Ireland Books

TOO LONG A SACRIFICE is an admirable model of the editing of literary works of importance. The editors' knowledge of the subjects and their place in history (political, art and otherwise), the care with which they present the text, and the extensive and informative notes which clarify persons and events mentioned, are impressive. However important Quinn may be, my impression of him is not very positive. He seems to be, in spite of his status as a patron, protector and promoter, an opportunistic user of people. He appears to be communicating primarily as an effort to elicit responses that will have future literary value - he is writing with an eye to posterity's perception of him - he is less interested in the person than in the person's observations, statements and assessments. His words seem disassociated from a human, humane interest in his correspondent. While a degree of personal reserve may be expected, his reserve seems cold and calculated. I felt this strongly in the earlier ON POETRY, PAINTING AND POLITICS (The Letters of May Morris and John Quinn) {Janis Londraville's previous work on Quinn}. Mrs. Londraville's scholarly and graceful editing is wonderful. She does not intrude her assessment of the man into the book, making it possible for me to dislike him all on his own! I recommend both these books for all readers interested in the linked worlds of Irish history, literature and tragedy, seen through the filter of a careful, American, would-be Walpole.

These writers go to the essence of their subjects presenting them as human being not just icons of their time. Please check out the other books by these authors who capture others from the Irish connections

TOO LONG A SACRIFICE is an essential guide to Irish arts and letters as well as an intriguing glimpse into the daily lives of early twentieth century literati. Between the dark wit of Irish American lawyer and art patron John Quinn and the passionate observations of political activist and feminist Maud Gonne, these letters open a window onto a private world where such literary luminaries as Joyce, Pound and Yeats were also friends. Through this collection of correspondence, historian Janis Londraville and SUNY Potsdam Professor Richard Londraville, who both spoke at the W.B. Yeats Society of the Palm Beaches this May (99) in Florida, have offered modern readers a passport into the minds and times of these two influential figures. Whether these letters were written from a train station in Paris, a country house retreat in West Ireland, or a law office in bustling turn of the century New York, I felt as if I was there as Gonne and Quinn corresponded about the effects of war, the possibilities of art, and the hopes of an independent and united Ireland. Since these letters were not penned for personal gain or public perusal, their candor is refreshing, especially as they speak of people who worked only for the blessing of history, not celebrity. That understanding - of how art continues to exist, often at great personal cost, because of some inner dedication instead of adulation - is just one of the many lasting insights from this book. It's an epistolary treat

Because of my interest in early twentieth century art, I have read some of John Quinn's letters before, and I'm familiar with his biography by Benjamin L. Reid. What fascinates me about this new book of letters is that Quinn seems so interested in and concerned about Maud Gonne, her various interests, and her children. He is usually less sensitive. The notes at the end of the text are another book in themselves, and very helpful to me in my own research about several sculptors, including Gaudier-Brzeska and Brancusi. Although Irish history is not my area of expertise, I liked eavesdropping on Maud Gonne when she wrote to Quinn about the Irish political situation and, especially, about the starving Irish children. I never really understood before what England had done.

TOO LONG A SACRAFICE casts light on the world in which Maud Gonne, John Quinn, and W.B. Yeats lived and worked. There has been such a proliferation of material about Yeats and his circle that I didn't expect much that was new in these letters. But as I read Maud Gonne's correspondence with John Quinn, I felt for the first time that she was a special individual and not simply a function of Yeats's verse. She writes frequently about Yeats, his poetry, and their mutual friends; but she also writes of her own life, aand of her own ideas abut art, literature, and politics. I didn't always agree with her views, but I was delighted to know, at last, how SHE felt. The editors claim that "the seriousness of Gonne's views is both diminished and enhanced by [Yeats's] poetry" and that "it has become almost impossible for us to see her other than through the lens of his verse." But these letters allow me to hear Maude Gonnes' own voice. She speaks as a firebrand who hates everything English, and yet is also a healer and a humanitarian. (I learned that she nursed the wounded in France during WWI, and she, with Quinn's financial support, fed starving children in Dublin). Quinn was a powerful man, the patron and friend to many of the important writers and artists of the twentieth century. I'm given the impression that he was acerbic at times, temperamental, and perhaps obsessive compulsive. Still, his letters to Maud Gonne are charming and packed with information about famous people he knwe, from Theodore Roosevelt to james Joyce, from Woodrow Wilson to John Millington Synge, from the entire Yeats family to artist Gwen John and Pablo Picasso. The editors are to be commended for their efforts to keep a balance between meticulous scholarship and concern for the non-specialist. I particularly appreciated the useful introductions to eaach section.

_Toss the Feathers_ is the definitive book on Irish set dancing. I bought a copy in Galway City, and it has saved me innumerable times. I carry it with me to all classes and ceilis; it's well-worn and well-loved. Besides the most common sets, Pat gives us notes for beautiful and obscure local dances. His introduction also includes an illuminating history of set dancing. Beware: you will not teach yourself to dance from this book if you have no prior knowledge of set dancing. However, it is ideal for supplementing your knowledge from classes. When two set dancers disagree on the "correct" version of a set, one inevitably pulls out a copy of Pat's book, and his judgement is trusted. All of us set dancing addicts are awaiting the upcoming sequel. Buy it now! You'll never regret this useful reference on bad days when you can't even remember how the Ballyvourney Jig Set begins.

As a step dancer with limited exposure to set dancing, I found this book a wonderful introduction. Although I cannot personally vouch for the accuracy of his notation, I know/ have heard of several who do. In any case, it is well written and researched.... An excellent historical guide. Probably the best Irish dance (step or set) book sold on Amazon.

This is the best. If you want a reference for dancing, the one the teachers use, this is it. Buy it. There is none better.

This book is great for anyone who set dances but hasn't yet memorized all of the moves (-most of us?!). Not intended for people who have never set danced before. You need to be familiar with the jargon, such as "round the house", "ladies chain", etc.

Pat Murphy's _Toss the Feathers_ is the most useful guide to set dancing I have come across. During my nine months dancing in Northern Ireland, _Toss the Feathers_ was the book that my teachers used to check for technicalities, and the book I used to brush up on my steps on my way to ceilis. I heartily recommend this book to people who know about set dancing, and want to check their steps or sets. However, I do not recommend this book to newcomers, because Murphy's language is overly technical. For example, to turn someone under your arm, you have to rotate them in a counterclockwise manner until they reach 360 degrees, etc. :) I'm exaggerating. But this book is a definite must-have for those who love set dancing, especially when they're away from Ireland. Like me. Cheers go to Pat Murphy.

I was originally introduced to this book while living in the UK...the pipe band with which I played incorporated several of the tunes into its competition march medley. Being a long-time fan of the 'classic' trad Irish groups such as the Chieftains and the Bothy Band, I quickly realized these tunes to be ones played by them but set for the Highland pipes; yet still maintaining the framework to keep them instantly recognizable. If you're a Highland bagpiper and are looking for some great Irish tunes that you seldom hear in GHB piping circles, this is an excellent addition to your collection. If you're looking for some fresh material for building a pipe band competition medley (Gr III or higher) that no one else is playing, you'll find some gems in here. Note that this is NOT a beginner's tunebook...many of the tunes are quite challenging--not on the level of Saul or Duncan, but still enough to result in a disappointment (and discomfort) for the listener if attempted by a beginner or poor piper not up to the task.

This is a great little book of tunes. I've owned a copy for years and learned many tunes from it. It includes the classic "A Glass of Beer", a very Irish sounding "Johnny Cope" and several great slow airs and marches. But the person who compiled and arranged the tunes is Dave Rickard, not Susan MacQuaid.

This is a great collection of music and I highly recommend it to all of the pipers out there

This books is very well laid out with some great original compositions. I highly recommend it.

I was somewhat dissappointed when I first received this book because I was expecting many tunes that I had heard of, but after I had played several of them I quickly saw that this collection is a trove of wonderful celtic melodies that I will enjoy learning. Many of these tunes are written in the old style and are quite satisfying to play. Enjoy!

Did you ever read a book by an academic and think to yourself, "Gosh, I hope his lectures are better than his writing, or else I pity his students." I guarantee that thought won't occur to you while reading this wonderful work. Recognizing that the author, not inappropriately, chose to style it as a "companion" to Victorian literature, and likely would have disavowed any suggestion that it is actually a work of history, that's in fact what it is, and a great one. But rather than simply a social history, it is primarily an intellectual history of the period with an emphasis on the roles of artists and men and women of letters as well as the Utilitarians, Evangelicals, the Oxford Movement, the Pre-Raphaelites, incipient socialism, all thoroughly accessible to readers unacquainted with the period but surpassingly enjoyable to the most knowledgeable among us as well. I come backwards to the book, having read much Victorian literature, innumerable histories of the period and biographies of its principal actors. But I enjoyed the book tremendously nonetheless, not only because it sharpened and refined my understanding of the subjects treated, but also because of the author's superb writing skills. Professor Altick died earlier this year, having served on the OSU faculty from 1945 to 1982 (!), and having been honored as the only Regents Professor in his department's history. This book and his other works (more of which I will certainly read) will serve as suitable memorials to a marvelous writer and an undoubtedly great teacher.

I cannot imagine a better "companion" to Victorian literature than this nicely organized book. This is an invaluable guide to anyone who would like to situate their knowledge of Victorian prose and poetry within the era's social/historical zeitgeist. Malthus, dissenters, social reforms, sexuality, class consciousness -- all here. I have found myself returning to this book many times over the years. Kudos to Altick.

I highly recommned this introduction to the values and literature of Victorian Britain. Replete with lively anecdotes and thoughtful analyses, Altick's work makes for an entertaining read even as it educates those just beginning to tackle nineteenth century British history and literature.

I can not tell you how splendid this work is, I just am flabergasted! Some books are written and then some books are "written"! This book was "written"! Hands down I have to tell you this was a book that was "written" !
I am a professional critic so I have a few gripes. One the binding bent to easily when I threw the book against the wall. OK, so I have a problem with big words, the book uses big words when little words would suffice. Call me crazy but do not call me if you plan to read this p...I am told I will love the book and given time (and some time on the rack) I suppose I would, but at this point I will have to reserve judgement until I read the dang thang. Please do not hold your breath....Best book I have ever...Go read now!

I am pleasantly surprised at what a marvelous read this book is! Altick provides a very thorough background on Victorian history, people, philosophy, economics, politics, religion, literature etc. which is not only highly informative but also fascinating. After carrying this book everywhere for a week and delighting at even having the opportunity to read two pages at a time, I found myself returning to Amazon.com to look for other books by the same author.

Altick not only knows the Victorian experience (and its development and changes throughout the 19th century), but he knows how to present it in a manner which is highly illuminating. Another plus is how, perhaps without meaning to, he provides a backdrop for socio-political-economic developments of the 20th century, which not only affected Great Britain, but spread across the Atlantic to the U.S. As a result, I am not only becoming much more knowledgeable about Victorian times and able to understand the context of the Victorian novels I have been reading, but I have become more aware of the philosophies, value systems and practices which have shaped western society today. This is one of the best nonfiction books I have ever read.

Neil Byrne is a popular Irish school guy coming up to is eighteenth birthday, a star rugby player, school prize winner, and always in demand. But he bears a heavy secret which, despite the fact that virtually all his straight friends are paired off and his remains single, no one suspects; he is gay. He has known this since the age of ten, but has so far been able to conceal the fact through his masculine attributes and successes, including a brief flirtation with a girl. He has secretly fallen for a younger lad at school, the beautiful blue-eyed blond guy with the cute behind, Ian.
Finally no longer to able to contain himself he confess his sexuality, but only to his closest friends, and then is encouraged to venture into the gay bars of Dublin. He meets a new group of friends including a benevolent Sugar Daddy, and Shane, a handsome older guy of twenty five with whom he starts a relationship. But is Shane all he seems to be, and is he to be trusted? Yet all appears to be going reasonably well until Neil can no longer live with deceiving his parents, and eventually comes out to them with catastrophic results.
Who will Neil be able to turn now, and can he rely on anyone? Throughout all his troubles he is plagued with doubts, and often sees suicide as an answer, is that now his only recourse?
However Ian is never far from his thoughts, but he does not even know if Ian is gay.
I found this an involving and enjoyable story, with a satisfying and very moving conclusion. The writing is interesting, especially when at times we see events from Neil's perspective, as if we are following events as his mind rapidly flits from one thought to another. Recommended.

I really enjoyed reading Tom Lennon's novel about an 18 year old Irish boy who just happens to be gay. Tom Lennon has a beautiful style, full of subtle details and he is excellent in building his characters. Around the main hero, there evolve a dozen of other characters all portrayed under the light of truth. Tom Lennon has a way to pay justice to everyone even to Mother and Father who love their son in their own way, as it the case with millions of parents of gay adlolescents. I believe this is a novel of literary value, much above the average of the common gay themed novels and that it should be read not only by young gays and adults but also by all parents who know or suspect that their son is gay. Reading this fine novel, they will probably get an insight into the turmoils of growing up with the idea of belonging to a minority group and that coming to terns with one's own reality has to shatter or put into trial (test) the relationship with any kind of authroty in the pyramid of love.

Neil, a young lad in Ireland, struggles to live truthfully as a gay youth while pretending with his parents and friends that he's just one of the guys. He slowly becomes involved in Dublin's gay community, and meets another guy who's a few years older, but before anything can happen, Neil is attacked by gay-bashers. After recovering, Neil finds that dating is difficult, especially when he's hiding so much, and the relationship sours. Neil comes out to his parents and friends, and finds some support, but everything changes, some for the worse and some for the better. This amazing coming out story does end with hope and a possibility for a connection to combat the loneliness of living as a gay man in a small town. Like Stuart Thorogood's "Outcast" and K. M. Soehnlein's "The World of Normal Boys", Lennon's book is a potent, poignant tale of what it's like being young and gay.

Neil Byrne's biggest problem is how to keep both sides of his life apart. At school is a good student and the talented rugby player. He has quite a few friends, but very few long-term girlfriends. That isn't to say there is nobody at school he wants today to date. There is. In fact, Neil has even written some poems that describe how he feels. The only problem is, "Does Ian feel the same?" Being afraid of rejection, Neil decides to stay silent. Instead, he begins to go

out and become apart of Dublin's gay nightlife. He meets the usual suspects: the solicitous older man, transvestites, and queens. He also meets Shane whom he hopes will be his one true love. In the end, he trades one problem for another. The world inhabited by his created family turns out to be just as stifling and insecure as the world inhabited by those he loves at home. In the end, he discovers that true love is literally just around the corner. This is a sad and funny book that traces a young man's search for love despite the obstacles created by his family and the bar culture of which he is a part.

It's not that this is a love story kind of romantic novel. It's more like a wonderfully sensitive story of Neil Byrne, just graduated, just turned 18 in search of love. The kind of love he can dig his fingers into, feel, and return in full measure. Set in Dublin Ireland one witnesses the close-knit family life of Dubliners, from their happy moments to the moments that tear them apart. Neil's search for love and acceptance puts him on the outside looking in with his school mates, his siblings, his best friend, all "rhyming couplets" while Neil is different and vacilates between fitting in and going his own way into Dublin's gay night life. Here he sees both the sad and the promise of something happy for himself. He meets Shane, a beautiful man, who might be the love Neil is searching for. Something odd: author Tom Lennon chooses to become vague during the novel's crisis moments when Neil "comes out" to his friends, family, when he is gay bashed, and near the end when... well I can't relate what happens. This is the kind of book that draws you in immediately and keeps you spellbound and rooting for the main character. Lennon's true ability is to make you feel what the sensitive Neil feels in both his wins and losses. The truly romantic will love this book. The jaded and cynical will probably not. After all, it's a coming out story, set in Ireland, from the point of view of a teenager. The story is sometimes funny, sometimes sad, but always interesting and in many ways insightful. Ronald L. Donaghe is the author of Uncle Sean.

All the characters I came to love in Wimmer's earlier Irish Trilogy are back, more mature and with no less complicated and compeling lives. Yet this need not be regarded as a sequel; The Wildly Irish Sextet stands on its own with each fully realized character and story full of wit, humanity, foibles and fun. It's Wimmer's gift that he can take the reader from hilarity to tenderness to ribaldry to suspense without inducing whiplash. More than entertaining, the stories spark a reflection upon the dynamics of couples, family and friendship as the characters navigate their later years with warmth, occasional wisdom and always something to offer the reader about life lived genuinely.

He's back and we are the better for it! It is again typically Wimmer - wildly exciting, hilarious, extremely sexy, and dominating of the reader's attention. I have been reading his work for years and once again his fast-paced writing rushes me to the next page and the next and the next. Dick Wimmer's The Wildly Irish Sextet gives us the breadth of Boyne that continues a reader's excitement that we found in The Irish Wine Trilogy. I loved reading about the Irish antics of his buddy Hagar as well as his relationship with Tory, his daughter, and...Hagar is dynamic. Hollywood, pick any of his books, but get this one on film!!

Mr. Wimmer continues to take his characters to new heights and his readers to new levels of laughter with his new book. The mad, mad, mad world of Seamus Boyne lifts Dick Wimmer above and beyond anything on the bookshelves today. Truly, one of the great masters of the written word. Each story contains something unique and unforgettable. Wimmer holds nothing back in this brilliant collection featuring Boyne, Tory and Hagar. Each character as unique and special as Mr. Wimmer himself. Dick Wimmer is a treasure!

I am an old fan of Wimmer's previous novels dealing with the great Irish painter Seamus Boyne ("Irish Wine: The Trilogy")and am pleased to see that Boyne is not only back but hasn't lost a step. This is Wimmer's usual pungent Irish brew of steamy sex and madcap doings, but with a touching twilight tinge as Boyne rages mightily against going gently into the good night of his eighth decade. A superior creation! May Boyne live forever!

The Wildly Irish Sextet brings two very different worlds into illuminating conjunction. One's the boozy, seat-of-the-pants Ireland of Seamus Boyne, Dick Wimmer's gifted knockabout painter. The other's the suburban Long Island of Boyne's American pal Gene Hagar, a pest exterminator turned writer. Whether you're romping in Ireland with Hagar, or on Long Island playing softball with Boyne, you see the comforts and absurdities of both places depicted with unusual relish, insight, and wit. Add to that the tenderness and compassion Wimmer's heroes find anew in these marvelous six books, and you'll find The Wildly Irish Sextet irresistible, as I did.

Martha Cummings doesn't just write, she inspires. Only a few chapters into her latest book, I found myself on the phone with my oldest living relatives feverishly writing down every word they could remember of our family's heritage. Just as the picture on the cover draws you in, this author's writing captivates the reader in such a way that people come in from other rooms of the house and ask you what you are laughing at and why you look so starry eyed upon putting it down. The description of Italia is so vivid that it transports you across the Atlantic (no passport required). Reading the restaurant scenes compelled me to open a bottle of red and fry up some anchovies! One scene she describes in Campo di Giove took me back to my Italian grandmother's table with all the various offerings of an ordinary mid-week lunch. Anyone who has ever been to Italia needs to read this book. After the trip is over and you are thrust back into your American schedule, you forget so much. The smells, the pace of life, the people, and the little nuances which are nothing short of magical. Ms. Cummings took me back and helped me rekindle the magic that I now possess in my soul having been there.

This book resonated with me because of my own experience of reconnection with my Italian roots. My angel was my late father, Angelo, born in Northeastern Italy, whom I have adored forever, and who told us stories of the family with whom he lost contact during WWII before my sister and I were born.
I recently connected with the children of his brother whom Papa had last seen as he hugged him good-bye before leaving his village forever. Papa was 17; his brother was 16. We found each other via the Internet. The emotions I felt at the first e-mail from the second cousin who found our name on the Internet website on which I had posted it, and realized when he gave the names of his grandparents and said that my father's bithplace and surname were also the birthplace and surname of his mother, that he was the grandson of my father's brother, parallel those of Martha and Laurie in 'The Wisdom of Angels." At least one reviewer has called this book a novel. I think this is more of a non-fiction memoir of a sentimental journey taken by two cousins to the ancestral homeland. Martha and Laurie experience kindness and generosity in their search for their family places from the angels they meet along the way, such as the clerks in the town halls in the villages in the Abruzzi and in Sicily, who go out of their way to help in the search for family records, and the couple who lead them in their car to the best route to Florence. They experience warm and bounteous welcomes from their cousins and distant relations, and shed tears of remembrance as they find vestiges of the lives of their grandparents,Laurie's father, and Martha's mother. Unlike Martha, I have been to Italy only once, but like her, have loved it, its cuisine, its language, and its culture my whole life.
I was especially touched by the scene in which Martha, caressing the weathered door of her grandfather's house, the texture of which she likens to his gentle wrinkled face, discovers that someone had inscribed on it in pencil the date of his death in America an ocean and a lifetime away.
I remember thinking, as I sealed the envelope for my Italian cousins in which I had placed pictures of Papa, locks of his hair, and his funeral cards, that I was glad that there was was someone related still living in his natal village, who remembered Papa from stories told to them by their father, to send the mementos to. The cousin who contacted me had been sent to the library as a child to try to find Papa's name in an American phone book.
I have been to Italy, but not to the village of Papa's birth. One of my Italian cousins sent me a picture of the village, Orcenico Superiore, in Northeastern Italy above Venice marked with an arrow showing the street where he was born. Another cousin, now in Canada sent me some ceramic ware from the Friuli-Venezia-Giulia region in which his village is located.
I remember thinking on the boat crossing the Adriatic to Italy, that I was taking Papa's journey in reverse. Being there was like going home.
I am unlikely ever to return, and will probably never see my cousins face to face, but I have spoken to one of them on the phone and, exchanged letters and pictures with the all of them. Vicariously participating in Martha's and Laurie's journey has permitted me to experience in my imagination a similar journey to the tiny hilltop village in which my personal and lifetime hero was born.

Genealogists will delight in this journey into the past. We all dream of the day when we will be able to go "over the pond" to visit the homesteads and haunts of our ancestors. Ms. Cummings does that in a compelling way. She shares with us the frustrations and triumphs of finding those elusive pieces to the puzzle. Well done, Ms. Cummings, and thank you for giving me the incentive to get back into the notes to make one more step toward my own journey to the past. Ireland is not too far away and I hope my journey will be equally successful.

For those who aren't doing their genealogy, I believe her story is a great read for you also. You'll meet some great people and "see" some great scenery in her book along the way. Who knows, maybe she'll tempt you into the great avocation of genealogy.

Thank you for taking me along, Ms. Cummings

Anyone wondering about their ancestral past (no matter which country holds the key) has got to read this book. Start with her first "Straddling the Borders; The year I grew up in Italy". Then read this one, "Wisdon of Angels: Unearthing my Italian Roots" You will laugh, cry and be inspired to follow her lead and go back to your parents',grandparents, or great grandparents's homeland and search for your roots. Even if you aren't of Italian descent you will appreciate her love of this beautiful country and want to board the next plane to Italy.

A beautiful and very personal second novel. Ms. Cummings has done it again! The Wisdom of Angels takes us back again to Italia where culture, history and most of all family are the main themes. As in her first novel, Straddling the Borders, Ms. Cummings takes us on a journey to uncover her familial roots, only this time she travels to the birthplace of her Grandmother. The enduring admiration and love Martha and Laurie share for their Nonna comes through in the rich prose and easy dialogue conjuring feelings of longing for those childhood days where the best place around was on a grandmother's lap. Ms. Cummings also very poetically reminds us that a mother's love is best of all with her tender dedication at the opening of the book and the bittersweet final chapter. And the food! Move over Ruth Reichl! Ms. Cummings knows how to capture the essence of the dining experience and she keeps us laughing through all of her gastrointestinal endeavors. A splendid mixture of family, friendship, laughter and travel The Wisdom of Angels is a must read.

I've read all four books in this series and counting down the days for the next one. They are all so good, it's almost impossible to lay the books down until you finish. She has done an awesome job in her research of historical facts which make them that much more enjoyable. "1949" in particular is a good history refresher course for things we have forgotten since our high school world history classes. Hurry and get the next one ready to be purchased!!

Another success by Morgan Llywelyn. If you've become as addicted as I have to the other books in her Irish Century series, you won't want to miss this one!

I have just finished reading the Irish century series up to date within the past few months, and 1972 is just another link in a fine chain on novels by Llywelyn. From the first book (1916) with a young Ned Halloran all they way up to Ned's grandson Barry in her latest masterpiece 1972, Llywelyn tells the story of the Republican movement from the Easter rising to Bloody Sunday. It's amazing how in 1972, she is able to approach all angles of the Troubles in Ireland. From the facture of IRA and the emergence of Ian Paisley and the Provos Llywelyn takes the confusion out and shows the futility of Irish politics. These books have brought to light a heritage that I have never been aware of and that has escaped my family over the generations. I would recomend this book to everyone with an ounce of Irish blood or anyone interested in the troubled history of modern Ireland. I can't wait for her next installment in the Irish Century series.

An excellent book in many respects. I witheld the fifth star only because there is so much straight history that some readers might get restive. A good read and a interesting and informative look inside the IRA and a sad retelling of the British atrocities that are rarely made public. Looking forward to her next book which will complete her retelling of Eire's struggles for independence and reunification.

Although the title doesn't mention Victorian, most of these designs originate in that era. They have influences other than the typical complex Victorian fonts. But they can be effectively be used with fonts from the other Dover title "Victorian Display Fonts". Well drawn, Mac and Windows, Postscript and Truetype...and what a GREAT price!

Weirdly, these fonts are all Gothic (actually blackletter), whereas the Gothic book in this series contains some Celtic (uncial) fonts. I think that the books were probably produced at the same time and mislabeled. Nevertheless, both are well worth buying.

The fonts included in this book will surely make a nice addition to your type library. Dan Solo had a huge collection of great old and new type faces. You'll find 24 of them here. Some, you might already have, and some are so nice that I believe if you find one gem here, it makes the price worthwhile. The fonts are in both Windows True Type and Macintosh formats. The pages have the complete alphabets and a character chart. Be sure to notice the "extra characters" that are offered in some fonts.

This is an excellent collection of 24 fonts, with printed examples and indices of the special characters for Macintosh (access to Windows special characters is described in the ReadMe file). They represent a fine collection of Baroque and Gothic lettering, but very little of the material could really be called truly Celtic. Any church could spice up its documents for special occasions with this collection. The `sz' of German formal text appears in a variety of forms. Also present are many other accented letters used in various European languages but not always included in more current fonts. Try it! Use it! There is creative material here!

Any psychiatrist has treated patients who thought their minds and wills were being controlled from the outside, perhaps from mysterious rays or hidden machines. This cannot sound so strange now as it must have a couple of centuries ago. We may not be used to mind control of that type, but we live in a world powered by invisible rays and hidden machines. When James Tilly Matthews entered the famous hospital for the insane, London's Bedlam in 1797, his complaints must have sounded bizarre indeed. He told his doctor that he, and many of the powerful in England and France, were being manipulated by a mysterious gang who were using invisible gases and rays from an unimaginably complex machine called an air loom, and that his thoughts were being altered and controlled and his body was being painfully punished. Matthews's bizarre story is the subject of a surprising and novel-like history, _The Air Loom Gang: The Strange and True Story of James Tilly Matthews and his Visionary Madness_ (Four Walls Eight Windows) by Mike Jay. What is especially peculiar is that although Matthew's ideas were clearly delusional, his complaints stemmed from real persecutions he was made to undergo. As the old joke says, just because you're paranoid doesn't mean they aren't after you.

Matthews was a wholesale tea dealer who wound up shuttling between Britain and revolutionary France with a peace proposal. It is not surprising that Matthews had little effect; but it is surprising that at the time of the Terror, all he had to endure on the French side was a spell in a French Revolutionary prison. In 1796, after his return to England, he entered the public viewing area of the House of Commons, and yelled "Treason!" into the hall. This got him into Bedlam, and he was to be incarcerated for the rest of his life. His rooms were unheated, he would have straw to sleep on, and for some years he would be chained to his bed. It is quite possible that pummeled first by peculiarities of world events and then by the cruelties of incarceration as a lunatic that he began weaving contemporary ideas about pneumatics, electricity, and Mesmer's animal magnetism into a widespread delusional explanation of just how he got persecuted into such a position. We know about his delusions in detail because in charge of him was the apothecary John Haslam, and Matthews was Haslam's star patient. Jay shows that the delusions can possibly be seen as Matthews's response to persecution, with Haslam as co-creator.

This is a tangled tale, expertly told. There are parts of it that are deeply mysterious, and for which there is no documentation, only speculation; how Matthews came to be running secret diplomacy, and who was paying him to do so, and what he really was doing, can only be guessed at. The gripping story of Matthews coming to delusional terms with his predicament is actually moving, and his eventual (if posthumous) triumph over Haslam is convincing. Best of all Jay has gone a long way in successfully trying to explain the politics, science, and history of the time. His picture of treatment of the insane in the crumbling Bedlam, at the cusp of instituting sympathetic "moral" treatments of Philippe Pinel, is unforgettable. There may not have been a real air loom, but that doesn't keep it from meaning something; and Matthews may have been an incarcerated schizophrenic, but that doesn't keep him from being a bit of a hero.

Mind control goes back thousands of years actually, and was practiced by the early Chinese, Sumerians, Egyptians, and even Mayans by a variety of different methods. Even African / Caribbean "voodoo" is a type of negative mind control that has been shown to have dramatic effects from great distances. In more modern times (such as the late 1800s to the 1920s) a variety of physical "medical" devices were built and used on people, animals, and crops for tremendous BENEFIT. The science that grew from these experiments was called "Radionics", and the radionic devices were often called "black boxes" (in the UK at least). Modern day radionic devices are about the size of a laptop computer, but I firmly believe that the device explained in this book was a very early radionic device that used essoteric (occult) knowledge to broadcast certain frequencies or radiations that could target specific individuals and influence them physically and emotionally, assuming that you had a "witness" from them (such as hair, fingernail clipping, blood spot, or even a photograph). Obviously, such devices could be used for tremendous good or evil, but the government / military has a proven track record for the latter unfortunately.

Nowadays, we wouldn't use the term "radionic attack", but the term EMR / microwave bombardment and torture is certainly on the rise and evidence suggests that upto 2,000,000 Americans have been targeted in one form or another. This type of torture / harrassment is very high tech now, and beyond most people's conceptualization. A lot of "magic" can be created from satelites and underground installations and affect people's thoughts, emotions, and bodies. This phenomenon is well understood in Russia for example, and a popular form of torture for political dissidents or whistleblowers, and there is even a large group of victims in Moscow who are known as the "Moscow Zombies", which is appropriate because it is nothing more than electro-magnetic voodoo afterall. In fact, there was a recent march / demonstration by these Moscow Zombies and their family members (at least those who understand that it has nothing to do with "mental illness") who carried signs that read, "Stop the microwave / EMR / plasma torture", "End Mind Control". True story, but we never saw that on the news naturally.

James Tilly Matthews simply didn't have the vernacular or understand the occult science to better "name" his torture, but his detailed explanations of his symptoms and why he was being targetted are EXACTLY what modern peoples complain of and explain to those who will listen with an open mind. Matthews also discussed how many other people of influence were being targetted, which has HUGE IMPLICATIONS in today's political / economic realm. And Bedlam was also the precursor to Guantanamo in many ways as it was a place to keep people who knew some secrets. "Mental illness" was and largely still is a bogus misdirection. The more things change, the more they stay the same it would appear...

James Tilly Matthews lived in London in the late 1700s and was a respected Welsh tea merchant who intended to preserve the peace of an increasingly dangerous city out of control in its conflicts with Paris. Arrested and sent to a mental hospital for his accusation of a lord, Matthews became convinced his mind was being controlled by a secret machine called an 'air loom' hidden in a London basement and run by a gang of revolutionaries: Air Loom Gang sets out to pinpoint the political foundations of his 'madness' in an intriguing true 'whodunnit' mystery

The Air-Loom Gang by Mike Jay is a book about the most incredible events. It is about one James Tilly Matthews who was declared insane for his beliefs about treason at the highest levels of the British Government during the French Revolutionary/Napoleonic period. As it turns out, Matthews was actually right to some extent and as a former spy, was in a good position to be able to determine if there really was treasonous activities in the British government at the time. Matthews's case became a cause clebre and he was eventually released from the insane asylum and eventually started an architecture magazine and even submitted plans for an insane asylum.

This is an excellent book dealing with a most fascinating episode in British history.