Historical March 1991 article. Dates, prices, services and contacts describe the source period; current availability has not been established.
The Irish word shanachie means “story teller” and there were many of them in Ireland awhile back.
In honor of St. Patrick’s Day, we offer some reading suggestions. Messer Marco Polo. by Donn Byrne, is about a story teller and one of his particular stories.
Here is an excerpt: “And suddenly at the end of the garden, in perfumed Asian dusk there was a beam of moonlight, and into the soft ray of it trod little Golden Bells, with her wee warm face and her wee warm hands, and her hair dark as a cloud.” James Joyce’s Ulysses is a world masterpiece.
It is a novel of psychological realism written in Dublin in 1922.
The story takes place in 24 hours and is important because of the stream of consciousness technique by which Joyce tried to reproduce the sights, sounds, and smells of Dublin and the emotions of the people. Two main characters are Molly and Leopold Bloom.
The story opens with everyone going out as day begins and at the end of the day, Molly and Leopold return home to lie side by side in their bed.
As Leopold snores, Molly thinks about all her lovers, then about her courtship and love of Leopold and their life together.
The Informer is by Liam O’Flaherty.
This is a story of Ireland in the 1920’s and an Irishman who lives in desperate poverty.
He wants to go off to America but hasn’t the price of a glass of stout.
He commits the unforgivable sin of informing on his friend, Frankie McPhillips, for 20 pounds. Victor McLagen won an Academy Award in 1935 for his performance of the informer. Both the book and the film are classics. No Comebacks by Frederick Forsythe is not a classic but is a book of excellent short stories set mostly in Ireland.
The best one, according to this writer, is “There Are No Snakes in Ireland,” a story of racial intolerance with an ironic ending.
The Price of My Soul, by Bernadette Devlin, is the autobiography of a young Irish woman who became the youngest member of Parliament. Written in the 1960’s, it can still be an exciting book to read.
The Black Diaries: An Account of Roger Casement, A Life And Times, with a collection of his diaries and public writing, is by Singleton Cates and Maurice Girodians.
This is about a great Irish patriot who did much to help the Irish fight the British.
The Plough and the Stars is a tragedy in four acts by Sean O’Casey.
This is about the 1916 Easter week uprising in Dublin. Two plays, Juno and the Paycock and The Shadow of a Gunman, are also by O’Casey.
All of his plays deal with tragic subject matter but all have humor. Playboy of the Western World is a comedy in three acts by J. M. Singe.
The story is about a young man who shows up in town in County Mayo and tells everyone he killed his dad.
He became a celebrity in the town—everyone wanting to marry him although he had been a coward and a lowlife in his own town. Trinity, by Leon Uris, covers Ireland from the 1840’s to the Easter week uprising of 1916.
This is excellent historical fiction, so, if you want to read about Ireland, this may-be your cup of tea. William Butler Yeats is one of Ireland’s finest poets. Appropriate to the holiday, we include the last verse of his “Prayer for my Daughter.” And may her bridegroom bring her to a house where all’s accustomed, ceremonious: For arrogance and hatred are the wares Peddled in the thoroughfares. How but in custom and in ceremony Are innocence and beauty born? Ceremony’s a name for the rich horn And custom for the spreading laurel tree.
Here is a Yeats couplet to think on: A girl that knew all Dante once Live to bear children to a dunce. Celebrate St. Pat’s Day with one of Ireland’s writers.
Originally published in The Times of Skinker-DeBaliviere, March 1991.
Read this article in the original newspaper issue.
Archival transcription note: Several bibliographic names and quotations contain apparent original errors (Singleton Cates, Maurice Girodians, J.M.Singe, Yeats couplet). Retain source wording rather than silently repair against other editions.; Printed Yeats couplet says Live to bear children, and bibliography J.M.Singe; original wording retained pending editorial decision.
Original source: SD_Times1991_03.pdf, printed page(s) 4; PDF page(s) 4.
