In Search of Ireland

by H.V. Morton

One of the classic travel books about Ireland by one of the century's best-selling writers. Shortly after the declaration of the Irish Free State, H. V. Morton goes in search of Ireland by motor-car and finds, amongst other things, a Norman village in Galway, lobster fishermen, a shy girl in need of an apron in Connemara, and a great many beds in which Michael Collins is said to have slept. Full of local stories and wayside conversations, Morton's witty and enticing travelogue recalls a way of life not quite disappeared even at the beginning of a new century. Anecdotal, leisurely, full of character and event, insight, and opinion, this is travel writing of the very highest order.

Genres: Travel, Nonfiction, Ireland, History, Irish Literature

292 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 1930

About the author

Henry Canova Vollam (H.V.) Morton, FRSL, was a journalist and pioneering travel writer from Lancashire, England, best known for his prolific and popular books on Britain and the Holy Land. He first achieved fame in 1923 when, while working for the Daily Express, he scooped the official Times correspondent during the coverage of the opening of the Tomb of Tutankhamon by Howard Carter in Egypt.

In the late 1940s he moved to South Africa, settling near Cape Town in Somerset West and became a South African citizen.

Reviews

[Julie Durnell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another excellent travelogue by Morton! His way with words and descriptive narrative make you see the sights and people of Ireland as though you were his traveling companion; so helpful the endpaper maps are in tracking his progress around the island. Looking forward to the two Scotland books and more of the England books!

[Robyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

This amazing travel book was written between the wars so of course it is very much out of date but nevertheless H.V. Morton was one of the finest travel writers of his day. He had an incredible understanding of history and with this journey through Ireland he concentrates on his encounters with the people of each region he is visiting with an abiding respect for these characters and the lives they lead. He had an ability to create a scene in words and his historical references cannot be surpassed. He also had a great sense of humour and he obviously had a great love of the country. Whilst I found this is not a book I could read in one sitting, I savoured a little of it each day and found it so enjoyable with some very special and magical moments.

[Ron Caves · Rating 4 out of 5]

An English journalist tours Ireland 10 or so years after independence and muses on Irish history, identity and character and how it compares with that of England. Some passages are now rather dated, often quaintly so, but the book still resonates.

A favourite quote from the book, particularly as it springs from a description of the Mountains of Mourne, the stomping ground of my youth:
"I have often wondered during my travels in Ireland whether this country would have produced so many saints had she been a flat, practical land like Holland."

[Allysha Lavino · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fabulous window into history as well as a guide to the beauty and culture of Ireland. A great travel guide for anyone wishing to visit the Emerald Isle.

[Catherine Jordan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a wonderful book. A copy had been gathering dust in my fathers house for years and recently I stayed the night and had nothing to read, so I picked it up and started it.... and what a delight it turned out to be.
As a reasonably well educated Irish person who had travelled a lot in my own homeland I thought I knew quite a lot about Ireland... but HV Morton (an Englishman, of all people!) taught me more about my own land than I think I learned at school. And in such a beautiful, fascinating engaging way. I didnt feel at any time that he was lecturing me as a reader, or talking down to me either. His writing is so beautiful, so intelligent that I found myself reading and re-reading pages several times, just to prolong the pleasure of it all... It was wonderful from the outset but if I had to choose my favourite section it would probably be the part where he describes the landscape of the west of Ireland, in particular the wake he attends. It was a tremendously beautiful and emotional piece of writing which will stay with me for a long time.
The author was obviously a top class journalist and writer but I really believed he loved his time travelling around the highways and byways of Ireland, and as a reader I felt like I was travelling with him. It was written almost a century ago and parts of the country he describes have changed a lot since then but the essence of Ireland is still perfectly captured.
It reminded me at times of Robert Louis Stevenson's Travels With A Donkey in The Cevennes which is one of my very favourite books.
This book is a joy by a very fine writer.

[Gwen Harris · Rating 4 out of 5]

This account by an Englishman touring Ireland in the 1920s must have been very popular. I've been reading the 6th edition published in 1932 and see thru GoodReads that it was republished in the 1980s. It is charming in description of the countryside, the people, some history, and Irish ways - seemingly unbiased and even sympathetic (for an Englishman). In the book I've read the old black and white photos are intact. Whether this will be useful for a person planning travel remains to be seen. But it seems excellent for the period.

[Adrian · Rating 4 out of 5]

I stumbled on another of H.V. Morton's books a few years ago and enjoyed his style, so picked this up in a second-hand shop when I saw it. Although written almost a hundred years ago the language is very readable, not noticeably "old", while the places and people that he described are clearly from another age - and he is often remaking that he's seeing the last of "an old way of life" as modern transport and communications comes more strongly into play, mixing and changing society

[Val · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lyrically and movingly written, it is a fascinating snapshot of Ireland from very shortly after independence. It is let down by the uncomfortable bigotry (against foreigners, the working class, women) that keeps leaking through. That is, presumably, of its time but hard reading for a modern audience.

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Early travelogue through Ireland, paints an accurate view of 1920s Ireland, exactly as Hibernia was when my Grandparents left the island. Fascinating,true,grim.

[Seamus Field · Rating 5 out of 5]

paperback writer

[Kari Grindland · Rating 4 out of 5]

Must visit Ireland soon!

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love H.V. Morton, so right after I bought my plane ticket to Ireland, I bought this book.

Being one of his earlier works, it does contain several redundant passages, including multiple odd, annoying riffs on "primitive" country maids, and how different they are from the vain, fashion-obsessed women he encountered in London.

Nevertheless, it's a solid book overall -- a fascinating record of the Irish Free State, written in Morton's engaging, conversational style.

[Richard Craig · Rating 5 out of 5]

Like all of Morton's books,he brings to life the peoples,places and customs he visits.He has a gift of melting into the background the people he observes seemingly unaware of his masterly presence.I am glad to boast that I own a first edition.This man sets the standard to which all other travelogue aspire.
Review by Richard.E.Craig

[Olga · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful, informative and a kind of poetic book about Ireland!

[Kith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Путешествие отважного хоббита в страну фейри.