Kevin Barry and His Time [Paperback]

Donal O'Donovan (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Glendale Publishing Ltd (November 1989)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0907606687
• ISBN-13: 978-0907606680
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.3 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,752,650 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Long Overdue But Well Worth the Wait!, November 8, 2002

By 

Aisling (Dublin, Ireland.) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Kevin Barry and His Time (Paperback)

In October of last year the reinterrment and state funerals of the so-called 'Forgotten Ten', hanged and buried in Dublin's Mountjoy Gaol during the Irish War of Independance, took place. By far the most famous of the 'Ten' was Kevin Barry the 18 year old medical student hanged on 1 November 1920 for taking part in an ambush on a British Army bread-lorry. In the light of these historic events it seem a pity that no decision has, as yet, been taken to republish Donal O'Donovan's 'Kevin Barry and his Time'.
O'Donovan's excellent work was long overdue as the first scholarly exploration of the legacy of Kevin Barry (1902-1920). Despite being one of the best known symbols of Irish nationalism Barry is a relatively neglected figure in historical circles. Of course this can hardly come as a surprise considering the huge romantacisation his story has undrgone during the past 80+ years. Irish historians are notoriously wary of treating subjects affected by this sort of legend-mongering. In Barry's case the difficulty in seperating myth from reality would be considerable. It is in this regard that, I think, O'Donovan has excelled. Throughly objective and scholarly 'Kevin Barry and his Time' makes excellent history and excellent reading. Its objectivity is made all the more laudable considering the author's personal connection with the story. O'Donovan is Kevin Barry's nephew, a fact that the reader would never guess from the objective tone of the work.
O'Donovan's realistic unromanticised Barry is in fact far more appealing than the helpless young martyr portrayed in the more mawkish of legends relating to him. The Kevin Barry of this book comes across as an intelligent, down to earth individual who did not consider that he was doing anything exceptional and was distinctly uncomfortable with the hysteria of the public and media in the weeks before his execution. The good humour and incredible courage in the face of death which were the source of Barry's popular appeal are vividly and effectively portrayed on a level devoid of any sentiment or political agenda.
The fact that Barry's life before September 1920 was a distinctly average one is illustrated by the fact that the majority of the book deals with the couple of months leading up to his death. Nonetheless there is much new material of both biographical and general historical interest in this book, ranging from personal letters and school essays to court records and prison notices. O'Donovan's eyewitness accounts, access to intimate family records and the many photographs the book contains mean that this essentially academic work is as accessable to the average reader as to the serious student of history.
In short, 'Kevin Barry and his Time' is a masterpiece of historical writing whose objectivity produces a powerful effect on the reader. It leaves us in little doubt as to why Kevin Barry's name is revered from 'Belfast to Boston' while also restoring his very human face. 'Kevin Barry and his Time' details the short and unextraordinary life of a person who was rendered a legend by the courage and historical impact of his extraordinary death.