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bethreadsandnaps's review against another edition
4.0
One of my book clubs picked this book for this month. I wasn't really in the mood to read Northern Ireland nonfiction, but my friend is trying to get this book club off the ground and the meeting is on Sunday. I really didn't have the time to sit with it (or, let's just say, I didn't WANT to sit with this book), so I popped in my earbuds instead. Listening isn't my preferred method, so here goes.
I came into this book with zero knowledge of Northern Ireland history other than what you get from watching Derry Girls. Maybe I zoned out while listening because I still know very little about the IRA now. There are different factions of the IRA. Can I name them? I don't think so, but one of them is Provisional (I think). Can I tell you the differences? Nope. Again, not sure if I zoned out during that part or if the book didn't go into that much detail.
What I really liked about this book is that it zoomed in tight on a few players, starting with the abduction of Jean McConville in 1972. This book, in my opinion, focused the most on sisters Marian and Dolours Price who participated in a 1973 bombing. The tight zoom was beneficial to me because it put faces on something I couldn't grasp before.
Radden Keefe is a solid writer. I've really liked his other works, such as Empire of Pain, but I haven't loved them. I'd put this one in that same category. I gravitate to certain parts of his writing (like how he personified the Troubles here with characters but didn't go too wide), but other parts I tend to gloss over or they don't impact me as much.
I came into this book with zero knowledge of Northern Ireland history other than what you get from watching Derry Girls. Maybe I zoned out while listening because I still know very little about the IRA now. There are different factions of the IRA. Can I name them? I don't think so, but one of them is Provisional (I think). Can I tell you the differences? Nope. Again, not sure if I zoned out during that part or if the book didn't go into that much detail.
What I really liked about this book is that it zoomed in tight on a few players, starting with the abduction of Jean McConville in 1972. This book, in my opinion, focused the most on sisters Marian and Dolours Price who participated in a 1973 bombing. The tight zoom was beneficial to me because it put faces on something I couldn't grasp before.
Radden Keefe is a solid writer. I've really liked his other works, such as Empire of Pain, but I haven't loved them. I'd put this one in that same category. I gravitate to certain parts of his writing (like how he personified the Troubles here with characters but didn't go too wide), but other parts I tend to gloss over or they don't impact me as much.
riskeytaker's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
tense
medium-paced
5.0
emlr11's review against another edition
challenging
dark
informative
medium-paced
5.0
An excellent piece of journalism. Audiobook narrator was fantastic.
libraryofdreaming's review against another edition
4.0
This is the kind of book that haunts you, keeps you up at night, and invades your dreams. It's a brilliant piece of journalism that I'll be thinking about for a long, long time.
niamhcashell's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
sad
medium-paced
4.0
saarustin's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
tense
medium-paced
4.0
akmatz's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Police brutality, Murder, Religious bigotry, Injury/Injury detail, Excrement, Death of parent, Death, Violence, Eating disorder, War, Hate crime, and Gun violence
Moderate: Torture
Minor: Suicide