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Biography of the Pecker Dunne. The Pecker Dunne is a member of one of the oldest Travelling families in Ireland and a well-known character throughout Ireland. The Dunnes are a well-known musical family who, for the past hundred years, have brought their unique style of Traveller music to audiences all over the length of breadth of Ireland. This book traces Pecker's upbringing on the road, his travels in a horse-drawn caravan to country fairs, race meetings and sporting events and the development of his own unique ballad-style of singing. It also gives his insight into many aspects of Traveller language and culture and the Traveller fight for self-recognition as a distinct cultural group in Ireland. In this vivid account of his life he recalls his travels in Australia, playing for huge audiences in New York, working with the Dubliners and with Richard Harris on the film Trojan Eddie. He gives a glimpse into many aspects of Traveller culture which are under threat today and discusses the history of his own group, the fairground or showpeople. His moving description of his battle with alcoholism, the hardships of life on the road, and the prejudices and racism endured by Travellers give a special poignancy to his life story. Publisher: A. and A. Farmar Press, Dublin. 128 pages including picture section, price 14.99 euro (including free CD)
This is a biography of a Limerick Traveller who is an acknowledged painter, poet and musician. He is known as the Candlelight Painter because he paints at night, by the flicker of candles, in his trailer parked at the front of his house. His story covers his life on the road as a child, his time spent in reform school and as an emigrant in London. He discusses his leaving of the road, his settling in a house and his discovery of painting when in his late thirties. He also discusses his community's culture, traditions and ways of earning a living. The book includes reproductions of his poetry and some of the eight hundred paintings he has completed to date. It was not until he was in his thirties that Willy discovered his vocation. As he writes: "Discovering painting made my life complete. It was just a matter of time before the hundreds of images and scenes that I had stored in my childhood memory progressed out through me." The Travelling community have lived on the margins of Irish society for hundreds of years. Their culture including their language Cant/Gammon, has been much-maligned and little appreciated. This book is a small window through which we can see glimpses of a unique Irish culture, a culture with a long and proud history. Publisher: A. and A. Farmar Press, Dublin. 128 pages paperback including full colour reproductions of W. Cauley's unique paintings. 14.99 euro. To order these books please contact Mícheál Ó hAodha, University of Limerick Library, or post, fax or email your order to: A. and A. Farmar, 78 Ranelagh Village, Dublin 6. Tel. (01) 496 3625 Fax (01) 497 0107 Email afarmar@iol.ie
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