Recently published books of Irish and Irish-American interest. Recommended: Summer Mysteries The Lost Years Mary Higgins Clark’s latest novel, The Lost Years, is a mystery-suspense exploring the topics of brain-altering illness (a Higgins Clark favorite) and Biblical scholasticism (a new one). The story centers around the shooting and death of a retired professor. A letter, … [Read more...] about Review of Books
Issues
The Last Word: A Handshake on the Road to Reconciliation
The day after his groundbreaking handshake with Britain’s Queen Elizabeth, Northern Ireland’s Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness delivered the following speech (which has been condensed for publication) at a Sinn Féin event in Westminster. Though he describes the handshake as political, highly significant and very symbolic, McGuinness doesn’t believe that the journey to … [Read more...] about The Last Word: A Handshake on the Road to Reconciliation
Family Album:
Denny-Fitz and Hanna
Our grandfather Dennis O’Connor was born in 1864 near the town of Abbeyfeale, in County Limerick. He and his 10 siblings were raised in a four-room cottage on a small farm bordering the River Feale. Dennis and his younger brother Michael immigrated to America in 1888. They stepped off a Rock Island freight train near the small town of Grayson, Missouri to begin their lives in … [Read more...] about Family Album:
Denny-Fitz and Hanna
George Clooney Has Nothing to Prove
The perennial leading man talks about his Irish roots, getting older, and his passion for activism. George Clooney has nothing to prove as an actor and he knows it. It’s part of what makes him such a pleasant and relaxed interview – quick with the self-effacing jokes, interested in the wider world beyond where he now sits, at home in his own skin. At 51, he is aging … [Read more...] about George Clooney Has Nothing to Prove
The First Word: Arch of Triumph
“[The Arch] is a soaring curve in the sky that links the rich heritage of yesterday with the richer future of tomorrow." – Vice President Hubert Humphrey at the opening of the Gateway Arch in St. Louis. The day was hot and humid and late in the afternoon the skies darkened and you could not see the Arch from the hotel window. By 6 p.m. the tornado alarm siren went off and we … [Read more...] about The First Word: Arch of Triumph