Goodreads Ireland discussion

I'm reading an older Nora Roberts called Three Fates. Part of it takes place in Cobh. Can someone tell me please, is this the same place that has the Titanic Memorial? Is there also a memorial to the fisher men who brought back the injured and dead after the Luisatania was attacked?

Do you know something, Chef? There are memorials but as to where they are I don't know.

I'll chase all of this down when I get home.

Thank you Declan, that's thoughtful of you.

There is a Titanic memorial in Cobh...



...but it plays second fiddle to their Lusitania memorial.



And there's a mass grave marker for the unidentified caualties...



I also found the memorial for the Lusitania in Kinsale, but I found nothing to distinguish whether or there's a dedication to the rescuers.





Having looked through loads of photos, I have a real hankering to visit Cobh. I've never been.

those are amazing! I bet there's a real serene feel there. is it far from you? in the book I'm reading, there are short boat tours.

Thanks for the pictures, Declan. They were just wonderful.

If I were to drive (but I've no car) it would take around two hours max to get to County Cork and not much longer to reach the city. I'm not sure about getting to Cobh but those times would be ballpark.

Cobh only turns up in the media every now and again. I don't remember it looking so gorgeous.

In the book it speaks of the cemetery as well. So much to see and do there!

I think they sound like good choices, Allan. I think they're books that which have a broader appeal than the general reader would give them credit.

I think she will love Heatwave. I haven't read the other one but I did love the Marigold Hotel. I'm sure it will go over well. How did she break her foot? So many interesting options come to mind.

Hopefully her foot will mend quickly and she'll avoid injury in the future, Allan.

Fair play to you for looking after her so well.

Allan I hope your mom heals quickly. You're a good son. I like the old Martha Grimes books. They're clean and kind of funny with great characters. I'd call them cozy mysteries. A 61 yr old won't be offended by them.
They're probably not out on the front tables because they are not new but they are fun to read.

Jamielynn wrote: "Allan I hope your mom heals quickly. You're a good son. I like the old Martha Grimes books. They're clean and kind of funny with great characters. I'd call them cozy mysteries. A 61 yr old won't be..."

Hi Allan, I hope your mom recovers quickly. She sounds like she is a strong woman already if she walked a mile with a broken foot! That's so thoughtful of you to bring her books and flowers. If your library has them, I'd highly recommend Elly Griffiths' books. They're about a forensic archaeologist who gets called in to help with local crime cases. They're not intense crime novels, more character-driven, and they're quick reads. I've attached the link to the first of the novels. http://www.ellygriffiths.co.uk/crossi...

Yes that IS strong! I don't think I could do that at 50 let alone 61!

@Allan, now you know why I find you so charming. That was extremely nice of you. Your mom must be very strong to do that. Tell her that we are full of admiration. I would recommend CJ Sansom's Matthew Shardlake series. You know I love it. Ann Cleeves has a wonderful mystery series set in the Shetland Islands. If she has a good sense of humor, the first couple of books in Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum series is laugh out loud funny. It's just froth but so much fun. If she likes big books you can't go wrong with Diana Gabaldon's "Outlander." There is quite a series but that is the best one. I hope this is helpful
@Jamielyn- I just love you worrying about offending her at 61. I'm 60 and the only thing I can think of as offensive would be "Fifty Shades of Gray". LOL

I hope you didn't spit out your Cheerios thinking of 50 Shades... that time, Susan.

Susan, I said on another thread that I read the reviews for Fifty Shades of Gray. For such a popular book there are a few negative reviews. I never go for that kind of book but the reviews are eye opening. Basically feminism still moves 1 step forward and 3 steps back! If Adam brings that to his mom He'll be in trouble LOL!

@Allan, I almost forgot a book your mother would love. It's Alexander McCall Smith's "Ladies No. 1 Detective Agency" set in Botswana. I don't know a woman who has read it and didn't love it.

Oh I agree! Good call Susan. Have you read his 44 Scotland Street books as well?

@Allan, now you have me wondering if you are Australian. I thought they were the ones who said mate. I noticed you use it a lot so I wonder if you have been meeting with kangaroos on the side.
On the CJ Sansom book, I recommend it to everyone, that's how much I love it. I have no idea who Charles Bukowski is but if she likes Cecilia Ahern she'll love the Ladies Detective Agency. Trust me on this. Even Sara agrees.
@Sara, I have read some of his 44 Scotland Street books and liked them alright. But, for me, it's the Lady Detective that I love. I just love how she is traditionally built and loves Botswana so much. It warms my heart.

I wanted to let you know that I have read June Ahern's novel, The Skye in June. I enjoyed the book, I liked the accents of the characters and the ideas behind the story came together at the end. Not my usual sort of book but it wasnt hard to stick with it. My review is here on Amazon.

Ruby :)

http://www.amazon.co.uk/review/R2946L...

I am currently reading "Names for the Sea: Strangers in Iceland" by a Brit. All I can say initially is that I thought Americans were grumpy travelers and this book is disabusing me of the notion that we are alone in that category. I am about a third through and finally the author is beginning to see some redeeming qualities in Iceland and its culture. I had hoped from the the beginning this would happen and by the end she would be more positive.
The audiobook of Dracula with Alan Cummings and others narrating is still captivating.

Allan - how kind of you to get books for your mum. The best gift my mother gave me was to be a reader herself, and to get us library cards. As we were a military family we couldn't accumulate books, moving as often as we did. Maybe that is the source of my "hoarding" habit. But I did shed 225 books this summer - but this group has me bringing many more into the house. I am about to order Kevin Barry's new collection of his own stories "Dark Lies the Island" from Kennys where it''s $11.95 including shipping rather than $24 here.

Ruby wrote: "I wanted to let you know that I have read June Ahern's novel, The Skye in June. I enjoyed the book, I liked the accents of the characters and the ideas behind the story came together at the end. No..."

I was raised Catholic and I do understand asking certain questions about the church. I just read your review. It doesn't mean your against the Church but I wonder if people these days question it more than a couple of generations ago. I'm sure that probably happens in all religions.

Sara wrote: "Oh I agree! Good call Susan. Have you read his 44 Scotland Street books as well?"

I love McCall Smith. I liked the 44 Scotland books best. He has such great Character description and a beautiful sense of humor. I was on his mailing list but I changed emails. Those are fun to read too!

Allan wrote: "Susan-I'm in two minds whether to read the Sharkdale book I bought now if you're recommending it to my mum as well-he must have really broad appeal if he's bringing Cecilia Ahern and Charles Bukows..."

Ok Allan. Be on the safe side and leave Fifty Shades on the shelf! Sorry to hear about your friend. I hope the rule of things coming in 3's is NOT true in your case.

Speedy recovery to your friend as that sounds like a terrible ordeal. Hope you get him some good reads. When my son spent a week in the hospital a few years ago, I knit alot. American hospitals are really noisy places so it can be hard to do much else

Allan that sounds horribly painful for your friend. Hopefully the recovery won't be too rough.
I hope your mom is feeling better too and reading nice books chosen by her faithful son.

@Allan, by goodness, even your partner is charming. That was so nice. I'd love it if one of my kids did that for me. Your mate's leg operation sounds horrific. I hope he's doing OK. Best wishes to both of them.

Allan wrote: "Thanks for the kind words, Jamielynn-my mum will be feeling even better this evening as my other half went down today, did her shopping, made her lunch and cleaned the entire house for her-she'll b..."

That is extremely kind. You're all nice!

So I got an email from the library this morning that the two books I had out (one of which I still had 100+ pages to go on) were due back at the library in 3 days..also I had some holds pending (including Burial Rites!).
In order to facilitate going to the library this afternoon, I spent a pleasant 2 hours finishing up,Where Late the Sweet Birds Sang by Kate Wilhelm. It definitely lives up to it's reputation of being a classic of both "hard" and "humanistic" science fiction. I plan to leave a link to it in the science fiction thread as well.

While at the library I picked up my holds:
Burial Rites
A biography of artist Faith Ringold (whose work we discussed in a different thread
Krik?Krak! by Edwidge Danticat (on Barbara's recommendation)

and then some other books sneaked their way into my bag:

Love and Rockets New Stories #1 and #2 by the Hernandez brothers
I've been hearing about this series for years and decided when browsing to finally check it out.

Lucille by Ludovic Debeurme-A random find

And trips to the library like this are one of the reasons I have trouble making progress on cutting down the number of books I own but haven't read.

First thing up to read out of these is of course Burial Rites!

And Alan, I hope your Mom and your mate both feel better soon!

I started Burial Rites. I'm only on chapter 3.

I worked at our town's Library Sale last night and, to my eternal shame, returned home with more books to throw in my TBR pile. I can just not pass a book up no matter what. I was a little concerned as the turnout was way down. Are we really all that broke that we can't pay $2 a hardback, 75 cents for a paperback? Also, our donations were way down. We have a large bin out back of the library where people put their donations all year round. I guess people are holding onto their books too.
I talked to a man just back from Ireland where he had a great time. He told me not to rent a car as gas was so expensive. Since it's sold by the liters, he said, Americans can't figure out that that is $9 a gallon. I almost had a heart attack. $9! How can anyone afford that? Then there was a conversation on Ireland's troubles. One group said it's because all the young Irish are leaving and one group said it's because of the EU and the influx of immigrants. Seemed rather simplistic to me. But tell me the truth, is gas really $9 a gallon?

Allan wrote: "Sara-between yourself and Barbara, you fairly get through a real eclectic mix of books-I'm always impressed!

Your library must be really well stocked-I know, having been there recently, that even..."

I live in a large and fairly wealthy county (we just passed 1 million people in 2012) so that has to do with it. Since we a large number of immigrant communities, the library also has books in quite a few languages...English and Spanish, as well as Chinese, Vietnamese and others. On the other hand the Albuquerque, NM library system (where I lived from 2004-2009) had a much better selection of graphic novels. I think there are a few types of popular fiction that are the main stock of libraries, and that outside of that what you get is dependent on resources and what the librarians are familiar with.

@Allan, thank you. First of all, I want to say that I will quit complaining about the $3.75 a gallon I pay. $10! There would be rioting in the streets and off-shore drilling in CA.
Our economy took quite a hit. When I bought here in Willits it was the height of the market. I have lost $70,000 on my house. I just refinanced today and the loan rate has dropped so much that my payments dropped over $400 a month. That is some relief.
I am anxious to hear what Declan has to say as he's involved in the Tech field too.
I will check out the book you recommended. Thank you. How's your mom and your friend? Keep us posted.

Allan, I just checked it out on Amazon and it doesn't release until March here in the US. Barbara must have ordered it at Kennys.

Allan wrote: "Susan-based on my calculation there, in NI diesel isn't $9 a gallon.....it's $10 a gallon! I'm paying £1.40 a litre, there are 4.5 litres in a gallon if memory serves me right, and the exchange rat..."

The actual cost of petrol (gas) is one of the reasons I prefer to hire drivers rather than hire (rent) a car for use in Ireland. And petrol has been more expensive than in the States for over a decade.

Though that is without adding the cost of useless wars in the Mideast to U.S. gasoline price. When that cost is factored in, our gas is around $50,000 per gallon.

****Different topic, thanks to whoever recommended the series Doc Martin. Have chuckled through the whole series now. Very good.

On topic: posted reviews of two new titles, possibly too academic for general taste but here 'tis:

Celtic from the West 2: Rethinking the Bronze Age and the Arrival of Indo-European in Atlantic Europe, and

Claimed by the Sea: Salcombe, Langdon Bay, and Other Marine Finds of the Bronze Age

In this vein (wait for the pun), note that Wm O'Brien's find of the ancient copper mines at Ross Lake ( the Lake Of Many Hammers)continues to influence the cutting edge ( 2d pun, sorry ) of Atlantic Bronze Age research and theory.

Sara wrote: "So I got an email from the library this morning that the two books I had out (one of which I still had 100+ pages to go on) were due back at the library in 3 days..also I had some holds pending (in..."

Sara- I am returning 2 books to the library unread as I have to pick up Dissident Gardens by Jonathan Lethem. The "problem" with library books is that you have to read them in 3 weeks but I have to convince myself I can get the book another time:)

Susan wrote: "Allan, I just checked it out on Amazon and it doesn't release until March here in the US. Barbara must have ordered it at Kennys."

Susan - I bought it at Dublin airport as a last minute purchase before flying home.
Allan- a US a gallon = 3.78 litres and the price would be £5.30 a gallon = $8.57 still a lot. If I take public transportation to work it'd cost me $10.50 a day or $52.50 a week - so I don't. It'd take me about an hour and a half to 2 hours as the bus to the metro takes one hour to go 8 miles. Driving is 50 to 60 minutes so I drive. I have a hybrid car. The cost of gas for week is less than taking the metro ONE day. I got a hybrid also because one tank of gas can get me 400 miles and after 9/11 I realized that Washington DC is a target so that will get me pretty far away. Of course the flaw that idea is that I don't drive around with a full tank of gas all the time ready for a get away.

@Allan & Susan. I remember everyone was expected a recession and were busy preparing for it (including yours truly) but when the arse fell out of thr US property market everything accelerated and, as Allan pointed out, it became impossible to get mortgage approval.

I bought my old home roughly two years before it happened and that house is worth around 40% of what we paid. It might have been less but it's close to Dublin and and has rental value.

Re. Tech industry. There is an awful lot of investment going into the IT sector in Dublin at the moment but these are all start-ups. They are literally groups of 2-10 people who are given an office, free wi-fi and living expenses. They aren't producing many jobs just yet, but having said that Symantec, Paypal and Google are all having big recruiment drives at the moment.

J.S. Your reviews aren't showing to me at the moment so I'll have to check them again shortly.

@Sara. You've just given some more great sci-fi to check out. Thanks. :)

Barbara wrote: "Sara wrote: "So I got an email from the library this morning that the two books I had out (one of which I still had 100+ pages to go on) were due back at the library in 3 days..also I had some hold..."

I'm bad about this. I actually did 2 renewals on the science fiction, so I had it out a full 6 weeks. I don't feel too guilty though, as they'll only let you renew if there are no holds on it..So at least I wasn't keeping anyone waiting!

No problem Declan!

Glad to hear your friend is on the mend, Allan.

That's a pretty good selection of books, by the way. I love seeing Cannery Row in there.

J.S. wrote: "Allan wrote: "Susan-based on my calculation there, in NI diesel isn't $9 a gallon.....it's $10 a gallon! I'm paying £1.40 a litre, there are 4.5 litres in a gallon if memory serves me right, and th..."

I heard they are making a new season of Doc Martin. I can't wait. Glad you enjoyed it as much as I do.

Susan wrote: ... I heard they are making a new season of Doc Martin. I can't wait. Glad you enjoyed it as much as I do. "

Really good, and surprising range of subjects (bondage, old age, etc). How a Cornish village takes on the 21st century. Also good acting, subtle. Hope they do another season as well.

Allan I'm glad your friend is getting better. Now the boredom. Thank God you brought him a nice book selection.

Sara, I had to speed read a book the other day because it was on hold and I couldn't renew it!

@J.S. There are still no reviews showing for those books. Even with the normal lag that occasional occurs, they should be up for hours by now.

That's done, J.S.

In the meantime they seem to available on your profile page, but a cache time of 11+ hours seems pretty excessive and is far longer than I've experienced before.

Here are the links followed from your profile page.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Right now, I'm reading a book that I can't decide if I like or not. It's called The Disenchanted Widow by Christine McKenna. It was one of those impulse reads; I had been reading a lot of dense material for work, and I wanted some light reading. On one level, it's light, with lots of comic touches, but then, interspersed throughout it all, are very somber events (i.e. Bobby Sands' death). I'm not sure what I make of it, but I keep reading. Has anyone else read anything of hers?

I've heard of her, Cathleen, but she's nothing more than I name I hear thrown around.

It sounds like a bit paradoxical: A light read that deals with the hunger strikers?