Blog O' The Irish

Molana Abbey County Waterford, Ireland

2012-01-27T23:02:00.000-06:00

History

A disciple of St. Carthage, called Molana, founded a little monastery - Abbey of St. Molanfide - on an island called Dair Inis on the River Blackwater - north of Youghal.

The ruined abbey is home to the remains of Raymond le Gros, one of the first of the invading Norman knights to come to Ireland, who died in or around 1186.

It was extensively rebuilt in the 13th century and became an Augustinian abbey, when it is claimed that the Abbey had an international reputation for scholarship.

Today

The ruins of 13th century abbey - which include a church and cloisters - can still be seen today. They are part of the nearby Ballynatray House, and is open to the public for a few hours on certain days of the week.

Titanic: The Collision

2012-01-27T13:01:00.000-06:00

The voyage was uneventful until the 14^th April . There were ice reports during the day of the 14^thalong the intended route of the Titanic. Captain Smith had taken the southern Track as was normal practice for the time of year but did not slow the ship down on receiving these Ice warnings

The Titanic, although a floating palace, did not have advanced warning systems that we have today. Marconi wireless was a major advance in communications but in its infancy on board ship still being tested and new to most ship owners. It allowed for Marconi Operators to transmit morse messages ship to ship and ship to shore. At the time the only visible early warning system was the use of lookouts whose job it was to stand in the crow’s nest, which was attached to the foremast keeping lookout for any perceived dangers ahead. They would immediately notify the ships bridge if anything of concern to the ships safety was observed.

On the Sunday night in question Frederick Fleet and Reginald Lee were the lookouts at the critical time. The Titanic was travelling at a speed of 21 knots. It was 11.40 p.m. 14 April 1912. The lookouts had just observed an iceberg straight ahead and urgently rang the warning bell three times. Frederick Fleet then phoned the Officer on the Bridge to tell him what he had seen.

First Officer William M. Murdoch was on watch on the Bridge. He immediately ordered hard a starboard, the engines to stop and full speed astern also quickly closing all watertight doors. Minutes seemed to pass but in reality it was only about thirty-seven seconds from when the alarm was sounded to the collision. Captain Smith quickly returned to the bridge and ordered an assessment of the damage to the ship. Thomas Andrews confirmed their worst fears. The Titanic had 5 watertight compartments breached and would not survive.

Source:http://www.titanicexperiencecobh.ie/

Browse Inside The Flight of Gemma Hardy: A Novel by Margot Livesey

2012-01-25T18:55:00.001-06:00

About The Flight of Gemma Hardy

When her widower father drowns at sea, Gemma Hardy is taken from her native Iceland to Scotland to live with her kind uncle and his family. But the death of her doting guardian leaves Gemma under the care of her resentful aunt, and it soon becomes clear that she is nothing more than an unwelcome guest at Yew House. When she receives a scholarship to a private school, ten-year-old Gemma believes she's found the perfect solution and eagerly sets out again to a new home. However, at Claypoole she finds herself treated as an unpaid servant.

To Gemma's delight, the school goes bankrupt, and she takes a job as an au pair on the Orkney Islands. The remote Blackbird Hall belongs to Mr. Sinclair, a London businessman; his eight-year-old niece is Gemma's charge. Even before their first meeting, Gemma is, like everyone on the island, intrigued by Mr. Sinclair. Rich (by Gemma's standards), single, flying in from London when he pleases, Hugh Sinclair fills the house with life. An unlikely couple, the two are drawn to each other, but Gemma's biggest trial is about to begin: a journey of passion and betrayal, redemption and discovery, that will lead her to a life of which she's never dreamed.

Set in Scotland and Iceland in the 1950s and '60s, The Flight of Gemma Hardy—a captivating homage to Charlotte Brontë'sJane Eyre—is a sweeping saga that resurrects the timeless themes of the original but is destined to become a classic all its own.

Browse Inside The Flight of Gemma Hardy: A Novel by Margot Livesey

Source: Harper Collins Publishers

No Mark Upon Her by Deborah Crombie Book Recommendation

2012-01-24T18:51:00.000-06:00

Metropolitan Police officer and Olympic rowing hopeful DCI Rebecca Meredith goes out alone to train on the river in beautiful, historic Henley on a dark afternoon in late October --- and doesn't return. When a desperate search by the police and a K9 team reveals the possibility of foul play, Scotland Yard calls in Detective Superintendent Duncan Kincaid.

Then, when a search-and-rescue team member's life is threatened, Kincaid realizes the case may be even more complex and dangerous than he believed. But it is only when he enlists the aid of his partner, Detective Inspector Gemma James, that they find the answers lie closer to home than they could have imagined --- and are infinitely more deadly.

No Mark Upon Her
by Deborah Crombie

Publication Date: February 7, 2012
Genres: Fiction, Mystery
Hardcover: 384 pages
Publisher: William Morrow
ISBN-10: 0061990612
ISBN-13: 9780061990618

THE WHITEST FLOWER BY BRENDAN GRAHAM

2012-01-23T00:02:00.001-06:00

Set against the backdrop of the Great Famine, this is the story of the triumph of one woman amidst Ireland's despair. It is August 1845. In Dublin's Botanic Gardens, Phytophora infestans is discovered for the first time. The bacteria was to result in the Great Famine, an event of holocaust proportions that affected every man, woman and child in Ireland. England's shame; Ireland's tragedy . Ellen O'Malley is one such victim. She loses her husband, is duped into going to Australia to lead a better life, leaving three of her beloved children behind. She travels aboard a coffin ship and arrives emaciated and ill with her new baby. But Ellen, a woman with an indomitable spirit, rises above her oppression and eventually returns to wreak revenge on those perpetrators of her misery.

BOOK RECOMMENDATION ONLY NOT A REVIEW

Cong Abbey

2012-01-22T22:52:00.000-06:00

Cong Abbey is a historic site located at Cong, on the borders of counties Galway and Mayo, in Ireland's province of Connacht. Founded in the early 7th century, by Saint Feichin, the abbey was destroyed by fire in the early 12th century. Turlough Mor O’Connor, the High King of Ireland, refounded the abbey circa 1135. His son Rory O'Connor, the last High King of Ireland before the Norman invasion, constructed new buildings and also lived the last 15 years of his life at the abbey dying in 1198. The monastery adopted the Augustinian rule some years later.

The Norman knight, William de Burgh, attacked Cong in 1203, and again the abbey was rebuilt.

The present church, and possibly the fragmentary cloister where the monks worked and prayed, belong to the rebuilding of the early 13th century. The north doorway of the church, and the elaborate doorways that open onto the cloister from the east range of the monastery, may pre-date the attack by William de Burgo. The doorway with two fine windows on either side belongs to the chapter house, where the monastery’s daily business was conducted as well as a chapter of the rule being read each day. This was also where the community gathered to confess their sins publicly. The sculpture in the abbey, which is some of the finest in Ireland, suggests links to French styles of the period.

The grounds of the abbey also contain a monk’s fishing house, probably built in the 15th or 16th century, on the bank of the River Cong leading towards nearby Lough Corrib. The house is built on a platform of stones over a small arch which allows the river to flow underneath the floor. There is a trapdoor in the floor which may have been used for a net, and the monks could sit beside the fireplace making the task of catching fish a little more comfortable. It is thought that a line was connected from the fishing house to the monastery kitchen to alert the cook to fresh fish.

The Annals of the Four Masters record that in 1150, Muireadhach Ua Dubhthaigh, Archbishop of Connacht, died at Cong aged 75. His name is inscribed upon the processional Cross of Cong

The first restoration of the abbey was started by Benjamin Guinness soon after he had bought nearby Ashford Castle in 1855. Cong abbey is a national monument in the care of the Commissioners for Public Works.

Source: WIKI

The Last Storyteller by Frank Delaney

2012-01-20T23:15:00.001-06:00

“Every legend and all mythologies exist to teach us how to run our days. In kind fashion. A loving way. But there’s no story, no matter how ancient, as important as one’s own. So if we’re to live good lives, we have to tell ourselves our own story. In a good way.” So says James Clare, Ben MacCarthy’s beloved mentor, and it is this fateful advice that will guide Ben through the tumultuous events of Ireland in 1956.

The national mood is downtrodden; poverty, corruption, and a fledgling armed rebellion rattle the countryside, and although Ben wants no part of the upstart insurrection along the northern border, he unknowingly falls in with an IRA sympathizer and is compromised into running guns. Yet despite his perilous circumstances, all he can think about is finding his former wife and true love, the actress Venetia Kelly.

Parted forcibly from Ben years ago, Venetia has returned to Ireland with her new husband, a brutal man and coarse but popular stage performer by the name of Gentleman Jack. Determined not to lose Venetia again, Ben calls upon every bit of his love, courage, and newfound gun-running connections to get her back. And as Ben fights to recapture his halcyon days with Venetia, he must finally reconcile his violent and flawed past with his hopes for a bright and loving future.

Brimming with fascinating Irish history, daring intrigue, and the drama of legendary love, THE LAST STORYTELLER is an unforgettable novel as richly textured and inspiring as Ireland itself.

BOOK RECOMMENDATION ONLY

My Review will be posted February 7th, 2012 at www.celticladysreviews.blogspot.com

The Kings in Winter by Cecelia Holland

2012-01-19T23:53:00.000-06:00

It was a time of legend, a time of strugle, a time when the Kingship of the hero Brain Boru is being contested by men of other clans, and by the Danish invader who had come in their longships to take hold of Ireland and make it their own. All through a long winter of strife, Muirtagh struggles to balance his own honor and that of his clan, against his divided loyalties to the three would-be Kings of Ireland.
First published in 1968, The Kings in Winter is considered by Cecelia Holland's fans to be her finest work. The book is set in Ireland during the Danish invasion around 800 A.D.. Set against this background is a clan feud that consumes the majority of the plot.

Cecelia Holland has been writing since she was 12, and spends a good deal of every day writing. She chose to write historical fiction, because, being 12, she had precious few stories of her own, and history seemed to her then, as it still does, an endless fund of material.

She was encouraged to write by the poet William Meredith and the short story writer David Jackson. Her first novel was The Firedrake, and it was published by Atheneum in 1966. Since then, Cecelia has written a lot, read a lot, and raised three daughters. She lived in northern California, in the country. Once a week, she teaches creative writing at Pelican Baystate Prison in Crescent City, and, every day, she takes care of a small menagerie of little animals.

BOOK RECOMMENDATION ONLY

The Pleasures of Men by Kate Williams

2012-01-17T11:32:00.001-06:00

Spitalfields, 1840.

Catherine Sorgeiul lives with her Uncle in a rambling house in London's East End. She has few companions and little to occupy the days beyond her own colourful imagination. But then a murderer strikes, ripping open the chests of young girls and stuffing hair into their mouths to resemble a beak, leading the press to christen him The Man of Crows. And as Catherine hungrily devours the news, she finds she can channel the voices of the dead ... and comes to believe she will eventually channel The Man of Crows himself.

But the murders continue to panic the city and Catherine gradually realizes she is snared in a deadly trap, where nothing is as it first appears ... and lurking behind the lies Catherine has been told are secrets more deadly and devastating than anything her imagination can conjure.

With an elegant style and thrilling plot, The Pleasures of Men reveals the dark, beating heart of corrupt London during Queen Victoria's reign.

About the Author

Kate studied her BA at Somerville College, Oxford where she was a College Scholar and received the Violet Vaughan Morgan University Scholarship. She then took her MA at Queen Mary, University of London and her DPhil at Oxford. Kate's first book was England's Mistress: the Infamous Life of Emma Hamilton and her second, Becoming Queen was about the passionate youth of Queen Victoria and Princess Charlotte. She was also a consultant on the movie Young Victoria which starred Emily Blunt and Rupert Friend and has appeared on the Today programme and as a guest reviewer on Newsnight Review in addition to presenting a programme about Queen Victoria for BBC2's Timewatch.

BOOK RECOMMENDATION ONLY NOT A REVIEW.

"Norah" by Cynthia Neale (book trailer)

2012-01-15T00:01:00.001-06:00

Book Trailer: Ireland Rose, Historical Romance by Patricia Strefling

2012-01-14T12:19:00.000-06:00

Grianán of Aileach (Hillfort)

2012-01-13T13:27:00.000-06:00

The Grianán of Aileach (also spelled Ailech; Irish: Grianán Ailigh) is a group of historic monuments in County Donegal, Ireland built on the hill of Grianán which is 244 metres high. Most writers have identified the site as being the great "royal fort" of Aileach. The main structure is that of an ringfort built by the Uí Néill in the sixth or seventh century in the early christian period It is generally accepted to be the seat of the Kingdom of Aileach although the true capital is now believed to lie further to the east. The kingdoms of Ulaidh and Kingdom of Oirialla were two subject kingdoms in the North under the general rule of Aileach. Whatever its true status, the Grianán was a historical centre of culture and politics during the rule of early Irish chieftains (c. 800 BCE-1200 CE).

An Irish creation myth claims that this fortress was built by the great king Daghda of Tuatha de Danann. The grave of the king's son Aeah was in the centre of the fortress, which had been built around it. Whether such a grave existed is unknown; there are no archaeological remains, although a nearby tumulus could be a grave marker.

By the 12th century, the Kingdom of Aileach had become embattled and lost a fair amount of territory to the invading Normans. The fortress itself was destroyed by Muirchertach Ua Briain, King of Munster in 1101. By around 1177, the Normans controlled large portions of lands once held by Aileach.

Source: Wiki

His Fair Assassin Trilogy by Robin LaFevers

2012-01-12T09:51:00.000-06:00

Book Description

Series: His Fair Assassin Trilogy | Publication Date: April 3, 2012

Why be the sheep, when you can be the wolf?

Seventeen-year-old Ismae escapes from the brutality of an arranged marriage into the sanctuary of the convent of St. Mortain, where the sisters still serve the gods of old. Here she learns that the god of Death Himself has blessed her with dangerous gifts—and a violent destiny. If she chooses to stay at the convent, she will be trained as an assassin and serve as a handmaiden to Death. To claim her new life, she must destroy the lives of others.
Ismae’s most important assignment takes her straight into the high court of Brittany—where she finds herself woefully under prepared—not only for the deadly games of intrigue and treason, but for the impossible choices she must make. For how can she deliver Death’s vengeance upon a target who, against her will, has stolen her heart?

BOOK RECOMMENDATION ONLY

The Titanic

2012-01-11T18:55:00.000-06:00

The Titanic passenger list ranged from the richest people in the world to the poorest, setting out to make a new life in America. One of these elite passengers was John Jacob Astor, an American millionaire businessman - In this original film from Titanic Stories we follow his journey on the Titanic.
What is amazing about Titanic is the array of passengers who travelled on her. She was a floating town, carrying passenger representatives from each strictly divided class along with valets, maids, nannies, kitchen staff, stewards, engine crew and officers.

It is hard for us to imagine these rigid barriers between the classes which existed in late Edwardian times and the early reign of George V and Queen Mary. Society has changed and blended so much within the past hundred years. Two world wars, the Great Depression and a more humanitarian attitude to life have wiped out the belief that people stayed within the limits of the life into which they were born. The standard of travel today is based on the ability to pay rather than the socio-economic background which affected the Titanic passengers.

Source: http://www.the-titanic.com and http://www.youtube.com/user/titanicstories

Philippa Gregory: History as fiction and as history

2012-01-10T10:28:00.000-06:00

By Nick Owchar 10 January 2012

Los Angeles Times (MCT)

LOS ANGELES — The publication of two books this season by Philippa Gregory gives us not only two more fascinating portraits of the English Wars of the Roses, it also opens a window onto the way the bestselling author of “The Other Boleyn Girl” applies her craft. “The Women of the Cousins’ War” (Touchstone: 342 pp., $26) — written with historians David Baldwin and Michael Jones — is a work of nonfiction about the lives of Elizabeth Woodville, wife of Edward IV; Margaret Beaufort, mother of Henry VII; and Elizabeth’s mother, Jacquetta, duchess of Bedford (the section on Jacquetta is written by Gregory).

Gregory’s other book, “The Lady of the Rivers” (Touchstone: 453 pp., $27.99), is a novel about Jacquetta’s early life.

I caught up with Gregory during her book tour in the following email exchange:

Q. “The Lady of the Rivers” and “The Women of the Cousins’ War” comment on each other in a fascinating way. Did you intend to show readers how writing history and historical fiction differ?

A. I didn’t have anything like a grand idea of demonstrating how the two are different, though as I was writing them alongside each other, I found I was thinking about the differences all the time as I was experiencing them. Of course, now that you say it, I see that the reader will have a parallel experience to mine as they move from the factual to the fictional and perhaps back again.

Q. What did you learn in the process of writing about the same life twice?

A. What became really clear to me was how much the history (just like a novel) is a process of selection of facts based on the interest and prejudices of the historian. We all know that history is subjective, but it was a very powerful experience for me to see how the material that struck me as important for understanding the historical character was exactly the material that struck me as interesting as a novelist.

The other thing that really struck me is the difference in the language used by the author. Often the scenes in the history and the fiction are identical but the descriptions are different. The fictional scene uses far more active, interesting verbs, and is designed to evoke emotion in the reader. It’s written with an eye to lyricism of language, and even how the paragraphs look on the page. Ideally, the novel is a thing of beauty. The history is more restrained and dry. I suspect that as readers we confuse coolness with accuracy and that we all think that detachment is “scientific.”

Q. An absence of specific historical information allows you to place your 15th century heroine Jacquetta in “Lady” in the company of Joan of Arc. It must have been thrilling to realize they may have met.

A. I had a bit of a hurrah moment when I discovered that the man who arrested Joan of Arc and released her to her death at the hands of the English was Jacquetta’s uncle. At the time of Joan’s arrest, we don’t know where Jacquetta was living, but she may well have been staying at her uncle’s chateau. We have sound historical accounts of the women of Jacquetta’s family befriending Joan; Jacquetta’s aunt and great-aunt were named by Joan at her trial as women who had befriended her. So there is a terrific connection there.

Q. The spirit of Joan of Arc hovers over Jacquetta’s entire life. Not just the accusations of witchcraft that both faced, but also Joan’s belief in the Wheel of Fortune. How did you come to find that this symbol applied to Jacquetta’s life?

A. In Jacquetta’s lifetime all playing cards carried the symbols that we now think of as belonging to the Tarot pack, so I knew she would have been familiar with them. She stood trial as a witch and evidence was produced of her “charming” the marriage of her daughter and son-in-law. I think it very likely that she tried to influence events by what she would have thought was magic. I studied the Tarot and thought that the Wheel of Fortune was a magnificent symbol for her but even more for Margaret of Anjou, who was Queen of England and France and died penniless in exile.

Q. You’re trained as a historian with a doctorate from the University of Edinburgh. What made you decide to be a novelist?

A. This is one of those serendipitous turns in the road. I wanted to be an academic but when I finished my PhD in 1984 there had been terrible cuts to 18th century courses in the English universities and I could not get a job. As I applied for posts, I wrote my first novel, almost as entertainment for myself. I sent it to an agent, she sent it out to publishers, they held an auction and it became a bestseller: “Wideacre.” It’s an extraordinary story of luck, timing and the right book.

Q. Why do audiences never tire of reading about the Tudors?

A. I think there is something pleasurable about the retelling of material that one knows. It’s familiar and yet each time it’s fresh. There are elements in the Tudor period which speak to so many people: those who are fascinated by Elizabeth or in love with Mary Queen of Scots, those who have an interest in the complex woman who was Anne Boleyn, not to mention her less-known sister Mary. Then there is the period itself, a time when England was becoming England and making the myths that we now recognize. For historians, it’s a wonderful period of change; for the general reader, it’s very rich; and for the novelist, there is so much to discover. I am working on the Plantagenet family who preceded the Tudors for the next few novels, but I feel certain that I will return to the Tudors at some time. They go on fascinating me as well as everyone else.

source: www.popmatters.com

2012-01-09T13:13:00.000-06:00

Notes from a Coma

by Mike McCormack

Rescued from the squalor of a Romanian orphanage, and adopted by the rural community of west Mayo, the child that is named J.J. O'Malley should have grown up happy. The boy has no gift for it, though, and his new life has a brutal way of giving him plenty to be unhappy about." Eventually JJ suffers a mental breakdown and volunteers for an improbable government project which has been set up to explore the possibility of using deep coma as a future option within the EU penal system. When his coma goes online the nation turns to watch and JJ is suddenly elevated to the status of cultural icon. Sex symbol, existential hero, T-shirt philosopher - his public now threatens to obscure the man himself. The ultimate reality show! Edited from a great review by Pat Mullan of Co. Galway.

BOOK RECOMMENDATION ONLY

Today In Irish History

2012-01-08T12:25:00.000-06:00

January 8
1547 - Henry VIII suppresses the Chapter of St Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin; it will not be restored until 15 June 1555

Reformation period

In 1539, King Henry VIII converted the priory to a cathedral with a dean and chapter and worked to ensure Christ Church adhered to his new church structure. His immediate successor, Edward VI of England, in 1547, provided funds for an increase in cathedral staffing and annual royal funding for the choir school.

King Edward VI formally suppressed St Patrick's Cathedral and, on 25 April 1547, its silver, jewels and ornaments were transferred to the dean and chapter of Christ Church. This episode ended with a late document of Queen Mary's reign, a deed dated 27 April 1558, comprising a release or receipt by Thomas Leverous, dean, and the chapter of St Patrick's, of the "goods, chattels, musical instruments, etc." belonging to that cathedral and which had been in the possession of the dean and chapter of Christ Church.

Queen Mary I of England, and later James I of England, also increased Christ Church's endowment. Meanwhile, in 1551, divine service was sung for the first time in Ireland in English instead of Latin. In 1560, the Bible was first read in English.

SOURCE: WIKI

Maiden Voyage of the Titanic

2012-01-07T11:13:00.000-06:00

The Titanic sailed from Belfast to Southampton to commence her first transatlantic crossing from there. Thomas Andrews Chief Designer travelled with the ship and was busy throughout these first days ensuring that Titanic was in all respects ready for sea. He headed the party of representatives from Harland and Wolff put on board to ensure the maiden voyage went smoothly.

At noon on the 10 April 1912 Titanic set sail from Southampton. Immediately, there was a serious incident with potential for disaster. A near collision was averted with the steamer “New York”. The “New York” smaller than the Titanic broke her moorings and began to be sucked in towards Titanic as the Titanic drew close. Tugs secured her so Titanic had a narrow escape. Titanic sailed from Southampton to Cherbourg in France and then on to Queenstown (Now Cobh). At Queenstown she picked up mail and 123 passengers. On Board were 2228 passengers and crew when the Titanic left Queenstown at 1.30pm on the afternoon of Thursday April 11^th 1912 steaming west out into the Atlantic bound for New York.
Source: http://www.titanicexperiencecobh.ie/carous/titanic-history/

From Clare To Here Part 1

2012-01-07T06:00:00.004-06:00

Here is another series that I found to be of interest to me. I love Irish music, I find that there is no other music that touches me in a way that Irish music does. Enjoy!

The Night Swimmer by Matt Bondurant

2012-01-06T11:56:00.000-06:00

Book Description

Publication Date: January 10, 2012

The Night Swimmer, Matt Bondurant’s utterly riveting modern gothic novel of marriage and belonging, confirms his gift for storytelling that transports and enthralls.In a small town on the southern coast of Ireland, an isolated place only frequented by fishermen and the occasional group of bird-watchers, Fred and Elly Bulkington, newly arrived from Vermont having won a pub in a contest, encounter a wild, strange land shaped by the pounding storms of the North Atlantic, as well as the native resistance to strangers. As Fred revels in the life of a new pubowner, Elly takes the ferry out to a nearby island where anyone not born there is called a “blow-in.” To the disbelief of the locals, Elly devotes herself to open-water swimming, pushing herself to the limit and crossing unseen boundaries that drive her into the heart of the island’s troubles—the mysterious tragedy that shrouds its inhabitants and the dangerous feud between an enigmatic farmer and a powerful clan that has no use for outsiders.
The poignant unraveling of a marriage, the fierce beauty of the natural world, the mysterious power of Irish lore, and the gripping story of strangers in a strange land rife with intrigue and violence—The Night Swimmer is a novel of myriad enchantments by a writer of extraordinary talent.

BOOK RECOMMENDATION ONLY

Canúintí Ceoil (Part 3)

2012-01-06T06:00:00.000-06:00

The Titanic

2012-01-05T12:09:00.000-06:00

Construction

White Star Line was determined that no expense would be spared in the construction of Titanic. It took 3 years for Titanic to be completed at a cost equivalent to 7.5 million dollars. More than 3000 men were employed in the building of the ship. The Titanic at the time was the largest ship ever built with a length of 883 feet and a maximum height of 175 feet. Titanic had a tonnage of 46,328 and was capable of a maximum speed of 23 knots. The Maximum Capacity of the Ship was 3547 passengers and crew.

White Star Line appointed their most experienced Captain to take charge of the maiden voyage. Captain Edward J Smith had previously command of the Olympic but had left that ship at Southampton to take command of Titanic on her maiden voyage. He had an engaging manner and pleasing personality and had the reputation of being an ideal captain. Captain Smith was once famously quoted as saying:

“I cannot imagine any condition which would caused a modern ship to founder …… Shipbuilding has gone beyond that….”

Source: http://www.titanicexperiencecobh.ie

Canúintí Ceoil 2 - Regional styles in traditional Irish music - Donegal

2012-01-05T06:00:00.001-06:00

Island of Wings by Karin Altenberg

2012-01-04T10:55:00.001-06:00

Summary of Island of Wings

A dazzling debut novel of love and loss, faith and atonement, on an untamed nineteenth-century Scottish island.

Exquisitely written and profoundly moving, Island of Wings is a richly imagined novel about two people struggling to keep their love, and their family, alive in a place of extreme hardship and unearthly beauty. Everything lies ahead for Lizzie and Neil McKenzie when they arrive at the St. Kilda islands in July of 1830. Neil is to become the minister to the small community of islanders, and Lizzie-bright, beautiful, and devoted-is pregnant with their first child. As the two adjust to life at the edge of civilization, where the natives live in squalor and babies perish mysteriously, their marriage-and their sanity-are soon threatened.

BOOK RECOMMENDATION ONLY

Canúintí Ceoil (Part 1)

2012-01-04T10:20:00.000-06:00

Here is a wonderful history of fiddle music from Ireland. It’s in Gaelic in three parts with English subtitles where Mary Mooney of Altan, Mairéad Ní Mhaonaigh, goes through the fiddle music of Donegal and other music with awesome landscapes. I hope you enjoy this series.