Good book on the "troubles"?

corblimey

I've been watching Reeling in the Years, I'd somehow never seen the 60s before, and I was shocked by how little I knew about the origin of the troubles in the North. I'd like to get a book that lays it all out, but there's literally dozens available on Amazon and they all sound pretty much the same. My dad gave me a cutout from the Sunday Indo for a reader offer for Gill & McMillian Concise History of Modern Ireland but I can't find any decent reviews about that particular tome.

So, word of mouth, any recommended reads about say the 20th century of Ireland (I assume any book about the 20th century will have to by necessity delve into the North's situation)

CSC

As you said there are numerous books wrote about the conflict of the past 40 years in the north. Can you be more specific about what you want to learn about e.g Civil Rights movement, Bloody Sunday, IRA split?

corblimey

The whole lot really. Yeah, I know I'm asking for a lot, but I'm looking for a sort of wide sweeping "introduction" to the period of history (and a few periods around it).

CSC

I found the Peter Taylor series of books very good - Provos, Loyalists and Brits. Will give you a good insight into the armed conflict from a neutral perspective.

madziuda

I assume it's non-fiction you're looking for?

A good place to start learning (for free!) is CAIN (http://cain.ulst.ac.uk/) Conflict Archive on the Internet - they've got plenty of info on The TRoubles including excerpts from books (soimetimes even whole books) and a lengthy bibliography that you can use in choosing what to buy from Amazon.

Now, if you need any recommendation on the Troubles fiction, just say the word, I've got plenty of those

CSC

Troubles fiction - can you give us some good examples?

madziuda

CSC wrote: »

Troubles fiction - can you give us some good examples?

With pleasure

Robert McLiam Wilson’s Eureka Street would be my absolute favourite.
Set in Belfast, during the 6 months immediately preceding and following the 1994 ceasefire it presents the modern Northern Irish society and its many ways of dealing with the Troubles. Unlike many other novels that I’ve read on the subject it does not go into the politics – well, not into political preaching anyway – but is deeply preoccupied with the human cost of the conflict. The chapter on the Fountain Street explosion is disturbing and deeply moving and drives the point home really well. The fact that the story is told by three (if not four) separate narrators – namely, from the point of view of a Catholic, a Protestant and an omniscient narrator - means that all sides have been given voice and thus a Loyalist or a Republican bias has been avoided.
There’s satire, romance, mystery, social commentary and pretty much everything else you might want from a good book. Hell, there’s even a love song to Belfast (Chapter 10) there!
It’s funny, engaging, informative and at times lyrical. An outstanding book by all accounts

Another book by Wilson I’d recommend is Ripley Bogle – his debut novel set in London and narrated in 1st person by an erudite Irish tramp sleeping rough in London. The setting (the streets of London) is removed from the site of the conflict but the frequent flashbacks show us the early years of Ripley Bogle in the Catholic working class district of Belfast in the early years on the Troubles. The hypocrisy, the violence and their combined effect on people’s lives are shown in a stark, no-nonsense, painful way.
Intertextual, metanarrative and syncretic the books is almost as complicated as the conflict itself, but it’s definitely well-worth reading

Glenn Patterson’s Burning Your Own.
Set in the summer of 1969, during the days directly preceding the outbreak of the Troubles in the capital of Northern Ireland, Burning Your Own presents the polarization of two neighbouring Belfast housing estates– Larkview and Derrybeg – one predominantly Protestant, the other Catholic. The events leading to the erection of the first ‘peacewall’ and the introduction of the British Army to the capital are presented from the point of view of an 11-year-old, torn between his new-found friendship with a Catholic boy and his deep need to be accepted by the boys from his estate to whom sectarianism is the new ‘cool’ thing.
The mechanisms of sectarianism are revealed and examined and the transformation of the very face of Belfast (the literal inscription of the sectarian sentiments into the very fabrics of the city) is explored.

Patterson’s novels all touch upon the conflict in one way or another and are generally a decent read so no matter what you pick you’re bound to get a nice insight into the Troubles.

At the end of 2007, Patterson’s Lapsed Protestant was published. It’s a collection of essays he has written throughout his writing career most of them deal directly or indirectly with the Northern Irish Conflict.. In all honesty, these are, IMHO, even better than his fiction. Witty, snappy, informative and, from time to time, really touching. Plus, the Northern Irish dictionary in the appendix is an absolute hit!

Eoin McNamee’s Resurrection Man: a controversial, violent book, based on the true story of the Shankill Butchers – a loyalist paramilitary group terrorizing the streets of Belfast in the 1970s. While its main point is to offer an insight into the mind of a serial killer who devotes his entire life to the sectarian cause, I found it particularly interesting because of its study of the role of mass media in the Troubles.

Bernard McLaverty’s Cal – a ‘love across the barricades’ novel. Love it or hate but definitely read it

Pick up any novel by Colin Bateman for some good old-fashioned satire on the Troubles Thriller (a.k.a Troubles Trash) – funny, action-packed, engaging stories combined with a deep insight into the Troubles and the toll it has taken on the people of Northern Ireland.

toomevara

Eamon Collins' Killing Rage is a superb book which gives a brilliant insight into the radicalisation of a young man and his journey through the ranks of PIRA to become one of its most trusted and feared Intelligence officers. fascinating window in to the world of PIRA and its techniques, tactics and strategies.

It also deals with his gradual dis-illusionment with the IRA and its methods/political philosophy/ ideology and the way in which he attempts to extract himself from the organisation and the troubles. Of course the book is rendered all the more poignant by the fact that the author was cruelly murdered by the PIRA, an event which he himself had predicted was only a matter of time....

A brilliant read, fascinating, insightful with the added bonus that its got the pace of a Le Carre...can't recommend it highly enough.

tHE vAGGABOND

any recommended reads about say the 20th century of Ireland

Tim Pat Coogan is your first and last stop for Irish history IMHO

His book 'the troubles' seems written just for you

[I would also buy 'Ireland in the 20th Century' as it covers the war of independence, civil war and explains the big picture of how we got to this modern Ireland very well, covering the politics of the various governments and the church sticking their 2 bits in and the factors outside of the troubles.]

BossArky

"Teach yourself the history of Ireland" - cannot remember the author. Though not focusing solely on the Troubles, it does give a concise overview of them.

edit - check my reading log, the author is in there.

mrsdewinter

I found A Secret History Of The IRA by Ed Moloney a very good read. I've no great interest in the North but Moloney's book takes you through the preamble of the Troubles, the major flashpoints, and the behind-the-scenes drama that led up to the key moments. Really interesting and very, very readable. It opened my eyes...

chrischance

Coogan is probably the best, but have a look at 'Pig in the middle' or even Martin Dillon's 'The Dirty War'
There's a hell of a lot to choose from.
Chris.

wickedwino

I found Nell McCafferty's book "Nell" a great read and very informative about the troubles. It gave great insight into the major players involved and the way their relationships intertwined. It made a lot of things clear to me! I'm not really big into history and I probably wouldn't read a major tome so I enjoyed this as it was also her life/love story!
Tim Pat Coogan probably has the defiinitive history on it all if you want all the facts and figures.