By Sabina Clarke On An Irish Island By Robert Kanigel Alfred A.Knopf, 2012 $26.95 The inspiration for this book was serendipitous and happened by chance in 20005 when the author, on his honeymoon in western Ireland, visited the town of Dun Chaoin and became intrigued with the history of the Great Blasket, An Blascaod...
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By Sabina Clarke This stunning and beautifully illustrated book with photographs of original paintings by first generation London-Irish artist Brian Whelan is a fascinating exchange of ideas between Irish Catholic Brian Whelan and Jeff Frohner, a Lutheran pastor from Orange County, California who proves to be an enthusiastic and knowledgeable Connoisseur of fine art....
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By Megan Gillin-Schwartz Acclaimed journalist and documentary filmmaker Karen F. McCarthy’s non-fiction debut The Other Irish: The Scots-Irish Rascals Who Made America (Sterling Publishing, 2011) chronicles the strong, yet under-noted Scots-Irish influence on the shaping of the American character. Her cinematic background shines through as she shares the influence of the distinct culture that...
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“The Man Who Warned America” By Murray Weiss By Sabina Clarke In this riveting biography of former FBI agent John O’Neill, the nation’s top counterterrorism cop in both Washington, D.C. and later New York City, author Murray Weiss offers an accurate and factual account of O’Neill’s spectacular career and his complex clandestine personal life....
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Thomas J. Lyons II Writes About Growing Up in Northeast Philadelphia By Dave Duffin As I sit reading You Can’t Get to Heaven on the Frankford El, the book by my pal at St. Martin of Tour’s Grade School in Philadelphia, I occasionally look up at the sun setting on the Pacific Ocean over...
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Dr. James J. Murphy Reflects on Irishness Past and Present An Interview by Roslyn Blyn-LaDrew Jim Murphy grew up in Brooklyn (Flatbush). As a child, he had a paper route, a home full of Irish songs and ballads, and a village’s worth of aunts, uncles, and cousins, in Brooklyn and beyond. Jim’s mother, Kathleen...
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Reviewed by Katharine Gilbert “All poetry is confession.” – Goethe Perhaps some readers may remember the sixties. Abbie Hoffman wrote a book with the title Steal This Book. Well don’t steal, but please do read Joseph Meredith’s newest work Inclinations of the Heart. April is poetry month. So before you search for that old...
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An East Falls Childhood Marred by Poverty and Abuse By Sabina Clarke I caught up with Joe Queenan, author of the startling memoir/autobiography Closing Time, the day after his return from Ireland where he attended the Dublin Literary Festival. Queenan’s book has attracted considerable attention because he departs from his usual humorous vein and...
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By Deen Kogan Few contemporary writers, or even those long gone, come with the bona fides that James Lee Burke possesses. This amazingly prolific writer, with a great laugh, engaging smile and affection for and appreciation of the human race, with all its foibles, has produced 27 novels and two short story collections in...
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By Frank Dougherty A former movie house that began screening Hollywood silent films 93 years ago for Port Richmond residents is now headquarters for one of the largest and, from an Irish viewpoint, most interesting used bookstores in...
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