I'm new to the Wild Geese flock so I thought I'd post about a few things. But the spirit of St. Patrick carries through all of them. 

The Wolf and the Shield: An Adventure with Saint Patrick

For those of you who know children ages 8-12, you might be interested in my book,…

In light of all the terrific Christmas-flavored postings lately, I've been prompted to share an excerpt from my historical novel "The Lockwoods of Clonakilty," a scene based on a little adventure my own family had a few…

Dean Mulroy is the kind of guy who needs room to roam and access to the stars, which is why he lived way back in the bog behind the house I rented in Inverin. Only a certain kind of guy would want to live as he did. At the time, he was unimpressed with technological conveniences, including a telephone, and the first…

If you're looking for great Irish books, CDs or movies, please have a look in The Wild Geese Marketplace Bookstore -- there are all kinds of great Irish books on History, Genealogy, Travel and Military History. If you are looking for Irish films and documentaries or great Irish music, there is…

So many of the stories which come to us out of Ireland are, quite simply, sad. From James Joyce's "The Dead" to Frank McCourt's "Angela's Ashes," we read of people who are, if not figuratively, then literally, impoverished. It is a lovely…

Oh dear, it’s been such a long time since I wrote anything for The Wild Geese … I didn’t realise how long until I re-entered the site. Why? I moved house (or 'flitted' as we call it in Northern Ireland). I moved to a house that looked great on viewing but proved otherwise when we got in. With all the furniture removed and no one there, the extent of what needed to be done swiftly became all too clear.…

Hello all:

I am usually hesitant to read a book unless I know a bit about it. Assuming many of you have a similar habit, I post here a few lines from the first chapter of The Lockwoods of Clonakilty. One of the major themes in the…

It was Monday morning and I was having trouble packing. I woke with a brass band in my head, as Jim says.  After sitting in the shower for a while, I took a panadol, drank some water and went back to sleep. I woke an hour later and slowly started to get ready to go.

It was very, very difficult. I called mum, I felt…

(Sligo street art)

I was stranded for a second day in Grange. When I woke up, I had breakfast on my mind and enjoyed an Irish breakfast with a beautiful view. I had to be out by 11 a.m. as the painter was coming and the owner had to visit someone in hospital.

Having tried the…

In the 1940s it was tough being a communist in Ireland. All card carrying members were followed by the Special Branch, tended to be boycotted by the establishment and were refused jobs. Thomas O’Brien had returned from fighting in the International Brigade in Spain against Franco. As a vocal and proud communist, and poet, he was faced with certain unemployment. Perhaps influenced by Orwell’s Homage to Catalonia, he…

“A nice thing to find in one of the largest bookshops in the city. And in one of the main streets of Dublin, no less.”

Dan slammed the book on the manager’s desk.

Mr. Molloy looked at the book. “My good man, there is no way we would have that book for sale,” he said.

“It was with the Greek literature.  Any young student could have…

The distance between Inverin and Clifden is approximately sixty kilometers. It’s a visually inspiring hour-long ride through undulating midlands with grass as soft as velvet, gray stone walls that split the landscape, and bubbling intermittent streams as you glide along a two-lane road that cuts through a…

Book Review                                 

The true nature of poetry is to first give us an insight into the heart and consciousness of the poet, then the collective consciousness of the society…

As a child, "The Great Escape" was one film that never failed to entertain me. Aside from a stellar cast that included Steve McQueen, Richard Attenborough (above), Charles Bronson, James Garner and a host of others, the story was compelling and also happened to be true.

It’s…

My husband is convinced that there is a website called “wiki-paddy-a,” which I use to prove that my beloved homeland, Ireland, has given the world many great things. Like Halloween, for example, or the discovery of America.

That’s…

This little 138-page book taught me a lot about someone who is, arguably, one of the most important figures in Irish history. First of all, the picture of St. Patrick wearing a bishop's miter that we are all familiar with is erroneous. The Bishop's miter didn't come into use until…

I spent ten blissful days on the western coast of Ireland last October, and I’ll tell you why I returned to the misty, velvet shores of the area where I once spent a year: my second novel is set in the area and I felt it was important to reinvigorate my standing amongst the land and its people before I embarked upon the book’s promotion. In order to do…

"That's Just How It Was" is a tribute to my grandmother.  It is a true story set against the background of the Famine (1844 -1847) the 1916 Easter Rising, and the War of Independence (1919-1921).…

Book Review

"Belfast Days: A 1972 Teenage Diary," by Eimear O’Callaghan

Merrion Press

Copyright 2014

"Belfast Days: A 1972…

When someone says to me that the Irish are natural storytellers, I’m usually really pleased. I’m an Irish writer, and isn’t it the ultimate aim of all writers to tell a cracking story? The writing life is full of rejection and self-doubt. You draw hope and confidence from…