'Time Out' Guide To Dublin
No nonsense guide to the city which has become the night-life capital of our former masters!

Afro Celt Sound System - Volume 3: Further in Time
Featuring some of the best talent in Irish and African music, this album just needs to be heard.

Buena Vista Social Club
Totally out of context here but soooo good. You won't able to get this stuff out of your head once you hear it. Then make sure you see the movie!

Dublin - A Celebration
A beautiful, big and bright look back over the built history of Dublin since the tenth century.

dublin street names
this book by paul clerkin (an old pal) is set to become a reference for anyone studying the history of dublin. paul is the founder of the award-winning archeire site on irish architecture.

Dublin: Portrait of a City
Photography by Peter Zöller - Text by Joseph McArdle. A new, colourful and richly photographed pictorial of Dublin and its surroundings, with witty and insightful text by Joseph McArdle.

Dubliners
by James Joyce. A wonderfully irreverent series of stories about the city Joyce turned his back on yet never left...

Heart of Spain
Robert Capa's landmark war photography from the Spanish Civil War, donated by his surviving brother to the Spanish nation, has been compared to 'Guernica' as a symbol of the cataclysm.

Inventing Ireland
by Damien Kiberd. A superb, in-depth investigation of the 'invention' of Ireland by its writers over the last century and a half.

Letters Home by Fergal Keane
not just because we share a first name, nor because this guy is my favourite tv journalist, nor because he's playwright john b. keane's nephew, but because this collection of short essays is irish writing at its cleanest and most genuine. spotless stuff.

Slanguage
Spotless collection of definitions, etymologies and anecdotal first uses of Irish slang. Find out what that 'gobshite' is saying to you!

The Irish Civil War
Beautifully made book bringing the images of the Civil War (much of which was fought in Dublin) and much of the historical background provided by Tim Pat Coogan.

The Only Way to Stop Smoking Permanently
i started smoking when i was twelve, and it dominated the next 17 years of my life. i never had any money, freedom or enjoyment of the energy of life i should have had. the someone gave me this book. i read it and a week or so later threw my last cigarettes over a wall. i've never wanted another one since, i've had no mad pangs or nervous angst. just relief and smug happiness for the last two years. read this book and lose the sad weed you think you need!

The Oxford History of Ireland
One of the standards, this concise paperback is a good starting point for finding out about the history of Ireland.

U2 - all that you can't leave behind
The dubliners' best album in years, this superb musical performance is well worth checking out.

U2 Elevation 2001 in Boston - DVD boxed set
Perhaps the best music DVD I've seen, this one has it all. See the crowd from the Bono cam! Wonderful stuff.

Walking Dublin
Twenty-four walks in and around Dublin, with drawings and photos by the author (Pat Liddy). Complete with the history of buildings and historic sites along the way, this is probably the best tour book of Dublin I've seen.

Allen Carr's Easy Way to Stop Smoking
this small book will probably save your life, if you're a smoker. if not, spare a loved one a pointless slow death by giving them this book. the 'only way' book is even better, but this one is easier to digest...