The road to Croke Park can be a long one. For Leitrim hurler Zak Moradi, it was an odyssey. Born at the height of the Gulf War, Zak spent his formative years living in a refugee camp in Ramadi, Iraq, under the oppressive regime of Saddam Hussein. Eventually, he and his family settled in Carrick-on- Shannon, County Leitrim, and this is where life began. Zak couldn't speak English when he first arrived, and he didn't know what sport the boys in his class were playing. It was hurling; he was handy at it, and he picked it up quickly. The GAA gave Zak his chance to put down roots, learn valuable life skills and find friendship. A story of adversity, community and hope, Life Begins in Leitrim is Zak's moving reflection, twenty years later, on the culture shock of landing in rural Ireland; the importance of embracing difference; the continued suffering of refugees around the world; the power of sport; and the realisation that, really, we're not all that different from each other. 'Inspiring ... testament to the power of sport and the kindness of people.' Pat Spillane 'An unputdownable story of overcoming adversity.' Philly McMahon
BGE Irish Sports Book of the Year and eir Sports Book of the Year In The Choice Dubs star Philly McMahon shares the deeply personal story of his brother, John, a heroin addict who died at the age of 31. Structured as a series of choices - in sport, in education and in life - the book delves into the contrasting lives of the brothers and how the opportunities presented to Philly through sport and education opened up a world of choice that protected him from the dangers of growing up in Ballymun at the height of the heroin epidemic. As well as offering sports fans fresh insights into one of GAA's most fascinating characters, The Choice is an inspiration for anyone struggling with addiction. Raw, vivid and intensely moving, it is an epic story of triumph in the face of adversity and loss, and a tribute to the redemptive power of sport. 'Should be on the curriculum for all transition year student boys ... it's a book about life ... phenomenal.' DAMIEN O'MEARA, RTÉ SPORT 'Philly McMahon should be placed on a pedestal and be a beacon of inspiration to all young sports stars in the country.' THE IRISH INDEPENDENT
An epic and moving journey, from the backstreets of London and Limerick to the summit of the world's most unforgiving sport.In 2005, at the age of twenty, Andy Lee left Ireland to make it in the harsh world of professional boxing. Leaving home for the dust and faded glamour of Detroit, over the next ten years, under the guidance of the legendary Emamuel Steward, he set about honing his craft, winning fight after fight and slowly climbing the professional ranks.Then, in 2012, his star ascendant, Lee suffered two devastating blows in quick succession: defeat in his first World Championship bout and the sudden loss of Steward, his guide and confidant. Bereft, his career in jeopardy, the path to redemption would test every hard-won lesson of the previous decade ...Fighter is a lyrical and philosophical memoir about resilience, bravery and the wisdom to be found at the limits of human experience.
Looks at the pets of first families throughout American history, from John Quincy Adams' alligator to Richard Nixon's cocker spaniel, Checkers, to George and Barbara Bush's dogs Millie and C. Fred
Niall Griffiths narra la vicenda di Ianto, un Caino contemporaneo, un fuggiasco, una vittima, un feroce assassino, un enfant sauvage, una creatura ancestrale, un derelitto moderno. Insomma: Ianto è la natura ingovernabile, insondabile, impulsiva e brutale. La sua storia si svolge sulle montagne del Galles occidentale, in un mondo dominato dalle imperanti forze della natura, dall'esclusione e dall'isolamento.
Leo Varadkar's rise to the office of Taoiseach is a remarkable tale from any perspective, taking in personal struggle and political intrigue. The son of an Indian immigrant, this outspoken young politician came out as gay amid the full glare of Ireland's media, before orchestrating a secret two-year campaign to become leader of the country. Along the way, he put his political career on the line to defend police whistleblowers and survived an internal party purge after backing the loser in a failed leadership heave against Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny. Now, in this first full-length biography, journalists Philip Ryan and Niall O'Connor provide the definitive account of the most talked-about Irish politician in decades. Family, friends and colleagues have provided exclusive behind-the-scenes detail on Varadkar's meteoric rise to power, painting an intimate portrait of the man shaping Ireland's future.
‘An affectionate tribute to someone who quietly but firmly shaped her own place in the world.’ Books+Publishing Brenda Niall has turned her biographer’s eye to a personal subject—her grandmother, Aggie. She tells the story of a fiercely independent and intelligent woman who braved a new country as a single woman, teaching in a country school, before marrying a Riverina grazier, whose large powerful family was wary of the newcomer with ideas of her own. Aggie dealt with hardships and loneliness after the early and drawn-out death of her husband, and brought up her seven children to be happy—all with a calm determination. But it was the memory box and her longing for the sea that captured the imagination of her granddaughter. Brenda Niall is one of Australia’s foremost biographers. She is the author of five award-winning biographies, including her acclaimed accounts of the Boyd family. In 2016 she won the Australian Literature Society’s Gold Medal and the National Biography Award for Mannix. Brenda has degrees from the University of Melbourne, the Australian National University and Monash University. In 2004 she was awarded the Order of Australia for ‘services to Australian literature, as an academic, biographer and literary critic’. She frequently reviews for the Age, Sydney Morning Herald and Australian Book Review. ‘Can You Hear the Sea? creates a portrait, from other kinds of evidence, of a woman whose silence sealed her most intimate moments. With a light touch, Niall looks at her grandmother’s life through the prism of the imaginative world in which she was immersed...Aggie’s is a story of independence and grit: understated, necessary, uncelebrated.’ Australian ‘Aggies gift of the shell and the empty box put two questions to Brenda Niall. They also addressed her craft and her desire. Could she recreate the sounds and feel of the past out of unpromising materials, and could she fill the empty box while recognising that it remained empty? This book answers both questions with assurance. One might hope that among the next generation of Aggie’s descendants another young person will hear in it the sea that flows into story telling.’ Eureka Street ‘Niall’s beautifully told tale will have echoes in thousands of other Australian families.’ SA Weekend ‘Gentle and engaging biography...Aggie was undoubtedly a remarkable and intelligent woman, and this book is a lovely testament to her life.’ Good Reading ‘Insightful.’ Yours ‘[Niall] is clear about her process, asking questions, noting gaps, offering her own memories with an easy blend of intimacy and distance, in an authoritative yet conversational voice...Niall writes with respect for a woman who built a dynasty across centuries, was adventurous and stable, traditional and ahead of her time, English and embodied the best of Australia.’ Australian Book Review ‘Agnes’s story charts the changing role of women in the colonies, the impact of the world wars and the rise and fall of family fortunes...Niall’s beautifully told tale will have echoes in thousands of other Australian families.’ SA Weekend ‘Niall's skill is to listen with a discerning ear, to acknowledge the views and to seek always the social, political and historical context and influences. Her craft as a skilled biographer gives her grandmother a fresh life, one that will resonate with many in families of similar background, but wider than that, provide another piece in the picture of the European settlement of Australasia.’ Otago Daily Times ‘A fascinating subject...Hopefully people still find ways to write biographies that so adeptly capture the particularity of lived experience.’ Saturday Paper
The Shamrogues series of children's books (four titles) was first published in the early nineties and was a sensation. Orpen Press are pleased to announce the publication of new, updated editions of the first two books in this much-loved series, The Shamrogues – First Challenge and The Shamrogues – Second Challenge. The Shamrogues are five magical creatures who were entrusted with the power of the high druids of Ireland when magic became forbidden in Ireland. Disguised as stones, they are awakened from their sleep by a little girl called Niamh. Together with Niamh and her brother Conor and sister Sinead, and with many other creatures they meet along the way, the Shamrogues set about on a quest to save the local environment from its enemies. Having sold over 40,000 copies in its first edition, this series will delight a new generation of children.
Birds have been important symbols in our art and culture for thousands of years. They have inspired poets and painters, and feature in many place names and legends. In this book, Niall Mac Coitir draws together the mythology, legends and folklore of Ireland's birds, both wild and domestic. The birds are presented in seasonal order based on their migratory habits (the cuckoo and summer) or on their cultural associations (the robin with Christmas). He also explores how birds are often powerful symbols of various virtues and qualities, such as the goose, which is a symbol of watchfulness and bravery. This challenges us to look at birds in a different way, as dynamic creatures that have influenced our society over the millennia. Written with imagination and enthusiasm, this mix of natural history, mythology and folklore will delight and enlighten all interested in the birds of Ireland.
In this third gut-wrenching CRUSHER novel, Finn Maguire is lured back into the warring factions of the underworld by way of blackmail. Finn "Crusher" Maguire has one simple task: to set up a meeting. But when that meeting is between the Guvnor and the Turk, two psychotic criminals vying for control of London's underworld, Finn's task proves to be anything but simple. As the city cracks under a blistering heatwave and the UK is rocked by a series of terrorist outrages, Crusher finds himself caught up in a gang war full of carnage, corruption and treachery. To save himself and the girl he loves from being shredded to a bloody pulp between opposing factions, Finn faces horrifying risks and impossible choices.
For much of the 20th century the modernist city was articulated in terms of narratives of progress and development. Today the neoliberal city confronts us with all the cultural 'noise' of disorder and excess meaning. As this book demonstrates, for more than 40 years London-based writer, film-maker and 'psychogeographer' Iain Sinclair has proved to be one of the most incisive commentators on the contemporary city: tracing the emerging contours of a metropolis where the meeting of global and local is never without incident. Iain Sinclair: Noise, Neoliberalism and the Matter of London explores Sinclair's investigations into the nature of conflicting urban realities through an examination of the ways in which the noise of neoliberal excess intersects with the noise of literary experiment. In this way, the book casts new light on theorisations of the city in the contemporary era.
Winner of the 2016 Australian Literature Society’s Gold Medal and the National Biography Award. Daniel Mannix, Archbishop of Melbourne from 1917 until his death, aged ninety-nine, in 1963, was a towering figure in Melbourne's Catholic community. But his political interventions had a profound effect on the wider Australian nation too. Award-winning biographer Brenda Niall has made some unexpected discoveries in Irish and Australian archives which overturn some widely held views. She also draws on her own memories of meeting and interviewing Mannix to get to the essence of this man of contradictions, controversies and mystery. Mannix is not only an astonishing new look at a remarkable life, but a fascinating depiction of Melbourne in the first half last century. Brenda Niall is one of Australia’s foremost biographers. She is the author of five award-winning biographies, including her acclaimed accounts of the Boyd family. In 2016 she won the Australian Literature Society’s Gold Medal and the National Biography Award for Mannix. Brenda has degrees from the University of Melbourne, the Australian National University and Monash University. In 2004 she was awarded the Order of Australia for ‘services to Australian literature, as an academic, biographer and literary critic’. She frequently reviews for the Age, Sydney Morning Herald and Australian Book Review. ‘For readers interested in the political and cultural life of Australia during the first half of the 20th century, Niall’s highly readable biography will reward handsomely.’ Books & Publishing ‘With characteristic insight, sensitivity, and tact, Niall confirms that Daniel Mannix is a major, if elusive, figure in the modern history of Australia, Ireland, and the Catholic Church...a balanced and convincing account of Mannix’s life and times.’ Australian Book Review ‘Brenda Niall’s central challenge was to uncover the personal face of Mannix from his public speeches...She does this modestly and penetratingly.’ Catholic News ‘This is the best life of Mannix we have...Writing from inside the Melbourne Catholic experience, Brenda Niall shows how people’s affection for Mannix muted their criticisms of him—even if they knew better.’ Global Pulse ‘I should say that I expected to take my time over this biography, as I usually do, reading a chapter every other day. But not so, I could not put it down.’ ANZ LitLovers ‘For my money, Brenda Niall’s Mannix is the most wise, shrewd and elegant biography yet produced of this complex and beguiling man. Niall’s irresistible prose strengthens the candour of this fine book.’ Age ‘Calmly magisterial...Niall gives a sense of Mannix’s greatness and of why we can still be awed by him.’ Australian ‘An extraordinary man and an extraordinary book.’ Weekly Times ‘Among living Australian biographers, only Philip Ayres matches Brenda Niall for painstaking research serving narratives at once spirited and judicious.’ Spectator ‘This book is the work of a master of the art of biography...Gripping.’ Irish Echo ‘A fond and fluent life of Mannix that captures the crispness and the passion, the humour and the enigma of the man who meddled with politics like a master magician.’ Sydney Review of Books ‘[Niall] has written a generous and penetrating biography.’ Madonna Magazine
Lunacy, the legendary notion of minds unhinged by the moon, continues to captivate the popular imagination. Although it violates the assumptions of modern science and psychiatry, such belief remains common among mental health workers. Furthermore, several studies have found a small, unexplained correlation between behaviour and the lunar cycle. The book is divided into two parts. It begins with a historical account of the lunacy concept, followed by an investigation of hypothetical mechanisms for a lunar effect.
Full-length study of the use of back-channels in repeated efforts to end the 'Troubles'. This book provides a textured account that extends our understanding of the distinctive dynamics of negotiations conducted in secret and the conditions conducive to the negotiated settlement of conflict. It disrupts and challenges some conventional notions about the conflict in Northern Ireland, offering a fresh analysis of the political dynamics and the intra-party struggles that sustained violent conflict and prevented settlement for so long. It draws on theories of negotiation and mediation to understand why efforts to end the conflict through back-channel negotiations repeatedly failed before finally succeeding in the 1990s. It challenges the view that the conflict persisted because of irreconcilable political ideologies and argues that the parties to conflict were much more open to compromise than the often-intransigent public rhetoric suggested. The analysis is founded on a rich store of historical evidence, including the private papers of key Irish Republican leaders and British politicians, recently released papers from national archives in Dublin and London, and the papers of Brendan Duddy, the intermediary who acted as the primary contact between the IRA and the British government for two decades, including papers that have not yet been made publicly available. This documentary evidence, combined with original interviews with politicians, mediators, civil servants, and Republicans, allows a vivid picture to emerge of the complex maneuvering at this intersection"--
Niall Mac Coitir provides a comprehensive look at the folklore, legends and history of animals in Ireland, and describes their relations with people, being hunted for food, fur, sport, or as vermin, and their position today. A final section, inspired by stories of animal transformation, looks at twelve animals and how we can enrich our lives by visualising ourselves with their special qualities. This fascinating and beautifully illustrated compilation of folklore, legends and natural history will delight all with an interest in Ireland's animals.
A proven model for achieving high returns on taxable investments Investing Strategies for the High Net-Worth Investor showcases an investing approach that helps readers understand the unique challenges and opportunities that wealthy families face when building a diversified portfolio for multiple generations. Renowned private wealth manager Niall J. Gannon offers a framework for investing in tax friendly asset classes. Readers will gain critical insight for building a solid portfolio.
In 1976, Niall's family emigrated to Australia, as part of the £10 Pom scheme. He lived there for 3 years, moving from Brisbane to Perth in a souped-up station wagon. 30 years later, he returned to retrace his steps; this is a memoir, travelogue, rant, paean, elegy, and perhaps the closest thing to an autoibiography that Niall will ever write.
Niall Williams's internationally bestselling “delicate and graceful love story . . . a magical work of fiction” (NYTBR), now a major motion picture starring Pierce Brosnan, Helena Bonham Carter, and Gabriel Byrne. Nicholas Coughlan is twelve years old when his father, an Irish civil servant, announces that God has commanded him to become a painter. He abandons the family and a wife who is driven to despair. Years later, Nicholas's own civil-service career is disrupted by tragic news: his father has burned down the house, with all his paintings and himself in it. Isabel Gore is the daughter of a poet. She's a passionate girl, but her brother is the real prodigy, a musician. And yet this family, too, is struck by tragedy: a seizure leaves the boy mute and unable to play. Years later, Isabel will continue to somehow blame herself, casting off her own chances for happiness. And then, the day after Isabel's wedding to man she doesn't love, Nicholas arrives on her western isle, seeking his father's last surviving painting. Suddenly the winds of fortune begin to shift, sweeping both these souls up with them. Nicholas and Isabel, it seems, were always meant to meet. But it will take a series of chance events-and perhaps, a proper miracle-to convince both to follow their hearts to where they're meant to be.
Discover strategies to reinforce the strengths of the youngest members of society What assistance can be provided to a disadvantaged youngster to help them bounce back to conquer challenges while growing up? At-Risk Children and Youth analyzes the results from accumulated research on the risk and resiliency of children and youth in Ireland. Niall McElwee shines a crucial spotlight on the challenges facing children, including poor literacy and numeracy skills, poverty, distrust, and other difficult issues. Practical strategies are presented to help disadvantaged children and youth to overcome societal and self-imposed barriers for improvement. A detailed review and assessment is provided of the efficacy of Ireland’s Youth Encounter Projects. This important resource focuses on what works and what does not in youth services. At-Risk Children and Youth closely examines at-risk factors and what it specifically means to be ’at-risk’. Going further beyond the standard risk factors usually considered such as drug use or dropping-out of school, this probing text explores the full range of factors and coping and healing mechanisms. The author challenges several of the views and beliefs about risk and resiliency generally held by many in child and youth services and in society. This book is extensively referenced and includes helpful figures tables to clearly present information. Topics in At-Risk Children and Youth include: detailed breakdown of terms for risk behaviors and predictors of risk the issues of social class and social exclusion the impact of school difficulties on students, including truancy and poor academic standing building on student strengths the quality of the entirety of the school experience as a determination of success strategies for intervention a review of various literature on risk and resiliency a relational research model, including methodology and ethical issues description and functions of Youth Encounter Projects—and an assessment of their value at-risk youth perceptions of risk, in their own words results of risk studies over the past decade recommended changes in policies At-Risk Children and Youth is a valuable addition to the libraries of educators, students, and child and youth service providers everywhere.
In this groundbreaking biography, based on more than 10,000 hitherto unavailable letters and diary entries, Niall Ferguson returns to his roots as a financial historian to tell the story of the extraordinary Siegmund Warburg. A refugee from Hitler's Germany, Warburg rose to become the dominant figure in the post-war City of London and one of the architects of European financial integration. Seared by events in the 1930s, when the long-established Warburg bank was first almost destroyed by the Depression and then 'Aryanized' by the Nazis, Warburg was determined that his own bank would learn from the past and contribute to the economic recovery of Britain, the unity of Western Europe and the birth of globalization. Siegmund Warburg was a complex and ambivalent man, as much a psychologist, politician and actor-manager as a banker. In High Financier Niall Ferguson reveals Warburg's idiosyncracies but above all he recaptures the meticulous business methods and strict ethical code that set Warburg apart from the mere speculators and traders who inhabit today's financial world.
Changing Land explores how the Irish Land War inspired multifaceted activism among Irish emigrants in the United States, Argentina, Scotland and England, and how diaspora activism intersected with transnational radical and reform causes"--
This book stems from a simple ‘feminist curiosity’ that can be succinctly summed up into a single question: what happens to combatant women after the war? Based on in-depth interviews with 40 research participants, mostly former combatants within the Irish Republican Army (IRA), this book offers a critical exploration of republican women and conflict transition in the North of Ireland. Drawing on the feminist theory of a continuum of violence, this book finds that the dichotomous separation of war and peace within conventional approaches represents a gendered fiction. Despite undertaking wartime roles that were empowering, agentic, and subversive, this book finds that the ‘post-conflict moment’ as experienced by female combatants represents not peace and security, but a continuity of gender discrimination, violence, injustice, and insecurity. The experiences and perspectives contained in this book challenge the discursive deployment of terms such as post-conflict, peace, and security, and moreover, shed light on the many forms of post-war activism undertaken by combatant women in pursuit of peace, equality, and security. The book represents an important intervention in the field of gender, political violence, and peace, and more specifically, female combatants and conflict transition. It is analytically significant in its exploration of the ways in which gender operates within non-state military movements emerging from conflict, and will be of interest to students and scholars alike.
In the sweep of human history, the European Union stands out as one of humankind's most ambitious endeavors. It encompasses half a billion people, twenty-seven member states, twenty-three languages, and an economy valued at over $15 trillion. Modern Europe's stunning achievements aside, its sovereign debt crisis has shaken the world's largest political and economic union to its core. Can the federal institutions and shared values of Europeans meet the challenges of debt crisis that are as much political as economic? Or, are Europe's current woes indicative of a series of deep structural faults that will doom the European Union to breakup and failure? In this edition of the Munk Debates — Canada's premier international debate series — former EU commissioner Lord Peter Mandelson, French-German EU parliament leader of the Greens, Daniel Cohn-Bendit, German Euro skeptic and bestselling author Josef Joffe, and Scottish historian, Niall Ferguson debate one of the most pressing issues of our day: has the great European experiment failed? This electrifying debate featuring some of Europe's most outspoken parliamentary figures and academics is guaranteed to be an unforgettable and riveting verbal sparring match on the question that will determine the future of world's economy.
Introducing a revolutionary new approach to detail design in landscape architecture In this groundbreaking book, Niall Kirkwood of the Harvard Graduate School of Design takes a fresh,holistic approach to the theories, approaches, and practices of landscape detail. With the support of a wealth of graphic and written material taken from historic and contemporary landscape designwork, he clearly demonstrates the role that landscape detail plays in the design process. Going beyond theoretical considerations, Professor Kirkwood outlines landscape detail as a primary design activity, both pragmatic and poetic, using a range of built landscape design examples. A valuable resource for professionals and students in landscape architecture, architecture, urban design, and environmental design, The Art of Landscape Detail: * Provides a practical introduction to the aesthetic concerns, form, language, and expression of landscape detail * Explores a wide range of detail issues-including materials, climate, durability, implementation, and failure-and their influence on the overall detail design process * Examines detail design processes and research approaches that designers can apply in the analysis and development of their own work * Contains in-depth case studies of eight award-winning landscape architecture design projects, including provocative discussions with the designers on the establishment and evolution of their detail design philosophy * Features more than 150 images illustrating forms and site detail from national and international built landscapes
In ancient Ireland there were 365 different parts to the body, and a different plant to cure each part. So the wild plants of Ireland are bound up in our culture and folklore from the earliest times. To arry a four-leaved shamrock brings luck in gambling, while putting nine ivy leaves under her pillow means a girl will dream of her future husband. Here plants are described in seasonal order, a perspective dating back to our ancestors. Different aspects of plant folklore are examined following a brief history of traditional herbal medicine in Ireland. Included are their roles in magical protection, in charms and spells (especially for love!), as emblems in children's games, and in Irish place names.
Through war, love affairs, children and old age, the Duracks' creative lives were always shaped by the enduring power of the Kimberley region. With unprecedented access to hundreds of private family letters, unpublished memoirs, diaries and papers, Brenda Niall gets to the heart of a uniquely Australian story.
Scholarly interest in 'the Irish Gothic' has grown at a rapid pace in recent years, but the debate over exactly what constitutes this body of literature remains far from settled. This collection of essays explores the rich complexities of the literary gothic in eighteenth- and nineteenth-century Ireland.
This volume explains the genesis and development of the nexus between radical Basque nationalists and Irish republicans, how they have learnt from each other historically, and how they have utilised this relationship, at times, to their benefit. From medieval tales of shared origins to the violent conflicts largely wrought by ETA and the IRA, the Basque Country and Ireland have long been associated in popular imagination. Despite this, little is known of historical Basque-Irish relations and, in particular, the web of party-political, military and social movement connections between radical Basque nationalists and Irish republicans since the Irish Revolutionary Period (1916–23). Drawing on extensive archival research undertaken in Spain, Ireland and the UK, and more than 70 interviews conducted with politicians, former paramilitaries and grassroots activists, this is the first study to comprehensively document and analyse the emergence, evolution and implications of this mythified transnational relationship. Radical Basque Nationalist-Irish Republican Relations: A History will appeal to students and scholars of Irish republicanism, Basque nationalism, terrorism studies and social movements studies, as well as those interested in the contemporary history of Western Europe’s two most volatile regions.
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