june reading wrap up 

Ever since I saw the Irish film, “An Cailín Ciúin”-“The Quiet Girl”-for the first time in March of last year, I’ve been reading up on modern Irish history, particularly the events surrounding the 1916 Easter Uprising, the subsequent Irish War of Independence, and the Irish Civil War which followed it. So, I was pleased when you included, “Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland”, in your video wrap-up, and gave a mention to, “We Don’t Know Ourselves: A Personal History of Modern Ireland”. I hadn’t heard of either book, but will definitely want to read the second one by Fintan O’Toole, and probably Keefe’s as well. The year 2016 was the 100th anniversary of the Easter Uprising, and there are plenty of documentaries and news stories on RU-vid assessing the significance of the events of 1916 and afterwards. Some of these films question whether the Uprising was really necessary and whether it wasn’t more of a tragedy for Ireland than something to be celebrated, as it led directly to the events described in Patrick Radden Keefe’s book. The fact that the modern Irish Republic was born in violence may have set a pattern and justification for further acts of violence to obtain political ends throughout the 20th century. At least, that’s the position some Irish people take today. It’s a fascinating question and I’m still making up my mind about it. Recently, I decided that you can’t really appreciate the motives of the men who planned and carried out the Easter Uprising without going back to the 1840s, the years of the Great Irish Famine. After all, the men of 1916 were closer in time to the famine years than we are to the Second World War. I’m reading an older history, “The Great Hunger” by Cecil Woodham-Smith, published in 1962, and will soon be starting a famous 1937 novel, “Famine”, by the Irish writer, Liam O’Flaherty. So, thanks again for bringing Keefe’s and O’Toole’s books to my attention. And if you haven’t seen “The Quiet Girl”, I highly recommend it. I’m sure it’s available on streaming services. The film is based on Claire Keegan’s long short story, “Foster”. Finally, “Butcher’s Crossing” sounds interesting, and your description of the Miller character hunting down his massive buffalo herd reminds me of Captain Ahab’s pursuit of the great white whale.

Ah the subject of colorism...the legacy left by our "dearest colonizers". I agree with you when you say the author could've chosen to tackle the subject in a more positive way. As for the story of Carolyn Kennedy, it's fascinating for sure. It's interesting to note that she tried to not stand out in the styles she would choose to wear but instead it had the contrary effect. These people were indeed regular human beings.🙂What a reading journey you had! great video.

i really like the way you talk about the books you read, especially how you connect one book to another through themes!

Love the abrupt ending 😂 it can be so tiring to speak for so long!

I am really looking forward to reading All Four (I've followed her work for years), and your take on it is interesting. I think i'll also have a problem with the 20K thing - because I don't think art should be considered outside of the system, especially contemporary fictions

Hola preeciosa gte quedaria bien llevar gtrenzas

omg bb’s first Emily Henry what era of Kiran are we in !!! but ahhh loved your thoughts on the Williams. I feel like there’s an incoming wave of interest for Stoner and it’s all reminding me that i need to pick up his other work. do you recommend Butcher’s Crossing or Nothing but the Night first? :0

45min!! ❤ lol i also just had my first emhen with ppl we meet on vacation and i was charmed enough to wanna read some others! My local library is having a book club for book lovers so that’s next for me. I also really wanna get to butchers crossing after stoner but also because of stoner im also saying that with much trepidation 🥲