Showing all 13 resultsSorted by price: low to high
Does the modern festival of Halloween, with its traditions of flying witches, games of chance and haunted by ghosts, have its roots in the Stone Age?
Researcher Padraig Meehan explores the possibility that the turning points marking seasonal change were intentionally marked in the central monument at the Carrowmore passage tomb complex in County Sligo.
Do you know what a Brideóg is? Why are lone hawthorns unlucky? What does it mean to ‘drown the shamrock’? From the author of The Irish Cottage comes a new book, exploring old Irish customs and beliefs. Chapters focus on the quarter-day festivities that marked the commencement of each season: ‘Spring: Imbolc’; ‘Summer: Bealtaine’; ‘Autumn: Lughnasa’ and ‘Winter: Samhain’, and also major life events — ‘Births, Marriages and Death Customs’ — and general beliefs in ‘Spirituality and Well-Being’ and ‘The Supernatural’. Focusing on the period from the mid-nineteenth to the mid-twentieth centuries, Irish Customs and Rituals discusses a time during which many of the practices and beliefs in question went into decline. Many of these customs were rooted in residual pre-Christian beliefs that ran parallel to, and in spite of, conventional religion practised in the country. Some customs were so deep-rooted that despite continued disapproval from the Roman Catholic Church they remain with us today. It is wonderful to see so many traditions still with us, as many are worthwhile remembering, commemorating, or even reviving today. Irish Customs and Rituals will appeal to all those with an interest in Irish history, folklore, culture and social history.
Sara and Marcus hide in forests and abandoned houses, fighting to survive extreme weather events and the violent gangs that hunt for people and resources. Both are parents but only Sara has hope that her children are still alive.
When she realises she needs Marcus’ help to find her family, their journey becomes fraught with complication. A brief encounter with a pregnant woman changes everything as she grapples with the complex nature of risk and the reliability of her own instincts.
As she moves through the shadows, Sara discovers that fear can deliver freedom, love transcends loss and to kill means to live another day.
“Wrenchingly brutal and infused with hope, this novel is a timely, visceral reminder to take nothing that is dear to us for granted.”
~ Kate Winter
“Suspenseful and tense, Charleton narrates a story of loss and survival and the persistence of community. Urgent, tender and terrifyingly close to home, it is impossible to put down.”
~ Una Mannion
“The suspense had me on edge from the start. Absolutely gripping, had me hooked”
~ Patience Dube
At Havin’ a Laugh we are delighted that ‘The Book’ is finally here.
It all started when a group of people who met for a Havin’ A Laugh coffee morning began telling each other funny stories, a book was suggested, and now nine months later we are delighted to be able to share our first book with you!
The Book is a collection of great stories, jokes, poems, art and imagery that will inspire and delight. It’s a wonderful book that you can easily dip in and out of and it would also make a wonderful gift.
All of the amazing content in The Book was submitted by people from Sligo, Leitrim and beyond between the ages of 6 and 94 and proceeds from sales will go directly towards providing life-enhancing activity vouchers for those in mental health recovery.
Reading the Sea – watch waves, move with the tides, understand rips and currents, getting to know the sea and your limits. What the Sea Does for Us – appreciate the food, feel-good factors, and even medicines that the sea has to offer. Plus learn about its fundamental role in climate control.
We are Ocean – explore the multi-sensory environment the sea has to offer. The Power of the Sea to Heal – from seaweed and ocean plasma to social change and ocean therapy. The Sea is Calling – try your hand at beach combing, wave play, rockpooling, bird watching, searching for jellyfish and bioluminescence and swimming in the sea.
She left to find freedom, only to discover everything she needed was waiting at home.
At seventeen, Colette Keogh wants nothing more than to escape. Escape the family farm in the west of Ireland. Escape her mother’s criticism. Escape a future that feels like it’s already been written. But when her father suffers a stroke, her plans turn to dust. School is over. The city must wait. The farm – and her family – need her now.
Then Robbie enters her life. Kind, steady and nothing like the boys she’s known before, Robbie makes Colette feels seen for the first time. But one tragic decision and a wave of grief upend everything. Robbie is gone, and Colette is left to navigate a life she no longer recognises.
A move to Dublin promises the glamour Colette longs for, but the reality is far from what she imagined. And when a new friendship reignites her connection to the land, Colette begins to wonder if the life she ran from was the one she was meant to build all along.
Hiding from the Heart is a tender, emotionally rich story of first love, family duty and the quiet power of coming home.
Only love will save us … Tara Leonard returns after seven years abroad as a humanitarian aid worker to the island where she grew up on the northwest coast of Sligo. Having fled Creevy Island after a wounding marital breakup, she is back only to finalise her divorce. But as her stay on Creevy unexpectedly lengthens, events build to a dangerous reckoning where every ounce of her resourcefulness is tested.
Cormac Carty lived on the island from 1945 till 1953 and his memories of those simpler times have now been printed posthumously, following Cormac’s death.
The book is almost like a collection of short stories which covers everything from starting school to journeys on a horse from the island to Knocknarea or bringing cattle to the fair.
Normally, bringing cattle would be a straightforward operation but bringing cows from Coney Island to a fair was nothing short of a very dangerous task.”
“Back then it (the island) was completely isolated and Cormac would have gone into Sligo town once a week to do the shopping and selling things he would have picked ‘The Champion’ up and without fail from cover to cover it would be read out and everyone would be listening for all the news.”
The true story of the murder of three Irish-born Police Officers by the infamous Australian Bushranger, Edward ‘Ned’ Kelly, in Victoria, Australia, on the 26th October 1878.
The work of over a hundred stone carvers is analysed here for the first time, over seventy of them identified by signature or initials.
Richly illustrated, this book is a valuable resource not just for the people of Roscommon but a template for memorial study in other counties.