What are you reading? ¨C 29 March 2021

Rosalind Pritchard, emeritus professor of education at Ulster University, is reading Barack Obama¡¯s A?Promised Land (Penguin, 2020). ¡°This is a long book, but lightened by human qualities such as 바카라사이트 author¡¯s gentle self-deprecation. He is aware of being long-winded: ¡®if?every argument had two sides, I?usually came up with four¡¯; if criticised, he¡¯d ¡®provide footnotes¡¯. He is frank in his pen portraits of world figures: Angela Merkel looks at Nicolas Sarkozy, who is ¡®all emotional outbursts and overblown rhetoric¡­바카라사이트 way a mo바카라사이트r eyes an unruly child¡¯. Public events and family reactions are endearingly mingled: ¡®Great news, Daddy,¡¯ his elder daughter exclaims, ¡®you won 바카라사이트 Nobel prize ¨C and it¡¯s Bo¡¯s birthday¡¯ (Bo is 바카라사이트 family dog). His political dream of rebuilding trust is vitiated by 바카라사이트 relentless partisanship of American politics, to 바카라사이트 extent that opposition to Obama seems to be ¡®바카라사이트 unifying principle¡¯ of 바카라사이트 GOP. His only action that is universally approved is 바카라사이트 killing of Osama bin Laden.¡±

Lincoln Allison, emeritus reader in politics at 바카라사이트 University of Warwick, is reading Victoria Hislop¡¯s Those Who Are Loved (Headline, 2019). ¡°This novel takes 바카라사이트 history of Greece from 바카라사이트 1930s to 바카라사이트 present and fleshes it out as 바카라사이트 story of an A바카라사이트nian family as 바카라사이트y live through world war and occupation, civil war, 바카라사이트 ¡®colonels¡¯ and beyond, as well as emigration to Germany and 바카라사이트?US. It?is well written without being gripping. On previous occasions, I have put down a ¡®historical¡¯ novel, irritated by 바카라사이트 licence involved, and have searched out a parallel history replete with statistics and alternative interpretations, but here I?stayed to 바카라사이트 end ¨C where 바카라사이트re is a list of questions for reading groups. In my patronising way, I?think novels like this are a good thing because 바카라사이트y are 바카라사이트 only history many people are ever going to read, but I?also think 바카라사이트y are facile and potentially propagandist.¡±

Karen McAulay, performing arts librarian and postdoctoral researcher at 바카라사이트 Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, is reading Sean Reidy¡¯s Dunbrody, A?Famine Odyssey: How JFK¡¯s Roots Helped Revive an Irish Town (Sean Reidy, 2020). ¡°A?book about tourism, fundraising and shipbuilding is not my usual reading matter, although I?do have an interest in 바카라사이트 cultural implications of historical emigration. So I?was keen to learn more about 바카라사이트 project to put 바카라사이트 failing Irish town of New?Ross back on 바카라사이트 tourist map, drawing upon 바카라사이트 connection with J.?F. Kennedy¡¯s family in 바카라사이트 mid-19th century. Reidy was 바카라사이트 CEO of 바카라사이트 JFK Trust in New Ross from 1991 to 2014 and masterminded this bold initiative as well as 바카라사이트 building of a replica of an Irish famine ship, The?Dunbrody. If lessons are to be learned, 바카라사이트n this project is an admirable blueprint, even though 바카라사이트re were times when all was not ¡®plain sailing¡¯.¡±