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Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland

Read by:
Matthew Blaney
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Ratings
Book
172
Narrator
36
Release Date
February 26, 2019
Duration
14 hours 42 minutes
Summary
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • NOW AN FX LIMITED SERIES STREAMING ON HULU • NATIONAL BOOK CRITICS CIRCLE AWARD WINNER • From the author of Empire of Pain—a stunning, intricate narrative about a notorious killing in Northern Ireland and its devastating repercussions.

One of The New York Times’s 20 Best Books of the 21st Century • A Kirkus Reviews Best Nonfiction Book of the Century • A Los Angeles Times Best Nonfiction Book of the Last 30 Years

'Masked intruders dragged Jean McConville, a 38-year-old widow and mother of 10, from her Belfast home in 1972. In this meticulously reported book—as finely paced as a novel—Keefe uses McConville's murder as a prism to tell the history of the Troubles in Northern Ireland. Interviewing people on both sides of the conflict, he transforms the tragic damage and waste of the era into a searing, utterly gripping saga.' —New York Times Book Review

'Reads like a novel. . . . Keefe is . . . a master of narrative nonfiction. . . . An incredible story.'—Rolling Stone

A Best Book of the Year: The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, TIME, NPR, and more!

Jean McConville's abduction was one of the most notorious episodes of the vicious conflict known as The Troubles. Everyone in the neighborhood knew the I.R.A. was responsible. But in a climate of fear and paranoia, no one would speak of it. In 2003, five years after an accord brought an uneasy peace to Northern Ireland, a set of human bones was discovered on a beach. McConville's children knew it was their mother when they were told a blue safety pin was attached to the dress--with so many kids, she had always kept it handy for diapers or ripped clothes.

Patrick Radden Keefe's mesmerizing book on the bitter conflict in Northern Ireland and its aftermath uses the McConville case as a starting point for the tale of a society wracked by a violent guerrilla war, a war whose consequences have never been reckoned with. The brutal violence seared not only people like the McConville children, but also I.R.A. members embittered by a peace that fell far short of the goal of a united Ireland, and left them wondering whether the killings they committed were not justified acts of war, but simple murders.

From radical and impetuous I.R.A. terrorists such as Dolours Price, who, when she was barely out of her teens, was already planting bombs in London and targeting informers for execution, to the ferocious I.R.A. mastermind known as The Dark, to the spy games and dirty schemes of the British Army, to Gerry Adams, who negotiated the peace but betrayed his hardcore comrades by denying his I.R.A. past--Say Nothing conjures a world of passion, betrayal, vengeance, and anguish.
Reviews
Profile Avatar Rachel Horsley Aug 2022

incredible story telling! I learned, I felt, I am better for having read this complex and important work.

Profile Avatar James L. Jul 2021

Great book. Great narration. Highly recommend this book for anyone interested in the history of the topic.

Profile Avatar Patrick M. Jan 2025

I read this book when it first came out and loved it. Then I saw the series they produced on Hulu which was very good and that prompted me to listen to it and it was every bit as good as I remember reading it. I was in high school and college during the years of The Troubles and being of Irish decent this book really hit home. I highly recommend it.

Profile Avatar Anna B. May 2022

A masterpiece. I finished to listen the book some days ago and I am still plunged into the lifes of its characters. Escellent narration.

Profile Avatar John M. Jan 2021

Outstanding narrative of a truly dark time in modern Irish history. Thank you

Profile Avatar Chris R. Aug 2020

Loved the topic and the perspective.

Profile Avatar Norman Baer Mar 2020

Very well written. The narration was perfect for the subject matter.

Profile Avatar Barbara M. Feb 2020

Fascinating at first but very Long and got tedious

Profile Avatar Awelch0825 Jan 2020

I have listened to the first 20 min and find that I am only confused. I am not enjoying the book at all. The characters and story has not developed or even started Feels like I am in a Ireland history class.

Profile Avatar David C. Jan 2020

Excellent story and well read. Story line was woven together extremely well

Profile Avatar Nancy M. Nov 2019

Excellent look into events taking place during the Troubles. The narrator is very good and adds to the telling of this sad history. For a fictional view of this time period, listen to Adrian McKinty’s Cold, Cold Ground also read by an excellent narrator.

Profile Avatar Brian M. Jun 2019

Excellent read, and well narrated

Profile Avatar Brian W. May 2019

Excellent , interesting and well read

Profile Avatar Babak A. Mar 2019

An excellent insight in the troubles of Northern Ireland. This book was very detailed, shed light on the key players, decisions and actions taken by the IRA. Definitely an excellent read and quality journalistic work produced a well written book.

Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland

Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland

Author: Patrick Radden Keefe
Read by: Matthew Blaney
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