Major new book on Mayo’s war heroes

The well-known local author, historian and former Mayo Person of the Year in 2013, Michael Feeney MBE, will be launching his new book Heroic Mayo in his native Castlebar on Saturday next, December 9th.

The special guest for the occasion is the recently retired Chief of Staff of the Irish Defence Forces Vice Admiral Mark Mellett, DSM PhD, who will perform the official launch.

Michael has long been a student of World War II and is the person behind Mayo Peace Park in Castlebar, which has proved such a popular tourist attraction over the last 10 years. 

This is a self-published well-produced and designed limited edition book. It features a substantial amount of previously unpublished material that was sent to Michael by the families of soldiers, sailors, airmen and civilians from all parts of County Mayo. The book is fast-moving and features a lot of more recent historical events and happenings.

Michael is confident that the book will be well received. It will be sold on a first-come, first-served basis and will be available at selected and supportive bookshops and outlets in Mayo whilst stocks last.

Michael is hoping to arrange a number of talks and book signing at those shops. He would be delighted to hear from any historical and community group who would be interested in hosting a more localised evening. He is prepared to give a lecture or talk on the world wars and how they affected that particular area. If they contact him he would be happy to facilitate this as he wants to make sure that book is available across the county. This book will be of interest to anyone interested in local history, especially our forgotten history.

Michael started working on the book when the worldwide Covid-19 pandemic struck the country. With everything closed down and nowhere to go, he set about writing the book. He started by typing out the large box of letters he had received from families at home and abroad. He got so absorbed in the project that he completely forgot about the Covid pandemic and actually wondered what all the great fuss was about!

Michael was particularly delighted that a number of well-known local and national journalists and historians supported the book in a practical manner by contributing specialist articles on a number of historical events. Those additional articles have added much to the overall book.

He contacted graphic designer Declan Durcan to peruse the completed folder. Declan agreed to do the design work and he has done a really superb job in putting the book together making sure that each page is unique and different. 

Michael is hoping that enough people will attend the launch and maybe even buy a copy of the book as a Christmas gift or present. This is a once-off top quality limited edition book and it is likely to become a collector’s item in a short time. It is a book for the ages.

In his own words, Michael decided to publish the book as he felt that he was not getting any younger and he did not want that type of historical material to be lost.

The book launch will take place at 8pm on Saturday next, December 9th, at the Castlebar Tennis Club. There is ample car parking available on site.