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simplybooks1791.bsky.social
Simply Books
@simplybooks1791.bsky.social
220 followers 240 following 160 posts
Sam Hanna.
Books, writing & other odds & ends - some Northern Irish thoughts.
Focusing on and promoting Irish literature and, sometimes, other writers as well 🙂

#WeekendBooks
#WeekendBookReviews

Photographs: @simplyphotos1791.bsky.social
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Simply Books @simplybooks1791.bsky.social · 10d
This sign sums up my difficulties with this account - too often I just sits and does nothing...
In other words, too much thinking, not enough action.
I've read lots of #books but haven't posted about any of them.
#BookSky #reading #literature #IrishWriting #IrishLiterature #IrishAuthors
Looking over a hedge to a sign which says, "Sometimes I sits and thinks, and sometimes I just sits." Beyond the sign, the ground slopes upwards and is covered with plants in autumn colours.
simplybooks1791.bsky.social
This sign sums up my difficulties with this account - too often I just sits and does nothing...
In other words, too much thinking, not enough action.
I've read lots of #books but haven't posted about any of them.
#BookSky #reading #literature #IrishWriting #IrishLiterature #IrishAuthors
Looking over a hedge to a sign which says, "Sometimes I sits and thinks, and sometimes I just sits." Beyond the sign, the ground slopes upwards and is covered with plants in autumn colours.
September 13, 2026 at 1:45 PM
simplybooks1791.bsky.social
This is where we stayed last weekend - then I came home to a very busy week. So, not much reading for me.. but what have you been reading for #WeekendBooks, or have you a review for #WeekendBookReviews?
#NorthernIreland #Ireland #IrishLiterature #IrishWriting #IrishAuthors #IrishFiction
A holiday cottage surrounded by flowers.
August 30, 2026 at 5:25 PM
simplybooks1791.bsky.social
#Sunflowers
Nothing for #WeekendBooks or #WeekendBookReviews this weekend, as we're having 3 nights away with our granddaughters. No time for reading 😂
#flowers #bloomscrolling #NorthernIreland #Ireland
A close-up image of a sunflower, with other out of focus sunflowers in the background. There are clouds and blue sky above the flowers.
August 23, 2026 at 9:51 AM
simplybooks1791.bsky.social
I'm busy this weekend, so I'm a bit late posting for #WeekendBooks.
Got this in a second-hand bookshop last week...Graham Swift's first novel - "The Sweet Shop Owner" - which I'll be reading soon, even though it isn't #IrishWriting.
What are you reading this weekend?
#BookSky #Ireland
The cover of a Graham Swift novel called The Sweet Shop Owner. The cover is blue, with the writer's name and the title in yellow. In the centre of the cover there's a striped candy cane.
August 15, 2026 at 6:08 PM
simplybooks1791.bsky.social
Almost the #weekend again, so what have you been reading for #WeekendBooks?
Or, do you have a review for #WeekendBookReviews?

Photo of a wild orchid taken a couple of months ago.
#flower #BloomScrolling #Ireland #books #BookSky
A single purple wild orchid, with an out of focus background of green leaves.
August 14, 2026 at 6:05 PM
simplybooks1791.bsky.social
Another look at Dunboe Old Graveyard, where many of the headstones have fallen over and are covered in moss. In many cases, it's impossible to read the inscriptions.
#graveyard #headstones #NorthernIreland #Ireland #causewaycoastalroute #causewaycoastandglens
Moss covered headstones, which have fallen over in an old graveyard. The headstones are surrounded by long grass (very green because there's always plenty of rain along Northern Ireland's North Coast). Lots of trees can be seen in the distance.
August 12, 2026 at 5:50 PM
simplybooks1791.bsky.social
Old graveyards and cemeteries fascinate me. I love to read the headstones and imagine the stories behind the simple engraving of a name.
This graveyard is overgrown, with #blackberries ripening in front of the headstone, which dates back to 1879.
#graveyard #Ireland
Blackberries, some ripe, some still red, are growing in front of an out of focus headstone in a graveyard. The headstone is grey with a curved top, and it's surrounded by bushes which are also out of focus in the photo.
August 10, 2026 at 5:42 PM
simplybooks1791.bsky.social
Last read - Number 5 for #WeekendBookReviews
Current read - When The Cranes Fly South #WeekendBooks

What are you reading this weekend??
And, post a review of your last read!!
Thanks 😊
See my review of Number 5 in AltText.
#IrishWriting #IrishFiction #IrishAuthors
An image of 2 books: Number 5 - read Cranes - currently reading Number 5 is by the Northern Irish author Glenn Patterson. Patterson has written a number of novels, of which Number 5, published in 2003, is the fifth. Number 5 is a three-bedroom terrace house in a development on the outskirts of Belfast. The story covers five decades, beginning in the late 1950's when Stella & Harry buy their first house. Each time the house is sold, a new family move in, but certain residents are there throughout the story. Northern Irish politics and the Troubles drift along in the background, occasionally making an impact on the people of the novel. The book has recently been reissued by No Alibis Press in Belfast and can also be found second-hand. I enjoyed this story and recommend it 👌
August 9, 2026 at 1:40 PM
simplybooks1791.bsky.social
For my birthday, back in June, I got a Waterstones voucher - now I've finally bought some books. Two of them are #IrishFiction, one is Swedish.
So, for a change, I'm going to read the Swedish one next - "When The Cranes Fly South" by Lisa Ridzen.
What are you reading for #WeekendBooks?
The covers of three books - "When The Cranes Fly South" - on an off-white background, the title is printed in blue beside the orange outline of a dog. "Reading In The Dark" - a drawing of fields and houses, green for the fields, orange for the houses. "Fair Play" - a green background, with the title in dark blue. An image of a playing card is above and below the title.
August 8, 2026 at 11:30 AM
simplybooks1791.bsky.social
Looking forward to the weekend...time for #WeekendBooks and #WeekendBookReviews
The photo is looking down to the lake in the Black Glen at Downhill Demesne, just outside Castlerock in Co Derry onthe North Coast of #NorthernIreland
#BookSky #IrishFiction #Ireland
Looking across brambles, flowers and bushes towards a small lake. The brambles are already showing autumn colours, while the flowers are a bright orange. The trees on the far side of the lake are reflected in the lake water. In the distance the sea is visible under a cloudy sky.
August 7, 2026 at 3:23 PM
simplybooks1791.bsky.social
I'm self-employed as an independent celebrant - part of my work is elopement ceremonies, which are booked months in advance. The other part is funerals, where I often have only 2 days' notice.
So, I'm not always here - but I aim to keep weekends free for #WeekendBooks and #WeekendBookReviews.
Looking across some dark rocks and a sandy beach towards the sea, which is white where the waves break but otherwise dark. There are dark grey clouds in the sky, edged by a narrow white line. A headland is visible in the distance. This is the beach at Castlerock in Co Derry. The headland is the Inishowen peninsula in Co Donegal.
August 6, 2026 at 6:30 PM
simplybooks1791.bsky.social
For #WeekendBooks this is what I'm currently reading.
What are you reading for #WeekendBooks?
If you've finished a book you could tell a little about it and your opinion of the book for #WeekendBookReviews.
#BookSky #IrishFiction #IrishWriters #Ireland #NorthernIreland
The cover of "Number 5" by Glenn Patterson, a Northern Irish author. The cover shows a torn piece of wallpaper which has a pink rose pattern. The title is also pink and below has the subtitle "Five families, five decades - one house..." At the bottom the author's name is above a blurb from the Observer newspaper.
August 2, 2026 at 5:58 PM
simplybooks1791.bsky.social
Holidays over, now June and July have both gone, and it's 1st August and we're moving towards autumn.
So time to bring this account back to life.
What are you reading this weekend? Tag #WeekendBooks

The photo is of a yacht moored on the River Lennon at Ramelton in Co Donegal.
#booksky #Ireland.
A small white yacht moored to a yellow buoy on a river. There are green leaves in the foreground, with shallow water, then the main river reflecting the blue sky above. Trees are growing on the far bank of the river.
August 1, 2026 at 7:12 PM
simplybooks1791.bsky.social
May was a busy month and now I'm on holiday in Spain.
Being on holiday means time to read - 2 books completed so far 🙂
When I get home, at the beginning of June, I need to get serious about this account.
The photo shows the #sunset behind #Cambrils in #Catalunya #Espana #Spain #holiday
Looking across the sea to the sunset beyond distant hills.
May 29, 2026 at 1:30 PM
simplybooks1791.bsky.social
Went to #Derry earlier this week but didn't buy any books. Last time I got a couple in this shop selling second-hand books.
Foyle Books is a wonderful little shop tucked in behind the city's walls.
#books #bookshop #literature #IrishLiterature #IrishAuthors #NorthernIreland #Ireland
A shop on a hill. The shop windows are painted red and the door - set back behind two steps - is white. Above is a sign with the shop name - Foyle Books, named after the River Foyle which runs through the city. The shop is just behind the city walls which were built between 1613 and 1619. The wall is about a mile long and surrounds the original city. You can walk the full length of the wall.
May 7, 2026 at 8:43 AM
simplybooks1791.bsky.social
Although I have read several books over the last few weeks, I haven't posted here.
A couple of weeks ago, on a trip to Derry, I bought these books - 2 from a second-hand bookshop and 1 from a charity shop.
Although none are #IrishLiterature they are all books I have been intending to read.
#books
3 books on a rather dilapidated bench. "The God of Small Things" by Arundhati Roy "Marry Me" by John Updike "In a Free State" by V S Naipaul
May 4, 2026 at 3:18 PM
simplybooks1791.bsky.social
Just an #Irish #sunset with a #windturbine
Taken at 8.24pm this evening after a cool but dry, #April day.
#clouds #sky #Ireland
Sunset with a wind turbine silhouetted against the sky. Above is a band of cloud glowing orange from the sun, darkening higher up, with a patch of blue sky.
April 13, 2026 at 7:39 PM
simplybooks1791.bsky.social
Whin (gorse) #blossom.
#Easter memories of picking these #flowers, going home & putting the flowers in a saucepan with some white #eggs. The hard-boiled eggs, now yellow, got faces painted on them & then rolled down a #hill in a nearby #field.
Simple times, long gone. #bloomscrolling #Ireland
Yellow whin - or gorse - blossom against the prickly background of the bush.
April 6, 2026 at 6:40 PM
simplybooks1791.bsky.social
Whether you celebrate or not enjoy your #Easter break.
While #StormDave hasn't brought much wind for us, it's given us heavy rain, sleet and hail showers with occasional sunshine - just typical Easter weather. Plenty of time for #reading!!
#flowers #bloomscrolling #NorthernIreland #Ireland
Two flowers with white petals and a yellow centre. Behind is out of focus grass with daisies. Further back, there's a tree, and behind it, the outline of a church is visible.
April 5, 2026 at 10:33 AM
simplybooks1791.bsky.social
#StormDave is forecast for this weekend.
This is Seamus Heaney's poem "Storm on the Island" from "Death of a Naturalist" published in 1969.
#IrishWriting #IrishLiterature #IrishAuthors #Ireland
An image of the words of "Storm on the Island" written by Seamus Heaney.
April 4, 2026 at 2:56 PM
simplybooks1791.bsky.social
As the hailstones batter against my kitchen window, I'm optimistically thinking of spring. After all, the clock goes forward tonight, so the weather must improve soon...
#spring #flowers #bloomscrolling #Ireland
Two narcissi against a backdrop of trees. The flowers are white with orange centres.
March 28, 2026 at 9:29 AM
simplybooks1791.bsky.social
@jancarsonwrites.bsky.social is a writer from Northern Ireland who has published several collections of short stories and 3 novels before "The Raptures", which was published in 2022. Her next novel, "Few And Far Between" will be published shortly.
Review of "The Raptures" is in Alt text.
"The Raptures" is set in rural Northern Ireland, in a village called Ballylack. Set in 1993, against the background of what we in Northern Ireland called the Troubles, the story revolves around 11 year old Hannah Adger. Her classmates begin to die, one by one, so the hunt begins for the source of the mysterious illness which is killing them. Ballylack is a village populated only by Protestants - apart from the family who run the Chinese takeaway - which means this could be any one of many such villages in Northern Ireland. As I was brought up near a village like this, I feel that I know these people - so perhaps I can't be as objective as I should in my assessment of the novel. My youth may have been 30 years earlier, but little changed in the Northern Irish countryside between 1963 and 1993 - apart from the Troubles beginning in 1969. Even now, over 30 years after the setting of the book, many ingrained attitudes haven't changed, as change comes slowly to stubborn Ulster Protestants. It's my familiarity with the setting of the story which makes me biased in assessing the novel, so I'd love to hear from a reader who isn't from Northern Ireland. As I want someone else to read the book I deliberately haven't mentioned much about how the story progresses. From my perspective I enjoyed the story and would definitely recommend it...so, if you haven't read "The Raptures", please read it and let me have your opinion!
March 26, 2026 at 6:33 PM
simplybooks1791.bsky.social
Warmest day of the year so far - and such a relief to see blue sky and feel the heat of the sun after the seemingly never-ending rain and dull grey skies.
So a day off from everything and a walk round Lough Fea, a natural lough in the mountains which is also a reservoir.
#Ireland #walk
Looking past a tree to a view of an Irish lough, which is reflecting the blue sky above. Trees can be seen on the banks of the lough, and hills are visible in the distance.
March 19, 2026 at 6:56 PM
simplybooks1791.bsky.social
My irregular work keeps me away from Bluesky 😀
It also means I'm often to be found in graveyards and cemeteries.
The graveyard in the photo is old and no longer used for burials.
#Ireland #flowers #daffodils #bloomscrolling #spring
Daffodils in a graveyard. On the grassy slope behind the daffodils, several old headstones can be seen. Above is a cloudy sky with a few patches of blue.
March 16, 2026 at 3:48 PM