My Life in Books: 'I read most books hoping that they will change me'
Garry Bannister's latest book is 'Essential Irish, Easy Conversation as Gaeilge' (New Island), a one-stop shop for anyone learning or relearning the Irish language.
Garry Bannister studied Irish and Russian at Trinity College Dublin and Moscow State University, and headed the Irish department at St Columba’s College in Dublin.
I don’t keep any books on my bedside table — bedtime is for cuddling up with my wife, which is very much needed at 73, as my bones ache and are cold.
In Irish: I still love (Cathal Ó Sándair) and the poems written for children by Gabriel Rosenstock.
In English: by Arthur Conan Doyle and the writings of PG Wodehouse.
In Russian: There is so much to choose from here — the books of Daria Dontsova, cosy, humorous mysteries you can breeze through, and Alexander Tsypkin, who writes short, punchy stories, often absurd tales about relationships and city life.
by Henry James — yuck. Endless dull dialogue, social posturing, James dissects motives at a tediously microscopic scale. I remember having to read , and that nearly did my head in. Also, Jane Austen’s — excessive style over real content; nothing of consequence happens other than a litany of endless arrogance and petty-minded squabbles.
I recall as a student taking down from the shelf in Trinity College and laughing so much that I had to leave the library. , — anything by Myles na gCopaleen is pure magic. I also very much enjoyed the tongue-in-cheek metafiction of writers like Micheál Ó Conghaile (eg, and ) and by Daithí Ó Cróinín.
Many books have made me sad: by George Orwell — what could be sadder than Orwell’s vision? is very disturbing. by Leo Tolstoy — its existential dread is terrifyingly sad. The works of Kafka and the writings of Kierkegaard.
I read most books hoping they will change me — open my mind, my heart, my perspective. Examples include , , by Hannah Arendt, the writings of Carl Jung, the philosophy of Schopenhauer, and in literature, the works of Dostoevsky, especially and . In Irish literature, by Alan Titley.
The most important and life-changing readings I have encountered are the Zen Koans, which inevitably led me to The Upanishads [sacred Hindu texts]. The study of The Upanishads has transformed my life.
An honest history book.
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, adapted from Philip K Dick’s .
Local bookshops. We have to keep local bookshops profitable. Even if we need to pay more. Get whatever you need through your local bookshop.
Chaos, I’m afraid.
A flat white.
There are so many — the Jesus I read about in , Alyosha from , Prince Lev Nikolayevich Myshkin from , and the character of Woland from Bulgakov’s .
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