Customer Reviews

Behind the Mask: The IRA and Sinn Fein

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A required purchase, if only for the account of the attack on the Short Strand catholic enclave in 1970 which was the first stepping stone to the sort of war that transpired over the next quarter of a century and which suggested that there was going to be a war whether or not the IRA wanted to take part in it or not.

Coming from a long family history of involvement in the struggle for Irish liberation, it's so depressing to see the same old cliches and anger in the other reviews for this excellent book.

The British never quite understood the Irish, as former British Prime Minister James Callaghan admitted in the late 1970s. They never understood the intra-community hatred, and the hatred towards the security forces. And as this book shows, the Republican movement never quite understood that the Brits were prepared to fight them to a standstill, locking down vast chunks of Northern Ireland in order to quell the most visible effects. The sympathy the British people ever had with the Republican movement was extinguished after years of dreadful attrocities on the mainland, leading to a grim determination to give UK Government permission to "take out" the perpetrators, whether in Northern Ireland, UK, or overseas.

And despite the Republican's clear intelligence, foresight and focused strategy, they failed to win the minds of successive US Governments, who were rightly embarrassed by the echolons of ignorant, ill-advised and ill-taught Americans claiming Irish roots and therefore permission to interfere.

As the US Department of State implicitly communicated to Sinn Fein and IRA after September 11, 2001: "It's over boys".

Peter Taylor is a well known spectator to the past 30 years of sectarian and politically inspired violence in Northern Ireland. I was very impressed by his in-depth knowledge and journalistic mentality to uncover the truths behind the multiple events and horrors that have shaken communities world-wide, many of which are vastly misunderstood in the showers of propoganda disseminated by all sides. I found this account not only objective and fair, but his analysis once again shows how peace was attainable at various junctures, yet slipped out of the hands of the leaders, all of whom appear to be pragmatic politicians. I commend his account; what a pity it could not have been written many years ago.

This is a fair and informative book on The Troubles. I've read many (Holland, Coogan, Bell, etc) and thought this one was the best until I read "Secret History of the IRA" by Ed Moloney. In terms of depth of insight and analysis, especially as it relates to Gerry Adams and the Peace Process, Behind the Mask pales.

Peter Taylor has presented a picture of the IRA and Sinn Fein and shown that each of the people mentioned had a motive for all that they have done. Whether it be peace, revenge, or a feeling that they must defend their area, the interviews show that the men and women involved would rather lay down their arms but believe that they are forced to maintain them. The book is objective, fair, and in no way flattering to any of the people mentioned. It does not glamorize the struggle, nor does it demean it. It shows what is happening, what people are believing, in a way that no other book does: objectively. That alone makes this an excellent book. Anyone who reads it will realize that Sinn Fein is looking for the same thing as everyone else and that is peace.

We should all be indebted to Taylor, who is an excellent journalist, for exposing the lies that have been spun for so long about the relationship between IRA and Sinn Fein. They deny that they are linked, and this book shows the vacuous nature of that denial. Money given to Sinn Fein is money that funds IRA terror. Taylor is to be commended for casting light on a murky and dangerous subject.

So often in reviews of books relating to the conflict in the north of Ireland, we hear the term "terrorist" applied to the IRA and the expression "Sinn Fein is the political wing of the IRA". Number one, if you define terrorism as acts that result in the death of innocent woman and children, then the term should be applied to those who run all Western policy, resulting as it has in the deaths of children in Belgrade, Kosovo, Iraq, Sudan, etc. The term "terrorist" has no validity unless it is applied universally - as opposed to selectively against your enemies. The IRA are no more a terrorist organisation than NATO. Taylor's book for the most part reflects this truth but his editor or publisher has cynically added the insulting cliches - no doubt as a marketing tool, ie. to make it acceptable to the mind set of those who unquestioningly parrot these insults. Taylor is in the know. He is objective. He writes extremely well. All these factors make this book essential reading to all students of conflict in Ireland. But they should not start with the term "terrorist" in their mind.

This book is one of many that exposes the lie that Sinn Fein is the Political wing of the IRA. They are both part of the same Republican movement but the IRA is no more Sinn Fein's armed wing than the RUC is the Ulster Unionists armed wing, or the British Army is the Armed wing of the UK government. Yes they are linked - but that does not make them the same. Such lazy, imprecise thinking is a factor in matters Irish remaining confused to the outside world. Taylors book makes the distinction skillfully and therefore should inform all those who approach this book with an open mind.

An amazingly clear and perceptive retelling of the sad and often brutal history of Northern Ireland and the IRA over the past quarter of a century, BEHIND THE MASK invites the reader into secret and not-so-secret events that have shaped British and Irish history for the foreseeable future. This book provides eye-opening insights into top-level secret negotions between the British and Irish governments and the IRA, even at the darkest hours of the conflict. Anyone wishing to understand the why and the wherefore of the "troubles" must read this book. Arthur Gribben, Irish America Net

a great book that details the rise of the IRA from violent semi professional terrorists to what is now one of the largest and best trained terrorist organizations in europe, it also shows the rise of protestent paramilitaries and thier only partially succesfull attempt to counter the republican paramilitaries, this book is easily one of the best written on the northern ireland tragedy.

This book is a very informative and accurate portrayal of the struggle in Northern Ireland. It does not take a biased point of view, it shows the most glorious moments of the Irish Republican Army's history, as well as it's lowest points. It outlines the path to peace that Sinn Feinn and other Republicans along with some Loyalists are trying to achieve. It is wrong though, for the way that some people ignorantly call the Irish Republican Army a "Terrortist" organization.

The Irish Republican Army is exactly that, they are an organized Army fighting for their homeland and the freedom and protection of the minority Catholics in Northern Ireland. They are just as much of a defense force as any other nations military, and are just as much an organized military force as the British army, and if I might add, much more humane. I could easily compare the situation to that of German invading forces in yugoslavia in WWII. There was a resistance army that fought the foreign invading forces, yet the world community did not refer to them as "Terrorists" but as freedom fighters. That is exactly what the IRA is, unfortunately, when they choose to make progress towards peace, Sectarian violence has always gotten in the way, splinter groups of Republican and Loyalists have constantly thwarted the peace process, I hope that such things will not happen in the future. Great book, a must read for anyone who wants information on the struggle in Northern Ireland.