Books by Herbert Mason

A young scholar seeks in County Tipperary, Ireland the truth about his immigrant ancestor who was an artist of ships' figureheads but also an alleged forger. He was caught and banished from his family in Maine, after which he virtually disappeared. A portrait of human heartache is created by the scholar from fragments gathered of an early life in Ireland and of a defiant and creative exile in America. During his stay the scholar is encouraged by an Irish historian to visit Connemara in the west, where he learns of the tragic love story of a woman descended from a legendary pirate queen, and meets the dramatic heroine in person.

Although not widely known in the Western world, al-Hallaj is one of the great figures in the history of the Muslim religion. Martyred in 922, Hallaj has lived on through the centuries in the legends and memories of Muslims. In this narrative of the his last days, Herbert Mason has distilled the essence of Hallaj in moving, beautifully drawn scenes.