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[Anna NicLeòid] Còmhla rium a-nochd ban-Èireannach, a phòs Albannach, a chuir bliadhnaichean seachad anns an Eadailt ’s tha an-diugh a’ fuireach an Dùn Èideann, ‘s ise Aideen O’ Malley. Fàilte chun a’ phrògraim, Aideen.

[Aideen O’ Malley] Tapadh leat, Anna.

[Anna NicLeòid] Agus còmhla rithe-se, an t-Urramach Iain Urchardan, a chaidh a thogail anns na Hearadh. ’S e craoladair a th’ ann a fhuair foghlam ealain mus deach e an uair sin gu bhith na mhinistear, agus tha e an-diugh a’ teannadh ri sgrìobhadh cuideachd. Fàilte ort-sa, Iain.

[An t-Urramach Iain Urchardan] Sin thu, Anna.

[Anna NicLeòid] Agus a bharrachd air a bhith bruidhinn air an taghadh leabhraichean aca tha iad air aon dhiubh sin a mholadh dha càch a chèile airson a leughadh - ’s gheibh sinn a-mach nas fhaide air adhart co-dhiù a chòrd iad riutha no nach do chòrd!

[Anna NicLeòid] Aideen an toiseach, beagan mu do dheidhinn fhèin. Ban-Èireannach, thogadh tu ann am Baile Àtha Cliath. Dè seòrsa saoghail a bh’ agadsa ’s tu ag èirigh suas?

[Aideen O’ Malley] Dh’fhàs mi suas ann an teaghlach mòr ann am pàirt de Bhaile Àtha Cliath far an robh deich teaghlaichean de chàirdean agam anns an aon sgìre. Bha sinn uile eòlach air a chèile. Agus bha sinn nar sianar san teaghlach, còig caileagan agus aon bhràthair.

[Anna NicLeòid] Aon bhalach am measg clann nighean – balach bochd.

[Aideen O’ Malley] Agus bha m’ athair na fhear-lagha, so bha leabhraichean gu math cudromach dhuinne. Bha facal, facal-sgrìobhte gu h-àiridh, gu math cudromach dhuinn. Bha an taigh againne làn leabhraichean.

[Anna NicLeòid] ’S chaidh d’ athair an uair sin gu bhith na bhritheamh. Dè bha sin a’ ciallachadh dhuibhse mar theaghlach?

[Aideen O’ Malley] Bha e a’ ciallachadh barrachd airgid. Ged a bha caitheamh-beatha againne, dh’fhaodadh tu a ràdh, aig ìre àraid, bha sinn a-riamh uabhasach gann de dh’airgead. Is tha sin a’ tighinn am bàrr ann an leabhraichean a tha mi gu bhith a’ bruidhinn mu dheidhinn a-nochd.

[Anna NicLeòid] Ach bha e a’ ciallachadh cuideachd gun robh e air falbh tòrr dhen ùine.

[Aideen O’ Malley] Bhiodh e a’ siubhail tòrr. Bhiodh e falbh feasgar Diluain, ’s bhiodh e a’ tilleadh dhachaigh feasgar Dihaoine, so fad mo bheatha, ’s mi òg, cha robh m’ athair ann dàrna leth dhen t-seachdain.

[Anna NicLeòid] Dè na cur-seachadan a bh’ agad? Dè bhiodh tu a’ dèanamh?

[Aideen O’ Malley] Uill, nuair a bha mise beag, bhithinn a’ cluich a-muigh tòrr air an t-sràid. Cha bhi clann a’ dèanamh siud ’s an latha an-diugh, a’ coiseachd tro bhaile ’s chan fhaic thu leanabh, an dà rud ann am Milan, no ann an Lunnainn, no ann an Dùn Èideann cuideachd. ’S tha mi a’ gabhail iongnadh, bha sinne a’ cur seachad ar beatha a’ cluich a-muigh.

[Anna NicLeòid] Am biodh tu a’ dèanamh tòrr leughaidh?

[Aideen O’ Malley] Bhithinn a-staigh a’ leughadh, mo shròn ann an leabhar fad na h-ùine, ’s bhiodh mo mhàthair ag iarraidh mo shealladh a-mach on doras, ach bha mi a’ hoovereigeadh suas nan leabhraichean ‘s mi beag.

[Anna NicLeòid] ‘S mar sin dheth, a’ chiad leabhar a tha thu air roghnachadh, a thoirt a-steach thugainn a-nochd, ‘s e sgeulachd a tha sin, nobhail a tha a’ dol air ais gu làithean d’ òige. Dè th’ ann? Nach innse dhuinn dè th’ ann?

[Aideen O’ Malley] ‘S e leabhar a tha seo Ballet Shoes aig Noel Streatfield agus sin an leabhar a bu mhotha a bha a’ còrdadh rium, ‘s mi a’ fàs suas. Anns an stòiridh sin, tha teaghlach ann, a’ caitheamh beatha aig ìre àraid ann an Kensington ann an Lunnainn agus triùir, trì caileagan beaga a chaidh adoptadh agus tha iad gan cur dhachaigh far am bi iad fo chùram a’ bhoireannaich a tha seo, tha uncail aice air a bhith a’ siubhal ann an t-saoghail, ’s tha i a’ cur clann-nighean dhachaigh – tha i annasach. Bidh iad a’ faighinn babies ann an siud ’s an seo ’s gan cur dhachaigh agus bidh an tè seo a’ coimhead às an dèidh agus gun nàire gan togail. Agus tha an stòiridh seo mu dheidhinn mar a tha iad a’ fàs uabhasach fhèin gann de dh’airgead, mar a thuirt mi a’ caitheamh-beatha aig ìre àraid. Tha iad uabhasach fhèin gann de dh’airgead ach fhathast tha còcaire agus maid agus nanny aca a-staigh.

[Anna NicLeòid] Agus ri linn sin, tha uallach a’ tighinn air a’ chloinn.

[Aideen O’ Malley] Air a’ chloinn. Sin an rud a bha a’ còrdadh rium cho mòr. ‘S e leabhar uabhasach realistic a th’ ann mu dheidhinn dè tha e a’ ciallachadh do theaghlach a bhith gann de dh’airgead. Bha am biadh aca a’ fàs nas sìmplidh. Chan urrainn dhaibh aodach ùr a cheannach. Agus b’ fheudar dha na caileagan gabhail a-mach an ceann an cosnaidh air an stèidse, a’ dannsa agus ag actadh air an stèidse. Tha tarraing mòr ann an siud do nighean òg.

[Anna NicLeòid]An robh tarraing ann dhut fhèin? An robh thusa a’ coimhead saoghal mar sin dhut fhèin?

[Aideen O’ Malley] Uill, cha robh really ach bha ùidh mhòr agam anns an t-saoghal sin aig an àm. Ach an tè anns a’ mheadhan anns an triùir seo, Petrova, an tè a bu mhotha a bha mise a’ faireachdainn coltach rithe, bha ise ag iarraidh a bhith na paidhleat agus sin am ambition a bh’ agamsa cuideachd ‘s mi a’ fàs suas.

Chaidh am prògram seo, Leugh Mi, a chraoladh an toiseach ann an 2015.

[Anna MacLeod] With me tonight an Irish woman, who married a Scot, who spent years in Italy and today lives in Edinburgh. She is Aideen O’ Malley. Welcome to the programme, Aideen.

[Aideen O’ Malley] Thank you, Anna.

[Anna MacLeod] And with her, the Reverend Iain Urquhart, who was brought up in Harris. He is a broadcaster who studied art before he then became a minister, and he is now starting to write too. Welcome, Iain.

[Rev Iain Urquhart] There you are, Anna.

[Anna MacLeod] And in addition to talking about their choice of books they have recommended one of themto each other to read - and we’ll find out later on anyway if they enjoyed them or not.

[Anna MacLeod] Aideen first, a wee bit about yourself. An Irish woman, you grew up in Dublin. What sort of world did you have growing up?

[Aideen O’ Malley] I grew up in a big family in a part of Dublin where there were ten families in the one area. We all knew each other. And there were six of us in the family, five girls and one brother.

[Anna MacLeod] One boy amongst girls – poor boy.

[Aideen O’ Malley] And my father was a lawyer, so books were very important to us. The word, the written word especially, was very important to us. Our house was full of books.

[Anna MacLeod] And your father then became a judge., What did that mean for you as a family?

[Aideen O’ Malley] It meant more money. Although we had a way of life, you could say, at a particular level, we were always very short of money. And this surfaces in the books that I am going to talk about tonight.

[Anna MacLeod] But it meant too that he was away a lot of the time.

[Aideen O’ Malley] He travelled a lot. He would leave on Monday afternoon and he would return home on Friday afternoon, so all of my life, when I was young, my father was not there for half of the week.

[Anna MacLeod] What were your hobbies? What did you do?

[Aideen O’ Malley] Well, when I was wee, I would play outside lots on the street. Children don’t do that today, walk through a town and you won’t see a child, whether in Milan, or in London, or in Edinburgh either. And I’m surprised, we spent our lives playing outside.

[Anna MacLeod] Did you do a lot of reading?

[Aideen O’ Malley] I would be in reading, my nose in a book all of the time, and my mother would want me out the door, but I was hovering up the books when I was wee.

[Anna MacLeod] And as such, the first book that you have chosen to bring in for us tonight, it is a story, a novel that goes back to the days of your youth. What is it? Won’t you tell us what it is?

[Aideen O’ Malley] This book is Ballet Shoes by Noel Streatfield and that is the book that I liked most, when I was growing up. In that story, there is a family, living at a particular level in Kensington in London and three people, three young girls who were adopted and they are put in a home where they are under the care of this woman. She has an uncle who travels in the world, and sends girls home – she is strange. They get babies here and there and send them home and this girl looks after them and with no shame raises them. And this story is about how they become awful short of money, as I said living their life at a particular level. They are awfully short of money but still, they have a cook and a maid and a nanny.

[Anna MacLeod] And because of that, responsibility comes to the children.

[Aideen O’ Malley] To the children. That is what I enjoyed so much. It’s a very realistic book about what it means for a family to be short of money. Their food becomes simpler. They can’t buy new clothes. And the young girls had to go out and earn a living on the stage, dancing and acting on the stage. That is very appealing to a young girl.

[Anna MacLeod] Was that appealing to you too? Did you see a world like that for yourself?

[Aideen O’ Malley] Well, not really, but I had a big interest in that world at that time, but the girl in the middle of this trio, Petrova, the girl that I felt most like, she wanted to be a pilot and that an ambition of mine too when I was growing up.

This programme, Leugh Mi, was first broadcast in 2015.