Thank you to NetGalley and Rowman & Littlefield Publishers for the opportunity to read an advanced reader's copy of this book for an honest review.

As someone of Irish heritage and an enthusiast of herbal remedies, I was intrigued by “Cures of Ireland.

It’s clear that the author spent a considerable amount of time gathering information regarding the 119 cures she investigated for this book, and I certainly applaud her efforts. The cures and the intricate rules surrounding them were fascinating to learn about, and I found it interesting that many doctors in Ireland still recommend sending their patients to special people who practice traditional Irish cures when modern medicine doesn’t work.

Unfortunately, there was much repetition and I found myself with little practical takeaway by the end. I felt disappointed and wished that the book was clearer in the beginning about this being a book more for entertainment and information than self-help or herbal remedies.

I would recommend this book to people wanting to learn more about Irish cures in an entertainment sense and not those seeking help.

Cecily Gilligan beautifully chronicles her research in Ireland of traditional cures. Most of her work was in the North West area of Sligo/Leitrim.
She interviewed a large number of those who "made" cures and described some of the traditions surrounding the practice of the cure and the succession transmission to next generations.
Cecily noted that many cures were in danger of being lost due to lack of availability of natural remedy ingredients resulting from charging farming practices. She also noted how many were lost over time, especially during periods of mass emigration.
An informative read.

I love these kind of books because they show how we took care of each other before modern medicine. I always thought there were different alternative to modern medicine either through herbs or even through placebo effect, and this books dives into the alternative that were being used in Ireland. I must say some of the cures are a little strange but who cares as long as the recipient feels better. I love how the author shows the various types of cures that were being offered and how the cure were passed down to other individuals. I loved how most of the healers didn't take anything for their help, but just wanted to help. Unfortunately, because of modern medicine and lawsuits most healers are no longer practicing. It's also unfortunate that we give so much credit to modern medicine when the best they do, in my opinion is fix broken bones
If you are like me, and believe your body can heal itself and that there are other alternatives to modern medicine then reading this book will fascinate you and will make you wonder how much we have lost because of fear. I really learned a lot from this book and kept thinking what really cures us, is it herbs (most herbs you can find in your backyard) or does modern medicine really cure us or does it come down to are minds and what we believe will cure us.

I want to thank Rowman & Littlefield | Rowman & Littlefield Publishers and NetGalley for an advance copy of this very knowledgeable book about alternative cures from the past.

This book is interesting history of folk cures in Ireland but the vast majority are faith healing stories, not herbal remedies. I was hoping for traditional herbal remedies but the few mentioned are not likely to work well in most cases (or at least not nearly as well as true herbal remedies, for instance while a plantain poultice might be the modern go-to for a wasp sting, this book might recommend a piece of white bread). There’s about one page of a list of so called cures and the rest of the book is history and anecdotes of modern people and the faith healing they employed. It’s all fascinating stuff, just be aware of what it is and isn’t.

I read a digital copy of this book for review.

I received a free copy of, Cure of Ireland, by Cecily Gilligan, from the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This book has cures for almost every ailment known to man. The Irish have folk cures, past down through generations. I really enjoyed this fascinating read.

The book “Cures of Ireland” was interesting and informative. The book contained a variety of information pertaining to Ireland and cures. There was an expansive history of cures in Ireland, a ton of information about cures of every kind including whose cure there are. It even ends with a section about the future of cures in a modern world. This book was very well researched and was well-written. I think this book would be interesting to a variety of people. I enjoyed the book and feel as though it taught me a lot.