2 comments about The Garden Lover's Guide to Ireland (Garden Lover's Guides to).

1. Terence Reeves Smyth brings to this, his most recent guide to the gardens of Ireland, the knowledge, commitment and passion characteristic of his earlier books on Irish demesnes,castles and gardens. A widely recognized authority in this field, he conveys clearly and engagingly to the reader and traveller, an invitation to roam throughout the island and discover the beauty of a wide range of gardens and parks. While gardens are the focus of this guide, he offers as well, descriptions of other sites, perhaps the best of which is the Crom Estate in
   Fermanagh, where one can visit the finest ancient woodlands in Ireland and spend many a dreamy afternoon, gliding in a small boat on Lough Erne.
   The guide is set out in a very practical fashion, its size permitting thoroughly inviting descriptions of the gardens and information indispensable to the visitor, to appear on the same page. Accompanying the descriptions are captivating photographs, all but for one or two exceptions, taken by the author. One can only imagine from his charming narrative portraits of the gardens the hours he enjoyed, with their owners, while he undertook the preparation of this
   book.
   On a recent trip to Ireland I found this guide both a companion and an inspiration.



2. This is an attractive but brief outline of many of the outstanding gardens in Ireland. Reeves-Smyth allots 2-5 paragraphs per garden and uses good graphics to help you find your way around the gardens.

   If you are planning a trip to view gardens, this is a lovely guide. If you are looking for more indepth information and images, it is rather slim.

5 comments about Borderland: A Journey through the History of Ukraine.

1. Very complete. Great timeline in front of text so one can keep track of which Polish or Russian invasion the writer is explaining. HOWEVER, it needs extra chapters to explain the last 10 years of major change in Ukraine.



2. There are certainly connections between russian and ukrainian culture. But those of us who have gone to ukrainian schools know well how authorites can suppress the total picture of a culture. Get a taste of the beauty of Ukraine from this book, but be open to more and accurate info as well. Buy more books on Ukraine!



3. I bought this product on the strength of the interest generated by a visit to Ukraine, good reviews, and its inspired title. I have to say I was disappointed, in that instead of history I found, for the most part, patronizing British journalism, a bit too full of the kind of smart comments which are intrusive without being thought-provoking. Certainly I found here much of the historical information I was looking for, but with a bias towards colourful anecdote rather than explanation of background.
   
   I have to say it picked up considerably in the chapters on the first half of the twentieth century. The obtrusive comments seem to recede as the grim story takes centre stage. Much of this is powerfully told, and I respect the way the writer does not pull her punches on the Famine.
   
   I do not regret purchasing the book, and in view of the last paragraph, plus the absence as far as I know of better work with similar coverage, I think three stars is fair. Readers who like its journalistic style might find it worth four.



4. As all the postings and appraisal of Anna Reids book reflects this is a very good introduction to Ukrainian history. That is with stress on both *good*, *introduction* and *up to 1997*. If you have allready read several histories of Ukraine, chances are slim you will find much new here. If you need an update on the orange revelution, you will simply not find what you look for here. If you find another book to cover the orange revelution, it might even be an advantage that it is published in 1997, in the sense that it is likely to focues more on the Kuchma era than a book published more recently will.
   
   It is not unlikely that you anyway will enjoy here anectodical introductions to each chapeter though, using personal experiences as illustrations to the different regions and historical periods of the country. To illustrate the strenght and the (less important) weekness of this style of writing, an could tell you about my reading of her book as preperation for a 3 weeks journey though Ukraine. Like a similar incident after reading Kapuscinski's story about Pinsk in Belarus, Reid has made me get off the train at 5 o'clock in the morning after a though night in the restaurant wagon caused by reading her chapter from this region - Chernivtsi is simply somewhere that you have to see before you die. The truth is a bit more complex. I guess what I try to say that her writing is better litterature than travel advice (read, to see what I mean).
   
   I would like to add a few lines of why I think this book is as good as it is.
   
   As I see it, A good hisoty of Ukraine aknowledges the following 3 things that Ukraine is, 3 things that Ukraine is not and 3 things as not important.
   
   3 things you necesarily needs to find in a history of Ukraine is that
   -It's history is above everything else multicultural and about a peasant culture
   -The by far most significant buiding-blocks of Ukrainian national identity is to be found in the 1800s and 1900s.
   -It is primary Ukraine itself that created the economic and political disaster of the 1990s (unlike in the 1920s, when Ukraine recovered after, say, 7 years of economic crisis the neo-Brezhnevism corruption is what probably makes the big difference)
   
   Second to a cover picture of an Ukrainian peasant with a Russian bureucrate and a Jewish merchant on each side, the picture chosen for the front page is the perfect choice! Read the book and understand why. I am very surprised why someone have objections to the photo. What ever is the basis of their objection it is not Ukrainian history.
   
   As of other peoples included in multicultural Empires in Eastern Europe up to World war I, national identity came late to Ukraine. Anna Reid gives a good and balanced understanding of this.
   
   More important than any other explaination to the political and economic disaster of the 1990s was the policy of Ukraine itself. Anna Reid manages to give a good introduction to this not-so-proud recent past.
   
   3 things you necesary *not* will find in a good history of Ukraine is:
   -that Ukraine is an acient Eastern Slavonic Nation
   -a history of Ukraine that is not closely related to Russian history
   -a place in Ukraine that represents "real Ukraine"
   
   Middle-age settlements in the Eastern Slavonic region was highly autonomious, there was several of them both in Ukraine, Belarus and Russia and Kiev was an important but not the oldest of them.
   
   The southern and Eastern Ukraine is both a crucial part of Russian and Ukraine and Ukrainian-Russian history. The Ukrainian impact on Soviet history and the great importance of the Soviet Union for Ukrainian national identity. Reid gives a good and balanced understanding of this. I take the objection of some reader that she puts to little emphasis of the collectivisation and starvation as a sign that she succeeds to present Ukraine as much more than victims of starvation. Also important, Ukraine was the politically most priviledged republic after the Russians in the Soviet Union.
   
   Though this side of the story is included in Anna Reid's book, the fact that it is published in 1997 does that some important developments that we can see though the last 10 years is missing. I miss some important development lines in post Soviet Ukraine, compared to Russia and Belarus. When Yury Andropov introduced the perestroyka policy in Russia (yes, this was originally Andropov's and not Gorbies initiative) backed by the army and KGB, one might say that the Russians (who were in charge of the milirary powers, while the Ukrainians had a huge influence on the Post-Stalin political power) took over the political wing of the Soviet Union from Ukraine, who on their site continued the corruption and maleconomies of the disasterous Brezhnev years into the Kuchma era. Belarus, on thir side, seems to never got as badly hit by the Brezhnev's Dnipropetrovsk mafia as did Russia and Ukraine.
   
   3 things a hsitory of Ukraine will reflect that is not important is
   -whether you prefere to write Kyiv or Kiev
   -what Ukraine really means
   -what place is the orign of Eastern Slavonic civilisation
   
   Anna Reid does not make a big deal out of any of this. Combined with good writing and the succsessful use of anecdotes from her personal experiences and research you have the reason why it is so interesting to read her book, while hardly interesting to read some of the polemics over this kind of choices in some of the customer reviews.
   
   One final pice of advice. If you on this or other books of Ukrainian history finds single reviewers who has totally different views than the other reviewers - views that you find it difficult to fit with other reviews, you might want to check if the reviewer is a member of the Ukrainian Diaspora, especially Nothern American Diaspora. They often tend to have very unbalanced views on Ukrainian history and I would not give their views to much weight when it comes to how non-diaspora readers will experience the book.



5. Looking at the cover of this book, I immediately thought to myself that this is not Ukraine--not as I know her! The cover was an insightful indication of the biased rhetoric that was to follow.
   
   The top cover photo is of "Local characters: Two paupers, one blind aged 70, the other sighted, aged 58, 1870s. Courtesy of State Historical Museum, Moscow."
   
   The bottom image on the cover is by "Georgii Petrusov, Lunch in the Fields, (1934), Courtesy of Galerie Alex Lachmann, Cologne, 'The idealization of Russian family and collective...'"
   
   The back cover repeats the front, bottom photo by "Georgii Petrusov, Lunch in the Fields, (1934), Courtesy of Galerie Alex Lachmann, Cologne, 'The idealization of Russian family and collective...'"
   
   Now, I ask the reader, why would a person put on a cover (and repeat on the back cover) of a book purporting to describe the history of Ukraine, photos from Russia and call the book "...A Journey through the History of Ukraine"?
   
   According to the lavish review written by The Times on the back of the book, Anna Reid spent three years living in Kyiv as a reporter and is "remarkably clear-headed about the many competing versions of Ukraine's history and its mostly invented heroes. A wise and generous government in Kiev (sic) would give her a medal." I ask: why would the Ukrainian government give Ms. Reid a medal for stating that Ukraine has "mostly invented heroes"?
   
   The author's very obvious Russian slant/bias is apparent from not only the cover and page one of the book, where she opens with a quote from a Russian novelist and playwright, Mikhail Bulgakov (a Russian born in Kyiv, Ukraine to Russian parents), but continues throughout the book. Again, I ask why wasn't a quote used from a Ukrainian if the book deals with Ukrainian history? If the author wanted to quote Russians and use photos from Russia, why not write a book on Russia and give it a title with Russia in the name?
   
   Of the ten chapters in the book, chapter two has a quote from Ukraine's bard Taras Shevchenko and also a traditional Ukrainian curse (which I've never heard, but encountered for the first time in this book). We, again, hear from Ukrainian bard Taras Shevchenko in chapter four's introduction, but his quote isn't deemed important/meritorious enough to stand alone, so a quote by Hugh Seton-Watson accompanies it.
   
   In chapter nine, there is a quote from the "first verse and chorus of the Soviet national anthem" (eight lines) followed by two lines attributed to an unnamed "Rukh leader." I ask: why are we forced to read lines from the Soviet national anthem in a book dealing with the history of Ukraine?
   
   Chapter ten has a quote from Gogol. Most people still think, erroneously, that he is a great Russian writer. However, to her credit, Ms. Reid does state much earlier in the book (chapter three) that Gogol is a Ukrainian--Gogol (Hohol) was a Ukrainian born in the Poltava region of Ukraine. Gogol, a Ukrainian, became a great Russian writer--this anomaly resulted in studies over the decades. Edyta M. Bojanowska, Ph.D., Harvard University, offers her analyses of this nineteenth-century writer from a new perspective, giving convincing arguments and reflecting critical thought in the process. Dr. Bojanowska teaches (is a Lecturer on Slavic Languages and Literatures) at Harvard University, where she was a Junior Fellow at the Society of Fellows. Her book is available on Amazon.com--buy it, read it, and become enlightened--Nikolai Gogol: Between Ukrainian and Russian Nationalism.
   
   Why not quotes from Ukrainians like Ivan Franko (a Ukrainian scholar, publicist, poet, political and civic leader, publisher, novelist, literary historian, and nationalist, who had Lviv University renamed in his honor. He had over 6,000 books in his personal library; he completed over 5,000 translations for sixty authors in 14 languages. In 1956, UNESCO sponsored the centenary of his birth, an event that was noted internationally.) Franko is just one example--why not quotes from Lesia Ukrainka, Olha Kobylianska, or other Ukrainians?
   
   Ms. Reid likes to give her Russified version of events, followed by: "The Ukrainian version of events, of course..." which implies that the Ukrainian version is in all cases wrong and something to be dismissed and ridiculed.
   
   She describes her drive "from Khortytsya Island in Zaporizhya: `Covered in snow, the countryside looked one-dimensional, like an over-exposed black-and-white photograph.'" Maybe Ms. Reid should have taken that photo and used the photograph on the cover of her book. It would have depicted the steppes of Ukraine and Ukraine's chornozem (on its website, the Embassy of Ukraine describes chornozem as meaning `black earth'--it has become internationally recognized and refers to Ukrainian soil, celebrated as the most fertile possible. Because of her fertile land, Ukraine was once known as the Breadbasket of Europe.).
   
   In this book, you can't venture far without derogatory remarks and comments, such as: "...the Cossacks weren't up to much. Weren't they violent? Weren't they drunk? Above all, weren't they failures? Didn't even Gogol make fun of his Cossack hero Taras Bulba?"
   
   Let me first of all address the issue of Cossacks (Kozaks). Everyone should view the video entitled, "Ukraine: Ancient Crossroads, Modern Dreams." In my review of that video, I quote from the movie: In one segment, the narrator explains that "Kozaks did more than fight and dance, they also financed the building of many churches...the Kozaks brought many fine churches and other developments to the region, but, perhaps, their most important achievement was holding off the bondage of serfdom..." This must-see video is available for purchase on Amazon.com, or through interlibrary loan.
   
   Regarding Ms. Reid's reference to Gogol and Taras Bulba, Professor Bojanowska addresses this issue expertly in her scholarly study (Harvard University Press) entitled: "Nikolai Gogol: Between Ukrainian and Russian Nationalism." Pages 271-279 are rich with references, quotes, and scholarly insight. "...Taras Bulba stands out as a savvy political leader. He understands how history and politics are made and is able to promote an ideology, rather than just blindly follow one. Though his single-mindedness makes him an exemplary patriot, Gogol's portrayal of him is more complex than a simple affirmation of his values and actions, as is commonly assumed." "Nikolai Gogol: Between Ukrainian and Russian Nationalism" is available for purchase on Amazon.com, or through Interlibrary loan.
   
   As another example of disparaging discourse on Ukraine, Ms. Reid describes Shevchenko's grave: "was covered with a Cossack-style mound and marked with an oak cross. In the 1880s the wooden cross was replaced with an iron one, in 1931 with an obelisk, and in 1939 with a hideous monumental bronze statue, which still stands today." I propose to readers that the word "hideous" is Ms. Reid's description. That she thinks it's hideous is really of no interest to me. When I read a history of a country, I like to read the facts, not someone's opinion and biased description.
   
   A disparaging comparison from Ms. Reid follows: "`Poland is not yet lost' was the title of a Napoleonic Polish marching song; `Ukraine is not dead yet' is the less-inspiring opening line of the present-day Ukrainian national anthem."
   
   Her derogatory descriptions continue: "...OUN split in two--the more moderate `Melnykivtsi,' under the Civil War veteran Andriy Melnyk, and the fanatical `Banderivtsi', under the young head of OUN's terrorist unit, Stepan Bandera."
   
   The Encyclopedia of Ukraine describes Stepan Bandera as a "revolutionary, politician and ideologue of the Ukrainian nationalist movement." The Encyclopedia of Ukraine describes Andrii Melnyk as a "military figure and political activist." I submit that the words "fanatical" and "terrorist unit" have no place in this discussion if it's to remain truly objective and depict historical events. The Encyclopedia of Ukraine is "the most comprehensive work in the English language on Ukraine, its history, people, geography, economy, and cultural heritage. This site was created and is updated/maintained by a team of scholars and editors from the Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies (CIUS) (University of Alberta/University of Toronto). Hundreds of specialists from around the world have contributed and continue to contribute to the Encyclopedia."
   
   For readers who want a true, unbiased history of Ukraine, an excellent 150-minute video called "The Ukrainian Experience," covers Ukraine's history in five parts: part 1: From Antiquity to the Rise of Kiev (Kyiv); part 2: From the Fall of Kiev (Kyiv) to the Rise of the Hetman State; part 3: From the Ruin to the 1905 Revolution; part 4: Modern History of Ukraine; and, part 5: The Diaspora and Ukrainians in Canada.
   
   This video is "The story of Ukraine from the founding of Kiev (Kyiv) to the recent Declaration of Independence as told by Roman Onufrijchuk, writer and lecturer with the Department of Communications at Simon Fraser University, Vancouver, B.C., enhanced with colorful visuals, anecdotes, pathos, humor and music. This series was produced during 1992 as a Centennial Project by: the Ukrainian Canadian Congress, B.C. Provincial Council, #208 - 1015, Burrard St., Vancouver, B.C. V6Z 1Y5, phone: 604-687-2052."
   
   Another excellent source for impartial information on Ukraine's history is Professor Orest Subtelny's (published to international acclaim) Ukraine: a History. Orest Subtelny is a Canadian historian of Ukrainian descent, and a Professor at the Department of History and Political Science, York University, Toronto, Canada. The third edition (2000) is available for purchase on Amazon.com.
   
   There are good sources of information on Ukraine's history; unfortunately, "Borderland: A Journey Through the History of Ukraine" falls far short of a good reference source. As I read through some of the reviews, seeing statements such as "I purchased this book for research purposes (I needed some familiarity with Ukraine), and this book more than sufficed"--I cringed!
   
   A person doing research needs material that is factual, not something that is laced throughout with subjective, biased comments. Consider this review: "...this book gave a wonderful condensed history of the (sic) Ukraine."--I cringed some more!! By the way, the name of the country is one word: "Ukraine," the phrase: "the Ukraine" is incorrect!
   
   Another review continues: "...There are some historical inaccuracies in the book, but one assumes that these (sic) data were (sic) supplied to the author by both Polish and Russian sources. Otherwise, this (sic) a good book for (sic) reader interested in getting his "feet wet" on this newly independent nation." May I suggest to the author of this review that "some historical inaccuracies" do not "otherwise (make it a) "good book."
   
   I wonder whether this "A Customer" is the same one that I encountered when I wrote a rebuttal review of "Ukraine: Ancient Crossroads, Modern Dreams"? "A Customer" in his/her review recommended "Save your money. This video taught me nothing about the (sic) Ukraine, its countryside, its people, or its culture." My review, in part, reads: Ukraine (Ancient Crossroads, Modern Dreams) is a must-see video! Not only is it recommended by the Ohio State University Center for Slavic and East European Studies, but the university offers a free loan (call 614-292-8770, or write to Keisel.1@osu.edu). For a complete review/debunking of the review of "A Customer," please go to that page and read my review. "Ukraine: Ancient Crossroads, Modern Dreams" is available for purchase on Amazon.com.
   
   Here's what this "A Customer" wrote about Ms. Reid's book: "Borderland" is an excellent book by a very perceptive and knowledgable (sic) writer." It's interesting that when "A Customer" writes a review, his/her Amazon account is closed so that when you mouse over that name, no profile appears. I do believe that this person puts out false/misleading information, and then conveniently disappears so that answers won't be forthcoming to legitimate questions. Also interesting, is the fact that two reviews appear by "A Customer": one dated May 16, 2000 (rated 2 stars), and the other dated February 15, 2001 (rated 5 stars). Both reviews are from accounts that were closed--if you mouse over the names, no information is available regarding a profile for either person. Is this the same person, closing an account, only to reopen it a short while later so that he/she may continue to write reviews and influence the rating system? There are very many "A Customer" entries when you search the reviewers.
   
   Imparting truthful information is one thing; imparting biased information is inexcusable. The author used credible sources/references to conveniently lure the unsuspecting reader into a complacent belief that the rest of the words that follow are objective reporting. Chapter six on "The Great Hunger" (Holodomor) is a good one, and merits reading. This could have been a remarkable "journey through the history of Ukraine"; unfortunately, the author squandered that opportunity by littering the roads with very obvious bias and subjective slants.

1 comments about The Land of My Fathers: A Son's Return to the Basque Country.

1. Nevada writer Robert Laxalt's "The Land of My Fathers" is a description of life in the French Basque Country in the 1960s. Laxalt -- the son of Basques who immigrated to Nevada about 1910 -- spent 1960-61 and 1965-66 getting to know his parents' ancient homeland. Making use of his family ties, he succeeded in breaching the "impenetrable wall of Basque reserve" (in Rodney Gallop's words) in a way only a few outsiders have been able to do.

   The book is not a straightforward narrative and Laxalt writes about much more than his own experiences. A collection of vignettes, histories, and folk-sayings, it is an exploration of the Basque character. We read about everything from "Basque troubadours" to the humanization of German soldiers stationed in the Basque lands during the occupation of the Pyrenees. Trying to capture the essence of this ancient people, Laxalt gives us glimpses of the "poetic truth" of the Basque land and Basque history, the emotional truth gleaned from "the language of the eyes." Of course the approach is not without its drawbacks, but for a book like this, "The Land of My Fathers" is remarkably free of immigrant-son's-come-home romanticism.

   In addition to Laxalt's vivid prose poetry, many of his vignettes are interesting as anthropological descriptions of life in the "Pays Basque". Here, we encounter aspects of Basque folklife such as pigeon-hunting, contraband, dancing, the unique brand of "shepherd justice", and the "bohèmes" (literally "Bohemians", they are a poorly-known group of shunned outsiders -- not unlike the Gypsies -- who have lived in the Basque country for years). A couple of these "ethnological vignettes", in fact, appeared in the August 1968 issue of "National Geographic".

   Although throughout one is struck by the Basques' indomitable ability to overcome adversity, unfortunately the beautiful culture described by Laxalt is rapidly slipping away -- if it has not, for the most part, slipped away already. The Spanish sector of the Basque lands has long been one of the most heavily industrialized in Europe and the French sector, although still largely rural, has seen the same kinds of cultural changes places all over the world have seen with the onslaught of globalization. Many things have changed for the better, and Laxalt certainly doesn't claim the past was perfect, yet it is difficult not to agree with him that "something of the romantic past has been lost." For all that, his many books are even more important, small safeguards against a rapidly deteriorating humanity.

   If there were ten stars, "The Land of My Fathers" deserves them.

1 comments about A Guide to Megalithic Ireland.

1. "A Guide to Megalithic Ireland" by J. H. Brennan is a very useful book for anyone who is serious about locating stone circles, dolmens (or dolmans), Ogham stones, and other evidence of early Ireland.
   
   This book is a gazetteer and lists towns alphabetically with references to the Irish National Grid, and can be used with the half-inch Ordnance Survey maps.
   
   Additional helpful maps inside the book indicate the relative distribution of different types of megalithic structures, so you'll know which part of the country to favor when you travel.
   
   For example, if you're looking for court tombs or dolmens, you'll find a high concentration of them in Northern Ireland. For wedge tombs, look to the western half of Ireland. And if--like many people--you are fascinated with stone circles, you should visit the middle of Northern Ireland, north of Omagh, or southwest Ireland west of Cork city. And, Ireland's largest stone circle is at Lough Gur just southeast of Limerick city.
   
   In addition to directions to each site, "A Guide to Megalithic Ireland" also describes the most interesting sites in detail, with historical notes. A photo section at the center of the book will intrigue you, too.
   
   Other sections of this book include "What to Look For," a brief illustrated glossary of terms and structures. The appendix of the book offers illustrated instructions to make your own dowsing rods, and how to use them.
   
   If you are visiting Ireland and want to explore its remarkable early history and over 1000 megalithic sites, this book is a very good starting point. It's also light enough to carry in your backpack when you're touring Ireland, and you'll refer to it often. "A Guide to Megalithic Ireland" is an invaluable guide filled with a wealth of practical information if you love Ireland's ancient history and folklore.
   --reviewed by Eibhlin Morey, editor, "All Info About Ireland"

No comments about The Bushmills Irish Pub Guide.

No comments about Ireland: History, People, Culture.

5 comments about Lonely Planet Scotland.

1. Lonely planet books are usually a good companion both if you're clueless or experienced. In this case however, the book is a lot thinner than the Rough Guide for Scotland and offers less information. The LP looks better, but who cares about the looks of a travel book.



2. I found the Lonely Planet guide to be an excellent resource, especially when used with the Baedeker Scotland guide. LP offers truly helpful information, such as where to find maps, how to get back your VAT, weather and insect warnings... as well as brief but very descriptive chapters by region, including the oft-neglected Highlands.

   Suggested itineraries are included, and the descriptions of sights, towns and historical destinations is wonderful.

   While the guide is short on maps and history -- this is where the Baedeker guide does an excellent job -- it is full of useful and up-to-date information on travelling Scotland. I found my copy to be incredibly resourceful.




3. I have used lonely planet travel books on my many trips to South and Central America, and I have always been happy with their information and insight. This book on Scotland continues to support my happiness with this series of travel books.



4. Bought the book and found the maps with cite notations most helpful upon our visits--although there were many one ways that make getting from 1 place to another difficult at times, but you can't blame the book for that. Ate and stayed at some of their suggestions and we weren't disappointed.
   Book heavily geared to the younger/hostel type of traveler--we were neither, but it still provided us with a lot of helpful suggestions.



5. As I have always found in Lonely Planet Guide books, the Lonely Planet guide to Scotland is well researched and contains lots of useful information. We plan to hike the West Highland Way over the Summer of 2009 and this Lonely Planet Guide to Scotland has lots of good information about hotels and restaurants along the way. I highly recommend this book!

No comments about Wallpaper City Guide: Dublin ("Wallpaper*" City Guides) (Wallpaper City Guides (Phaidon Press)).

No comments about Where's Where in Dublin: A Directory of Historic Locations, 1913-1923.

1 comments about Francie on the Run (Van Stockum, Hilda, "Bantry Bay" Series.).

1. Read any of Hilda van Stockum's three Bantry Bay books, and you will come to the conclusion that she is one of the finest authors of children's fiction. Period. And six year-old Francie O'Sullivan is perhaps her finest creation. Francie will make you his friend, nay, his admirer. This bold little boy has all the panache of Tom Sawyer as well as the goodness and piety Tom lacks. FRANCIE ON THE RUN tells of Francie's adventures on his roundabout journey home to County Cork after he sneaks out of a Dublin hospital where he is recovering from surgery. This novel, the second in the series, can be read on its own. I suggest, however, that you read THE COTTAGE AT BANTRY BAY first; you'll want to find out how Francie's impoverished family was able to send him to Dublin. All three books, but especilly FRANCIE ON THE RUN, are first and foremost corking good stories: my three year old never tires of having them read to him; yet older children, even teenagers (and adults too), will find them thoroughly enjoyable reading. The greatest beauty of these stories, however, is the author's masterful way of teaching children virtue without sounding preachy.