COMING SOON: For All their Wars are Merry

I know I had suggested it would be this Sunday that would feature it, but it's more likely that next Sunday (I hope) will have "For All Their Wars Are Merry: An Examination of Irish Rebel Songs" coming to Amazon.com in Kindle and Paperback.

I'm actually rather proud of this one. Most of the legwork was done over the course of years, before I even started doing the actual paper. Why? Because, well, as I've mentioned before, I have had occasion to go to the Great Irish Fair on Coney Island. And I've had occasion to pick up a CD or two.

And maybe, just maybe, you could conclude from my name that I'm a wee bit Irish somewhere in there, can't ye?

Ahem.

Anyway, as I pointed out last week, there are some entertaining songs along the way, and I think you'll at least like the appendix if nothing else. And, yes, I do have an appendix filled to the brim with songs. Why? Because context helps, I think.

Again, this sudden shift to nonfiction has been brought on by my impatience. You might remember me saying that Castalia House will be getting back to me in about, perhaps, a month, now that Vox Day gave my submissions priority. What that actually translates to in terms of speed is anyone's guess. I submitted four books. I don't know if they're going to be rejected as a package deal, or individually. Then again, as Honor at Stake is already published, and the most likely project to be rejected, you would have think I would have heard about that one first. Perhaps they're looking over all of the Love at First Bite novels just to see if they want the whole set or not. Which would make sense.

But, yeah, I am seriously unable to just sit still and do nothing while I wait for Castalia House.

And yes, I say "Nothing," even though I'm going to be doing the King Arthur anthology, I did Pius History this week, I'm doing For All Their Wars Are Merry this week, I'm working with someone on making a proposal on Snarky Theology 101, on the 21st (maybe the 28th), I'm going to rerelease The Complete Pius Trilogy as .... The Complete Pius Trilogy on Kindle for $9.99.  Yes, that's probably something I should have done two years ago, but ... yeah. That'll happen.

So, yeah, I'm working like a maniac because I am anxious as hell, waiting for everything to happen.

But this is my month of history and nonfiction.

And if you have no idea what I'm going to be doing for For All Their Wars are Merry, there's a bit of a hint here.

If you don't understand what's going on in the song ... that's the point of For All Their Wars are Merry. I fell into this for so long, I couldn't help but footnote Kirkpatrick, Black, and Gilmore.

And if you can't understand the lyrics as sung here ... that's what the appendix is for.

But yeah, I wound up going through the history in the songs, the types of songs, historical allusions in the songs, and everything but the exact history of the songs by time period ... and that last, I probably would have done in a PhD dissertation expansion on that, but I felt that would have been nitpicking at that point. And require more music than actual history.

But, yeah, I first pounded out For All Their Wars are Merry in January of 2004, over the course of three weeks. It was then refined and retooled over the course of several months, before culminating in an actual thesis.

We don't even go into the alternate songs I used for compare and contrast -- the songs of the mafia. Yes, you didn't think that the IRA were the only people who sold these songs, do you?

And, yes, for those people who are about to say that Islamofascist terrorists have songs too ... I can find Mafia and IRA songs on Amazon. I couldn't find Songs of the PLO or Hamas ... and if someone wants to correct me, please just post ONE link. And please, if you're going to correct me, make sure that someone else hasn't already.

Anyway, if you haven't already, you might want to pick up Honor at Stake. 

Preferably before the sequel comes out.