A word from the Author

I have written many poems over the last twenty years, most of them are true stories that tugged at my heart strings and indeed the heart strings of a lot of people. I have selected 29 poems for this book. They are a mixture of sad and happy times, from joyful sporting events to the terrible sadness of 9/11. There are poems about world famous people like Princess Diana, down to ordinary everyday people that I have come to know very well over the years. There are also a few poems in here where I have added a little bit of imagination, hence the name 'A Lot of Fact, A Little Fiction'. It is really a book of history in verse. We all have to look forward to the future, but it is very important not to forget the past. This book will help you remember important events that most of us grew up with. Serious and light-hearted events that have made us what we are. Peter Costello

About the Author

Peter Costello was born in Kilkelly, a small town in County Mayo, close to Knock Marian Shrine and nowadays close to Knock International Airport. He left school at an early age and worked at a variety of jobs, labouring with local builders, farmers, gardeners etc. He spent some of his early working years in England and later in Dublin. He worked hard but always enjoyed the experience of meeting and getting to know so many different types of characters - people 'from the real world, real people who were out there making a living for themselves and their families'.

He returned to Kilkelly while still a young man and became involved with many local voluntary organisations and it was then he started to write poetry. He would write a few verses on football matches or local events and although many of the earlier ones never saw the light of day, he continued to pen lines on many actual real-life events. In recent years, despite the busy responsibilities of rearing 4 children with his wife Tina, he enjoys going to a quiet room with pen and paper and composing his thoughts on everyday happenings in Mayo and in other parts of the globe. Some are about tragedies that happened around the world, others are of a more lighthearted nature. Each poem has an introduction with a paragraph of information on what the poem is about.

This is Peter's first book of poetry and he is donating euro2 from the sale of each book to the Western Alzheimers Foundation in Mayo. Below are extracts from two of the poems in Peter's book.

The Cottage

I remember long ago
When times were very tough
And families struggled long and hard
So that they might have enough
They worked the land from dawn till dark
With donkey horse and plough
They did not have the luxury then
Of tractors like we have now
Then when the day was over
And the night began to fall
They would all sit round the big turf fire
And the neighbours they would call
The dudgian would be handed round
And the teapot would be filled
And with tales of fact and fiction
The long dark hours were killed
And one thing they never failed to do
Before they went to bed
Was to all get down upon their knees
Where the rosary would be said
But things they keep on changing
And I will not forget the day
When the Lord called for my master
And took him far away
He led him up beyond the clouds
To his rich rewards on high
Where he now looks down upon us
From his mansion in the sky
I thought that things could get no worse
But then came the saddest day
When I gazed along the old boreen
As my family went away
The years since then passed slowly
My health began to fail ....  

Good Friday

There was Trimble, Hulme and Adams
Bertie and Tony Blair
All sides were represented
With George Mitchell in the chair
The Unionists and Nationalists
All came to have their say
Republicans and Loyalists
On this historic day
They all agreed to compromise
So the violence it might cease
And they gave a firm commitment
To walk the path of peace
They ironed out their problems
No losing and no winning
And they cleared the way for everyone
To make a new beginning
We all have bitter memories
Of the troubles down the years
The gunshots and the bomb blasts
Brought with them floods of tears
It might be a family member
A neighbour or a friend
A list of senseless killings
The murders had to end
Why should it make a difference
What football game we play
What music that we dance to
Or what church we use to pray