The Height of Nonsense (PDF)

'Forsake all 21st-century Celtic superhighways in favour of boreens.'
So says Paul Clements as he sets off to visit the highest point in each of the 32 counties of Ireland.
Travelling on the GMRs (Great Mountain Roads), Paul spends time with the eccentric and quaint, who teach him that Irish culture is defined by our connection to the landscape. He meets a poet who tells him how to stop Errigal's ego deflating, and a man who knows the difference between people from Derry and Tyrone simply by their facial features. Travelling through remote corners of little-known counties, some flat, some not, Paul uncovers a miscellany of Irish life. Listen to tales of how to smell fairies, life in a Cistercian monastery, the legacy of Cromwell, standing stones, the 1798 Rebellion, druids, horse racing and the bogs. He learns how to make a walking stick, and how to celebrate the summer solstice with a high priestess. If that isn't enough, he's privy to local gossip and loose women in the pub at night.
PS He only found 28 county tops!
"Stacks of free copies should be sent to all our tourist desks abroad." – The Irish Times. "For sheer pleasure, nothing I read beat Paul Clements' 'The Height of Nonsense'." – The Observer. "A compulsive, educational, laugh-out-loud read." – Sunday Independent. "A fascinating journey around the hidden corners of Ireland." – BBC Radio
Also by this author: "Wandering Ireland's Wild Atlantic Way", "Burren Country: Travels through an Irish limestone landscape"