The Maid and the Queen: the Secret History of Joan of Arc and Yolande of Aragon By Nancy Goldstone (Weidenfeld & Nicolson, €23.95/£20) Peter Hegarty This year marks the 600th anniversary of the birth of Joan of Arc. The story of St Joan, the illiterate peasant girl who led the French army to victory against…
Fr Michael Collins Last week, I was delighted to meet the three Italian teenagers who are the musical sensation, Il Volo. They were in Dublin to appear on the Late Late Show and promote their new album, Il Volo. The three singers were in Dublin for just two and a half days, staying in…
Navigating the Gospels: Mark By Philip Fogarty SJ (Columba Press, €12.55 / £10.46) This volume concludes Fr Fogarty’s set of guides to the Gospels. Intended for the general reader rather than the student, they aim through the use of the New Revised Standard Versions texts and the work of present day scholars and theologians, to open…
The poet Yeats (to distinguish him from the painter Yeats) was of the opinion that ”Words alone are certain good”. And so they are, but only if we know what they mean, and use them properly. The other day, in discussing the consequences of a burglary, a friend remarked to me that the Civic Guard…
Wolves in Ireland: A natural and cultural history By Kieran Hickey (Open Air / Four Courts Press, €29.95 / £25.97) Christopher Moriarty Wolves are beautiful creatures, with many of the most attractive characteristics of the domestic dogs of all shapes and sizes which are descended from them. That is the current view of the majority…
Can I Stay in the Church? By Brian Lennon SJ (Columba Press, €12.99 / £10.83) This is a question which many people, aside from media personalities, must be asking themselves. The last couple of decades have certainly shaken many people’s faith and adherence. But being a Catholic is not entirely a matter of being in some…
The Dominican Way Edited by Lucette Verboven, with an introduction by Timothy Radcliffe (Continum, €14.55 / £10.99) From the prominence of his name on the cover, it might be thought by some potential readers that Fr Radcliffe had a larger hand in this book than he had. It is in fact the work Lucette Verboven,…
Kimmage Manor: 100 Years of Service By Patrick J. Ryan CSSP (Columba Press, €16.99 / £14.00) Fr Ryan has divided his life’s work between Africa and teaching in Kimmage Manor. He has also served, the times being what they are, as a parish priest. In this history he recounts the foundation of the mission house of…
The Pen and the Cross: Catholicism and English Literature 1850-2000 By Richard Griffiths (Continuum, €33 / £25) Eamon Maher Richard Griffiths has probably been best-known up until now for his defining study The Reactionary Revolution: The Catholic Revival in French Literature, 1870-1914 (Constable, 1966). His latest publication deals with English literature’s close relationship with Catholicism…
My Sporting Life By Jimmy Deenihan (Red Hen Publishing, €20 / £16.50) There is a unique link between politics and sport in Ireland. This is nowhere more apparent than in this autobiography by Jimmy Deenihan. Appropriately entitled ‘My Sporting Life’, it charts his successful transition from the playing fields to Leinster House and eventually ministerial office.…
Peter Costello