The Hook Peninsula, County Wexford: No. 2 (Irish Rural Landscape S.)

The remote Hook Peninsula in County Wexford, and the harbor it protects, has been a gateway to south-east Ireland for successive waves of newcomers, including the Vikings, Anglo Normans and the English. The book also depicts the larger area between the estuaries of Waterford Harbour and Bannow Bay. This is a lavishly illustrated guide to the history, landscape and cultural heritage of this delightful corner of Ireland that will appeal to anyone with connections to the region, to visitors and to anyone interested in their Irish heritage.



Billy Colfer is a sympathetic insider who has acquired an objective and detached eye. The book integrates the landscape and the archival record in an accomplished performance. The compact and highly distinctive peninsula makes for a compelling case-study, with Colfer carefully stitching the local story into a wider narrative. An eye for detail and an intuitive understanding of the local community create a vivid story, while Colfer's obvious love for the place infuses the volume with an underlying passion all the more moving for being understated. In these beautiful pages, the landscape of the Hook Peninsula has been given a radiant treatment.



The Hook Peninsula continues the successful Irish Rural Landscape series. Landscape and environment fundamentally affected the development of the region; the location beside a major estuary and busy shipping lanes was of vital significance. Natural resources, on land and sea, influenced the selection, nature and development of population centers as well as the occupations and lifestyles of the inhabitants.

Billy Colfer is a playwright, teacher and writer and author of The Hook Peninsula, County Wexford (Cork, 2004).