Last of the Donkey Pilgrims
Last of the Donkey Pilgrims

Author: Kevin O'Hara

Publisher: Macmillan + ORM

Published: 2005-02-01

Total Pages: 433

ISBN-13: 1429931507

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Kevin O'Hara's journey of self-discovery begins as a mad lark: who in their right mind would try to circle the entire coastline of Ireland on foot—and with a donkey and cart no less? But Kevin had promised his homesick Irish mother that he would explore the whole of the Old Country and bring back the sights and the stories to their home in Massachusetts. Determined to reach his grandmother's village by Christmas Eve, Kevin and his stubborn but endearing donkey, Missie, set off on 1800-mile trek along the entire jagged coast of a divided Ireland. Their rollicking adventure takes them over mountains and dales, through smoky cities and sleepy villages, and into the farmhouses and hearts of Ireland's greatest resource—its people. Along the way, Kevin would meet incredible characters, experience Ireland in all of its glory, and explore not only his Irish past, but find his future self. “One of the finest books about contemporary Ireland ever written...In a style evocative of Steinbeck's Travels with Charley, O'Hara writes memorably of his most unusual way of touring his ancestral home of Ireland.” —Library Journal At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

Ireland Through Birds
Ireland Through Birds

Author: Conor W. O'Brien

Publisher: Merrion Press

Published: 2019-10-17

Total Pages: 155

ISBN-13: 1785373072

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Twelve birds. One country. A wild Ireland waiting to be discovered. In Ireland Through Birds, Conor O’Brien takes the reader on an ornithological adventure around Ireland in search of twelve of our rarest and most elusive birds. Along the journey the author explores every kind of landscape and habitat our island has to offer across all four seasons, from the remote isles of Donegal to the rugged mountains of Kerry and urban parks of Dublin. Through it all, O’Brien is enchanted by calling corncrakes, mesmerised by hunting harriers, and chased by angry skuas. It’s a journey through a staggering array of landscapes that’ll bring the reader face to face with the rich history and stunning wildlife to be savoured right on our doorstep. It explores the stories of the remarkable birds that live here: the genius of the jay, the sublime mimicry of the cuckoo, the nocturnal prowess of the barn owl, while paying a moving,poetic tribute to our natural heritage – and a warning about the threats that face it. Ireland Through Birds is a unique blend of natural history and travelogue, making it a great read for anyone with an interest in Ireland’s natural world.

A Course Called Ireland
A Course Called Ireland

Author: Tom Coyne

Publisher: Penguin

Published: 2010-02-02

Total Pages: 329

ISBN-13: 1592405282

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The hysterical story bestseller about one man's epic Celtic sojourn in search of ancestors, nostalgia, and the world's greatest round of golf By turns hilarious and poetic, A Course Called Ireland is a magnificent tour of a vibrant land and paean to the world's greatest game in the tradition of Bill Bryson's A Walk in the Woods. In his thirties, married, and staring down impending fatherhood, Tom Coyne was familiar with the last refuge of the adult male: the golfing trip. Intent on designing a golf trip to end all others, Coyne looked to Ireland, the place where his father has taught him to love the game years before. As he studied a map of the island and plotted his itinerary, it dawn on Coyne that Ireland was ringed with golf holes. The country began to look like one giant round of golf, so Coyne packed up his clubs and set off to play all of it-on foot. A Course Called Ireland is the story of a walking-averse golfer who treks his way around an entire country, spending sixteen weeks playing every seaside hole in Ireland. Along the way, he searches out his family's roots, discovers that a once-poor country has been transformed by an economic boom, and finds that the only thing tougher to escape than Irish sand traps are Irish pubs.

Alexis de Tocqueville's Journey to Ireland
Alexis de Tocqueville's Journey to Ireland

Author: Alexis de Tocqueville

Publisher: CUA Press

Published: 1990

Total Pages: 176

ISBN-13: 0813207193

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This edition of his journal is perhaps the first serious scholarly effort to place Tocqueville's journey to Ireland in its proper intellectual, geographical, and historical context.

The Fields Of Athenry
The Fields Of Athenry

Author: James Charles Roy

Publisher: Basic Books

Published: 2003-06-19

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9780813340661

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In The Fields of Athenry, James Charles Roy leads us through the Irish past and present by way of his own personal struggles and misadventures in renovating Moyode Castle, an old tower house that he purchased more than thirty years ago. While he pieces together its four-hundred-year-old past, the castle becomes a powerful symbol for Roy – it is battered by waves of history, yet timeless and resilient. Roy's personal struggles with the land and its people open for him a wide-ranging historical conversation on Ireland today and our sense of history more broadly. How do we reconcile the historical nostalgia attached to Ireland with the boom times that the "Celtic Tiger" enjoys today? With this question in mind, Roy searches for the answer of what attracts us – or, perhaps more aptly, him – to the rubble of a castle from Irish days long past.

Life in Ireland
Life in Ireland

Author: Conor W. O'Brien

Publisher: Merrion Press

Published: 2021-04-22

Total Pages: 277

ISBN-13: 1785373862

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This is the story of life in Ireland – a story half a billion years in the making. With its castles, crannogs and passage tombs, Ireland is a land where history looms large, but the saga of life on this island dates back millions of years before the first people set foot here. In Life in Ireland, Conor O’Brien guides the reader on a journey around the island to explore the history of natural life here, from the Jurassic Coast of Antrim to the great Ice Age bone-beds of Cork. Along the way, we’ll meet some of the astonishing creatures to have called Ireland home through the ages: shelled monsters; huge marine lizards; armoured dinosaurs; giant deer; mighty mammoths. Vital strands in the story of life on Earth have left their mark here, including some of the first creatures to crawl onto land or take to the wing. This epic journey will take us from the first fossils to the present day, to see how our wildlife has adapted to the human age and explore what the future might hold for life in Ireland.

Celtic Journeys
Celtic Journeys

Author: Steve Rabey

Publisher: Citadel Press

Published: 2001-05

Total Pages: 244

ISBN-13: 9780806521619

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The Ireland of myth and legend, still to be sensed and appreciated in the modern world, is the focus of this new and different travel guide. It contains not only the usual tips on what to see, where to stay, and how to get there, but also plentiful details about dozens of memorable and mystical sites, from New Grange to Staigue to Skellig Michael to Aran, and beyond. The traveler in search of wider experience of this ancient verdant land will find fascinating information about archaeology, geography, comparative religion, and local customs, as well as highlights from lively Irish literature and haunting Celtic music. Complete with maps, illustrations, and photographs, Celtic Journeys is a practical, easy-to-use treasure for those planning a trip to Ireland and for anyone interested in the world of the ancient Celts and its significance today. Book jacket.

Beyond Belfast
Beyond Belfast

Author: Will Ferguson

Publisher: Penguin

Published: 2018-12-11

Total Pages: 396

ISBN-13: 0735238170

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Offbeat, charming, and filled with humour and insight, Beyond Belfast is the story of one man’s misguided attempt at walking the Ulster Way, “the longest waymarked trail in the British Isles.” It’s a journey that takes Will Ferguson through the small towns and half-forgotten villages of Northern Ireland, along rugged coastlines and across barren moorland heights, past crumbling castles and patchwork farms. From IRA pubs to Protestant marches, from bandits and bad weather to banshees and blood sausage, he wades into the thick of things, providing an affectionate and heartfelt look at one of the most misunderstood corners of the world. As the grandson of a Belfast orphan, Will also peels back the myths and realities of his own family history—a mysterious photograph, rumours of a lost inheritance. The truth, when it comes, is both surprising and funny …