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Irish Emigrant
Book Review: Issue No.102 (Jan 2004)
The Bankrupt,
the Conman, the Mafia and the Irish Connection - Chris Moore
The rather long-winded title of this examination of the Northerner who
conned his way around Ireland, Britain and America nicely captures the
extent of Colin Lees’ empire as he thought up ever increasing ways of
living the high life at other people’s expense. Celebrated in his home
town of Maghera as the great provider of employment, as a successful racing
driver and as the power behind a new shopping centre, Colin Lees’ income
could not keep pace with the lifestyle he chose, and his undoubted intelligence
led him to ever more complicated deals at home and abroad. The overriding
characteristic revealed in Chris Moore’s book is a total selfishness on
the part of Colin Lees, who apparently had little sympathy for any of
those from whom he extracted money, or for whose imprisonment he was mainly
responsible. In this category fall father and son Matthew and Stuart Baillie
who became caught up in the Scottish bogus company and, while admitting
their own guilt, they were bitter that Lees himself was not called upon
as a witness and was not prosecuted for his part in the fraud. Lees, of
course, did not work alone, and it was through his associates that he
extended his empire of fraud beyond Ireland. American Derek Jones in particular
was the front man for many of the schemes at a time when, as a discharged
bankrupt, Lees himself was barred from being director of any company.
Jones also eased the way for the fraudulent dealing in Florida which saw
Texan Richard Worthy being relieved of almost $1m. This particular episode
underlines the plausibility of Colin Lees and why so many people were
taken in by him, for Richard Worthy was a district attorney who had specialised
in prosecuting white-collar crime and should have been the first to spot
anything underhand. It was a drug smuggling scheme that went wrong that
eventually led to the piecing together of all the disparate strands of
Lees’ business life and which finally led to his conviction, but not before
he had tied the court up in knots in its efforts to prosecute. Chris Moore
has included transcripts from RUC interviews with Lees as well as court
reports, which all help to unravel the complicated life of Lees, though
by the last page I was still unsure how exactly the frauds were perpetrated.
However I suspect this is a failing of this reader rather than the author,
whose only irritating habit is an overindulgence in the use of the exclamation
mark.
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Southword - Munster
Literature Centre
This is the fifth edition of the literary collection from the Munster
Literature Centre and it features both poetry and prose from a range of
writers. The book opens with Ita O’Donovan’s dedication to sculptor Seamus
Murphy, “Impregnated with Dust” in which she describes with affection
and awe how he “... learned the language of stone and broke its silence”.
The twenty-four featured poets, including Fred Johnston, Matthew Geden,
Karen O’Connor and Jean Curtayne, treat of topics ranging from memories
of childhood to casualties of war, from Irish mythology to an art exhibition,
and their very diversity adds to the enjoyment. The second section of
Southword is introduced by David Marcus, judge of the first Sean O Faolain
Short Story Competition. He lists the six winners, all of which feature
in this section. First prize was awarded to William Wall for “What Slim
Boy, O Pyrrha”, a cleverly constructed tale of love and war at the beginning
of the last century. Marcus’ second choice (and my first), “Pilgrims of
the Night” by Mary Leland, speaks of the separation of family, of religion
and of life itself, told with a gentle sadness against the backdrop of
the river running through familiar landmarks in County Waterford. In stark
contrast Billy O’Callaghan’s “Ghosts” takes us to the violence of war,
the instinct for self-preservation and the methods used to beat off fear
and revulsion by American soldiers in Vietnam. Reviews form the third
part of this collection, of poems by Gabriel Rosenstock and Michael McCarthy,
of Ann Egan, Ian Wild and Desmond O’Grady. The final contribution is an
essay on the unrealised potential of Gerald Griffin, author of “The Collegians”,
who died a Christian Brother at the age of thirty-six in 1840. This is
a well-produced and accessible collection by a group dedicated to promoting
the literature of Munster but whose competitions attract entries from
all over the world. For details of the 2nd Annual Sean O Faolain Short
Story Competition 2004 see http://www.munsterlit.ie
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The Enchanted
Island - Nancy Ross
This is the second novel by Nancy Ross (for a review of the first, “Still
Waters Run Deep”, see http://www.emigrant.ie/bookresults.asp?P_Key=973)
and once again the beginning of the story is somewhat shaky and unpromising.
The description of Christabel’s introduction to her future husband is
decidedly cliched, but perseverance brings its own reward. “The Enchanted
Island”, set some twenty years in the future, encompasses the stories
of two couples, Christabel and Ambrose, and Rex and Faith, who have shared
similar problems in their pursuit of happiness. The narrative is divided
into four unequal parts with the second part, by far the longest, devoted
to Rex and Faith and the extraordinary obstacle that kept them apart for
so much of their lives. These two are by far the more rounded of Ms Ross’
characters, and once again she has succeeded in producing female characters
more convincing than the males. Beginning in London during the Second
World War, much of the storyline centres around babies or the lack of
them, babies born out of wedlock, babies who are aborted or who die soon
after birth, and babies who represent the eventual intertwining of the
lives of Rex and Faith. The story of this pair and their respective mothers,
the convolutions of the different relationships, make for interesting
and entertaining reading. Their separate and ultimately unhappy marriages
add further ingredients to this melting pot of a novel; in fact so involved
does the reader become in their lengthy relationship that the fate of
Christabel and Ambrose becomes secondary. The structure of the novel,
using the main story as a flashback and as a guide for the younger couple
to resolve their difficulties, somehow balances a certain inevitability
about the outcome, and the author has redeemed herself with the low-key
way in which she reaches the conclusion of her story.
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Executive Affair
- Ber Carroll
In her first novel Ber Carroll has followed the sound advice of writing
on topics familiar to her, and so her story moves from Dublin to Sydney,
with forays into Hong Kong and California. The commercial setting allows
Ms Carroll to use her own knowledge of company finance to mingle broken
romance with the day-to-day minutiae of working for a multinational, all
described in a readable way which catches the imagination without being
too demanding. Claire engineers a move from the Dublin to the Sydney office
as Finance Manager when her romance with Michael comes to an end after
three years, but of course almost as soon as she sets foot in Australia
she becomes entangled with Robert, the vice-president of the company and
a man once divorced who is on the brink of repeating the experience with
his second wife. She also becomes superficially involved with the rather
too obviously devious Paul, but much of the first few chapters revolve
around the gradual development of her relationship with Robert. The more
interesting part of the story is Claire’s investigation into a seeming
anomaly in the financial dealings of the Sydney branch, an anomaly that
manages to involve company employees from the lowest to the highest levels
in both Australia and California, and which broadens the range of characters,
and the range of personal problems, presented to the reader. Although
it appears that Robert is somehow involved, we know that he will be proved
innocent, although to the author’s credit the guilty parties are less
predictable. It even transpires that James, one of the “good guys” and
about to become engaged to Claire’s friend Fiona, has moved on to the
“baddies” list, but Ms Carroll has thoughtfully put in place a strong
shoulder for Fiona to cry on, in the shape of an ex-boyfriend. All in
all the loose ends are commendably tied up in the final chapter, making
this a satisfactory read. Perhaps the publishers have done the author
a disservice with the front cover, for the executive depicted does not
exactly fit in with the descriptions of Claire throughout the narrative.
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From Slyne Head
to Malin Head - Dr Ken O’Flaherty
Dr Ken O’Flaherty, a native of Connemara, spent many decades as a GP on
the Inishowen Peninsula and this book chronicles his progression from
a relatively privileged boyhood near Clifden, where he came from a long
line of doctors, to the demanding life of a country doctor who is constantly
on call. Ken and his wife, Eileen, moved to Moville in the 1950s and he
tended to the medical needs of the area, as well as leading a full life
and ultimately being elected president of the Irish College of General
Practitioners in the mid-nineties. The format selected by Dr O’Flaherty
for telling his story is less of a personal biography and more of an overview
of life in Ireland during the greater part of the twentieth century. In
short sections under different headings the author gives us glimpses of
life in a predominantly rural area as both boy and man, interspersed with
stories of his Dublin college days and historic events such as the bombing
of the North Strand in 1941. While giving a somewhat fragmentary air to
the book, the diversity of topics does serve to put into context a long
life which encompassed radical changes in both lifestyle and medical treatment.
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The Irish Dresser
- Cynthia G. Neale
In taking as the subject of her novel for young people the Great Hunger
of 1845 to 1850, Ms Neale is aiming to awaken in her readers a response
to hunger in the world today. Nora McCabe is the youngest of three children
who lives with her family on a small piece of land near Kinsale. Much
of the narrative deals with the discovery of the potato blight and the
gradual deterioration into semi-starvation that prompts her parents to
take the only way they feel is open to them, the boat to America. The
curious decision to take with them on the journey the traditional Irish
dresser of the title becomes clear early in the narrative, and its pivotal
part in the family fortunes is well-maintained. Using Nora McCabe’s own
voice to tell the story of her family’s misfortunes works well for the
most part, though sometimes words are used which come strangely from the
mouth of a thirteen-year-old country girl in nineteenth century Ireland.
For example when a stray cow is being bled to provide sustenance for the
family, Nora is able to describe how the old man put “a pin through the
incision in the vein”. Some of the scenes aboard the vessel seem to have
lost touch with realism, the gaiety and dancing when everyone is weak
from hunger is an example, though the author makes the excuse that the
dancers are energised by the music. There is a vibrancy about the narrative
that will appeal to the young mind but I suspect that the authenticity
of the dialogue will be more readily accepted in the US than in Ireland.
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Turpentine - Pat
Jourdan
Signalling the poet’s early training as an artist is the title poem of
this collection by English-born Pat Jourdan, long a resident of Galway.
In likening the freeing of paint by turpentine to a release of dreams,
Ms Jourdan introduces her use of everyday objects and occurrences as the
recurring theme of her collection. The series reflects her childhood in
Liverpool, her memories of the war and the ensuing peace, when she and
her grandmother spend an afternoon “...peeling the brown tape away from
each window-pane.” The poet has an ability to reach to the core of things
to find their true meaning, though she is sometimes betrayed by her use
of words; “Six O’Clock Summer” is a particularly lyrical evocation of
a summer evening when “the children bolt their tea - Light pulls them
back into the street again.” But she refers to a blackbird’s mate as “his
missus” and somehow loses the power of the poem. However occasional snatches
of language catch the eye as one reads the volume, “The silver gash of
old country lanes on damp mid-mornings,” in “Season Ticket” being a good
example. While this volume of poetry is already available in some bookshops
it will not have its official launch until May, during an exhibitions
of paintings in Galway Library.
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Celtic Devotional
- Caitlin Matthews
First published eight years ago, this collection of prayers and blessings
based on Celtic spirituality is a beautifully produced and illustrated
guide to the discovery of a spiritual dimension in the lives of those
“who do not wish to practise this within a specific religious framework”.
Divided into four sections following the four Celtic seasons of Samhain,
Imbolc, Beltane and Lughnasadh, the book provides prayers and meditations
for both morning and evening in addition to a series of Solar Questions
and Lunar meditations, one for each day of the month. A number of special
prayers and ceremonies complete a work which has a visual appeal and a
degree of interest even for those who are not drawn to a spiritual life
unaligned with formal religious teaching.
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Turas Teanga -
Radio Telefis Eireann
A book and three CDs have been issued to accompany a new 20-part RTE television
series giving a multimedia approach to the learning of the Irish language.
This course, which will later be included in University College Dublin’s
Adult Education Programme, features everyday conversation and visits to
a number of Gaeltachta, with a guest on each weekly programme. Presented
by Sharon NiBheolain, the course is aimed at the intermediate level and
is ideal for those who perhaps regret that they have lost the Irish they
learned at school. In addition to the book and CDs, the programme has
its own website at http://www.rte.ie/tt
and all twenty programmes will be available on two DVDs in March. The
first television programme is due to go out this Friday, January 30, and
will be set in Galway.
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