Beyond the Book: Background information when reading Ireland

Beyond the Book

This article relates to Ireland

Broadcaster and writer, Frank Delaney is the author of at least sixteen books, both fiction (such as The Sins of the Mothers - 1992) and non-fiction (such as James Joyce's Odyssey and The Legends of the Celts) - but this is his first book to be published in the USA.

Interesting links:

• Delaney's full bibliography at the excellent FantasticFiction.
  
• The first story that the Seanchai tells is about the Megalithic tomb at Newgrange, Ireland, which is even older than Stonehenge - it's worth a look!
  
• To tell stories as he does there's a distinct chance that Delaney has kissed the fabled Blarney Stone; which is said to give the gift of eloquence to whomever kisses it. If you ever have the chance or desire to kiss the stone, hold on to your hat and the contents of your pockets, or you could lose them both. Fortunately, the modern-day addition of a grill ensures that all that should be at risk is your pocket change, not your life!
  
• 'In Fourteen Hundred & Ninety-Two Columbus sailed the Ocean Blue' - but did he really 'discover' America first? First came the Asiatic people who became Native Americans; then what about the Carthaginians, Norse, Portuguese, Chinese, Japanese and Irish, all who claim to have got there ahead of Columbus.

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This "beyond the book article" relates to Ireland. It originally ran in March 2005 and has been updated for the February 2006 paperback edition. Go to magazine.

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