Magan is a magician with words and has a way of presenting even the most seemingly mundane information in a captivating way. I found his chapters on Ireland’s bogs, trees and roads particularly fascinating and frequently had to pause reading to do a deep dive online into some of the landmarks and stories he mentions, which is exactly the kind of curiosity that Magan set out to evoke in his readers. Speaking about why rivers and important places were often feminine nouns despite surviving in a patriarchal society, Manchán suggests that when he scratched the surface of Irish myths and legends that he found women were often in a place of power.

Listen to the Land Speak review: Fractal account of myth

Here, the River Shannon is a goddess, and trees and their life-sustaining root systems are hallowed. See the world in a new light in this magical exploration into the life-sustaining wisdom of what lies beneath us. In Listen to the Land Speak, he offers a fractal version of Ireland, where myth overlaps with history, the fantastical with the practical, the superstitious with the scientific. “Just as a fractal can be limited to a finite area and yet is infinitely magnifiable,” he writes, “so too is Ireland host to an infinity of wisdom and wonder.” Get directions and find venue information for the James Stewart Film Theater at 185 Nassau Street. COVID-19 Guidance + Updates Irish Myths and Legends by Lady Augusta Gregory was first published in 1904 (then titled Gods and Fighting Men). It’s been re-released this year by New Island in a stunning new edition, truly a book which should be owned by every Irish household. Gregory was a founder of the Irish Literary Revival, as she turned from her Anglo-Irish roots towards Irish language and culture, and nationalism. This volume of Irish myths and legends – from the Fir Bolg to the Tuatha de Danann to Fionn and Diarmuid and Oisín – is an essential, energetic retelling of our foundation myths. PDF / EPUB File Name: Listen_to_the_Land_Speak_-_Manchan_Magan.pdf, Listen_to_the_Land_Speak_-_Manchan_Magan.epubIn 2019, once I finished university I seemingly started learning Irish for no reason, or at least the reason for learning it has been lost on me, and from that I started learning more about the history both actively out of my own curiosity having left unionism behind me years ago, and passively as my social circle expanded southbound online and my friends and mutual acquaintances shared tidbits of their cultural identity, and through the anger they have toward the current political climate in Ireland where the government plans to erase, evict and gentrify anything that doesn’t make money. The best parts of this book are Magan's brief encounters with the fascinating and understudied fields of geomythology and archaeomythology - the study of myths as possible records of real geological and historical events, such as comet impacts, the end of the Ice Age, or the disappearance of landmasses and even civilisations (perhaps the most famous example of which is Atlantis). For example, he establishes that the archaeological evidence pointing to the date of Lough Neagh's flooding closely matches the date given in the lake's mythological origin story down through the oral tradition. Unfortunately, he makes only cursory references to these ideas and explores none of them in any detail. He explicitly chooses to ignore the discovery of a 33,000-year-old carved reindeer bone in Ireland, which demolishes the accepted theory that the island has only been inhabited for 6,000 years, because he does not know what to make of it. He also makes no reference whatsoever to the extraordinary fact, mentioned in his previous book, that the people who built Newgrange have been found to be genetically discontinuous with the modern Irish population, strongly suggesting that not only is the structure much older than previously thought but that there may have been waves of settlers as yet unaccounted for in the historical record. The potential implications of these and other findings are enormous and there was a much more interesting book which could have (and still should be) written about these things, offering us a new understanding of our past and a new significance to our present. In this illuminating new book, Manchán Magan sets out on a journey, through bogs, across rivers and over mountains, to trace these ancestor’s footsteps. He uncovers the ancient myths that have shaped our national identity and are embedded in the strata of land that have endured through millennia – from ice ages through to famines and floods. His latest book, Listen to the Land Speak, Manchán Magan takes a look at the Irish landscape and what it can tell us about who we are and were as a people. He says his childhood, some of which he spent in the West Kerry Gaeltacht, allowed him to meet with those who lived on the islands and witness their connection not only with the land but with the mythic elements of our culture. Great book which will particularly those interested in our Irish heritage, mythology and language, but also one accessible for those with less or no knowledge on these topics.

land, land, land, hear the word of the LORD! Jeremiah 22:29 O land, land, land, hear the word of the LORD!

Manchán[’s] … got some theories about the roots of the Irish language that are going to blow your head off … an incredible storyteller.' Blindboy Boatclub Pléann leabhar Mhanchán le aibhneacha, bailte, logainmeacha agus an cheangail atá idir béaloideas agus miotaseolaíocht na tíre seo. Magan interestingly weaves Irish mythology, local stories, personal experience, archaeology, geography and more together in a delightful narrative about our spiritual and cultural history. Speaking about the last few years, Manchán said he enjoyed being in one place for a period of time and getting to know his environment in a more intimate way. Tá cónaí ar Mhanchán i gcontae na hIarmhí ar phaiste talún, áit a bhfuil crainn agus plandaí curtha aige le breis agus scór bliain. Manchán Magan has become a credit to the documentation of Irish life, history and literature over the years. Taking on the mantle of author, travel writer and documentary producer, he has left his mark as an Irishman in the wide world. Returning to issues of home, his works explore the complexity of Irish to English etymology in Thirty-Two Words for Field while his most recent success, Listen to the Land Speak: A Journey into the Wisdom of What Lies Lies Beneath Us opens up the chasm of largely forgotten Irish mythology and history to the masses. His work in this field has garnered him acclaim for feeding the inferno that burns behind the Irish person’s want for connection to their past. As one of the most highly anticipated titles from Gill Publishers in 2022, Listen to the Land Speak was shortlisted for the An Post Irish Book Awards 2022 for Non-Fiction and won the Waterstones Irish Book of the Year 2022, garnering much acclaim across the board.Manchán Magan is a writer and documentary-maker. He has written books in Irish and English on his travels in Africa, India and South America. His most recent books are Thirty-Two Words for Field, which explores the insights the Irish language offers into the landscape, psyche and heritage of Ireland; and Tree Dogs, Banshee Fingers and Other Irish Words for Nature, an illustrated book that delves into Irish words for nature. He writes occasionally for the Irish Times and presents The Almanac of Ireland podcast about the heritage and culture of Ireland for RTÉ Radio 1. He has presented scores of television documentaries on history and culture. Per Princeton University policy, all guests must either be fully vaccinated, or have recently tested negative (via PCR within 72 hours or via rapid antigen test within 8 hours of the scheduled visit) and be prepared to show proof if asked, or wear a face covering when indoors and around others. Accessibility Having been brought up in Dublin, with long periods spent in the West Kerry Gaeltacht of Corca Dhuibhne, Manchán now lives near Lough Lene, Co. Westmeath, surrounded by oak trees.