Some years ago, I contacted a Twin Cities academic and asked if he could recommend a list of Irish books that everyone should read. He thought for a long time, way past my deadline, and then he finally got back to me. Well, there's fiction, he said, and there's nonfiction, and of course there's poetry, and anyway the most important Irish books are all written in Gaelic.

And there went that idea.

But with St. Patrick's Day coming up, as well as the 100th anniversary of the Easter Rising, I figured I'd take a stab at a list myself. I don't read Gaelic, but I do read a lot about Ireland, and a lot of Irish writers, and any list, I figure, is just a good starting point for an argument. (So: Feel free to argue! In Gaelic!)

"Those Are Real Bullets," by Peter Pringle and Philip Jacobson, a riveting, aggravating, incensing book of reportage about Bloody Sunday 1972, when British soldiers fired into a crowd of unarmed Irish Catholic citizens, killing 13 people, injuring another 14.

"The Killing of Major Denis Mahon," by Peter Duffy. Another one to get the blood a-boiling. The rebellion of Irish peasants during the heart of the Famine resulted in the murder of an English landlord — which resulted in extreme measures from the Brits.

"Courage, Boys, We Are Winning," by Michael B. Barry. Photos, documents and other ephemera from the 1916 Easter rebellion that led to independence. Perhaps most moving is the sketch made at the scene when James Connolly was executed — tied to a chair, because his battle wounds made it impossible to stand.

"Academy Street," by Mary Costello. In just 160 pages, Costello gives us the full life of Tess Lohan, who grew up in the west of Ireland and emigrated to the United States. Reminiscent of Colm Toibin's brilliant "Brooklyn," but even more spare and more interior.

"The Green Road," by Anne Enright. Rosaleen Madigan, aging matriarch (and such a great character!), summons her children back to Ireland for one last Christmas before she sells their childhood home.

"The Picture of Dorian Gray," by Oscar Wilde, the book that creeped me out as a child, sending me to the mirror again and again to make sure that, despite my transgressions, I was aging.

"Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha," by Roddy Doyle. Still my favorite of all of Doyle's fine books, the story of 10-year-old Paddy and his little brother Sinbad and their tough life in Dublin.

"The Country Girls Trilogy," by Edna O'Brien. These three short novels trace the friendships of Kate and Baba, two girls from the West who head to Dublin and independence (and love, and disappointment) in the 1940s.

"How Many Miles to Babylon?" by Jennifer Johnston. Beautifully written, the story of the friendship of two Irish boys in World War I.

"By the Lake," by John McGahern. Poignant and graceful, the story of country folk who live through changing times.

"An Anthology of Modern Irish Poetry," edited by Wes Davis. I couldn't choose between Patrick Kavanaugh and Seamus Heaney and Eavan Boland and William Butler Yeats, and this massive book means I don't have to. Fifty poets, 800 poems — you'll be reading until next St. Patrick's Day.

Write to us!

We are beginning to plan our summer books section, and we'd love to include your suggestions: Which books are you planning to read this summer? Why? Drop us a line at books@startribune.com. Include your name and city. Spread the joy of reading.

Laurie Hertzel is the Star Tribune senior editor for books. lhertzel@startribune.com On Twitter: @StribBooks. On Facebook: facebook.com/startribunebooks.