The library has what you need to "Think Green!" for March
By Frank Dehler
Circulation and Public Services Coordinator
YORK VILLAGE - Nearly 40 million Americans claim Irish ancestry - and many of them celebrate their lineage on St. Patrick's Day, March 17th.
Little wonder, then, that March is officially Irish-American Heritage Month. The contributions of Irish-Americans to our nation's political, commercial and cultural history have been colorful and plentiful - particularly in the field of literature.
F. Scott Fitzgerald, Cormac McCarthy, Eugene O'Neill and Flannery O'Connor, all of Irish descent, have helped form our collective imagination of what America and being American is all about. If the Irish, as many have said, are peculiarly gifted in things linguistic, then American literature - and we as readers - have been among the luckiest beneficiaries.
Here are a few recent books by, or about, Irish-Americans at the library:
Frank McCourt's "Teacher Man: a Memoir" is the final installment of his autobiographical trilogy that began with "Angela's Ashes." Recounting McCourt's 30 years in New York City's public schools, Publisher's Weekly says this vibrant book "should be mandatory reading for every teacher in America."
"The Irish in America," edited by Michael Coffey, is a sumptuously illustrated companion volume to the PBS series that originally aired in 1997. Including contributions by Maeve Binchy, James Carroll, Peggy Noonan and others, it traces the experience of Irish immigrants and their descendants in America from widespread social oppression in the 19th century up to the presidencies of John F. Kennedy and Ronald Reagan.
"Coronado," a collection of short stories and one play, is detective novelist Dennis Lehane's latest. In these pieces, the author of "Mystic River" weaves unforgettable dialogue and quirky plot turns into taut, hair-raising crime fiction.
Jack Beatty's "The Rascal King: The Life and Times of James Michael Curley" is a riveting account of the figure who dominated Boston politics in the first half of the 20th century. Four-term mayor of Boston, imprisoned twice (for mail fraud and impersonation), Curley overcame a childhood of poverty to become the governor of Massachusetts and one of the most influential Irish-Americans of his day.
Another engrossing take on Irish-American experience in Boston is Michael MacDonald's "All Souls: A Family Story from Southie." This is a memoir full of melancholy and hope, that pries open the proud insularity of one of Boston's poorest Irish neighborhoods.
Finally, Thomas Cahill's "How the Irish Saved Civilization" is a wondrously irreverent and informative account of the role Irish monks played in the preservation of classical knowledge and literature during Europe's Dark Ages. A fun read for those seeking a greater appreciation of their Irish roots, I particularly enjoy this book over a black and tan on a chilly March night.
This month, celebrate diversity by reading something about Irish-Americans or the Irish!
