Liberties Press Ltd – förlag

Everything works out - except in the end. In the meantime, concentrate on temptations of the flesh; on naked desire. Being properly damned brings its own joy: that's what Richard Meadows is thinking on his way to the city dump to retrieve his wife's favourite chair, which he had thrown away earlier. And that’s where he meets old flame Virginia Coates. So begins a dance of circumstance that feeds on Richard’s newfound fearlessness, and his desire to be daring. Time to lean in to the danger. How can a nice man like him get things so wrong? For some reason, the sudden closeness between Richard and Virginia doesn't yield the desired intimacy, doesn’t satisfy the passion. It is Richard’s wife, Gloria, who truly fastens on her chance for fulfilment. Quiet City is a literate, satisfying work of fiction which crosses Richard Ford with Kinky Friedman, with a noir undercurrent. Spellbinding storytelling from a novelist at the height of his powers.

While Ireland (like much of the rest of the world) was in lockdown in Spring and Summer 2020, we scratched our heads and wondered what to do to help lift people's spirits. We decided to join forces with Irish Pensions & Finance and run a competition celebrating Irish people's love of a good story – and a good laugh. There were only two requirements: make it funny, and make it (fairly) short. We were overwhelmed by the response: we received hundreds of entries, from all over the island and points beyond, by people from all walks of life. There were only three winners - but we decided to gather the best stories into a book. And here they are – from the sublime to the ridiculous. Think Graham Norton's Big Red Chair to Samuel Beckett's dark humor – and all points in between. The result is: Brevity is the Soul: Wit from Locked-Down Ireland.

Acclaimed author Richard Tood has a bad case of writer's block. When his publisher sends an attractive young editor to help him with his latest book, the inevitable happens. This chance meeting changes everyone's lives – in ways they never expected. But Richard's troubles are only beginning. Hearing voices in your head is rarely a good thing, and having an assassin walk into your life whenever he wants, is definitely bad news. Will Richard be able to get his head straightened out before things run away from him completely? A remarkable portrait of a modern midlife crisis, which combines the best aspects of historical and psychological fiction, THE GARFIELD CONSPIRACY is a superb novel by a major new voice in Irish fiction.

Paddy Reid spent thirty years working in some of the poorest communities in the United States – mainly in the Deep South – as a handyman, prison visitor and outreach worker. In The River Healer, he recounts his encounters with some of the remarkable people he met along the way – and their resilience in the face of grinding poverty. From patching up “Red’s shack” – and falling through the fl oor into the bayou – to working with people with AIDS in the early days of the crisis, this collection entertains and enthrals in equal measure.The River Healer is a unique, heart-breaking record of life in the Southern United States by an award-winning writer. The book features stunning black-and-white photographs by the late American photographer Al Clayton.

Thaddeus was a fi fteenth-century bishop of Cork who was honoured in both Ireland and Italy. He led a remarkable life – he was made bishop twice, and was beatifi ed in 1895 – but is now all but forgotten. In Searching for Thaddeus, art historian Patricia Curtin-Kelly tells the tale of this re markable man, and discusses the many works of art – found mainly in churches acro ss County Cork and in Ivrea, Italy – that bear witness to the high esteem in which he was held. Searching for Thaddeus features numerous photographs of the remarkable artworks which celebrate “Blessed Thaddeus” – painti ngs, stained-glass windows and reliquaries – and the churches in which they can be seen. It is a highly read able book about a remarkable son of Cobh.

When we are born, we are basically sterile. By the time we die, we are more microbe than human. Microscopic organisms are essential to the development of human life. Until Antonie van Leeuwenhoek observed his own microbes under a self-made microscope in the seventeenth century, we were not even aware that they existed. Clinician-scientist Fergus Shanahan and graphic design artist Laura Gowers shed light on the microbial world. How can we nurture microbes in the face of the climate emergency? Why do Irish Travellers have a unique microbiome? A remarkable, ground-breaking graphic book.

Dublin Nazi No.1 is a revealing biography by Gerry Mullins of the extraordinary life of Dr Adolf Mahr, who was head of the National Museum of Ireland and also the head of the Nazi Party in Ireland. In the 1930s, Dr Adolf Mahr was head of the National Museum of Ireland, where he earned the title the father of Irish archaeology. He was also the head of the Nazi Party in Ireland, and was dubbed Dublin Nazi No. 1.  Under pressure from Irish and British military intelligence, he left for Germany shortly before the outbreak of war in 1939, never to return. To this day, he is considered in some circles to have been a spy who used his position at the museum to help prepare Germany's invasion plan of Ireland. During the war, he became director of Irland-Redaktion, the German propaganda radio service that broadcast into neutral Ireland. He was later arrested and tortured by the British, and upon his release tried to return to Ireland, but to no avail. He remains one of the most controversial figures in twentieth-century Irish history. The book also tells the story of Hilde Mahr, Adolf's eldest daughter, who had been a member of Hitler Youth in Ireland before being trapped in Germany when the war began. She was drafted into the National Labour Force, was stationed on the roofs of Berlin buildings during air-raids, and several times came close to death.

As Ireland's top special effects director, Gerry Johnston's life is the stuff of boyish fantasy, from meeting childhood heroes to playing with blood and gore, his has been a rollercoaster career, mingling with the famous and flirting with the dangerous! Gerry began working and learning on the job as a novice special effects man in 1960s Ireland. Often with little more than his wits, a tool-box and some electrical cable he had to interpret and realize the directors vision, usually on a limited budget. After learning the ropes on a string of WW2 films, co-ordinating dogfights and working with the likes of George Peppard, Julie Andrews, James Mason and a cursing Ursula Andress, Gerry soon became the man to call if you were making a film in Ireland.  One of Gerry's earliest jobs was working on the Oscar-winning Ryan's Daughter, trucking around Ireland's beaches with director David Lean, searching for the perfect storm. From impressing the genius of Stanley Kubrick, to realizing John Boorman's vision of Excalibur, Gerry's 40-plus year career is a personalized chronicle of Irish film; a behind-the-scenes glance at a turbulent history. Gerry has worked with international and Irish stars and directors including Steven Spielberg, Neil Jordan, Helen Mirren, Sean Connery and a young Colin Farrell, and his credits include global hits such as In The Name of the Father, My Left Foot, Braveheart and Saving Private Ryan. The book reveals the secrets and occasional mishaps behind the visual effects and stunts performed to create the illusion for the viewer. With an extensive plate section of behind the scenes shots, as well as an introduction by James Morris, Chairman of the Irish Film Board, Lights, Camera, Dynamite is an entertaining look into the creation of the magic we see on screen and the people who conjure it up.

First collection of Maurice Craig's poetry since the 1940s; celebrating the nonagenarian's life following his passing in May 2011. Selected and edited by Professor Andrew Carpenter, UCD with an introductory essay by Lucy Collins.  Maurice Craig, Ireland's most distinguished architectural historian, was born in Belfast in 1919 and educated in Dalkey and at Shrewsbury School, Magdalene College Cambridge and Trinity College Dublin. Though he is best known for his books of architectural history, most notably the celebrated Dublin 1660-1860, as a young man Maurice was a prolific and highly respected poet. His poems touch on the universal themes of love, loss, and the beauty of the natural and man-made worlds, and are written in a spare, clean style, in powerful language. Poems is a remarkable collection that aims to introduce the work of this fine poet to a new generation of readers.

From the Armagh footballer who introduced the penalty kick to the Cork inventor who installed the first floodlight system at the Statue of Liberty, Ireland's thirty-two counties have been providing innumerable Irish men and women around the world for hundreds of years. Great Irish People celebrates the achievements of these Irish men and women.  Great Irish People traces those memorable Irish figures from the Flight of the Earls in 1607 throughout the most dramatic four centuries in the country's history, culminating in the Good Friday Agreement. This period saw men and women of Ireland reach dizzying heights, not only within Ireland but worldwide, including: Antrim’s Chaim Herzog became President of Israel; Derry's Chames Thomson designed the Great Seal of the USA; Cork’s Matthew Thornton was a signatory of the American Declaration of Independence; Armagh's Arthur Hunter was the Premier of Queensland and Carlow’s Patrick Francis Moran the Archbishop of Sydney. Great Irish People is laid out county-by-county allowing an extensive look at this 'reservoir' of Irish men and women of merit and achievement. This is a special collection celebrating the contributions made by the Irish at home and in virtually every corner of the globe; an immense, amazing, sometimes bizarre, extraordinary and varied collective.

Moyra Donaldson's poetry collections have been hailed as 'urbane, modern, and sophisticated…important and engaging…ambitious in its scope, and speaking with a rare authority…insightful and profoundly moving…'  Selected Poems is an ideal place for the reader to engage with the themes of Donaldson’s work: the natural world, human sexuality, and the often unexpected ways in which people’s lives interlink. Drawing inspiration from historical figures, friends, and chance acquaintances alike, Moyra Donaldson looks at the world with a fresh, unflinching eye. Selected Poems is a remarkable achievement by a poet at the height of her powers.

In his new book of sonnets, Gabriel examines his life in a small community in the south west of Ireland where he has spent all of his life and where he worked as an elementary school teacher for over thirty years. He examines his life from youth to the present day, as he approaches his sixtieth birthday. He writes about growing up in a village that played Beckett, Thornton Wilder, and Lady Gregory; the Irish language; old age, sickness, and death; as well as new life, parenthood, and grandparenthood; and Irish music, sports, politics, and conflict.

Much has been written about John Boyle O'Reilly (1844-1890), Irish-born poet, journalist, fiction-writer, member of the Irish Republican Brotherhood/Fenians, political/civil rights activist, and the accepted voice and leader of the Irish-American exiles. Wherever the Irish diaspora are to be found there too exists a Boyle O’Reilly Society, as the name plays host to Gaelic/athletic clubs in areas all over the world. A summary of O'Reilly's career and action-packed life is difficult to formulate: at seventeen he was a stenographer in England; at nineteen a private soldier in the 10th Hussars; at twenty-two lying in a dungeon in Dublin, condemned to death for treason against Great Britain; at twenty-four a nameless convict in a criminal colony in Western Australia, after spending time in U.K. prisons such as Pentonville, Millbank, Chatham and Dartmoor, from which he made several escape attempts; at twenty-five an emigree in Philadelphia, where he lived without friends and without money; at thirty a successful journalist and a promising poet in Boston; at thirty-five the acknowledged leader of the Irish cause in America. O'Reilly's life - comprising a short forty-six years - makes a compelling story. For the first time ever, extensive and comprehensive research has uncovered key material relating to all periods of O'Reilly's life. This book will serve as a primary resource for all students and enthusiasts of Irish history, Western Australian lore, and Bostonian culture of the late 1800s, as well as those seeking to read a ripping good yarn!

Sinker thrusts us into the story of Baker Forley. He begins the novel as a sweet, unassuming Irish man who is revealed to be a promising newcomer to the world's most controversial sport - professional drinking. Ambition fuels his talent as he strives to make something of his life, but he is plagued by worries that he could die from his job, through alcohol poisoning. Frequent fatalities occur, as players often drop dead during games. When his popularity lands him a spot at the infamous Bullfight competition in sun-baked Mallorca, Baker believes that his luck has turned. But when his drunken eye is drawn to a Saudi beauty, her bodyguard steps over and floors him. The bodyguard's boss - a Saudi oil baron - invites Baker to his magnificent, surreal, Gaudi-designed palace to hear an apology. Baker - joined by his over-ebullient coach Ratface - gets an offer he can't refuse: "Teach the crazy billionaire Sheikh to drink like a pro and in turn he'll make you rich." Later, as illicit lust flares between Baker and the oil baron's sober wife; he learns the real reason why he has been asked along. It's a set up, and he's about to be framed for killing a Sheikh. After three days of industrial-level drinking and dealing with Ratface’s random groping, can Baker break free?

Liam Ryan canvasses a wide spectrum of subjects in his third collection of poems What's happening in the Shade. Part I of the collection visits life, death and religion, while Part II examines love in many of its forms: parental love, spousal love, and unrequited love. Formidable in lyrical intensity throughout, there are no boundaries to the places Ryan will visit in his poetry. His cold, dark winters are punctured by light, dewy springs, and for every green meadow full of emotion there’s a wooden desk covered with precise lines and measurements. He provides both objective observations and his private thoughts, with a joke or a pun always waiting just around the corner. Throughout What's happening in the Shade, Ryan borrows the words of fifteen world poets - including Pablo Neruda, Mirabai, and Rainer Maria Rilke - translates them, and transforms them to his own, offering new versions of lofty poetry to professor and novice alike. In this newest collection of poems, Liam Ryan truly becomes master of all trades.

All the parts of everyday life are unclothed and transformed in Catching Bats Takes Patience. Mary Kennelly looks at the routine of domestic life and motherhood and picks it apart, revealing a hidden layer of emotion and depth to her everyday life.Nothing is off limits for Kennelly. Relationships, sex, gender, religion, love and death are all goldmines of heartbreak, anger and nostalgia. In particular, she writes from the heart about motherhood, and the loss and growth that accompanies it. A sense of regret is absent from Kenelly’s collection, opting instead for lessons learned and defiance in the face of negativity.Kennelly offers a book of poetry described as 'deceptively simple'; there are no tricky difficulties in which to drown the reader. Touching on a range of bittersweet themes,Catching Bats Takes Patience explores with uncompromising honesty the complexities of life in a beguilingly direct tone.

The Weinstein affair in Hollywood has grabbed the headlines for months. Controlling behavior, particularly of men towards women, is far more common in all walks of life than we have been led to believe.In this easy-to-read guide, best-selling author Don Hennessy offers advice to all those dealing with violent or controlling behavior in their own lives, based on his experience of dealing with hundreds of such people in a therapeutic setting. Most important, he explains to the reader how they can throw off the shackles and live lives free from fear and intimidation.

Hyper-aware Denny, a young American in Dublin, makes his tentative way towards adulthood with a supporting cast of oddball friends. Denny hopes for a big love, the 'girl named Ireland'. Akin to a Joycean ramble, Oh When the Saints follows a sensitive boy on the reluctant verge of manhood, who cannot help endlessly analyzing his own - and others' - place in the stream of life. His heart is ‘a sack of air’ until he meets a trainee librarian with ambitions to be wild. This is a strange, elliptical novel of ideas, told in punchy, poetic prose; Peter Money's is a vivid, fresh and welcome voice.

Insights into how to live a better life, based on the author's experiences of staying in a unique hotel in Singapore.

"Violence remains preventable, not inevitable." So says Dr. Hans Henri P. Kluge, the WHO Regional Director for Europe. Dr. Kluge has called for more action to be taken in every country that has seen a surge in domestic violence during the coronavirus pandemic. If steps are not taken, the world could see 31 million cases of gender-based violence, he warned. This stark warning is an indictment of our failure, in Europe and elsewhere, to reduce the level of male intimate abuse, in spite of the extraordinary energy and dedication of thousands of practitioners and academics. In this challenging book, Don Hennessy examines our practices and procedures, our attitudes and our beliefs. He demonstrates how we have made few inroads in this area - either into the prevalence of male intimate abuse, or in relation to the tactics that support the ability of the male intimate abuser to establish and maintain his control. It is vital that all agencies, both statutory and non-governmental, recognize that we need to change our position from one of support to one of protection. The protection that Hennessy promotes is not that of the physical refuge alone, but the mental safeguard which will allow each target woman to follow her own intuition. How He Wins is essential reading for any woman who has been the target of such abuse and has found herself abandoned by the community.

Barney McKenna – “Banjo Barney from Donnycarney” – was one of the founder-members of the Dubliners, the world-famous Irish folk musicians and singers who in 2002 celebrated forty years on the road as a band. For Dubliners fans, Barney’s name immediately conjures up the image of the burly, bearded banjo genius whodazzled the audience with his virtuosity while charming them with his folksy, no-nonsense personality. However, Barney was also well known for another reason: he was capable of bringing any conversation to a sudden stop by uttering something so completely unexpected, and at the same time so incomprehensible, as to reduceeveryone present to a bemused silence. These surreal verbal gems, collected in this book, have become known simply as “Barneyisms”.