Recommended Edna O’Brien is best known for her provocative novels which, over a span of nearly five decades, have broken daring ground all across the world, but particularly in Ireland, where she was banned before she was beloved. But O’Brien’s latest book is not another novel. Instead, it is a second short biography of a radical artist. This, naturally, is a good fit for … [Read more...] about Review of Books
August September 2009 Issue
Trading With the Enemy: Irish Merchants
On November 2, 1759, a veritable riot broke out along several blocks of lower Manhattan. The target of the torch-bearing crowds was a man deemed to be a “rogue” and informer named George Spencer. Spencer survived the crowds’ wrath, though he was banged up with bruises and cuts. What Spencer – or the mob – did not know was that they would be swept up into events which would have … [Read more...] about Trading With the Enemy: Irish Merchants
Jane Sullivan Roberts on Family, Heritage and Faith
Her husband may be Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, but Jane Sullivan Roberts is an amazing success story all her own. Jane Sullivan Roberts, 54, is one of those rare Washington women who won’t let her husband’s achievements overshadow her. When your husband is John Roberts, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, that’s quite a trick, but it is one Jane Roberts pulls off with … [Read more...] about Jane Sullivan Roberts on Family, Heritage and Faith
Sláinte!: Bless the Buttie!
When autumn arrives, trees turn shades of ochre, orange and scandalous scarlet, scents of wood smoke waft on the suddenly chill air, and I am annually reminded of my first trip to Ireland. It was October, and after landing at Shannon, I rented a car and headed for my lodging, a country estate in County Sligo. As I drove, I smelled something burning. Figuring I was passing … [Read more...] about Sláinte!: Bless the Buttie!
End the Silence on Torture
The sacrifice of the heroes of 9/11 must not be used as a justification for torture. September 11, 2001 will always remain an infamous day to the world. But to the men and women of the NYPD and FDNY it remains indelibly stamped in their minds. For on that tragic September morning in the dying embers of summer, they raced towards lower Manhattan by any means … [Read more...] about End the Silence on Torture