A Westmeath Christmas (2022)

TOPIC • December 8, 2022
A Westmeath Christmas 9
– that’s just perfect!
2. A Guest at the Feast by
Colm Tóibín
This book uncovers the places where
politics and poetics meet, where life and
fiction overlap, where one can be inside
writing and also outside of it.
From the melancholy and amusement
within the work of the writer John
McGahern to an extraordinary essay on
his own cancer diagnosis, Tóibín
delineates the bleakness and strangeness
of life and also its richness and its
complexity. The imprint of the written
word on the private self, as Tóibín himself
remarks, is extraordinarily powerful. In
this collection, that power is gloriously
alive, illuminating history and literature,
politics and power, family and the self.
3. Nonfiction: What We
Owe the Future by
William MacAskill
A guide for making the future go better.
Humanity’s written history spans only
five thousand years. Our yet-unwritten
future could last for millions more; or it
could end tomorrow. Staggering numbers
of people will lead fluorishing lives or
lives of misery, or never live at all,
depending on what we do today.
4. International History:
The World by
Simon Sebag
Montefiore
In this epic, eversurprising
book,
Montefiore chronicles the
world’s great dynasties
across human history
through palace intrigues,
love affairs, and family
lives, linking grand
themes of war, migration,
plague, religion, and
technology to the people
at the heart of the human
drama. A dazzling
achievement as
spellbinding as
fiction, this
book captures the whole
human story in a single,
masterful narrative.
5. Irish History:
The Irish Civil War in
Colour by Michael B.
Barry and John O'Byrne
Here is the story of Ireland’s Civil War
in colour – a defining moment in Irish
history brought to life for the first time in
hand-coloured photographs. The events of
1922–1923 are revealed using photographs
painstakingly hand-coloured by John
O’Byrne. Many of these photographs,
carefully selected from archives and
private collections, have never been
published before. If you want a better
understanding of the story of the Irish
Civil War, this is the book for you.
6. Ideal Interest: Listen to
the Land Speak by
Manchán Magan
Another Westmeath resident makes it to
our Top 10 list as Collinstown
resident
Manchán
Magan writes
about our
ancestors who
lived in a
unique and
complex
society,
inspired by
nature and
centred upon
esteemed
poets, seers,
monks, healers
and wise
women, all of
whom were
deeply
connected to
the land around
them. With
infectious joy and wonder, Manchán
Magan roams through Ireland’s ancient
bogs, rivers, mountains and shorelines,
tracing our ancestors’ footsteps. A
magical and
reinvigorating
exploration into the
wisdom that lies
beneath us, Listen to the
Land Speak casts the
world in a new light.
7. Sport: Kellie
by Kellie
Harrington
with Roddy
Doyle
Kellie Harrington
grew up in Dublin's
north inner city and
was in danger of going
down the wrong path in
life before she
discovered boxing. Her
development into an
elite boxer was confirmed with medals at
the 2016 and 2018 world championships,
and crowned with a gold medal at the
Tokyo Olympics in 2021. Working with
Booker Prize-winning author Roddy
Doyle, Kellie tells the story of her
sometimes troubled childhood, her
unlikely rise to greatness, and her
continuing commitment to living a
normal life.
8. Children’s
Gift (0-6):
What the
Ladybird
Heard at
Christmas by
Julia
Donaldson
and Lydia
Monks
Packed full of fun,
this lovely children’s
book is a
fantastically lively
rhyming adventure
from the bestselling picture book
partnership of Julia Donaldson and Lydia
Monks.
9. Children’s Gift (7-12):
Girls Who Slay Monsters
by Ellen Ryan and Shona
Shirley MacDonald
This book highlights unsung stories
from ancient Irish myths re-imagined for
Just Books
Fantastic selection to suit
all ages and interests
Book tokens and gift
vouchers available
nine to twelve-year olds. From mermaids
and fashionistas to athletes and farmers,
meet goddesses of all shapes and sizes
from Ireland's ancient myths. Stand by
their sides as they wield magic, fight
monsters, and protect the powerless – and
you might discover that you, too, are a
force of nature.
10. Children’s Gift (7-12):
What Makes Us Human
by Luke O’Neill
What do you have in common with the
7.75 billion other people on the planet?
This is the question that Professor Luke
O'Neill attempts to answer in this exciting
new book for young readers. Starting with
the origin of life, Professor Luke explores
what makes us interesting as a species,
why we sleep, laugh and enjoy music, and
our efforts to stop disease. What Makes Us
Human is the perfect book for curious
minds.
Pearse Street, Mullingar
044 933 2969
Email: justbooksmullingar12@gmail.com
www.justbooksmullingar.com