These are interesting times in Irish Diaspora Studies...

These are interesting times in Irish Diaspora Studies.  Many new books have appeared, of very good quality, filling gaps in our thinking.  Important books from decades ago are turning up as pdfs on various platforms.

In the old days we might have put out a brief note about each book, new and rediscovered old - and even a review if there were time and interest.

But that is not where we are now.  And even if we had notes and reviews I am not sure where we would display such things.  There is no one platform that is the obvious and necessary display window.  And there seems to be no entity logging this material.

A more specific question might be:  In what sense is an academic book costing over £100 published?

So...  I find myself specifically logging Open Access books - whilst recognising the quagmire that the Open Access model has become.  But I can put an Open Access book into the hands of anyone...

So...  Let me at least recommend a new book by the estimable Joep Leerssen...

Leerssen, J. (2026). Charismatic Nations: A Cultural History of Nationalism in Europe from 1800 to the Present. Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/DOI: 10.1017/9781009667142

 

https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/charismatic-nations/4F66A5EBCA83BA0EEFC6C3303BB027B2

Joep Leerssen, of course, has well organised knowledge of the Irish material, and slots this knowledge of Ireland into a wide-ranging study of nationalisms across Europe - intellectuals and artists shaped nationalism through 'charismatic' cultural symbols rather than only through political action.  You can see how the Irish material fits.  

Following up to Joep's web site...  He tells us that this monograph analyses the materials brought together for the Encyclopedia of Romantic Nationalism in Europe (“ERNiE”; Amsterdam University Press, 2022) - which is also Open Access.  A peculiar, over-complicated, model - in the European style - but Open Access...

https://leerssen.nl/news.p/26.m/10/book-on-cultural-nationalism-now-out

Ireland part of the European patterns.  Ireland is the same...  Which means that we can next put Joep Leerssen's book alongside Tom Inglis' book (not Open Access) - and list all the ways in which Ireland is different...

And there is a seminar...

Inglis, T. (2014). Are the Irish different? (T. Inglis, Ed.). Manchester University Press.

Link: https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/are-the-irish-different/BC263ED681E63E01E9DC06D4CAA38D03?utm_campaign=shareaholic&utm_medium=email_this&utm_source=email

Patrick O'Sullivan

Visiting Professor of Irish Diaspora Studies, London Metropolitan University

NOTE 1:  I had got into the habit of sharing these lttle notes with colleagues on LinkedIn - and I attempt to share them with other collegures, on Facebook for example.  The glitches and hurdles have becpme more and more complex.

Note 2:  The Tom Inglis edited collection is an example of an important book on a new platform.  Machester University Press is now spreading itself across at least 3 different platforms - most recently everything seems to be migrating across to the Cambridge University Press site.  Don't know why.