A wonderful and provocative book although some may find the subject matter a bit too rough for light reading. The book combines a graceful lyricism with a whole variety of interesting symbolism which implies the author's depth of human understanding.

One curious example would be the character of Ms. Bevan who connotes pure compassion and understanding; a true Madonna figure. She is modern, monied, dignified and thought to be Protestant by everyone in town, which she is not. This subtle reflection of Irish self-loathing and the fact that Mr. Sheehan, a kind of suffering moral hero, is the only one capable of even speaking to her makes an interesting commentary.

Also of note is the book's ambiguous treatment of Irish Republicanism. IRA members are all damaged characters suffering from their involvement and regretful, neurotic or base and ruthless in the extreme. It is fundamentally a romantic novel whereby the enviable qualities are of a personal nature and the "collective" goals are misguided and taken-up by unfortunate rabble and impetuous youth.

Who is responsible for Willie's death? The English, the IRA, all who where present, only those in favour of the killing, the village that reared the killers? The verdict seems to be that all are guilty, the pain real and perhaps the living suffer most.

I think this book started out a little hard to understand and take in, but once you got down and started reading it, it grabbed you and sucked you in. It was well written and it gave you an idea of grief and love. I think anyone who hasn't read the book should.

Being somewhat of an "Americanized" European expatriate, I've always had trouble understanding the passion and connections inherent to that mysteriously unique Irish sensibility. Perhaps it has something to do with the vast ocean separating the U.S. and Europe.

Mr. Phelan's book is so touching, so powerful, I was moved to tears at one point. It's a deeply emotional account of one boy's personal tragedy... and coming out of it feels like coming off a long and painful relationship gone wrong. I'm grateful for having read it, and even more grateful to Mr. Phelan for writing it, but I hope I never suffer as much in my lifetime as little Seanie Doolin.

A great read, and suprising page-turner .. an absolutely unforgettable narrative. At times it reminded me (vaguely) of William Faulkner.

ISCARIOT IS NOT OUT OF PRINT.

IT IS AVAILABLE IN PAPERBACK, ISBN 0 86322 246 3, BRANDON, IMPRINT OF MOUNT EAGLE, DINGLE, COUNTY KERRY, IRELAND, PUBLISHED 1998.

FOR ADDITIONAL INFO, SEE AUTHOR'S WEBSITE MEMBERS.AOL.COM/GLANVIL2

Another winner from Tom Phelan, author of the acclaimed novel IN THE SEASON OF THE DAISIES. ISCARIOT tells the story of a former priest and expatriate who returns to Ireland to come to grips with the past. Phelan, a former priest himself, is a poetic and gifted writer who has a rare insight into institutional Catholicism, the Irish psyche, and the Church in Ireland and in America.

"Derrycloney" is wonderfully humorous, wonderfully poetic, wonderfully human. In this, his third novel, Phelan presents a tale of life in an isolated laneway in the Irish countryside in the 1940s. Published by Brandon; 8.99 Irish pounds.

keeps you interested. what's the title of the next book

I knew this was a kids' book, but it seemed to be the most interesting and recent biography of Tom Cruise, based on the reviews that I looked at on this website. I am a very big Tom Cruise fan, so I decided to take the risk.

I was a bit shocked to find out that the customer review on this website that claimed that Cruise had made punnish errors in reading movie titles seems to have been entirely fabricated. I don't understand why something like that isn't removed from the site.

The book was ok. I learned some things about Cruise's career. There were some nice photos. Still, it wasn't an adult book. I would have liked something more meaty and in depth. I guess that would be hard to write, since he's not a person who likes to reveal intimate details about himself. I suppose eventually some person in his entourage will start talking and we'll actually find out something about him. We'll just have to be patient.

This would be a good book to give to a child who is dyslexic and feeling discouraged about learning to read, though.

This cute little book gives insight into Tom's career from the beginning through his role in "Jerry Maguire". It covers his early interest in acting, as well as his struggle with dyslexia (which seems to be mentioned on almost every page). I gained a deeper respect for Cruise after reading about his trials dealing with the handicap and his non-compromising dedication to perfecting his job as actor, producer, director. This is definitely an enjoyable book!

The public only see the glamour - but Phelan Powell shows the significant obstacles Tom Cruise has overcome in order to live his life of pampered opulence. In Cruise's case dyslexia was the obstacle - it nearly cost him the part of the barman in "Cocktail" (he thought it was a film about cockatiels and told his agent he "didn't do parrots") and he bought his own wildebeeste to research the part of Lt Maverick Mitchell in "Top Gnu".