Ireland: It's History And Culture In Film

March is Irish-American heritage month and is celebrated to honor the achievements and contributions of Irish immigrants and their descendants. Pick up one these documentaries and journey to the Emerald Isle  and explore a beautiful land with a rich and vibrant culture all from the comfort of your couch.

Out of Ireland: the Story of Irish Emigration to America (1997)
This film examines the history of the seven million Irish who emigrated to America in the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries including the causes of the mass emigration and the immigrant experience in the United States.

Older Than Ireland (2016)
The story of a hundred years of life as seen through the eyes of thirty Irish centenarians; from their birth at the start of Irish independence to their life in modern day Ireland.

The Story of Ireland (2012)
A five-part landmark history presented by Fergal Keane. Ireland is living through a significant period in its cycle of history, since the 1998 Good Friday Agreement, the island has been at peace. Take a look back at Ireland long and complex history.

Daniel O'Donnell at Home in Ireland (2007)
Daniel O'Donnell shares the sights and sounds of his homeland in this wonderful concert special taped at the Letterkenny performance hall in county Donegal.

Celtic Woman (2004)
The musical group Celtic Woman presents renditions of popular Irish songs.

Patrick: He Ignited A Flame of Faith in Ireland (2011)
A docudrama about Saint Patrick, his life and his work to save the people who enslaved him.

A Proper Pint: O'Lacklainn's Bar, Ballyvaughan, Ireland
This film takes the viewer to O'Loclainn's, a traditional pub in Ballayvaughan, Ireland. Owners, staff, and regulars discuss O'Loclainn's roles as a community center.

Rick Steves' Europe. Ireland and Scotland (2013)
Join European travel guru Rick Steves as he takes you to; Dublin---Best of South Ireland--Best of West Ireland--Belfast and the best of Northern Ireland---Scotland's islands and Highlands--Edinburgh.

A Reading of the Green: Irish Authors to Enjoy for St. Patrick's Day

Check out these riveting titles by Irish authors to get you in a St. Patrick's Day mood:

The Green Road
by Anne Enright

Rosaleen Madigan's four children enter adulthood in Western Ireland at a time of great change. In the decades that follow, they all forge their own paths through life, but a visit home one Christmas forces them to face their mother's aging and the decision that she's made that will have repercussions on all their lives.







In the Woods
by Tana French


Twenty years after witnessing the violent disappearances of two companions from their small Dublin suburb, detective Rob Ryan investigates a chillingly similar murder that takes place in the same wooded area, a case that forces him to piece together his traumatic memories.











The Dubliners
by James Joyce


In this collection of masterful stories, steeped in realism, James Joyce creates an exacting portrait of his native city, showing how it reflects the general decline of Irish culture and civilization









By the Lake
by John McGahern


A year in the lives of the unforgettable inhabitants of a modern-day Irish village--the Ruttledges, Londoners seeking a new way of life; the womanizing John Quinn; Jimmy Joe McKiernan, local head of the IRA; locals Jamesie and his wife Mary; and "the Shah," the wealthiest man in town--unfolds through a cylce of work, play, religious festivals, and the changing seasons.




Felicia's Journey
by William Trevor

Young and pregnant, Felicia leaves her Irish hometown to search for her boyfriend in the English Midlands, only to fall in with the obese, fiftyish Mr. Hilditch, in a tale of psychological suspense.

Need Help With that Square? - Armchair Travel

Close to BINGO but having trouble finding a book for that one square?
Here's some reading suggestions for Armchair Travel.

The Painted Girls - Cathy Marie Buchanan

Set in Belle Epoque Paris.  The Van Goethem sisters struggle for survival after the sudden death of their father, a situation that prompts Marie's ballet training and her introduction to a genius painter.









The House at Riverton - Kate Morton

Grace Bradley went to work at Riverton House as a servant when she was just a girl, before the First World War. For years her life was inextricably tied up with the Hartford family, most particularly the two daughters, Hannah and Emmeline. In the summer of 1924, at a glittering society party held at the house, a young poet shot himself. The only witnesses were Hannah and Emmeline and only they--and Grace--know the truth...



The Midwife of Venice - Roberta Rich

Hannah Levi is renowned throughout Venice for her gift at coaxing reluctant babies from their mothers--a gift aided by the secret "birthing spoons" she designed. But when a count implores her to attend to his wife, who has been laboring for days to give birth to their firstborn son, Hannah is torn. A Papal edict forbids Jews from rendering medical treatment to Christians, but the payment he offers is enough to ransom her beloved husband, Isaac, who has been captured at sea.



Nora Webster: A Novel - Colm Tóibín

Widowed in her forties, with four children and not enough money, Nora has lost the love of her life, Maurice, the man who rescued her from the stifling world to which she was born. And now she fears she may be drawn back into it. Wounded, strong-willed, clinging to secrecy in a tiny community where everyone knows your business, Nora is drowning in her own sorrow and blind to the suffering of her young sons, who have lost their father. Yet she has moments of stunning empathy and kindness, and when she begins to sing again, after decades, she finds solace, engagement, a haven-- herself.


City of Women - David R. Gillham

1943, in the height of World War II. With the men taken by the army, Berlin has become a city of women. While her husband fights on the Eastern Front, Sigrid Schroder is the model soldier's wife. She goes to work every day, does as much with her rations as she can, and cares for her meddling mother-in-law, all while ignoring the horrific immoralities of the regime. But behind the facade is an entirely different Sigrid. She dreams of her former Jewish lover, who is lost in the chaos of the war.

Erin-Go-Bragh! (Long Live Ireland) - Truly Terrific Great Irish Crime Writing!

Dia Dhuit (Hello)

With St. Paddy's Day on the way and in the spirit of celebrating the Emerald Isle, check out the following sampling of "Emerald Noir" (the emerging wave of Irish crime fiction writers). The detectives in these stories are not only defined by their outstanding sleuthing abilities, but through such issues as cultural background and national identity - IRISH! Since everybody is a wee bit Irish in March, try one or more of these mysteries as an accompaniment to your stout (Slainte!) and soda bread:

The Rage by Gene Kerrigan (2011)A recently-released convict, a discouraged policeman, and a retired nun become involved in planning a high-stakes robbery. Winner of the 2012 CWA Gold Dagger, for best crime novel of the year.

Broken Harbor by Tana French (2012)
In the aftermath of a brutal attack that left a woman in intensive care and her husband and young children dead, brash cop Scorcher Kennedy and his rookie partner, Richie, struggle with perplexing clues and Scorcher's haunting memories of a shattering incident from his childhood. 

The Cold Cold Ground by Adrain McKinty (2012)"Featuring Catholic cop Sean Duffy whose outsider status in the mostly Protestant RUC makes it as hard to do his job as the criminals he’s fighting, this is the start of a new series set in Troubles-era Belfast. A body is found in a burnt out car. Another is discovered hanging from a tree. Could this be Northern Ireland’s first serial killer, or another paramilitary feud?" -- Publisher.

The Guards by Ken Bruen (2001)
Stuck in a rut after his dismissal from the Irish police force and still grieving over the death of his father, Jack Taylor finds renewal when an intriguing woman hires him based on his rumored talent for finding things.

Elegy for April by Benjamin Black (2010)
After Dr. April Latimer goes missing in 1950s Dublin, her friend Phoebe Griffin enlists the aid of her brilliant recovering-alcoholic father, Quirke, and Detective Inspector Hackett, who follow April's trail through the darker byways of the city.

The Nameless Dead by Brian McGilloway (2013)
After the Commission for Location of Victims' Remains uncovers a baby's skeleton while following up a tip about Declan Cleary, Inspector Devlin is torn between resurrecting the past and letting a murderer go free.

The Last Girl by Jane Casey (2013)
Investigating two brutal murders, Detective Constable Maeve Kerrigan finds the case complicated by deep-rooted family secrets, numerous false leads, and the questionable decisions of a once-trustworthy superintendent.

Plugged by Eoin McNamee (2011)
When his girlfriend and several people close to him are murdered, Daniel McEvoy finds himself targeted by the New Jersey mafia, corrupt cops, and an eccentric neighbor and searches for a hair-plug technician who may hold crucial answers.

Cathedral by Nelson Demille (1990)
Born into the heat and hatred of the Northern Ireland conflict, IRA man Brian Flynn has masterminded a brilliant terrorist act--the seizure of Saint Patrick's Cathedral. Among his hostages: the woman Brian Flynn once loved, a former terrorist turned peace activist. Among his enemies: an Irish-American police lieutenant fighting against a traitor inside his own ranks and a shadowy British intelligence officer pursuing his own cynical, bloody plan.

Irish Gold by Andrew Greeley (1994)
Dermot Coyne goes to Dublin to investigate his parents' departure from Ireland during the Time of Troubles in 1922 and learns much about his Irish heritage from Nuala Anne McGrail.

Hope one of these luckily turns out to be your Pot o' Gold novel for March 17, 2015!

Go N-Eiri An T-Adh Leat (Good Luck)

Beannachtai Na Feile Padrig Oraibh (St. Patrick's Day Blessing Upon You)

Music for St. Patrick's Day - Beyond "O, Danny Boy"

If you think that Irish music starts and stops at "O Danny Boy," please think again. There is more out there than just traditional songs, there is Irish pop, rock and folk music.

Try listening to an assortment of artists with The Rough Guide to Irish Folk Music  or Women of the World: Celtic.

For more folk music try Cherish the Ladies and the Chieftains.

If contemporary pop or new age music is your interest, try Celtic Thunder, Clannad or Celtic Women for a try.


And for those who need something louder, try Gaelic Storm, U2,  the Corrs, Thin Lizzy or the the jazzier tones of Van Morrison.

For the traditionalist there is always the CD,
Come Fill your Glass With Us: Irish Songs of Drinking and Blackguarding by the Clancy Brothers.

Celtic music invaded many places, and traveled with it's people. You can feel its influence in Newfoundland and Spain, and well as in Bluegrass and American folk music. And many Irish artists combine all sorts of influences to have their own style. Expand your horizons at the library in the International Music section.

For more of the story and history of music and the Celts, try this book title The Rough Guide to Irish Music by Geoff Wallis or head up to Milwaukee's Irish Fest in August. You will have fun discovering new artists and new songs.

Luck of the Irish!

St. Patrick's Day is upon us once again. In case the corned beef and cabbage isn't enough,
here are some books, movies and music to get your Irish on.  Everyone knows that on St. Patrick's Day everyone is a little Irish.
Erin Go Bragh!



Music
The Irish Tenors CD
My favorite song on this CD is Galway Bay.
Celtic Divas CD
Dolores Keane sings so sweetly.
Herding Cats CD by Gaelic Storm
My favorite song on this CD is She Was the Prize.

Books
St. Patrick's Day Murder by Leslie Meier
Irish ambiance mixed with murder mystery.
Faithful Place by Tana French
Reminds me of a Law and Order episode
In Dublin's Fair City by Rhys Bowen
Detective Molly Murphy boards the White Start Liner Majestic to her native Ireland to find a missing heiress.

Movies
Angela's Ashes DVD
Based on one of my all-time top 10 favorite books.
Ballykissangel DVD Season One
Irish television show based on small town in Ireland with warm and witty characters. If you like season one you can keep on watching as there are five seasons in all.

May the Family Fiction of the Irish Be With You

In honor of St. Paddy's Day, everyone thinks of Ireland in the month of March. So, if you like reading fiction about Irish families and Irish family life and their tenacious spirit, here are a few suggestions:

The Forgotten Waltz by Anne Enright
This is a simple tale of adultery and its consequences, told from a female perspective. It is set in the basically secular environment of 21st century Dublin - and is a brave and unusual variation on a familiar theme with sharp and funny observations. Enright's interest is not so much in the broad shape of the affair so much as its texture, its moment-by-moment shifts of feeling and perception.

Shannon by Frank Delaney
This novel follows an American priest as he travels along Ireland's Shannon River in search of his family roots, and while seeking peace, trouble finds him.  It is an adventurous tale of forbidden love, civil war, death, and other things Irish.  If you love Ireland, you'll find this a rare read.

Woman of the House by Alice Taylor
Taylor's novel traces three generations living on a farm in rural Ireland and their conflicts. The story defines what family is, the struggle to love a member whose behaviors are hurtful to other family members, the pain of losing a member and the difficulties associated with accepting a new member. Set in the 1950's, this is a wonderfully warm, charming story of Irish life lived close to the earth.

The Story of Lucy Gault by William Trevor
Lucy Gault grows up a Protestant in a Catholic part of Ireland in the 1920s. An only child, she enjoys an intimate relationship with her parents and is wedded to her family's lavish country home, the nearby beach and woods, and the house staff. When Lucy's parents decide to flee the persecution of arsonists and move to England, her life takes an unforeseen turn. Tragedy and heartbreak will haunt the Gault family, and their lives do not proceed as expected.  Trevor gives gives us a poetic sense of the Irish character and countryside and magically evokes the passage of time.  It is a beautiful legendary story of love and redemption.

Paddy Clarke, Ha-Ha-Ha by Roddy Doyle
This book is a vivid and poignant portrait of a little boy trying to make sense of the adult world. As Paddy Clarke himself would say, it is "brilliant."  It portrays the daily exploits and thoughts of a 10-year-old Irish boy. As the story progresses, readers become more and more aware of the anguish that Paddy Clarke is feeling as he becomes conscious of the impending breakup of his parents' marriage.
It is powerfully written. Doyle, one of Ireland's most captivating novelists, won the Booker Prize for this extraordinary tale.

Blood Ties by Jenifer Lash
Set mainly in Ireland, Jennifer Lash's dark, exhilarating novel is about the redemptive power of love. It tells of Violet Farr and her loveless marriage, her wild, unfathomable son and his illegitimate son, all of them bound together in a repeating pattern of exile and homecoming, rejection and, finally, acknowledgement and love. It is an emotionally draining but very rewarding tale.

Other Side by Mary Gordon

Both Ellen and Vincent left Ireland in the early part of this century, one bitterly escaping shame, humiliation, and fear; the other filled with hope for the promise and future of America - the "other side." Gordon writes of family passage and change and that the generational struggle to find a common ground can be resolved only in the realm of the heart.

Cashelmara by Susan Howatch
Rich, gosssipy tale and mighty saga of a wealthy and titled English family in Ireland during the 19th century.

Hope you're lucky enough to enjoy a fine family read from this wee list!

Spotlight on International Fiction: Ireland

Love Letters: a novel by Katie Fforde
Helping to organize a literary festival, former bookstore owner Laura is mistaken for a personal friend of a famous reclusive writer with whom she has been long infatuated, a situation that compels her to recruit the curmudgeon writer into attending.

The Brightest Star in the Sky by Marian Keyes
Seven neighbors in a Dublin townhouse find their lives entangled by the visitation of a sassy and prescient spirit that causes them to rethink their relationships, careers and values.

The Princes of Ireland: the Dublin Saga by Edward Rutherfurd
A fictional account of the history of Ireland recreates such events as the mission of Saint Patrick, the Viking invasion, and the trickery of Henry II that led to England's establishment in Ireland.
First book in the "Dublin Saga".

An Irish Country Courtship by Patrick Taylor
In the small Irish village where he hopes to become a full partner in the local medical practice, Barry Laverty questions his ambitions in the face of a romantic reversal, while housekeeper Kinky Kincaid dreads the loss of her status to Dr. O'Reilly's new paramour.
Book 5 in the "Irish Country" series.

The Dove of Death: a Mystery of Ancient Ireland by Peter Tremayne
Surviving a pirate attack during which her cousin and other innocent victims were murdered, Fidelma of Cashel and her faithful companion, Brother Eadulf, pursue clues throughout seventh-century Breton to learn the killer's identity and uncover a sinisteradversary.
Another installment in the "Sister Fidelma mysteries" series.

Five Days Apart: a novel by Chris Binchy
The Irish author's American debut tells the story of David, who loses the girl of his dreams to his charming best friend and leaves home to only to find that neither time nor distance can erase her from his memory.