Say Nothing

An informative, engrossing and disturbing account of the Northern Ireland “Troubles” of the 1970s-90s, centered around the long unsolved disappearance of Jean McConville, a widowed mother of ten children. I remember hearing about many violent deaths during that period but didn't know the details, so this filled in a lot of blanks. The book primarily depicts the actions of the Catholic Provisional IRA members (“Provos”) but doesn't shy away from the violence perpetrated by all sides. Keefe provides historical context, but focuses on a few key characters, which gives the book the feel of a novel/murder mystery.

Possibly the most interesting part - and the part I knew least about - took place after the ceasefire, when members of a secret project at Boston College interviewed many of the IRA participants, promising them their records would only be released after their deaths. Unfortunately nobody stopped to figure out exactly whose deaths that meant - each individual or everyone who participated. And years later as some of the Provos turned from violence to politics, there were high stakes about the long-held secrets that, if revealed, could solve the mystery of Jean McConville's disappearance.

I don't read a lot of non-fiction but I had heard raves about this book and I'm glad I took time away from my novels to learn about this tragic, violent period in our very recent history.