Most colonial and postcolonial readings and re-readings have concentrated on developing nations, excluding the experience of Ireland. In this treatment, however Villae-Argáiz (English, U. of Granada) tests a number of theories about postcolonial experience against the work of contemporary Irish poet Eavan Boland, finding the process complicated by imperialism and domination based on gender as well as national history. As she sifts through the various ghosts in Boland's poetry she finds the links between politics and aesthetics that underlie any haunted work, made more rich by Boland's artistry. Villae-Argáiz finds Boland's possessions to be many as she explains her own perceptions of themes of gender and Irish studies, then analyzes Boland's work as minority and postcolonial discourse, picking out Boland's particular views on Mother Ireland, the writer's exile as a young child and her subsequent response to the idea of the subaltern, and her later exile in the US. Annotation ©2008 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)