. The United States may be the place of birth, but the blood is Scots.

Scots, maybe, but usually just plain Scottish. Scotch is a common name for whisky. It amazes me how many people here tell me that they are "Scotch-Irish" - to me it makes them sound like an idiot.

If this hadn't been uber-xena, it would have been a decent, albeit pedestrian read. Adding the repetitive mantra of "tall, dark-haired" or "short blond woman" made this yet another nauseating uber-xena fantasy.

The plot was uneven - some parts were confusing and others did not follow from the previous action, while the sub-plot with the ex-boyfriend was repetitive. He could have been used for so much more than just showing up and threatening Alex in front of witnesses.

There was a glimmer of potential in this book, and if the author is willing to write something not uber-xena, her next books should be even better. Until then, avoid this unless you are an uber-xena fan.

This was a well thought out book and does not have the characters jumping in to bed at the drop of a hat, which is all too common. I appreciated how the characters were developed and story line plotted. I intend to keep this one.

I was so excited to finally find it I had to share!! Find out what happens to Alex and Regina in the sequel, The Road Back Home. This is an online book and can be found at http://midgit.co.uk/trbh1.htm. Enjoy.

The writing is wonderful and story addictive. This was a real pager turner but so robust that is was not possible to read in one sitting. I like a nice long read that fully fleshes out the characters and their surroundings. I am not one for Harlequin romances so if that is what makes you happy you will want to look elsewhere.

The characters are truly likable and human. They were also very unique and their histories were exceptional. I am especially fascinated with Alex and how her backstory is slowly revealed over the course of the novel.

See the earlier review by Lori Lake, I agree with it completely.

I am looking for more books by this author.

Take a talented surgeon with a dangerous past and you have the enigmatic Alex Marguilles. Alex (aloof, tall, dark and blue-eyed - i.e., Xena) has a past that includes dangerous drug use and a lover lost to cancer. To keep ahead of the game, she buries her emotions and has a reputation as being cold and heartless.

In walks intern Regina Kingston (friendly, talkative, short, blonde and green-eyed -- i.e., Gabby). Regina is involved in an abusive relationship with a man her parents adore. Top it off with an HIV scare in her early days in the hospital, and you have a young woman with a lot of emotional baggage herself.

Targeted by the head of surgery, Alex finds herself on administrative leave with Regina for helping a pregnant woman in the parking lot. The two women learn to lean on each other and tentatively begin a bone-deep love affair they are unwilling to relinquish.

At over 400 pages, this book is a fantastic value for its length alone. Add to that a fantastic story and you have a book that will stay in your personal collection for many years.

Highly recommended by this reader, I'm sure you won't be disappointed.

Trevanian is a wonderful and intriguing author. This thoroughly enjoyable and mostly autobiographical book was a delightful read, but in a far different way than the author's other books. No international intrigue going on here...just good old immigrant neighborhood intrigue. A wonderful journey into the childhood of a first generation American. The characters were extremely sympathetic. I especially loved the parts where jean-luc is playing by himself: where he is all the actors playing all the parts in the fantastic stories of his imagination. Brought back great day-long games of make believe from my own childhood.

- C.A. Wulff, author of Born Without a Tail

This book was just like listening to my Grandfather tell a story. He is the same age as the author and also from New York. The author does a wonderful job of engaging all your senses as he describes the memories of the past.

I must admit that this story brought back my childhood in the South Bronx. The accuracy of life during the depression could only have been described from personal experience, and I wanted to write to Trevanian to tell him how much I enjoyed his autobiography, for it could not have been anything else. Later I learned that this was so, but that he had died in 2006.

I have purchased several copies and sent them to family and friends who also experienced the 1930s when they and their families struggled to simply put food, any food, on the table; and children worked at any menial job that paid a few cents to assist.

When Travanian talked of shining shoes, delivering newspapers, carrying parcels, hiding and reading in the public library, all was familiar to me and my brothers.

The book is also very readable and enjoyable... as most of his are.

Although this is listed as fiction, the details of Jean-Luc Lapointe's rough childhood in an Irish slum in Albany ring too true to be imaginary. The boy's escape came through hours of solitary story games where he plotted and acted all the characters. The responsibilities of helping his often-ill mother and vulnerable little sister weighed heavily on him during the depression years and the outbreak of WWII.
A nitty gritty bio that draws you in the way Angela's Ashes does. I became mesmerized by the flow of words and the pictures he evoked.
I've not read Trevanian's highly touted novels (Shibumi, The Eiger Sanction, etc.), but think I should give them a try after seeing his wonderful effort here.

Trevanian has been one of my favorite authors for a number of years, so when I learned of his death it felt as if an old friend had left me. As soon as his last book - Crazyladies of Pearl Street - was available, I purchased a copy, and the first half of the book kept me spellbound.

Unfortunately, as the book progressed, I began to see Trevanian as a bitter, angry socialist, possibly because of his own failures in early life, possibly because of his mother's poverty, who knows? At any rate, the Trevanian who I had grown to love became a stranger to me - I just never perceived him to be so un-American, his previous books certainly didn't give any hint of that.

Quite a bit of the anti-American, anti-Republican, anti-Bush, anti-business sentiment is expressed in the "cybernotes" that are published on Trevanian's website. I wish I'd never begun to read those notes, and indeed stopped reading them about 3/4 through them - it was just too much to read how he hated my country and its leaders.

I guess Trevanian felt that he was safe in letting the cat out of the bag in his final book, since he was already in very poor health at the time. I only hope that his illness affected his mind, and that the author I enjoyed so much in "Summer of Katya" and "Incident at Twenty Mile" had left long before "Crazyladies" was written.

This book is so poorly written that I could not even make it past the first 20 pages. The sentences sound like they were constucted by a 6th grader, and the text is filled with grammatical and spelling errors (not to mention it looks like it was typecast in someone's basement). I recently read a book that was written by an ex-mafia inmate that had better grammar, sentence formation and drama.

It's amazing to me that this book got published in its current form. It could stand a rewrite and some "professional" editing.

Luminous...a beautifully assured and full-bodied novel that becomes a tender examiniation of a young man's struggle with a cause. Irish American hero is clearly the best novel written about Northern ireland in the last twenty years. This novel is a small masterpiece that catches all the ambiguity and agony of Northern Ireland and at the same time reveals the strength and courage and the hope of which a young man is capable. From the first to the last sentence the book is wonderfuly well written.

Bob Sampo describes it as as small masterpiece. Molly English of the Syracuse NewTimes gives it and its author high praise. Peter Soffietti calls it "the best 'Irish' book ever written. The "it" that is causing such remarkable reviews is the new novel, Irish American Hero, by Syracuse native Dan Sheehan. The 120+ page novel is about the fictional life of irish American, Michael patrick O'Shea. Raised in America but as an Irish rebel by his family, michael struggles with the "gray area" between right and wrong during the turbulent "troubles" of the 1970's. The events that unfold in young Michael's life create the young man he becomes. The Mystery and intrigue created by the imagination of author, Dan Sheehan will keep you in suspence. Forgive the cliche but you will not be able "to put it down." What makes this book so special to me, besides the incredible ending, is the way in which Sheehan educates the reader about Irish History. Without knowing it, the reader will better understand the complexities of the conflict that is so often mistaken as a simple fight between Protestants and Catholics.I strongly recommend this book. This book is particlarly important for any student of Irish history in the last years of high school and beyond. It would make an excellent teaching device in both History and English courses and Iencourage teachers to consider it as an educational tool. The conciseness of the 120 pages makes this book an easy, enjoyable read. If you know a young person that you would like to treat to a meaningful gift this would be an excellent choice. I guarantee the reader will come away with a flattering opinion of this books let alone outright thrill at the completion of this superb novel, as I did. The author, Dan Sheehan was raised in Syracuse, NY and the book includes references to Upstate New York. Dan also went to Onondaga Community College and Syracuse University. He holds a BA in Creative Writing and an MS in English Education. Dan grew up "Irish-American" and stealing a Latin phrase from the book, you could say about Dan "Hiberiores hibenis iposos," meaning "more Irish than Irish." Dan has traveled extensively in Ireland and spent the last 20 years teaching in Alaska. Dan won the "Who's Who Among America's Teachers" award in 1994. -Jeff Costello Publisher of Everything Irish magazine

This book is wonderful. The author even used Gaelic (Irish) heading as his chapter titles.
The opening reminds me of Frank McCourt's Angela's Ashes as it begins with the hero's childhood and told in a child's voice. The history and magic of Ireland flows through this novel. The ending is shocking! I rate this novel at 5 stars!

What can I say? This is a great book. I read the reviews in the Syracuse, New Times and I saw the TV show on WCNY. I bought another copy to give to my best friend. Buy this book !

I love anthologies where I read *every single* item.. I bought this originally for the essay by Diane Duane, one of my favourite authors. I was pleasantly surprised to find I liked every single essay, even the ones with conflicting points of view, even the one by Poul Anderson.. (although I did find that one the dryest). That said, these are all by professional authors, so the disease that so often blights academic collections, i.e. wonderful ideas completely killed by inedible prose, is not present. The subjects of the essays vary greatly; there are lots of personal recollections of reading Tolkien for the first time, Esther Friesner talks about how hot people with pointed ears are, Orson Scott Card talks about critical approaches to Tolkien (and it's *fun*!), Ursula K Le Guin talks about rhythmic pattern in Tolkien's prose. There are essays by: Raymond Feist, Poul Anderson, Michael Swanwick (another funny one!), Esther Friesner, Harry Turtledove, Terry Pratchett, Robin Hobb, Ursula Le Guin, Diane Duane, Douglas Anderson, Orson Scott Card, Charles de Lint, Lisa Goldstein, Glenn Hurdling (interviewing the Hildiebrant brothers), and Terri Windling, along with two introductions by Karen Haber and George R R Martin (they had to get the author with the most similar name to J R R Tolkien..). Anyway, if you like the fiction of any of these, you'll probably like the essays.

This book was clearly published with the expectation that it'd ride the wave of publicity for the LOTR movies, and perhaps it did. With the movies all on DVD now, maybe it seems less relevant than it once did. As other reviewers have mentioned, the essays in this book vary quite a bit in quality, and they approach the "What Lord of the Rings Means" question from different angles.

However, I think the book is worth reading -- once -- for a slightly different reason than Tolkien or LOTR. If you like Tolkien but aren't fanatical about the subject (not *all* of us feel the need to re-read the trilogy once a year), you may still enjoy many of these essays because you can hear how your favorite authors think, the unique way in which they were influenced by what they read... the author's own voice, in other words, rather than the stories they tell.

I kept imagining that I was attending a panel about "what LOTR meant to me" at an SF convention, and that many of the authors had interesting things to say. If you take the book from that viewpoint, you'll probably enjoy it. And if you're a writer yourself, you should definitely grab a copy.

For instance, Robin Hobb writes about being blown away by Tolkien's ability to create the setting in a novel. ("True setting is far more than descriptive passages about birch trees in winter, or picturesque villages. Tolkien's setting invoked a time and a place that was as familiar as home to me, yet unfolded the wonders and dangers of all that I had always suspected was just beyond the next hill.") Hobb's novels are masterworks of setting, so you see both the influence on the developing writer, and the reason for their impact.

Similarly, Ursula LeGuin sees the books in terms of word rhythms; Charles deLint writes about the impact of the Fairy Story (in the larger, romantic sense). This book gives you a unique view into the minds of the authors you may admire.

It also, alas, shows that not all of them are as skilled at writing an essay as they are with fiction. Esther Freisner does a damned good job (funny, too), but a few of the others wander around aimlessly, forgetting to make a point. Again, it's rather like a panel at an SF Con.

You shouldn't feel compelled to acquire a copy of this book, but don't pass it by, either. Good library fodder, or perhaps a read-and-pass-on book.

MEDITATIONS ON MIDDLE EARTH is a collection of essays focusing on J.R.R. Tolkien's works, especially the Middle Earth saga. Some of the more renowned fantasy authors of today evaluate the series that made fantasy a household name. Surprisingly, though everyone agrees that Professor Tolkien opened up the genre to the middle class, not all of the contributors are fans of the actual novels. Insightful and entertaining, each essay is well written with the writer's particular spin. However, this anthology will be loved by those readers analyzing the various cultures in a way that cultural anthropologists would envy or by those fans who cherish Beowulf, which Tolkien felt is the forefather of the genre.

Harriet Klausner

This book really brought back some great memories. And not really in the vein of Tolkien amazingly enough. ( I am a major FAN of Tolkien). No, I was shocked that when reading these essays I was quickly thrown back into my teenage years where I would read nothing but sci-fi/fantasy. I had almost forgotten how most of these authors had written in a basic, easy to read style that appealed to a young lad caught up in an adventurous, romantic mind set. I read these books as if I were love starved housewife needing my "Fabio on the cover" fix.
The good news is that I eventually outgrew this fixation, learning to read books that weren't written in under a month. But this book made me want to read some of their newer works, and, (gasp), reread some of them.
But seriously, this book is well worth the read. Some of the authors aren't all that great at writing non-fiction, (or even fiction for that matter), but it is nice to see them rahpsodizing about Tolkien. It is is also very nice to see John Howe's sketches scattered throughout, and his artwork on the cover was one of my favorite pictures long before I ever heard his name. He is an excellent artist, and I am so glad they used him as a conceptual designer on the LOTR' movies.
I give here a brief review of half the essays.
Karen Haber- Even though she was the editor of this book, her preface wasn't anything to write home about. Okay, I'll say it. It was DUMB.
George R.R. Martin- Martin, being stuck with the introduction, gives a short, concise read of what fantasy is and how Tolkien changed it. Well written and likable.
Michael Stanwick- I have never had the pleasure of reading Mr. Stanwick, but this gives me the desire to. He relates his experiences reading LOTR, gives a very nice piece on some of the dynamics of the characters, and talks of Tolkien's thoughts on allegory. He then finishes with a wonderfully heartwarming rendition of him reading the books to his young son, and how much more Sam's last words "Well, I'm back." meant to him then.
Esther Friesner- This essay was just plain funny. That is all I really remember. She didn't seem to have much to convey, but she did make me laugh.
Terry Pratchett- In true Brittish style, Pratchett brings real comic relief to this book. Just reading a short work as this brings to mind Monty Python, Hitchiker's Guide to the Galaxy, and his very own Discworld. This time he jumps headlong into the question" why is LOTR's still considered a cult classic, when it is the most popular book of the twentieth century?".He answers this in a way that would make Terry Gilliam or John Cleese proud to have written, showing how Mona Lisa and Pride and Prejudice fit into the equation. Bravo.
Ursula K. LeGuin- This was probably the best written of the bunch. Bypassing the "this is how I was first introduced to Tolkien's work" that pervades this book, Ursula gives a nice review of how Tolkien wrote his prose almost in a poetic metre. Taking one chapter of the fellowship, she shows how the different beats of action all corelate into a masterful work. Wish I had wrote it.
Orson Scott Card- The first page or two was alright, but after that it quickly detiorated into a study of "serious" vs. "escapist", that lost me in almost every paragraph. While making a few interesting points, it seemed mostly like he was just writing at random, and then forgot to put it into a cohesive format. All I can say is that Card should stick to writing fiction.
Hildebrandt Brothers- Before I write anything else, let me say this. I have never liked the brothers art. Sorry, but my bias will probably show in this one. Personally, I don't think that this should have been included in the book. Why not have John Howe or Alan Lee write something instead of this (rather lame) interview. Mostly they just banter back and forth about how skilled they are, talking about all their various projects, and occasionally thanking Tolkien for giving them the source material that made them famous. Pass.
Terri Windling- More so than all the others, this essay truly moved me. It recalled the wondefully romantic (in the classical sense of the word) thoughts, ideas, and feelings that I have always ascoiated with Tolkien, Indeed all fantasy in general. Interestingly enough, it wasn't the LOTR's that made her feel this way, But Tolkien's excellent lecture "On Fairy Stories", a beautiful work on the role of fantasy in the adult life. She also makes some great points about how Disney has changed the way we look at fairy tales, making them something just for children. Placing this essay at the end of the book definatly makes it feel as if they left the one of best for last.

Should you read this book? If you are a fan of tolkien, and don't mind a little light-hearted writing about him, then yes. If however you just happen to like a particular contributer, then you should probably shy away from this one.

Mostly good, this collection did have some serious downfalls. For the positives first, in general this was a great celebration of Tolkien's enduring effect on the fantasy field, and of his works. Most of the contributers to this wanted to share their experiances and debts to Tolkien's works, but a few seemed just as happy to grab their own fame out of this enterpriese. An essay-by-essay review in the order that they appear...

George R.R. Martin: Unfortunatly stuck with the intro, Martin discusses Tolkienesque and epic fantasy, the latter being his main style. Engaging and interesting, and much too short.

Raymond E. Fiest: So-so essay, entertaining but not overly informative or interesting.

Poul Anderson: I remember nothing of this one save that it was the only essay that I couldn't finish...and it wasn't even that long.

Michael Swanwick: My memory of this one is sketchy as well, but a wonderfully tied-together essay that was much more united than many of these, and inspiring. A new author to me, this essay impressed me with his style and appriciation and understanding of Tolkien's works.

Esther M. Friesner: Not very on-topic, but it made me laugh...different style, but good enough.

Harry Turtledove: Never did get the point he was trying to make, I don't think he did either. Rambling and random, but not boring at least.

Terry Pratchett: Pratchett was a bit condesencing (or more than a bit) in his essay, and it appeared to me that he came into the deal just to help sell the book with his popular name. No insights in this, and his lack of passion for Tolkien is apparent.

Robin Hobb: A refreshingly fluid essay, sharing her personal experiances and thoughts about the books. Loved this one, and I agreed with her on almost everything she said. Respectful of Tolkien in the way that I am...not forceful, but deeply passionate in a quiter way.

Ursula K LeGuin: Took me awhile to finish this one, but left me with a much better understanding of Tolkien's styles in prose. If you're shooting for new but not radical ideas and thoughts, this is worth the price of the book!

Diane Duane: More of a personal experiance essay, okay and entertianing enough, but not much substance.

Douglas A. Anderson: He said some things I didn't agree with, but his essay was excellent and informative, while being engaging. A nice history of Tolkien both personal and historical, nicely done.

Orson Scott Card: A bit rambling, but, though some of his ideas were questionable for me, very good. Card once again demostrates his understanding of the genre and its history and mechanics, conveying this in his usual intimate, sometimes sarcastic, fast-moving and informative fashion that I love so much.

Lisa Goldstien: Never heard of her, but a nice essay on why Tolkien was so different, important, and nessecary to our world.

Charles De Lint: I feel that he has seriously mis-interpretted certain bits of the book, seeing it as a bit too allegorical, and only grasping the points of it that he wants to understand. Poltically correct, this essay started good and went bad.

Hildebrant brothers: Can't say enough bad about them. They did this just for their own publicity, and I got very, very tired of hearing about how wonderful they were, and how perfect their interpretations were, and how much fun it is to illustrate...bleh. They are arrogant, concieted, and condecending, trying to compare themselves to Tolkien, and getting all upset over the lack of feminism in the books. Good for Tolkien, I say! I'm a woman, it doesn't bug me, and I don't need a bunch of guys looking out for my best intrests. I can do that myself! Burn this conversation, folks. It was awful.

Terri Windling: Nice conclusion to the book, inspiring and hopeful, and very touching. A bit feministic for my tastes, but a true tribute to Tolkien.

Overall, nice essays in general. If you're wondering, buy it. It's good light reading. But if you're looking for a serious academic study of Tolkien, buy Tom Shippey's "J.R.R. Tolkien: Author of the Century" instead.

You are probably better off buying something a textbook from the Norton. Because
1. The editor is biased again women and minority poets. To quote Cary Nelson in the Virginia Quarterly Review,
"If Bloom's wholesale elimination of poems by women and minorities is disgusting and deplorable, however, it is not especially interesting. It is simply part of the conservative backlash against muticulturalism."
2. He is a conservative who does not like modern experimentation.
3. He is biased against poems that show the ugly side of life (ex. war poems, poems about protest or violence).
4. He flatly rejects some of the best poems in history that pushed the limits of the English language.
5. His idea of the Sublime idea is still stuck in early part of the 19th century.

Mr. Bloom, you disappoint me.

So go please and find some true poetry. There's a whole WORLD out there.

I can't say I buy many anthologies of poetry; instead, I prefer to buy the collected works of poets I find interesting or about whom I am curious. This one, however, caught my eye. I have read other works by Bloom, including the WESTERN CANON, and I figured I'd see what he has to say about these poets.

The title should be taken tongue-in-cheek. Any selection of poetry is going to be highly subjective, especially when it is proclaimed to be THE BEST. Those criticizing the exclusion of certain poets are a bit off in their criticism; this is BLOOM'S selection of the best, and no other man's selection of the best poetry is going to be the same as yours, mine, or the dude who lives at the end of the street's.

You may ask, then: why should we care? The answer lies partly in Bloom's criticism, and partly because Bloom's erudition lends itself well to such anthologies.

By the first, I mean that his criticism is good. Not great; good. There are certainly sparks of illumination herein--I found the sections on Spenser, Wordsworth, and a few others particularly good--but in general it is pretty superficial, in the sense that his criticism does not delve very deep into any one poem or another (with the exception of maybe the FAERIE QUEENE, though no work of criticism can go deep enough into that!). Bloom instead prefers to skate along the surface of the poems, but, in so doing, he makes this a very readable and interesting volume, especially for the non-professional.

The second point, on his erudition, is valid because Bloom presents us with some very unknown and forgotten poets who are truly worth remembering. The standard greats are almost all there, but the real gems often lie in the unknowns.

If you are a professor, or somebody particularly well-read in poetry, it is only this last point that will be of value to you. For those of us who are neither (I'm relatively well-read in poetry, but by no means an expert!), Bloom's work is well worth picking up.

Harold Bloom is arguably the greatest living literary critic, a worthy heir to his own great mentors Samuel Johnson, F.C. Bradley, M.H.Abrams and Northrop Frye. Bloom forced to slowdown from composition of his own works while recovering for twenty-months from a triple- bypass put together this anthology of what he regards to be as the greatest poems in the English language. The work it should be noted does not include twentieth century works in part because Bloom believes there are so many fine poets in the twentieth - century it would be almost impossible to do this. He also hoped to avoid the kind of battles he has long been familiar with in which the 'politically correct' issues enter. Bloom makes it clear that those kind of ethnic, gender,sexual orientation issues and other what he calls 'irrelevancies' have nothing to do with the selections he makes in this work. His criteria are in his own words, " The standards of judgment which matter to me,are cognitive achievement, aesthetic splendor, and wisdom: only those three."
So what he provides Chaucer to Hart Crane are by and large selections from the standard canon of English poetry. He also provides a thirty-page introduction on how to read poetry, biographical sketches, and commentary on the poems. Bloom is a tough but loving critic, for whom agon and agony go with his whole understanding of the poetry- making process. The whole business of succeeding poets seeing their predecessors as rivals who they first admire and then must misread to overcome and distinguish themselves from is at the heart of his vision of poetry. But Bloom is also an extremely broad- minded, generous and appreciative reader. His passion for poetry is felt in the commentary, and his life- long dedication sensed in his championing of the selections. It is fitting that the last poet included in the volume is Hart Crane (b. 1899) for it is with a volume of his 'White Bridges' that the then twelve - year old Harold Bloom discovered his love of poetry, and his desire to devote his life to the reading and writing of it. As a great and perhaps unequalled reader, perhaps in terms of his mastery of the whole text of poetic literature the all - time master Bloom transmits to us in love the works he , and it is fair to say most general readers of poetry, have most loved .

A book to buy and read for anyone interested at all in the highest arts of the written English language. Dr. Bloom, a person with a higher level of knowledge and pure intellect than almost all, has brought together many of the great poems of our civilization. While I did not understand all he said in his introductions, there is no doubt he is a treasure of our society.

I am not someone who normally reads poetry. This book gave me access to works by poets (many I had not even heard of) that I would never have read otherwise---which would have been my sad loss.

This work is entirely self-indulgent as are most works of literature and criticism. As Bloom points out in his intorductory essay, this is the collection of poetry he wishes he had always owned. Therefore, if you share a similar taste in poetry as Bloom then this is a necessary anthology. If I were teaching a poetry course this year I would use this anthology.

I was 12 when I first picked up the book at our local Willoughby library. My mom said I would enjoy it. I had the book for five weeks, I renewed it twice, but what a joy! How I fell in love with Maggie-Now, and her brother Denny. It molded my views on life, that we take what we get and learn to live with it, love, laugh and cry. I would liken my dates to Clyde, how when I was 12 I thought he was the greatest, but as I grew older, I realized that he wasn't. He wasn't that prince charming I thought he was. But then again, who is? Maggie loved him, and I did also. I suggest every young teenager girl read this book, along with Betty Smiths other two books: A Tree Grows in Brooklyn and Tomorrow Will Be Better. This helps us realize how difficult the world was then, and how, in different terms, it's difficult now.

Betty Smith was a writer who could draw you into her characters. You feel as if they become a part of you, and you think of them long after the book is finished.

I was happy to discover this book, and found it to be extremely entertaining and enjoyable.

You will enjoy reading about Maggie-now and her life.

My only regret is that the talented Betty Smith is no longer alive to write more novels. She had a gift.

I love all of Betty Smith's books (and wish she had written more) but Maggie Now is my all time favorite book. I read it as a teenager (30 years ago) and still pick it up and read it every few years. I still cry every time I read it and feel as though I'm connecting with old friends. It's a classic that is timeless. Enjoy!

"Maggie Now" has many of the very compelling aspects of Betty Smith's novels - all of which are worth reading. Her sense of the time and the place makes me feel like I am there. I always feel like I understand Brooklyn at the turn of the century while I am immersed in one of her stories. She has a beautiful way with words that allows me to see things like she did as a young girl. All in all, she is one of my favorite authors.

However, I got the feeling in this book that she must have written it a bit at a time. It seemed like parts flowed, but there were also gaps in the stream of the prose. There are a couple of places where I could imagine her returning to a manuscipt after not having written for awhile and having to get reacclimated to the plot and characters.

Furthermore, I found the characters to be uncharacteristically shallow and unappealing. The "Claude" story line was weak and very unbelievable. When he finally revealed the truth about his life, it was anti-climactic. The ensuing resolution was trite.

So, if you are a Betty Smith fan, read this. If you want to read her best - go for "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn." "Joy in the Morning" is almost a sequel to "A Tree," and is probably the next best written. "Tomorrow Will be Better" is also good reading.

I have to say first that A Tree Grows in Brooklyn is my all-time favorite novel. I was a young child in Brooklyn and the vivid descriptions of the smells, sights, and sounds of Brooklyn really did the city justice. Because of my love for this book I read Joy in the Morning and Maggie Now. I wasn't as impressed with Joy in the Morning, though I did enjoy it and read it fairly quickly. Maggie Now, however, was an entirely different story.

It took me months to finish this book because I had no desire to pick it up. Betty Smith's books are fairly consistent for using multiple pages for the descriptions of passerby characters, people we read about once and never hear from again, or at least, not for a few hundred pages. This didn't bother me at all in A Tree Grows in Brooklyn or Joy in the Morning. The characters were intriguing and fun. I did feel that they were superfluous and downright boring in Maggie Now.

When I finally finished the book, because I was on a long plane ride with nothing else to do, I sat in my seat with a bothered look on my face and out loud said "Seriously?" I couldn't believe I wasted so much time for such a horrible story. The dialogue was almost laughable, and not because it was humorous.

I do give it credit for not ending in a predictable happy ending, but the entire story was just one depressing moment after another. I think the thing that bothered me most was the fact that I had no respect for Maggie Now by the time I closed the book. I admired Francie Nolan. If I have daughters, I would want them to look at her character as a role model. Even the heroine in Joy in the Morning was a strong self-sufficient woman, though at times seemingly ditzy.

Maggie Now, however, was close to being almost insulting to women who value self respect and a non-abusive husband. I consider myself a romantic, I adored the connection between Denny and Tessie, but I cannot, even in the furthest stretch of my imagination, accept Maggie and Claude as a romance. The book glorifies a man treating his wife like dirt, leaving for more months out of a year than he's home, never telling her where he is working or has been. It's an abusive relationship that she and her family allow to continue until Maggie has lost everything; her husband, her foster children, any hope of having her own children, her father and her brother due to their own marriages...It's depressing!

It's not heart wrenching enough to make the reader sympathize with Maggie. With the exception of her mother passing away, all the heartache in her life was brought on by her decision to choose Claude. This book is NOT for those who appreciate strong women. It is a good scare tactic for showing what can happen to a girl when she chooses the wrong partner in life.

This book will NOT be passed down to my daughters.