Irish Emigrant Book Review, No. 18 (January 1997)

And As I Rode By Granard Moat by Benedict Kiely
- With “And As I Rode By Granard Moat”, Benedict Kiely has embarked on a journey through Ireland both historical and geographical, pausing on the way to remember and record the songs, ballads and poetry associated with each place he visits. Beginning in his native Omagh, Kiely travels through the four provinces recalling favourites poems such as “Me An’ Me Da” by the Rev Marshall, probably better known by its first two lines:
“I’m livin’ in Drumlister, An’ I’m gettin’ very oul’”
Many familiar poems are encountered, from traditional ballads to the works of Kavanagh, Montague and Heaney, and the journey ends at Tyrrellspass, the starting-point for the original idea. For it was Kiely’s schoolteacher in Omagh who first lent him the ballad telling the story of Tyrrell of Tyrrellspass, and suggested to him that a book could be made of such a journey round Ireland.

One Fine Day by John Quinn
- aimed at the 10-14 age group, can as easily be enjoyed by an adult. Set in rural County Clare, the characters include a one-parent family from Belfast who have come south after being petrol-bombed out of their home, an Italian-Irish eccentric living in the middle of the bog surrounded by her animals, and a family whose conventional and respectable lifestyle covers an undercurrent of abuse. The book has taken familiar situations and characters - the local protest against the siting of a dump, the shopkeeper who still works in pre-decimal money and the topical subject of child sexual abuse - to bring us a story centred round Rossa, the boy from Belfast, and his relationships with his family and friends.

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The Galway Hooker by Richard J. Scott
- a book for the boating enthusiast rather than for the layman, giving as it does so many technical details and illustrations concerning the construction of the famous design. Richard J. Scott’s book does, however, have an appeal to those less familiar with life under sail in its recording of the passing of a way of life in Connemara. Until the 1960s the four types of Hooker were in extensive use delivering turf to the Aran Islands and for fishing. Now they are the preserve of those who have undertaken either reconstruction or restoration and who attend the annual gathering at Kinvara in Co. Galway. There are many striking photographs in this third edition which help to convey the attraction of the Hooker and the desire to retain more than just the memory.

A Shorter Illustrated History of Ulster by Jonathan Bardon
- As in his previous writing on the same subject, in “A Shorter Illustrated History of Ulster” Jonathan Bardon’s objectivity in an area not known for that quality is stimulating. His command of his material is masterly; his style is attractive and is perfectly complemented by the illustrations. Naturally, this latter point is especially telling when we reach the era of photographs, the choice of which are excellent. Some of Bardon’s points might surprise some readers. For example, he refers to recent research which indicates that the “two nation” theory has more basis in perception than in reality. In fact, very shortly after the 17th century plantations the new arrivals and the natives were happily inter-marrying. In spite of the broad sweep of this history, Bardon is very lucid and this is nowhere more obvious than in his outline of the 19th and 20th century issues. His telling of the story right up to 1996 is riveting. Above all, Bardon is a realist. He ends on a quotation from an adviser to Henry the Eighth in which mention is made of an old proverb indicating that war in Ireland is without end. And that was an old proverb more than 300 years ago!
Reviewed by John McAvoy.

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