Chapter 11 - Lion of Ireland

Happy St. Patrick's Day! This is a day celebrated here in the United States by people who wish they were Irish. Just kidding! Really it is estimated that 32 million people in the US claim some type of Irish ancestry. So it makes sense that it is a big day of celebration here with parades, bar hops, and indulging in Guinness, Harp, and, my favorite, corned beef and cabbage. Cities like New York, Chicago, and Savannah have been known to dedicate whole weekends to the celebration even if St. Patrick's Day is not on a weekend.

But do the Irish celebrate St. Patrick's Day and, if so, how? According to the Irish Post, St. Patrick's Day is a national holiday and most people start with a large breakfast. This is because it is not only a day to sleep in but also a good way to load up on food for the beverages to be consumed later. A special St. Patrick's Day Mass is then held usually with choirs of children singing in Irish. Then on to the parades... While Dublin has the largest St. Patrick's Day parade in Ireland (about 500,000 people expected) other towns and villages have their parades too. A trip to a pub would complete the celebrations but because the pubs are so crowded on this special day, drinking in the streets is allowed. Since this seems to go on all night, many people take vacation the next day to avoid going to work with a hangover.

So if you can't visit any of the places where St. Patrick's Day is celebrated with such vigor, here are some Irish authors who will at least take you back to "the auld sod".

Frank Delaney - Frank Delaney started as a journalist then evolved into one of the best Irish storytellers of his time. His novels include Ireland, Tipperary, Shannon and a host of other Ireland based novels. He wrote a lot of nonfiction as well some of which was adapted into series.

Maeve Binchy - Maeve Binchy is another of Ireland's best known and loved novelists. Her novels usually revolve around small town life in Ireland. Binchy also started as a journalist but realized that she was more interested in what motivated the people she reported on than the actual events themselves. She wrote 16 novels starting with Light A Penny Candle. Many of her novels have become movies.

Cecilia Ahern - Cecilia Ahern is a younger Irish novelist who was born in Dublin. She is best known for her debut novel P.S. I Love You written when she was 21. This was later adapted into a movie. With 18 books to her name, I'm sure you could find something to suit.

Tana French - Tana French is the author of The Dublin Murder Squad series of which there are six. She is a writer and a theatrical actress. French's debut novel In The Woods was a psychological mystery which won many awards. She has been named the first lady of Irish crime.

Morgan Llywelyn - Morgan Llywelyn is an author of historical and mythological fiction as well as historical non-fiction. Her group of novels called Irish Century books tell the story of the evolution of Ireland from the 1916 Rebellion to 1999 and while novels give the reader a good understanding of the issues around the split between Northern and Southern Ireland (The Republic of Ireland).

Do you have a favorite Irish author to recommend? Let me know.