Happy Lá Fhéile Pádraig!
I’ve only got a wee bit of Irish in me, but every year I like to celebrate Irish history and culture on St. Patrick’s Day.
Mainly that includes food and drink. At this very moment there’s a pot of corned beef and cabbage simmering on my stove and the Guinness is chilling in the fridge.
But I also enjoy celebrating their literature and lore. After dinner I may settle down with some Irish-inspired text — perhaps a story set in their beautiful land, perhaps a tale inspired by their legends and myths, maybe just something written by an Irish author.
Do you have any suggestions?
One random commenter wins a book from our stacks.
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Get thee to pretty much anything Juliet Marillier ever wrote! :)
I also like to partake of the food of the Irish. I also like to remember my red-headed grandmother you died several years ago.
Books: Anything from Paul Kearney. He is probably one of the most unbelievably underread authors in fantasy.
Music: Besides very popular ones, an Irish band that I love is The Script.
Food: I can’t say no to Bread & Butter Pudding.
And here’s my favorite old Irish blessing to finish the list with:
“May the road rise up to meet you.
May the wind always be at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face,
and rains fall soft upon your fields.
And until we meet again,
May God hold you in the palm of His hand.”
Weelll … Tana French doesn’t exactly show the beautiful land, the myths, or the legends … but I still enjoy her Dublin Murder Squad books.
I’m quite fond of Peter Tremayne’s Sister Fidelma series set in ancient Ireland.
Possibly OT and a day late, but – I discovered Patrick Kavanagh via the Irish singer Luke Kelly (The Dubliners) and his interpretation of Kavanagh’s poem Raglan Road. More of a music fan than a poetry one but the combination of Kavanagh and Kelly is utterly beautiful. Look Kavanagh up on poemhunter! And Kelly on iTunes or Spotify.
For a relatively small country, there is so much to love about Ireland.
CarolA, if you live in the USA, you win a book of your choice from our stacks.
Please contact me (Marion) with your choice and a US address. Happy reading!