You hoist one of Colorado’s fine craft beers at the long, dark bar of the Silver Dollar Saloon in Leadville, and consider this possibility: had history played out a little differently, Oscar Wilde and Doc Holliday might have exchanged bon mots right at this spot. Both caroused here, Wilde in 1882, Holliday a year later. They both provided memorable episodes in a wild … [Read more...] about Oscar & Doc: A trip to Leadville, Colorado
Literature
Review of Books
The Dream of the Celt By Mario Vargas Llosa, translated from the Spanish by Edith Grossman Mario Vargas Llosa was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2010 “for his cartography of structures of power and his trenchant images of the individual’s resistance, revolt, and defeat.” Each of his books is a portrait of one or more individuals who set their course against the … [Read more...] about Review of Books
Rea Does Joyce at Fairfield
Hearing Stephen Rea read the Cyclops chapter from Ulysses makes you realize that Joyce wanted us to enjoy his masterpiece, and to laugh. I was lucky to catch one of Rea’s performances in Ireland last year, and witnessed the delight of the audience. “This is fun,” the man sitting next to me said, showing his appreciation as Rea gave voice to Joyce’s characters – their accents … [Read more...] about Rea Does Joyce at Fairfield
Brían Boru’s Last Battle
A thousand years ago, on April 23, 1014, the Battle of Clontarf, and Brían Boru’s last costly victory, changed Irish political life forever. The following, from The Story of the Irish Race by Seumas MacManus, sets the scene in Ireland prior to the battle. The SettingIrish literature of a thousand years ago is obsessed with the occupation of Ireland by the Norse (also … [Read more...] about Brían Boru’s Last Battle
Toy Trains
An excerpt from the memoir “Tipperary to Tibet,” a collection of Irish stories by Joseph M. Cahalan. It had all the earmarks of a classic sibling rivalry. My sister, Pat – or Patsy as she was called until adolescence – was born four years earlier than me and had our parents all to herself for those early formative years. When I came along, things changed dramatically in all … [Read more...] about Toy Trains