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Overview
Into a very volatile Ireland, Terry de Valera was born in June 1922. In this memoir he recounts events in his life and that of his family against the ongoing changing political landscape of the Civil War, the threat of World War II, the twenty-fifth anniversary of the 1916 Rising, his father's presidency, the ultimate demise of his very famous parents, Eamon and Sinead de Valera, and the growth of his own family, including of course, his daughter Sile, who is also a TD and minister. Terry draws too on his mother's memories, which he asked her to commit to paper, to provide a fascinating pen picture of Ireland in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. In addition to matters political, there is also much which will appeal to those interested in music and the arts. A recognised expert on Chopin and John Field, Terry de Valera's enthusiasm in describing these men and their work is infectious. So too, his reminiscences on various Irish artists. This is at once a very personal memoir, but is guaranteed to be of interest to anyone keen to learn more about one of Ireland's foremost political families, from the inside.Synopsis
Into a very volatile Ireland, Terry de Valera was born in June 1922. In this memoir he recounts events in his life and that of his family against the ongoing changing political landscape of the Civil War, the threat of World War II, the twenty-fifth anniversary of the 1916 Rising, his father's presidency, the ultimate demise of his very famous parents, Eamon and Sinead de Valera, and the growth of his own family, including of course, his daughter Sile, who is also a TD and minister. Terry draws too on his mother's memories, which he asked her to commit to paper, to provide a fascinating pen picture of Ireland in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. In addition to matters political, there is also much which will appeal to those interested in music and the arts. A recognised expert on Chopin and John Field, Terry de Valera's enthusiasm in describing these men and their work is infectious. So too, his reminiscences on various Irish artists. This is at once a very personal memoir, but is guaranteed to be of interest to anyone keen to learn more about one of Ireland's foremost political families, from the inside.
Publishers Weekly
This autobiography by the youngest son of Irish revolutionary and politician Eamon de Valera (1882-1975) is essentially a biography of his parents. The de Valera family has been very closed-lipped about their patriarch, and this tome allows a rare access. Terry got his mother, Sin ad, a gifted writer of children's books, to record her life in a notebook. Her comments fill pages here and give a unique view into the development of modern Ireland and the politics that created it. Historians will want to know of the relationship between de Valera and his great rival, Michael Collins. Terry recalls that his mother "was a shrewd judge of character, she said that the British had found a weakness, his Achilles' heel: Collins was too prone to be duped by flattery...." Sin ad offers some remarkable details about the Easter Rising of 1916. Terry also relates the incendiary events of December 7, 1941, when Churchill sent de Valera a note with the phrase "a nation once again"-an obvious invitation to join the war on Britain's side with reunification promised in return. There are also some wonderful recollections of President Kennedy's visit to Ireland in 1963. This is an insightful, important book that adds a personal touch to the stoic, enigmatic Eamon de Valera-a must read for anyone interested, pro or con, in the most dominant figure of 20th-century Ireland. 31 b&w illus. (Oct. 29) Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.