The Mafia: The First 100 Years

Forget about it! With a healthy desire to re-watch The Godfather trilogy, this blog post examines one of the many works written on the infamous American Mafia. Co-authored by William Balsamo and George Carpozi Jr, The Mafia: The First 100 Years (1997) attempts to elucidate the history of this underground organisation from its founding in …

1776: America and Britain at War

This week's post examines American historian David McCullough's 1776: America and Britain at War (2005), which is an account of the events of that fateful year from both the British and American perspectives. Over the course of a long career, McCullough has published numerous bestselling books and has managed that rarest of feats - writing …

Herbie

Just when you thought my posts could not be any more depressing, here comes one about a dead dog! My dead dog to be exact. Exactly one week ago this morning, we had to say goodbye to our much beloved pooch Herbie. The week since has without a doubt been the worst week of my …

The Penguin History of Latin America/Great Southern Land/aka Taking All The Fun Out Of History

Ok, so this week's book review is a little different to my previous efforts. Primarily because it's more of an opinion piece than a book review (though is there really a difference?) I started out hoping to write about one of a couple of fascinating looking works that I recently got my hands on but …

My Life in Loyalism

In this blog post, I am going to take a look at another book that I have recently finished reading......the autobiography of leading loyalist Billy Hutchinson entitled My Life in Loyalism (2020). Hutchinson is the leader of the Progressive Unionist Party (PUP) in Northern Ireland, and was previously a Belfast City Councillor and a member …

They All Love Jack!

Just when you thought this blog couldn't get any more exciting, I've decided to add a few book reviews to really push the reader over the edge! I enjoy reading history books, and I've just finished a fascinating 760 page tome examining the possible links between Freemasonry and that lovable rogue known to posterity as …

The Irish in Latin America Concluded

In this blog post, I intend to move beyond Chile and the O’Higgins clan and examine some other exceptional Irish individuals who played their part in the history of Latin America. There were quite a few men and women either Irish born or of Irish descent, and their names are still revered in places such …

The Irish in Latin America

So it's time for a well deserved break from the history of great cities......fascinating and all as they are....and take a look at some of the stories of Irish people who got themselves involved in the independence struggles of Central and South American countries. There were quite a few, and their names are still revered …

Londinium Baby, Part Four

By the beginning of the 19th century, London was well on the way to becoming the biggest city in the world, as well as the largest port, the capital of an empire, and a major centre of trade and finance. In this final gripping installment of the history of London, I’ll examine the Victorian city …

Londinium Baby, Part Three

Ok, it's time for another "then and now" blog post, examining famous London locations at different times in history, just as I did with New York. I'm going to compare images of various parts of that great city to try and understand how they developed over the years, hopefully also giving us a better understanding …