I’ve been thinking about my next book choice. With Saint Patrick’s Day fast approaching, I thought maybe a book by an Irish author. It’s actually been on my mind for a while, but this year other things Irish have been in play. Yes, of course, the Six Nations tournament!
At the start of the competition, it didn’t really register that this could (and would) impact my weekend reading. But, with Ireland rip-roaring through each match, whilst the other teams have been flailing and failing somewhat, it seems that Saint Patrick’s Day is unquestionably for the Irish this year.
In fact, it seemed that it was all over bar the shouting this last weekend, with Ireland to play England and dead cert to win. So, come 4pm on Saturday afternoon we were sitting in front of the television – living in hope but with not much expectation. We shared a couple of encouraging pre-match comments (“…Italy just beat Scotland, nothing is for sure…” “… we are playing at Twickenham – home of English rugby…”), but nevertheless, I had my book at the ready beside me.
What can I say? There was no chance of even opening the cover. It was a truly superb match. It had us on the edge of our seats from the first kick, culminating with an England win by one point in the final seconds.
So, though the Irish team continues to dominate and are almost certainly to be the final victors, they will have to wait until the final matches on Saint Patrick’s day before they can truly celebrate – as indeed, it seems, so will my book.
And as far as that goes, I was torn between re-reading an old favourite (Normal People by Sally Rooney and Brooklyn by Colm Toibin) or being tempted by something new (In the Woods by Tana French and Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan).
However, as I have a few days left, I’m also perusing read2write.com and maybe discovering a new Irish Author…
