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_nb123's review against another edition
emotional
informative
reflective
tense
medium-paced
4.75
Well written and well researched. Rendered a difficult and confusing saga manageable and interesting to a reader with minimal previous knowledge
Content Warnings
Minor: Child abuse, Pedophilia, Violence, Suicide, Murder, Colonisation, Sexual assault, Suicide attempt, Alcoholism, Excrement, Kidnapping, and Death
vandorin's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
4.25
Excellent breakdown of the troubles in Northern Ireland all the way up to present day. I feel like this book did an amazing job of being extremely informative without being dry, as well as being focused on the sode of the resistance without being overly biased. You wont finish this one cheering for either side. This was a great read and encompasses most of what is known on the subject given the extreme secrecy surrounding it. Its unfortunate, but we will most likely never know many details from this era.
jessicaswhirled's review against another edition
4.25
The pacing for the last quarter of the book felt slower, but overall very well written and informative
jennyg73's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
4.0
fflur_jones's review against another edition
5.0
An incredible and harrowing book, extremely well researched.
The splintering of the IRA and the various factions that make it up was well explained and offered an intriguing insight into the movement. The book showed in depth the narrow line many IRA members walked between convictions and morals, and the ways in which the overarching belief in a united Ireland often led them to harm the very people they claimed to be fighting for.
That being said, beyond the complexities of the IRA and its members, what really struck me was the consistent cruelty of the British Army. Their needless violence backed by the power of the state is well documented throughout depsite not being the focus. The passage on Frank Kitson and the ways he used tactics forged by cracking down on other anticolonial struggles was really interesting.
Overall, the book seemed to be asking its reader to question: where does the line lie when it comes to violent resistance and to consider who is never protected (see here the heartbreaking story of Jean McConville's children).
I was left thinking about the relative lack of reflection in the rest of Britain about the state's role in the conflict & the pain and hurt the Army and its institutions inflicted as part of the conflict. The IRA's legacy is understandbly complicated and has been dissected in the aftermath of the Troubles, but it struck me whilst reading the book the comparative lack of dissection of the British goverment's and British army's legacy with regards to the same conflict.
As an aside, the audiobook of this is excellently read by Matthew Blaney (nice to hear it all in a local accent as well).
The splintering of the IRA and the various factions that make it up was well explained and offered an intriguing insight into the movement. The book showed in depth the narrow line many IRA members walked between convictions and morals, and the ways in which the overarching belief in a united Ireland often led them to harm the very people they claimed to be fighting for.
That being said, beyond the complexities of the IRA and its members, what really struck me was the consistent cruelty of the British Army. Their needless violence backed by the power of the state is well documented throughout depsite not being the focus. The passage on Frank Kitson and the ways he used tactics forged by cracking down on other anticolonial struggles was really interesting.
Overall, the book seemed to be asking its reader to question: where does the line lie when it comes to violent resistance and to consider who is never protected (see here the heartbreaking story of Jean McConville's children).
I was left thinking about the relative lack of reflection in the rest of Britain about the state's role in the conflict & the pain and hurt the Army and its institutions inflicted as part of the conflict. The IRA's legacy is understandbly complicated and has been dissected in the aftermath of the Troubles, but it struck me whilst reading the book the comparative lack of dissection of the British goverment's and British army's legacy with regards to the same conflict.
As an aside, the audiobook of this is excellently read by Matthew Blaney (nice to hear it all in a local accent as well).
elisanolasco's review against another edition
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
4.25
Fascinating and very compelling writing. I learned a lot about The Troubles.
sam_rm94's review
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
4.5
“…for the majority of the human species, and for tens of thousands of years, the idea that humanity includes every human being on The face of the Earth does not exist at all. The designation stops at the border of each tribe, or linguistic group, sometimes even at the edge of a village.” - Claude Levi-Strauss
Content Warnings
Moderate: Murder, Eating disorder, Death of parent, and War
hannahgruber's review against another edition
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
4.75
my reading notes pretty much sum it up, fascinating dive into irish history and radical politics. love it