What I Read -- Ireland (Part I) and McCarthy's Bar

As is my habit, I wanted to read a book either about or set in Ireland during S's and my recent trip there.  As it was a bit of a last-minute holiday adventure, I didn't have a lot of time to peruse the variety of options available, and instead had to go for whatever I had on my shelves.  Lucky for me, I found two:

First up was a lovely reminder of last summer's trip with K&J to London and Edinburgh.  At the conclusion of S's bookshop tour, we popped into the doubly charming shared space of Typewronger Books and McNaughtan's Bookshop & Gallery.  While in McNaughtan's, I found one volume of a two-volume 1892 pair of travel books about the Emerald Isle and acquired it for the bargain price of 10 pounds, since it was missing its partner.  Ireland (Part I): Northern Counties Including Dublin and Neighbourhood is not what I would call current, but it's descriptions of the cities and towns remain spot on, and the descriptions of the travel from place to place is fascinating to read 120 years on.  How little changes over the years!  The train timetables are a bit out of date, and I'm not sure I can still water my horse at all the same places, but otherwise it remained surprisingly spot on!  (The link above is to the 1909 edition, which is available at that link in full in case you want to have a look before your next trip to the northern half of the island.)

I also found an old copy -- I'm not sure whose it was originally, not mine -- of McCarthy's Bar: A Journey of Discovery in Ireland.  It is a travelogue written by the half-Irish Pete McCarthy.  He spent his early childhood in Ireland before growing well into middle age in England.  He decides to head back to the smaller island to do some solo traveling and write about Irish people, the Irish countryside, tourism in Ireland, and of course Irish pubs.  I laughed out loud several times, perhaps especially so because much of what he discussed in the book I nearly simultaneously witnessed with my own eyes.  As with Ireland (Part I), I guess some things just don't change too much over time.  In all, this was a quite enjoyable, amusing read, and you will likely find it especially so if you are predisposed to find all things Irish quaint and adorable.