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Before the Dawn: An Autobiography Paperback – December 31, 2001

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Gerry Adams (Author)
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Product Details

  • Paperback: 347 pages
  • Publisher: Brandon Books; New edition (December 31, 2001)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0863222897
  • ISBN-13: 978-0863222894
  • Product Dimensions: 1 x 5 x 8 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 9.9 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,234,622 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Closing in 1981 with the deaths of ten Irish Republican Army hunger strikers in Long Kesh prison, the author chronicles the years before he became president of Sinn Fein, the I.R.A.'s political wing. Wrenching accounts of the hunger strike and of the 1969 riots in Northern Ireland that turned a 20-year-old bartender into an activist are counterbalanced by the warmth with which Adams portrays his family and comrades, the atmospheric precision with which he evokes the sights and sounds of his West Belfast community. Not the whole truth by any means, but a compelling partisan document. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

The controversial Sinn Fein leader comes clean in this autobiography.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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Customer Reviews

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 18 people found the following review helpful
Good History Lesson
By Stephen Donnolly on April 20, 2000
Format: Paperback
Gerry Adams has set out to write an autobiography. In the process, he has accomplished also writing a history book. This book demonstrates and details the life of a man who questions the systems justices and dares to speak out against those who would oppress his people. The life he has described (being on the run, being locked up in the Kesh, etc) could be used to describe the lives of the countless dissidents who take a stand for nationalism everyday. As an Irishman who does not support Sinn Fein (Adams' Political Party) or the so called Belfast Agreement, I still have respect for the accomplishments Adams made to the movement in the important 1969-1996 years. To those who would label the likes of Adams a terrorist, I remind them that he is no more a terrorist than George Washington or Thomas Jefferson would have been during the American Revolution for Independence. It has been said, "One man's terrorist, is another man's freedom fighter." Only history will show which he will be remembered for.
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13 of 15 people found the following review helpful
Biased? Of course. A good read? Definitely.
By Brendon M. Macaraeg on October 25, 1999
Format: Paperback Verified Purchase
It's hard to write a review of this book without taking sides. When I got back from a trip to Ireland this past August (I stayed in County Tyrone in the North with relatives of my mom's), I started to read a lot about the politics of the North. This was one of the books I read. "Before the Dawn" is a relatively quick read, but it will not provide one with the overall historical background behind the Troubles (the conflict goes back hundreds of years starting with the Potato Famine of 1845-49, and even earlier than that). However, Adams does describe in great detail the British Army raids during times of Internment, the torture that internees had to endure (how would you like it if someone blindfolded you, made you walk across glass and nails and such while beating you and then put you on a helicopter, and then pushed you off, not knowing if you were a mere 8 feet off the ground or several hundered?). For a more balanced view of the Troubles, try reading John Conroy's "Belfast Diary". Conroy is an American journalist who spent 1977-82 in West Belfast. It's also a very gritty, steet-level account. As for the IRA's kneecappings, it should be noted that most locals did approve of them, because Catholics felt they couln't go to the British RUC.
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12 of 15 people found the following review helpful
An Irish hero
By A Customer on July 6, 1999
Format: Paperback
Gerry Adams is a national hero to my people and this book is very accurate of the situation in my island. In response to the comments of fragmeister from Bournemouth, I think he is a typical ignorant English man, analysing the situation from a distance and making rash statements. I would love to see where he got his figures from because most of the people of Northern Ireland want to be freed from English oppression and nearly all the people from the South want the same. The British government forced the republican movement to be by being imperialist bullies in the past and holding on to land that simply isn't theirs. I could go on with this argument all day but I won't. Fragmeister, try living here and see what the British government have done to my people and you won't put down a man like Gerry Adams. This book is a good read, not great, but written by a hero and should be appreciated by all.
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4 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Subjective look at republicanism maturing political presence
By A Customer on August 23, 1998
Format: Hardcover
The deeply rooted history of Ireland and its manifestation in the "troubles" makes it impossible for anyone to write a purely objective analysis of cause and effect. Instead, those with genuine interest must read a selection of accounts, each with a different bias. Before The Dawn is definitely one to include. It is both a political justification for active republicanism and the account of the growth of republicanism into main stream politics. Gerry Adams is articulate and very intelligent. He is very coy about the IRA activities (not so, about the "Crown" - the RUC, British Army, Loyalists) but there is no hiding of desire for resolution of the conflict. At times the book is confusing as there are so many names thrown at you. Adams covers the Hunger strike with a deep emotional perspective. Its obviously an event which has had a significant impact on shaping his direction. I enjoyed it and learnt from it, but its not the definitive book!
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2 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Very good, but start elsewhere.
By gordybob@aol.com on May 24, 1998
Format: Paperback
I read this book in hardcover, & must confess that I don't think Adams is as good a writer as many have said. Newcomers to northern Irish history will have to make extensive use of the glossary at the back (this feature seems ubiquitous in the genre), & almost everyone should be disappointed that the book ends in 1981.
Still, there are good insights -- e.g., the first glimpses into Adams's life on the run, and at his wife, as well a sense of his development over time.
But I recommend another Adams book more. It was recommended to me by an Irish law professor that I trust from Trinity College, Dublin. It's a tough-to-find book (not sure if Amazon has it) that's gone through several reworkings, & was most recently titled "Free Ireland: Toward A Lasting Peace." It's not an autobiography, but a sort of Sinn Fein manifesto on every Irish issue imaginable, and whether you agree with it or not, it provides much more insight into Adams' life work (as well as covering time up to the mid-1990s). It requires even more extensive use of the glossary in the back, but yields far more satisfying results.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

In His Own Words

Being a fairly prolific writer Gerry Adams has set about giving us some insights into the world in which Gerry Adams lived and grew up in and the events... Read more

Published on February 1, 2012 by Marc McElligott
Artist of Peace

Much is known of Gerry Adams, statesman, man of peace, friend of the stars. Less well known perhaps is Adams the artist. Read more

Published on November 2, 2003 by Jimmy Sands
Justifying terrorism and murder

I find the argument set forth in this book extremely offensive. The author was himself intrinsically involved in organising and carrying out a campaign of murder during the early... Read more

Published on December 31, 2000 by John Matthews
This is a very biased hash of a book

The reader from South Antrim might like to know that fragmeisterlived in Northern Ireland for 22 years (and was in fact born there), and thus he knows what he's talking... Read more

Published on August 31, 1999
Good writer? I don't think so

I bought this based on the rave reviews. What I found instead was a book that lacked details and failed to give any valid justification for the actions of the IRA. Read more

Published on May 19, 1999
Great addition to the political debate

This book could remove some of the prejudices that exist against the leadership of Sinn Fein. First though some will have to get past their preconcived notions. Mr. Read more

Published on March 12, 1999
(should be 0 out of 5 stars ) Pathetic Republican Propaganda

This book is a pathetic attempt by Gerry Adams to justify the fact that his fellow republicans has murdered and maimed thousands of people in a futile pursuit of a redundant and... Read more

Published on October 7, 1998
A very worthwhile account.

This book has perphaps been unduly flattered by those sympathetic to Mr Adams politics but it is a very worthwhile account of the Northern Irish struggle and details graphic... Read more

Published on September 27, 1998

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