Book Recommendations
Irish and otherwise.
It’s December in Ireland, and it’s not the holidays, it’s Christmas1. Whatever year-end gifts you might be purchasing for yourself and others, a book is always a good idea. So, even though nobody asked, here are some (very specifically themed) recommendations.
Contemporary Irish literature about young Irish women
The Rachel Incident by Caroline O’Donoghue. I came for the novel, I fell in love with the author’s podcast. I read this novel before moving to Ireland and it made me very nostalgic for friendships in my 20s. O’Donoghue is a writer from Cork living in London; she has a newsletter.
Exciting Times & The Happy Couple by Naoise Dolan. Dolan is a queer, Autistic, Irish writer from Dublin currently living in Berlin. Her novels are modern romance page-turners with enough emphasis on language and colonialism to make any linguist swoon. She also has a newsletter.
Bee Sting by Paul Murray. Written by a man, and some of the characters are male, but it still fits — read it, you’ll see. A sweeping, generational tale of an Irish family living in the Irish Midlands, an often overlooked region in Ireland without any coastline. It’s a big book, but goes fast. You’ll fall in love with the characters and learn a lot about growing up in Ireland.
Intermezzo by Sally Rooney. I have only read an excerpt from this novel in The New Yorker, but I already know I will love it. I’ve read all of Rooney’s past three novels twice. They seem to have just the right mix of over-analyzing-friends’-text-messages and Marxism for me as a reader.
Irish travel guides
Planning a trip to Ireland in the new year?2 Here are a few guides I’ve borrowed from the library or perused in the exquisite Charlie Byrne’s Bookshop lately that I recommend:
Ireland the Best: The insider’s guide to Ireland by John and Sally McKenna. Like the title suggests, this is an insider’s guide to the best food, drink, lodging, atmosphere, and activities Ireland has to offer from a couple that has been “championing authentic Irish food and hospitality” for the past three decades. Their descriptions regularly cite coffee shop and pub owners by first name. They ALSO have a delightful newsletter. (I blame the collapsing publishing industry.)
Wild Atlantic Way: Where to eat and stay by Sally and John McKenna. Another guide from the McKenna’s describing the food and accommodation I would seek out on a coastal Irish road trip if I had the time, the money, and no 4-year-old. Nice to have out on the coffee table when guests are staying with us.
The Hike Life: 50 favourite hikes in Ireland by Rosanna Purcell. I’ve only gone on one hike so far in Ireland (sorry!), but I did love it. Looking through this book of lovely scenery and the author’s multitude of attractive leggings is definitely inspiring me to get out more when it’s a bit warmer.
Cycling in Ireland: A guide to the best of Irish cycling by David Flanagan. I don’t cycle recreationally or even have a bike here, but it’s nice to dream. Yet another aspirational and gorgeous coffee table book.
Books and series for newly 4-year-olds from the Galway Public Libraries3
Rainbow Fairy Magic Series. Manufactured in the United Kingdom under the pseudonym of Daisy Meadows, the series starts off well enough with the original rainbow fairies (Ruby the Red Fairy, etc.) The books follow a very specific formula which is boring for us adults and, unfortunately, so comforting for children. Tons of pictures add to the draw and have made it Lucy’s first (and most popular) read aloud chapter book series. However, there are approximately 300 (!!) books in this series, and I cannot recommend most of the later books (eg. Felicia the Fidget Toy Fairy, Nur the Vlogger Fairy, Evelyn the Mermicorn Fairy, etc.)
Magic Tree House by Mary Pope Osborne. Another “early” read-aloud chapter book Lucy has been into. I was familiar with it from teaching, and I do recommend these for being action-packed and somewhat educating you about things such as mammoth bones and mummies… But I am painfully aware that this series is meant for slightly older children beginning to read chapter books on their own, and I am in search of the perfect chapter book series to read aloud to a 4-year-old. Please leave suggestions in the comments, but don’t tell me to write it myself, I just might…
Puffling Series by Erika McGann and Gerry Daly. A series of sweet picturebooks exploring the animals living on the northern Irish coast, focusing on the puffin in particular. Did you know puffin beaks glow in the dark?!
A Dragon Called Spark: A Hanukkah story by Lily Murray. There are exactly 27 “Hanukkah” search results in Ireland’s public library system and A Dragon Called Spark is the newest addition. It’s an engaging story about a child moving to a new city with her imaginary (or is it?) dragon in the wintertime and making new friends. Hanukkah unfolds in the backdrop, which is my favorite way for picturebooks to provide windows into other peoples’ lives.
Thank you for reading, stay warm if you’re in a cold part of the world, and, as always, “Happy Holidays” to my fellow Americans.
I have read more than one op-ed about leaving the phrase “Happy Holidays” to the Americans.
Have I dropped enough hints yet?
Interesting note about the library, especially for my librarian friends, — we can only borrow 12 books at a time (versus 50 in Seattle) and can only reserve 12 books at a time. It has certainly been a mind shift for me to become a more frugal and conscientious library user.