Monday, November 09, 2020

THE PRINCES OF IRELAND


The Princes of Ireland, Edward Rutherfurd, Doubleday, 2004, 765 pp


I attempted to read this historical fiction set in early Ireland years ago when we traveled to the country. Though it is like Rutherfurd's other books as well as like Michener's, in that it follows certain families through the generations, I just could not grasp it. It seemed like too much work.

Early in September I decided to read the biography of WB Yeats I bought last year when I was reading his collected poems. Starting the biography I realized Yeats's life was very much tied up with political events during the years he was writing and though I have read quite a bit of Irish fiction I still have confusions about those conflicts.

I still had The Princes of Ireland on my shelves so I gave it another try. My experience of reading The Thrall's Tale gave me a more determined approach and I found Rutherfurd's book less daunting. He provides maps and family trees. Perhaps I have become a better reader too!

I learned much of what I needed to know. Even though I had pored over maps before our trip there, I got a  better idea of the geography. I learned about the early years (400 AD) when the island's people were Celtic, arranged in families, clans and tribes and divided into five kingdoms, each with it own king. 

Later came the Vikings, then the English and the French. St Patrick brought Christianity which gradually overtook the ancient religions, gods and spirits. The monks of Ireland are included in the book and some of those characters were the ones who kept the written scriptures from falling away during the Medieval centuries. 

By 1533, the English were well ensconced as traders and financial leaders especially in Dublin. The Catholic Church and the Pope were in charge of religion but the Irish people, even those who intermarried with both the Vikings and the English, maintained certain differences and an individualism recalled in their poetry, songs, tales and monuments. 

The book ends with a revolt against the English, rather a cliff hanger. There is a volume two in The Dublin Saga, entitled The Rebels of Ireland, which will take me to 1914. Since Yeats was born in 1865, I should be in better shape to understand his life and times.

28 comments:

  1. interesting stuff; i read at least one of his books some years ago and liked it pretty well. i think it was at the end of a Michener mania and i got tired of doorstop books, so didn't carry on... maybe it's time to restart the magnum opus engine, haha...

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    1. At the beginning of this year, I decided I was going to read as many doorstoppers as I could from the piles I had collected but then avoided. It has been glorious. As a younger woman, I loved long books and that love affair has been rekindled. I wish you well!

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  2. I've never tried reading any of Rutherford's novels. I've thought about reading his novel Russka, about Russia, but haven't made the attempt yet.

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    1. Oh my goodness, Ruska has been my favorite one! Just do it!!

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  3. Edward Rutherfurd scares me. I have been hesitating to read his massive book on Paris

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    1. I want to read Paris too. But the massive size of his books is scary!

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  4. This sounds fascinating. I love such histories. Maps and family trees are very cool. I found that there were books that I started when young that I was not ready for. But t I have become a better reader too.

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    1. You know, Brian, it is all about becoming a better reader! And we are doing that because we keep reading.

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  5. I really do want to read Rutherfurd's books but I am yet to try one. His way of story telling really appeals to me but I am intimidated by the size. If you have read a few of his books, which is your favorite?

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    1. My favorite so far is Ruska. His books are long but not hard to read.

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  6. I loved Paris, the novel by Rutherford, it was great! Not too long, and I am a slow reader.

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    1. Thanks for commenting!! Yes, I want to read Paris soon. I know you read it before you went to Paris, right? His books are better than travelogues for the history and for understanding the people of a country or city.

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  7. Sounds like a fun LONG read! I'll be reading the first book in an Irish series by Morgan Llywelyn next year but starting much later in time. They are:

    1. 1916 (1998)
    2. 1921 (2001)
    3. 1949 (2003)
    4. 1972 (2005)
    5. 1999 (2008)

    She's also written several series on ancient Ireland too.

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    1. I just looked up Morgan Llywelyn and she looks like an author I need to read! Thanks.

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  8. I've read and enjoyed all of Edward Rutherfurd's books and I remember finding this one particularly interesting, because I knew so little about the history of Ireland. I hope you like the second volume!

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    1. I think he did an excellent job on that early Irish history. I am sure I will like the second volume.

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  9. When I saw your review, I knew I had read something by Rutherford. I just couldn't remember what, so I looked up his list of books and it all came back to me: Sarum! It was all about Stonehenge and Salisbury and it took the reader from the Ice Age to modern times. It was an amazing work. It sounds like this is very much in that tradition.

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    1. I thought I had read Sarum too, but can find no record of having done so and I have kept pretty good records since 1990. I have read Ruska and loved it. Sarum will be sometime soon for me. Like Michener he has a format and his characters tell the story.

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  10. I got back from the library just now and one of the books I picked up was a daunting size - huge! Well done for making it through. Cheers

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    1. You know, I love long novels. Especially when they are good!

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  11. I think I read your post a couple days ago then missed leaving a comment. I have not read Rutherfurd (a pen name?) before but I know he writes these big historical sagas like Michener .... does he follow separate families or one? I'm thinking Vol. 2 will interest you more .... does he have a 3rd one in this Dublin series? I've seen his Paris book ... perhaps there is much to learn in his tomes.

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    1. As far as I know, Rutherfurd is his actual name. He follows the descendants of a few families and as they intermarry a few more come in. There is only one more volume and yes I think it will be more interesting as regards present time in Ireland/how it got that way. But I am glad I read the first because it is all one stream of history. There is much to learn in his books. It is lighter reading than history but I think his research is sound and having the families and individual experiences helps bring the dates and facts to life.

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