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rhiannonharrold's review against another edition
challenging
informative
slow-paced
3.0
Clearly well researched but ultimately either too short or too detailed which makes the information too dense within the page count. Facts have no breathing room and next to no analysis - I think you’d have to make notes while reading to actually take in the deluge of information. Also, not appropriate for those who don’t know anything about the border as it assumes an already somewhat comprehensive level of knowledge and understanding of the timeline.
Probably helpful for those with an intermediate amount of knowledge but as a newbie to the subject I found it almost impossible to digest much of the information.
Probably helpful for those with an intermediate amount of knowledge but as a newbie to the subject I found it almost impossible to digest much of the information.
brendini's review against another edition
4.0
Though this book offers only a cursory look at the history of the border, this slim volume (it isn’t even 150 pages) wins points for timeliness and approachability. Those who are well versed on Irish history and the issue of the border will likely find little new in this book, but then again it isn’t really written for such people. The clear target here is those unfamiliar with the border. The theme of this book is that many of the issues that have arisen in the last century are the direct result of ignorance of the problems and clearly Ferriter has written this in the hopes that it will help dissipate some of that ignorance.
asphaltjunkie's review against another edition
2.5
This is well-cited, but for academics and others in my specialty, it's an unnecessary primer - neither adding to previous works nor improving upon them - and for the lay person, it's impossibly dry. Who is this written for?
millie_rose_reads's review against another edition
4.0
Diarmaid Ferriter takes historical grievances and the resultant century of political unrest (from the 1920 Government of Ireland Act up to the overtures of the Brexit negotiations) and contextualises them evenhandedly. The subject of the border tends to inspire bombastic polemics, which is why I was never particularly interested in reading about it; thankfully, Ferriter will point out the intractable reactionary unionist/British position and also detail the opportunistic rhetoric and hollow punditry of nationalists.
On a completely extraneous note, I wasn't aware of how much Northern Ireland was poised like the bastard stepchild of Britain and the Republic of Ireland. How often the North is simply forgotten in British affairs, except to throw money at (or in the case of the Republic used for emotional manipulation), is kind of incredible.
At 144 pages, it's an easy and quick read, very informative, and worth a read to anyone the least bit curious about the border.
On a completely extraneous note, I wasn't aware of how much Northern Ireland was poised like the bastard stepchild of Britain and the Republic of Ireland. How often the North is simply forgotten in British affairs, except to throw money at (or in the case of the Republic used for emotional manipulation), is kind of incredible.
At 144 pages, it's an easy and quick read, very informative, and worth a read to anyone the least bit curious about the border.