-
Recent Posts
Past Posts
Categories
Blogroll
Meta
Author Archives: midatlanticmusings
Irish Green Season (aka “A Little Bit of Shameless Self-Promotion”)
Things at the School of Canadian Irish Studies are getting crazy these days (in a fun way), as we await the climax of Montreal’s Irish “Green Season”. There have been balls, luncheons, poetry readings, film screenings… and now we’re all … Continue reading
As Good As It Gets… for academics
One of my favourite historians is S. E. Duff, who writes about South Africa, empire, food, feminism, and a plethora of other things. Recently, she discussed her superstitions when it came to the writing process. The following quickly caught my … Continue reading
Posted in Culture, Musings
Tagged academia, Appetite for Destruction, Axl Rose, books, British Library, conferences, eccentricities, Guns N' Roses, historians, history, insanity, Jurassic Park, libraries, Michelangelo, obsessive compulsive disorder, procrastination, quirks, S. E. Duff, writing, Yoda
Leave a comment
#darcyforthewin
Mr Darcy is 200 years old today. That’s a lot of candles on the cake. If Bridget Jones is capable of drinking something real tonight, I’m sure she’d pick something celebratory… maybe a Moet or a Veuve Clicquot. Or a … Continue reading
Gipper-less
The wound is still fresh. I am waiting for the happy day when memory fails. For those of you living under a rock (or in major areas of Canada), Notre Dame was defeated by Alabama in the BCS Championship Game … Continue reading
Posted in Culture
Tagged Alabama, alma mater, Brian Kelly, Canada, College football, Coronation Street, fans, Fighting Irish, hockey, Knute Rockne, loss, Lou Holtz, movies, Notre Dame, Rudy, sports, suffering, The Gipper, Toronto Maple Leafs
Leave a comment
Covenant This!
Well, that was a bit of a surprise. Yesterday marked the celebrations for the 100th anniversary of the Ulster Covenant, the document signed by nearly half a million Ulstermen and women in 1912 as a protest against the British government’s … Continue reading
Posted in Great War, Ireland, Somme
Tagged 1912, 1916, battle honour, Belfast, British imperialism, Commemoration, Great War, Ireland, Irishmen, masculinities, memorials, Orangemen, Parades, Sir Edward Carson, Somme, symbolism, Ulster Covenant, Ulstermen, war
2 Comments
Bookiness – Phantoms on the Bookshelves (2010) by Jacques Bonnet
Phantoms On The Bookshelves by Jacques Bonnet My rating: 4 of 5 stars I have a lot of books. I know other people with a lot of books. I also know that I’m going to inherit at least three libraries … Continue reading
To Sir, With Love
Dear Sir, You see, this is why I don’t write fan letters – I’m rubbish at them. So, don’t think of this as a fan letter; instead, it is a heart-felt attempt to summarize what you’ve meant to me, to … Continue reading
Posted in Musings
Tagged farewells, Henry Higgins, Henry II, Irishmen, Lawrence of Arabia, London, movies, oscars, Peter O'Toole, Pygmalion, Richard Burton, T. E. Lawrence, tribute, What's New Pussycat?
Leave a comment
Bookiness – Captain Wentworth’s Persuasion (2010) by Regina Jeffers
Captain Wentworth’s Persuasion: Jane Austen’s Classic Retold Through His Eyes by Regina Jeffers My rating: 1 of 5 stars Why oh why oh why do I do these things to myself??? Jane Austen’s Persuasion is one of my very favourite … Continue reading
Posted in Book Recs
Tagged Ciaran Hinds, fiction, historical fiction, Irishmen, Jane Austen, Persuasion
Leave a comment
Bookiness – Tigana (1992) by Guy Gavriel Kay
Tigana by Guy Gavriel Kay My rating: 5 of 5 stars There are some authors who, thank goodness, never let you down. For me, Guy Gavriel Kay is one of those. I first read his Fionavar Tapestry when I was … Continue reading
Posted in Book Recs
Tagged book review, Canada, epics, fantasy, fiction, Fionavar, Guy Gavriel Kay, historical fantasy, plot devices, surprise endings, suspense, Tigana
1 Comment
The Weight of Books
I just moved to a new apartment in a new city. As many, if not all, of you will know, moving homes involves a lot of planning… and a lot of boxes. In my case, it also involved that careful … Continue reading
Posted in Book Recs, Musings
Tagged Aaron Sorkin, American Civil War, books, Canadian history, Crime and Punishment, English courses, Ernest Hemingway, fantasy, fiction, Gettysburg, historical fiction, Irishmen, Jeff Daniels, Lawrence of Arabia, libraries, Michelangelo, Peter O'Toole, Pickett's Charge, Richard Burton, Shelby Foote, Sir William Johnson, The Great Gatsby, The Newsroom, The Odysssey, The West Wing, University of Toronto, war
Leave a comment
