BW10 - I is for Ireland!

Kylemore Abbey

I just finished reading In the Woods by Irish author Tana French and it was quite good. I'll be reviewing soon.  Since St. Patrick's day is coming up next week, there are some events occurring around the blogosphere you might want to consider joining in on.   Carrie of Books and Movies is hosting a month long readalong of Faithful Place, French's 3rd book in the series.  I've also picked up "The Likeness" as well which continues the character Cassie's story.   The schedule is as follows:

Reading Schedule:

Week One (3/1-3/7): Chapters 1-6
Week Two (3/8-3/14): Chapters 7-12
Week Three (3/15-3/21): Chapters 13-18
Week Four (3/22-3/28): Chapters 19-23

Weekly Post Schedule:

Week One’s reading: March 10th
Week Two’s reading: March 17th
Week Three’s reading: March 24th
Week Four’s reading and wrap-up post or review: March 31st

Carrie will  be posting her thoughts every Thursday along with Mr. Linky for whoever wants to join in and post their thoughts as well.    You still have time to join in if you want.  I'm a bit behind in reading, but will be catching up soon.  

Mel of The Reading Life is hosting a week long event "The Irish Short Story" during the week of March 14 to March 20th.  She'll be posting daily about short stories written by Irish authors:  James Joyce, Elizabeth Bowen, Frank O'Conner, Oliver Goldsmith, Sean O'Faolain,  Oscar Wilde, and Liam O'Flaherty.   Join in the fun and read a few short stories by Irish authors. 

I have a few books on the shelves by Irish authors I will be reading this year including:

Bram Stoker's "The Snake's Pass."  He wrote it back in 1890 and is the only one of his novels set in Ireland. It is his first novel and was published about seven years before  Dracula.  He is an Irish writer and has a few other stories and short stories that he's written besides Dracula.  

Patrick Taylor's "An Irish Country Christmas"

J.D. Robb's "Treachery in Death." One of her characters, Roark, is full blooded Irish so it counts.  :)

Irish mystery author Declan Hughes' "The Wrong Kind of Blood."

Another event I just discovered is the Irish Blog Awards which will be held on March 19th in Belfast. Not that any of us have time to take a trip to Belfast at the moment.  However, the website is interesting and has many links to irish blogs broken down by science/education, humor, personal, youth and newcomer.   I haven't had time to check out all the links yet, so can't vouch for any of them. But will have fun exploring when I have more time.

And since Lent is coming up on Wednesday, and I'm Irish and Catholic, I'll leave you with a bit of Irish humor: 

An Irishman moves into a tiny hamlet in County Kerry , walks into the pub and promptly orders three beers. The bartender raises his eyebrows, but serves the man three beers, which he drinks quietly at a table, alone.

An hour later, the man has finished the three beers and orders three more. This happens yet again. The next evening the man again orders and drinks three beers at a time, several times. Soon the entire town is whispering about the Man Who Orders Three Beers.

Finally, a week later, the bartender broaches the subject on behalf of the town. "I don't mean to pry, but folks around here are wondering why you always order three beers?"

"Tis odd, isn't it?" the man replies. "You see, I have two brothers, and one went to America , and the other to Australia . We promised each other that we would always order an extra two beers whenever we drank as a way of keeping up the family bond."

The bartender and the whole town were pleased with this answer, and soon the Man Who Orders Three Beers became a local celebrity and source of pride to the hamlet, even to the extent that out-of-towners would come to watch him drink.

Then, one day, the man comes in and orders only two beers. The bartender pours them with a heavy heart. This continues for the rest of the evening. He orders only two beers. The word flies around town. Prayers are offered for the soul of one of the brothers.

The next day, the bartender says to the man, "Folks around here, me first of all, want to offer condolences to you for the death of your brother. You know-the two beers and all"

The man ponders this for a moment, then replies, "You'll be happy to hear that my two brothers are alive and well. It's just that I, meself, have decided to give up drinking for Lent."

 What books on your shelves by Irish authors or with Irish characters will you be reading?

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