Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

Having decided to explore Ireland by bicycle, Eric and Wanda Newby set out one December - not the best time to ride a bike around the highways and by-ways of the Emerald Isle, even when protected by thermal underwear. From the Cliffs of Moher to St Brigid's Vat, Dublin, the Aran Islands, the Ring of Kerry and Croagh Patrick, their rain-soaked journey is beset by minor disasters ranging from ferocious storms to even more ferocious dogs. Along the way they come across a moving, miracle-working statue of the Virgin, spectacular ruins and the traces of twentieth-century violence, in between stops for Guiness, tea and soda bread. Woven into the narrative is a wealth of information around Irish history and custom - hermits, horse-fairs, peat-cutting and poetry are all touched on in this deft and dazzling blend of myth, fact and quirky details. And, as usual with Eric Newby, this beguiling account is enlivened by a cast of eccentric and utterly engaging characters.

Reviews provided by Syndetics

Library Journal Review

Veteran travel writer Newby reports on four treks through parts of Irelandmostly by bicyclewith his wife Wanda, in the foulest weather. His expectations were made realistic by memories of much time spent there in the Sixties, so that his caustic comments, about the bad food, general dilapidation, boredom, and dotty natives, do not come from a disillusioned romantic. Despite the drawbacks of their travels, the account offers humor, too, and the couple also come up with a book's worth of holy wells, gutted castles, moving statues of the Virginall that makes Ireland distinct. Laurence Hull, Cannon Memorial Lib., Concord, N.C. (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Publishers Weekly Review

Touring Ireland by bicycle in the winter is a daunting prospect even for the most seasoned backpackers, but Newby and his wife Wanda weathered it with good humor and resilience. The author of such classics of travel literature as A Short Walk in the Hindu Kush and Slowly Down the Ganges takes the armchair traveler with him as he and his companion contend with misleading signposts, lonely roads, torrential rain, gale-force winds and unhelpful natives who describe any destination as ``up the road a bit'' although it may be circular miles away. As a result, the Newbys fall upon many culturally significant points by absolute chance. Trips to remote castles, holy wells and splendid ruins in the west of Ireland are enlivened by lashings of Guinness and tea, and by the often antic behavior of the locals met in omnipresent pubs. The Newbys, who live in England, returned to Ireland in the summer, when travelers are more expansively welcomed and more places are open, but it is their winter tour that captures the essence of the country and its delightfully idiosyncratic populace. Illustrations. (May) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved

Kirkus Book Review

According to Newby, the villages in Ireland are deserted, the pubs empty, the few Irish who remain surly, the weather bloody awful, and the food inedible. Travel books are best when they inspire confidence in the guide, and Newby's superior British attitude puts a Yank on the alert. Can it really be as bad as all that, or does an Englishman--even with the best of intentions--inevitably arrive in Ireland with three strikes against him? Newby is an experienced, able, and witty writer--he has over a dozen previous travel books to his credit, including Slowly Down the Ganges, A Short Walk in the Hindu Kush, and The Last Grain Race. Here, he has used his abilities to spin a 300-page book out of what would have made an amusing series of letters home. When he isn't citing other writers (there are 60 books in the bibliography, and he seems to quote from them all, often) or tracing the history of places he's convinced us we wouldn't be interested in seeing, he is recounting the miseries of trying to get around on mountain bikes. He and his long-suffering and charming Slovenian wife, Wanda, are good sports, but you never quite get over the feeling they have put themselves through all of this so that Newby can write another book, and have done it on bikes to make it more interesting. Newby tells us they undertook the trip simply to enjoy themselves. But they didn't, and his good writing doesn't disguise that--or his underlying disapproval of the people and culture he encounters. Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.