Danny Doyle

This book is a must read for anyone interested in the Irish language in Canada, and indeed, interested in the Irish language at all. The author is not only a fluent speaker of the language, but is also immersed in the culture through music, dance and education. He brings a perceptive and insightful approach to the thorny issue of the survival of the Irish language outside Ireland (and even in Ireland itself). Richly annotated and sourced and replete with translations of the various Irish texts from and about Canada, the book traces the development and decline of Irish in Canada over the centuries. It puts to bed the myth that Irish was not a very important language in Canada through numerous examples - prose, poetry and song. And it is written in an elegant yet pleasant and easy to read style. A first class piece of scholarship that everyone who cares about the Irish language will want to read.… (mehr)