Six Degrees of Separation - June 23

First Friday of the month, so time for #6degrees of separation, hosted by Kate over at Books are my favourite and best. Each month a book is chosen as a starting point and linked to six others to form a chain. A book doesn’t need to be connected to all the titles on the list, only to the one next to it in the chain.

First book this month is ‘friendaholic’ by Elizabeth Day, which I haven’t read but I like the look of. She explores friendships and what they mean to us, and looks at her own experiences. The word for friend in Irish is ‘cara’….

And I recently read ‘Anam Cara’ by John O’Donohue. ‘Anam Cara’ means ‘Soul friend’ which is one of the topics that O’Donohue looks at, infused with his warm and engaging take on philosophy, mysticism, literature and poetry. Another book that looks at mythology, mysticism and the Irish language is….

‘Thirty two words for field’ by Mánchán Magan, which examines the connections between the Irish language, nature, ancient myths and the surrounding landscape. An expert in his field is….

Norman Doidge, who wrote ‘The brain that changes itself’, a fascinating account of neuroplasticity and how we can rewire the brain through learning and experience. The brain is an organ, as is…

‘A heart that works’ by Rob Delaney, a brutally honest, painful and unflinching account about the death of his son. The grief is raw, but I also found it a life affirming read. Two links to the next book - this time…

it’s Tish Delaney, with ‘Before my actual heart breaks’, a coming of age story about Mary Rattigan, set in rural Tyrone that is both darkly funny and sad. And sure we may as well stay in….

Tyrone for ‘Factory Girls’ by Michelle Gallen, an acerbic and witty read very much in the spirit of ‘Derry Girls’, set against the backdrop of the troubles.

That’s it for another month.