The Fields of Athenry: A Journey Through Ireland

by James Charles Roy

Book Overview

In The Fields of Athenry, James Charles Roy leads us through the Irish past and present with the central theme of his own personal experience with the renovation of a run-down castle -- really a crumbled tower -- that he purchased more than thirty years ago. Moyode Castle, located near the County Galway market town of Athenry, was built in the sixteenth century by the Dolphins, an Irish-speaking family directly descended from French-speaking...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0813340667
• ISBN13: 9780813340661
• Release Date: June 2003
• Publisher: Basic Books
• Length: 346 Pages
• Weight: 0.95 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 6.0" x 9.1"

Customer Reviews

"Sharp-tongued Irish women can draw blood from a stone." ..Walter (not James) Joyce

I recently came across this book ,published in 2001,and what a wonderful surprise it is. There were two things that drew me to this book when I saw it. First,I spent an afternoon at my son in law's uncle's home a few years ago. He is a senior farmer who still farms ,lives in thatched roof cottage about 3 miles from the site of Moyden Castle .Smack dab in the middle of the Fields of Athenry, and one can see a similar castle from his front door,a mile or so away.It is one of my most memorable ,of many,memories of Ireland.The second reason is that the song "The Fields of Athenry" is one of my favorites. It was composed by Pete St.John,and has been recorder by thousands. It ranks right up there with "Danny Boy".My favorite version is by Paddy Reilly. A search on the web has much interesting things including the music and lyrics. By lonely prison walls I heard a young girl calling Michael,they have taken you away For stealing Trevelyn's corn So the young might see the morn. Now a prison ship lies waiting in the bay. Low lie the Fields of Athenry, Where once we saw the small free birds fly. Our love was on the wing, We had dreams and songs to sing. It's so lonely 'round the Fields of Athenry. Roy has done a masterful job in taking his experiences of nearly 40 years of finding an abandoned castle,built in 1550,obtaining ownership and restoring it to livable conditions. while telling of all his experiences,love of Ireland,its people and its cultures;he at the same time, outlines the history of Ireland and particularly that around Athenry and Galway.He is a gifted writer and while combining these two different themes;he is able to keep them separated. It is little wonder that he has done such a teriffic job with his book,when you consider most books like this are done with only a few years experience, Roy put over 40 years of his heart and soul into this book;and it shows. When one lives in a country like Canada where our history is only a couple of hundred years old,history really doesnt't have much to do with our daily lives or even our culture.However,with Ireland,one cannot get away from the tumultuous history this country has gone through for literaslly thousands of years. No matter where you go in Ireland ,history is right there before your eyes.For example ,a few years ago ,I spent a week in Galway,and yes ,watched the "Sun Go Down On Galway Bay".One rainy morning,not fit for man or beast,I took a stroll in an ancient graveyard in the middle og Galway. To my amazement I ran into a wonderful old gent who is on the restoration committee and he showed me a plaque dedicated to about 200 sailors who were shipwreked off the coast.They were from the Spanish Armada, and the British murdered them all and buried them in a common pit in this graveyard.There had been a monastary and a church on this site which the British had destroyed. The monks were li

I Enjoyed This Book Immensely!

I appreciate James Roy's style of writing in which the past is so cleanly entwined with the present. This book takes the reader on a short journey through Ireland's tumultuous history and brings it all to life in the lives and characters of the real people of Galway. I was looking for a book that would not gloss over Ireland like a tourist guide and I found one in The Fields of Athenry. I am looking forward to reading Mr. Roy's other works! Now if I could just come up with enough money to buy me a castle... :-)

Entertaining work of Personal and Irish History

Mr. Roy's work is really two books in one -- a history of Ireland and its relationship with its Englsih invaders, and the personal story of how he bought a castle and restored it. Mr. Roy weaves the two stories together in alternating chapters, and does so with great skill. The Irish history is sound, concise, and informative -- Mr. Roy explains how the Norman invaders became co-opted by their Irish subjects and how running through the whole complicated skein of Irish history is the story of the great, but quarrelsome Irish families -- The O'Connors, O'Briens, Burkes, and Fitzgeralds. This focus provides a great deal of clarity to understanding the history of the Island. The story of Moyode Castle (Roy's personal story)is also fascinating, especially in detailing how the Irish accept this "foreigner" among them and how Mr. Roy comes to know and appreciate the local Irish culture. The book has many amusing tales of his encounters, although it is a little wistful, because he realizes that the Ireland he celebrates is gradually being lost to history. Well worth reading, particularly if you are looking to travel in rural Ireland, or ever hoped to buy a castle.

The Fields of Athenry

This author has an extrodinary talent, though he say's he's not Irish, to weave a tale of some of the most telling lore of Irish history with his ambitious effort (and the amusing stories that go with it)of restoring an ancient Castle in a town seemingly forgotten by history. All of Irelands real charactors of history are here and Mr. Roy does an excellent job of bringing them to our midst again, sometimes no matter how tragic or enlightening that may be. An excellent read from a very studied author.

Ireland, and a journey

I really enjoyed Mr.Roy's account of his travels and travails in Ireland. He is a gifted writer, the flow of thoughts coupled with his good humor was irresistable. Opportunity to get in some history painlessley makes the book very rare! Good read!