First of all saving civilization wasn’t nearly as hard as I thought it would be. The Irish just seemed to go about their business of reading and writing, loving and laughing, working and living and not giving a fig about what was happening in the rest of the world. In fact, it was the rise of Irish literacy during a period of isolation from Europe that seemed to give them the chance to develop their own cultural point of view that kept the classics and learning alive. The Monks of course took no small part.

            The two main things I liked about this book were the choice of stories and the candied delivery of his point of view. The author chose stories of both strong men and in some cases even stronger women to show the development of the cultures and traditions.  The Author feels that left alone, that is, cut off from Europe and the Church, the Irish were able to develop a rich and freer view of learning and scholarship than otherwise would have been possible under the dark cloud of developing European history.

            I thought this was a very easy book to read. However, if you have noticed some of my other reviews I like reading historical novels particular about Europe and the British Isles. Most of the references, places and events I had read about before. But even If I hadn’t I think the book is easy to follow and fun to read.