What If? Alternative Views of Twentieth Century Ireland

I love reading about history, but sometimes it’s fun to think about what could have happened. What If is a perfect book for those overthinkers out there.

Irelands history was certainly not set in stone, much of it was the result of good luck and great timing. Now I’m certainly not telling you that the heroes of the 1916 Rising don’t deserver every bit of credit they’ve earned, but I am saying that Ireland is country not only influenced, but dependant on outside forces.

What would have happened if Ireland had been invaded during the war? Or what if there had been no Easter Rising? It deals with the less obvious questions too though. What if Ireland never had the Late Late Show, renowned for it’s effect on the change in Irelands mentality. There are 20 interesting and each very different scenarios looked at, each one posing a very different angle.

This book is not just for the historically aware though, it is written in a very accessible way. Diarmaid Ferriters writing is both interesting and entertaining, and thoroughly worth a read. Check out What If, available now.

Bookstores and Libraries

Irish Books & Media has been serving individual customers for a long time, but did you know that we also serve the booksellers and libraries too?

If you stock Irish books, or would like to, then you’ve found the right place. IB&M can help your Irish book business grow.

Quality Titles

The Best of John B. Keane

I think you’d agree with me, that there is certainly no shortage of books about and related to Ireland on the market. Yet in this vast collection, not all meet the quality level that we’d hope. I’m sure that in your decision to stock Irish books, you’ve looked around to find the highest calibre of titles that were available to you. Yet did you know that IB&M is the official distributor of the leading Irish publishing houses? After reading this, I hope that you’ll look to our About IB&M page, to get a better idea about who we distribute for.

Our selection is made up of many award winning titles, bestsellers, and school and college curriculum books. The authors are widely respected, and many are even prestigious professors in some of the best universities and colleges in Ireland, including Trinity College, Dublin.

Wide Variety

Our titles span a great array of subjects:

• History
• Childrens
• Politics
• Irish Language
• Folklore
• Irish Crafts
• Humor

That’s to name just a few. Check out the full range at Irishbook.com

US Based

Oil has gone through the roof, thats for sure, and it’s having a major effect on the botton line of many companies. Shipping and Handling is without question becoming a phrase that evokes pain as soon as it is mentioned. One of the major problems we’ve seen our customers face when stocking good from Ireland is the cost of getting it here. That’s where we’re different. We’re based in New York, and we handle the task of getting our books to the US. There’s no waiting weeks for your order, there’s no worrying about difficulties at customs. Your order is just days away. We’re only a local call away, and you don’t have to check your watch every time you make a call to us.

Great Discounts

We offer generous discounts on out titles, so that you can keep your bottom line in tact.

Contact sales@irishbook.com to get more information on these discounts.

I sincerely hope that we can help you to keep the quaility of your Irish books high, and I look forward to hearing from you.

Best regards,

Liam

The Story of Michael Collins - For Kids!

Here’s an upcoming title from Mercier Press that really caught my eye! It is without surprise the amount of interest in Michael Collins both back in Ireland, and here in the USA. He was a larger than life character, “The Big Fella”, who had a profound impact on Ireland’s history. No matter what side of the De Valera/Collins fence you happen to be on, it’s undeniable the impact Collins had on Ireland’s freedom.

One sad difference between the USA and Ireland, in my own humble opinion, is the way in which stories of the most profound people in our countries’ history are portrayed to kids.

In the US, kids grow up reading and learning great stories of the founding fathers, such as George Washington’s cherry tree incident. Yet in Ireland, there is becoming a tragic lack of storytelling about our important historical figures. They are left to learn it instead in the considerably less exciting surroundings of history class, where a test on their knowledge follows shortly. This disappoints me greatly, as these men and women should be known to every Irish child, and should be the stuff of legend, not the stuff of continuous assessment.

That’s why I’m so glad to see this The Story of Michael Collins come along. I will warn you that I’m a native Corkman, so the name Michael Collins, for me, carries with it a reverence of almost biblical proportions. Even past my own county pride, I still think that we should be letting our children feel the sense of pride in how we got to where we are, and who the brave men and women were who got us there. Sadly, this sense of honor and heroism is so quickly becoming scarce, even though it hasn’t even been 100 years. I warmly welcome this book, and I sincerely hope it is followed by more.

Best,

Liam

Decoding the IRA

Mercier Press are due to release a book called Decoding the IRA, it sounds a truly fascinating read. I thought I’d treat you to the copy from www.mercierpress.ie. If you like the look of it, send me a comment, it might make a really nice addition to the Irish Books & Media catalog.

Newly decoded secret documents reveal the mindset of the IRA in the years following the civil war.

Historian Tom Mahon and code breaker James J. Gillogly have spent the past few years breaking the IRA’s communications code. The code was used for the organisation’s most secret messages, including those sent back and forth to undercover agents in Britain and America. The results are explosive, and expose IRA secrets that have been concealed for over 75 years.

Featuring facsimiles of the actual coded documents, the discussions delve into nearly every matter conceivable for a paramilitary organisation, ranging from the importation of explosives to the use of IRA informants in the Gardaí. Documents detail the IRA’s secret agreement with the Soviet Union and its attempts to provide military assistance to China; military espionage for the Soviets in America; plans to stage a gas attack on Dublin; the IRA’s infiltration of the GAA and control of the Kerry football team and the struggle with Eamon de Valera and Fianna Fail. The book provides anunnerving insight into how the IRA saw itself and conducted its dangerous business in secrecy.

With the eye of a historian and the tools of a professional code breaker, Tom and James have together exposed a treasure trove of new information to create a wonderful and engrossing read.

Sounds an interesting topic doesn’t it? I’m certainly looking forward to it, I just love this kind of thing.

Best,

Liam

Munster vs. USA Eagles August 23rd - Rentschler Field, Hartford, Conn.

I’m excited to announce that Munster will be playing an exhibition game in Hartford, Connecticut on August 23rd. Check out http://www.usarugby.org/default.asp for more details about tickets. I would certainly urge any would be fans out there to get hold of tickets, as they are going quickly. You never know, you may even see me there!

Another reason for my excitement is beacuse our Irish publishing friends, Gill & MacMillan, are releasing a book in August, called Munster: Champions of Europe.

It is sure to be a fantastic read, as it follows a story that itself is so fantastic, it could easily be mistaken to have come from fiction!

Munster Rugby Team were up against truly monumental odds to win the Heineken Cup, and played against some of the most grueling of competitors. This really is a story of triumph and glory, and I don’t mind admitting to being a bit biased as I’m from Munster!!

It began with the toughest draw that a team could ask for. They were up against the defending Heineken Cup and English champions, London Wasps, the side that had beaten them in the quarter finals in 2007, Welsh team Llanelli Scarlets, and certainly not least, the new powerhouse of French rugby ASM Clermont Auverge.

Back to back wins in Stradey Park and crucial losing points in Coventry and Montferrand saw them emerge Pool winners only to face the prospect of away games in both the quarter-final and semi-final. They became the only team in the history of the Heineken Cup to win quarters and semis away from home, defeating Gloucester and Saracens.

And finally, there was the never to be forgotten 24th May at the Millennium Stadium, Cardiff, when they defeated Toulouse, the most successful team in the history of the tournament, to become champions of Europe for the second time in three years.

It has been a fantastic year for Munster, and I think that credit is more than due for their tremendous efforts. Lets hope that I’ll be able to catch a bit of the excitement in Hartford this August!

Best,

Liam

Irish Children’s Book of the Year

One of our publishers from Dublin; The O’Brien Press, published a simply stunning book a few months ago called the Story of Ireland. It is a children’s book that covers an astonishing 9,000 years of Irish history!
The reason that I mention it, is because lately, my hopes for this book came true. It has been nominated for the Irish Children’s Book of the Year Award, from the Irish Book Awards hosted yearly in Dublin!
When I was back in Dublin, and had my first chance to hold the new title, I just fell in love with it, and knew it was going to do spectacularly well. It gives children so much to learn, and yet they’ll love every minute of it. Who am I kidding? I loved every minute of it too! Well I’m delighted that we now stock this book on our site (www.irishbook.com), and welcome, nay, encourage anyone who would like to teach their children history to come and check it out.

Overheard in Cork

After the massive success of the Overheard in Dublin, Gill & MacMillan have decided to take the humour to the true capital, namely Cork!

Having grown up there, I’ve no doubt that there is an endless supply of funny stories to be found, I’m sure I could nearly fill the book from things I’ve heard myself!

So I’m hoping you’ll join in the cause to show that us Corkonians can match up to the Dubs, and visit www.overheardincork.com, and post your story.

Irish Books & Media are very much looking forward to this book, and as soon as I get some more information about the upcoming dates, I’ll keep you posted.

Best,

Liam

Overheard in Dublin

In my opinion, you can’t beat the Irish wit.

Even more in my opinion is that you can’t beat the Irish wit when it’s not even forced. The most successful books that Gill & Macmillan have ever produced are going to become part of the Irishbook stock: The Overheard in Dublin Series.

Set up as a website (www.overheardindublin.com), it invited anyone with a story to come along and share a funny story of something they overheard in Dublin. The best 500 are then picked out and produced as a book. Trouble is, there were so many comments, that it required an entire series!

A truly fantastic read, and great for a quick laugh. We should have copies of these books in mid-late July. but if you’d like to be informed about when they arrive, simply email me at sales@irishbook.com

Here’s a taster:

Sitting in the bog in a city-centre pub after a few scoops, the bloke in the next cubicle says, ‘Howya, how’s it goin’?’ to which I reply, ‘Ah, not too bad!’ Then he says, ‘Sorry!’ and I say again, ‘Not too bad!’ Then he says,
‘Listen I’ll ring you back, there’s some lunatic in the jacks next to me!’
I cringed — and waited till he left!

Priceless!

Best,

Liam

Irish Books & Media still going strong

While reading around online, I noticed some prominent articles about the closure of Irish Books & Media. At the time of their writing, they were indeed true, and it was a terrible shame to lose such important and significant titles for the US.
However, it’s not all doom and gloom. Not long after the announced closure of Irish Books & Media, a new solution was found. A company called The James Trading Group (www.theJTG.com) continued from IB&M as the official US distributor of Irish books for Gill & Macmillan, The O’Brien Press, and Mercier Press, remaining under the name of Irish Books & Media. The James Trading Group, based in Nanuet, New York, has been an importer and wholesaler of Irish goods for almost 20 years, so safer hands the books couldn’t be in!

The website which IB&M previously used (www.irishbook.com) remains, and is being upgraded regularly to bring it to the standards it deserves, and more importantly, to bring IB&M into the Internet age with strength.

Under The James Trading Group, both retail and wholesale needs are met, so colleges, libraries, and everything else can still be an Irish bookseller. If anyone would like information on wholesale books, contact myself, Liam Moroney, at sales@irishbook.com for more information.

I just wanted to clear everything up, and for anyone who used to deal with IB&M, know that you can still get the books you once did, at the price you once did. I’m delighted to be able to announce this. For anyone who has not had dealings with IB&M, get in contact, and I can send you a catalog.

Thanks for your continued interest in Irish books, and I look forward to hearing from you.

Best regards,
Liam Moroney
Irish Books & Media
The James Trading Group
33 Murray Hill Drive
Nanuet, NY 10954
Toll Free: (800) 541-5004