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World » Europe » Ireland

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Our experts have chosen the best books on Ireland and the history of the Irish people. Whatever book you're looking for—whether books about the history of Ireland, or books by Irish writers—we've got you covered.

We have some leading Irish authors such as Samuel Beckett, James Joyce, Bram Stoker, and Oscar Wilde, as well as history from the Celts and St Patrick to modern Irish history. We also have interviews exploring key issues such as Irish Unionism and the Troubles.

    The Best Samuel Beckett Books, recommended by Mark Nixon

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    The Best Samuel Beckett Books - Damned to Fame: The Life of Samuel Beckett by James Knowlson

    1

    Damned to Fame: The Life of Samuel Beckett
    by James Knowlson

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    The Best Samuel Beckett Books - Samuel Beckett's Library by Dirk Van Hulle & Mark Nixon

    2

    Samuel Beckett's Library
    by Dirk Van Hulle & Mark Nixon

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    The Best Samuel Beckett Books - Watt by Samuel Beckett

    3

    Watt
    by Samuel Beckett

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    The Best Samuel Beckett Books - Krapp's Last Tape and Other Shorter Plays by Samuel Beckett

    4

    Krapp's Last Tape and Other Shorter Plays
    by Samuel Beckett

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    The Best Samuel Beckett Books - Worstward Ho by Samuel Beckett

    5

    Worstward Ho
    by Samuel Beckett

The Best Samuel Beckett Books, recommended by Mark Nixon

Samuel Beckett remains one of the most significant writers of the twentieth century. Ruthlessly experimental, his plays, novels, and poems represent a sustained attack on the realist tradition. Dr Mark Nixon looks at the mutating nature of Beckett’s literary style and explains why he didn’t choose Waiting for Godot.

    The best books on Irish Unionism, recommended by Murray Pittock

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    The best books on Irish Unionism - The Identity of Ulster: The Land, the Language and the People by Ian Adamson

    1

    The Identity of Ulster: The Land, the Language and the People
    by Ian Adamson

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    The best books on Irish Unionism - Irish Unionism by Patrick Buckland

    2

    Irish Unionism
    by Patrick Buckland

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    The best books on Irish Unionism - The Faithful Tribe: An Intimate Portrait of the Loyal Institutions by Ruth Dudley Edwards

    3

    The Faithful Tribe: An Intimate Portrait of the Loyal Institutions
    by Ruth Dudley Edwards

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    The best books on Irish Unionism - Home Rule: An Irish History 1800-2000 by Alvin Jackson

    4

    Home Rule: An Irish History 1800-2000
    by Alvin Jackson

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    The best books on Irish Unionism - The Orange Order: A Contemporary Northern Irish History by Eric Kaufmann

    5

    The Orange Order: A Contemporary Northern Irish History
    by Eric Kaufmann

The best books on Irish Unionism, recommended by Murray Pittock

As is the norm in many countries with proportional representation, the United Kingdom’s government depends on a small political party to stay in power. Who are the Irish unionists? What is the ideology that guides them? Historian and pro-vice principal of Glasgow University, Murray Pittock, recommends the best books to read to better understand Irish unionism.

    The best books on Oscar Wilde, recommended by Sos Eltis

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    The best books on Oscar Wilde - The Soul of Man Under Socialism by Oscar Wilde

    1

    The Soul of Man Under Socialism
    by Oscar Wilde

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    The best books on Oscar Wilde - The Importance of Being Earnest and Other Plays by Oscar Wilde

    2

    The Importance of Being Earnest and Other Plays
    by Oscar Wilde

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    The best books on Oscar Wilde - The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde

    3

    The Picture of Dorian Gray
    by Oscar Wilde

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    The best books on Oscar Wilde - The Complete Short Stories by Oscar Wilde

    4

    The Complete Short Stories
    by Oscar Wilde

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    The best books on Oscar Wilde - De Profundis by Oscar Wilde

    5

    De Profundis
    by Oscar Wilde

The best books on Oscar Wilde, recommended by Sos Eltis

Oscar Wilde cultivated an image of himself as an idle genius, dashing off masterpieces with a lazy brilliance. But below the glittering linguistic surface of his works, suggests Sos Eltis, lies an anarchic politics and a phenomenal analysis of power.

    The best books on Modern Irish History, recommended by Richard Bourke

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    The best books on Modern Irish History - A Portrait of the Artist As a Young Man by James Joyce

    1

    A Portrait of the Artist As a Young Man
    by James Joyce

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    The best books on Modern Irish History - Modern Ireland: 1600-1972 by Roy Foster

    2

    Modern Ireland: 1600-1972
    by Roy Foster

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    The best books on Modern Irish History - War and an Irish Town by Eamonn McCann

    3

    War and an Irish Town
    by Eamonn McCann

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    The best books on Modern Irish History - States of Ireland by Conor Cruise O’Brien

    4

    States of Ireland
    by Conor Cruise O’Brien

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    The best books on Modern Irish History - Celtic Revivals: Essays in Modern Irish Literature by Seamus Deane

    5

    Celtic Revivals: Essays in Modern Irish Literature
    by Seamus Deane

The best books on Modern Irish History, recommended by Richard Bourke

A “powerful and aggravating absence of consensus” came to define the Irish political experience, says the historian Richard Bourke. Here he picks the best books for gaining a range of perspectives on Irish history, singling out James Joyce as offering insight into the divergence of nationalist opinion.

    The best books on The Troubles, recommended by Timothy Knatchbull

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    The best books on The Troubles - Armed Struggle by Richard English

    1

    Armed Struggle
    by Richard English

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    The best books on The Troubles - Lost Lives by David McKittrick

    2

    Lost Lives
    by David McKittrick

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    The best books on The Troubles - Blood-Dark Track by Joseph O’Neill

    3

    Blood-Dark Track
    by Joseph O’Neill

  • Read
    The best books on The Troubles - Killing Rage by Eamon Collins with Mick McGovern

    4

    Killing Rage
    by Eamon Collins with Mick McGovern

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    The best books on The Troubles - The Beginning of the End by Walter Ellis

    5

    The Beginning of the End
    by Walter Ellis

The best books on The Troubles, recommended by Timothy Knatchbull

In August 1979, Timothy Knatchbull and his family went out in a boat off the coast of Ireland. Neither his grandparents or his twin brother would return from the IRA bomb attack that shocked Britain and the world. Here he talks about books that helped him better understand ‘the Troubles,’ and his own book, From a Clear Blue Sky, about his own journey to come to terms with that happened that bank holiday weekend.

    The best books on The Narrative of Irish History, recommended by Josephine Hart

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    The best books on The Narrative of Irish History - A Secret History of the IRA by Ed Moloney

    1

    A Secret History of the IRA
    by Ed Moloney

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    The best books on The Narrative of Irish History - Political Writings and Speeches by Patrick Pearse

    2

    Political Writings and Speeches
    by Patrick Pearse

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    The best books on The Narrative of Irish History - Speeches from the Dock or Protests of Irish Patriotism by A M Sullivan

    3

    Speeches from the Dock or Protests of Irish Patriotism
    by A M Sullivan

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    The best books on The Narrative of Irish History - Irish Secrets by Mark M Hull

    4

    Irish Secrets
    by Mark M Hull

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    The best books on The Narrative of Irish History - The Irish Story by Roy Foster

    5

    The Irish Story
    by Roy Foster

The best books on The Narrative of Irish History, recommended by Josephine Hart

The bestselling Irish novelist and author of Damage selects five books to help us understand the narrative of Irish history. She argues that “the permanent narrative of victimhood is not quite accurate”

    The best books on The Celts, recommended by Simon Young

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    The best books on The Celts - The Celts by Barry Cunliffe

    1

    The Celts
    by Barry Cunliffe

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    The best books on The Celts - In Search of the Dark Ages by Michael Wood

    2

    In Search of the Dark Ages
    by Michael Wood

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    The best books on The Celts - Concepts of Arthur by Tom Green

    3

    Concepts of Arthur
    by Tom Green

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    The best books on The Celts - The Trials of Arthur by Arthur Pendragon and Chris James

    4

    The Trials of Arthur
    by Arthur Pendragon and Chris James

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    The best books on The Celts - Life of St Columba by Adomnan of Iona & Richard Sharpe

    5

    Life of St Columba
    by Adomnan of Iona & Richard Sharpe

The best books on The Celts, recommended by Simon Young

Writer and Dark Age historian delves into five books on Celtic history, and talks about the challenge of separating history from legend. One priority for any Dark Age historian, he says, is “to avoid these awful bogs”

    The best books on Early Irish History, recommended by Hector McDonnell

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    The best books on Early Irish History - Fairy Legends from Donegal by Seán Ó hEochaidh

    1

    Fairy Legends from Donegal
    by Seán Ó hEochaidh

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    The best books on Early Irish History - The Mind in the Cave by David Lewis-Williams

    2

    The Mind in the Cave
    by David Lewis-Williams

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    The best books on Early Irish History - Ten Thousand Saints by Hubert Butler

    3

    Ten Thousand Saints
    by Hubert Butler

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    The best books on Early Irish History - Decoding the Heavens: Solving the Mystery of the World's First Computer by Jo Marchant

    4

    Decoding the Heavens: Solving the Mystery of the World's First Computer
    by Jo Marchant

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    The best books on Early Irish History - The Book of Letters of Saint Patrick The Bishop by D. R. Howlett

    5

    The Book of Letters of Saint Patrick The Bishop
    by D. R. Howlett

The best books on Early Irish History, recommended by Hector McDonnell

One of Ireland’s best-known contemporary painters discusses five books on early Irish history and explains that the myriad of oddly named and often eccentric Irish saints are in fact mythical ancestors or local gods

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We ask experts to recommend the five best books in their subject and explain their selection in an interview.

This site has an archive of more than one thousand interviews, or five thousand book recommendations. We publish at least two new interviews per week.

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