The latest book I read, I totally loved, so I thought I’d recommend it to anyone who reads this blog. I just finished How the Irish Saved Civilization by Thomas Cahill, and it was easily one of the best history books I’ve read. It adds a little to the joke,”The Irish would have ruled the world if it wasn’t for the whiskey”. Being of Irish background and having little to point to in regards to ancestral pride, may have helped in the enjoyment of this book.
For a very brief 350 years after the fall of the Roman Empire and before the vikings found them, the Irish were the only literate group in Europe, who also happened to have almost all of the books in Europe. The books were imported with the monks after St. Patrick, and huge libraries were kept on the island as the rest of Europe self-destructed in war. So basically, many of the ancient Greek and Roman texts we currently have may not have survived if copies hadn’t been saved in Irish monasteries. There was also a very interesting discussion about the Irish version of Catholicism, some of which was spread around the peasant population of Europe.
I also found out many of the values passed down to me from my family are actually values that the Irish have appreciated for a VERY long time, some of them for more than 1500 years.
So, all in all a very interesing, well researched book, obviously written by someone who enjoyed the topic.
Down The Rabbit Hole 