Of Men and Of Angels: Ireland of the 1840s

Yet opposition comes from the English ruling class, who would love to see an "Ireland without the Irish." Spies infiltrate O'Connell's campaign, trying to push the Repeal Movement to violence so as to charge O'Connell with sedition and treason. Joseph, too, as a supporter of Repeal, finds himself targeted and narrowly escapes death many times. Can he trust even his own servants in his household?

Of Men and Of Angels, like the first book, also portrays the lives of ordinary Irish Catholic peasants. They are indeed poor, uneducated, and very superstitious. From this story we learn that bread made from flour and ground-up, pulverized frogs, was thought to ward off the fever on a long sea voyage. Also, possession of a newborn baby's caul would prevent drowning.

Interesting facts about the dreaded smallpox are brought out as well. Though smallpox vaccination had been around for about 40 years, only the wealthy and educated had received the inoculation. Dairy farmers never caught smallpox because they contracted cowpox, a lesser form of the related disease. Thus, as Edward Jenner had discovered years earlier and the Ballynockanor people learn from a Tinker (O'Neill), infection with cowpox saves people from catching the deadlier smallpox.

Understood by the characters is the long history of Ireland: the 800 plus years since King Brian was defeated by the Vikings, also the long reign of the Burke family. The book's prologue describes the fateful day in early Ireland, the year 1014, when King Brian Boru, son and grandson were slain in battle against the Vikings, betrayed by a man named O'Toole. Mad Molly in particular treasures the old stories, often confusing the present day people and places with those of long ago. Yet through her madness she demonstrates knowledge of spiritual things unseen by the others: of the presence of angels, even the nature of other men, as to whether they be good or evil. Molly and the others of Ballynockanor are all part of the Irish heritage, and this story provides an exciting story of ordinary people in troubled times.

For further reading: Review of Only the River Runs Free http://www.worldhistoricalfiction.com/ar...

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