Say Nothing
“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, Ten Best Books of the Year From award-winning New Yorker staff writer Patrick Radden Keefe, a stunning, intricate narrative about a notorious killing in Northern Ireland and its devastating repercussions In December 1972, Jean McConville, a thirty-eight-year-old mother of ten, was dragged from her Belfast home by masked intruders, her children clinging to her legs. They never saw her again. Her 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.
Stats for nerds
9recommend
10mentions
10people
2019–2026years
90% recommend10% neutral
Mentions per year
What Hacker News says
- skipped the byline and halfway through realized the voice felt familiar. if you like this and are unfamiliar with Radden Keefe then check out The Snakehead and Say Nothing. im sure everything he writes is great but can personally recommend those
- Neither are on-brand for hacker news but:
[Best fiction] Stoner - John Williams [Best non-fiction] Say Nothing - Patrick Radden Keefe
- A few of this year's highlights for me and my notes on the books, where available.
Fiction -
Notes from Underground by Fyodor Dostoevsky - https://papertrail.biblish.com/books/2ab29d16-0cb1-4ef8-8cde...
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen - https://papertrail.biblish.com/books/65214629-29ac-45a6-b474...
Bleak House by Charles Dickens
The Death of Ivan Ilyich by Leo Tolstoy - https://papertrail.biblish.com/books/bd090cb4-bc9a-41cb-9833...
Nonfiction -
The House of Government by Yuri Slezkine (my luckiest find of the year)
Stalin: The Court of The Red Tsar by Simon Sebag Montefiore - https://papertrail.biblish.com/books/13ebec0d-0859-4858-864a...
Vienna by Richard Cockett - https://papertrail.biblish.com/books/c0e1d1fb-dea7-456b-a95e...
The House That Madigan Built by Ray Long (an interesting history of a legendary figure in Illinois state politics)
Say Nothing by Patrick Radden Keefe
- "The Constructed Mennonite: History, Memory, and the Second World War" by Hans Werner
It was a great read because it gave an insight into the "Russian" style perspective of the Anabaptist understanding, and the deep complications around: nonresistance, nationhood, language, and war. It is only a small slice of some of the horrifying realities the Anabapists' suffered at the hands of both Axis and Allies during WWII, but as a personal account, and as a detailed series of event, it is excellent.
"Masters of Doom: How Two Guys Created an Empire and Transformed Pop Culture" by David Kushner
It gave a real snapshot of what it was like making (and playing) games in the 80's and 90's. It helped to remind the reader of the technical challenges programmers faced, as well as the much less money-focused nature of video games as an industry. (I have way more to say on this, but will resist the urge.)
"Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland" by Patrick Radden Keefe
Gives, in my opinion, very accurate account of both "sides" of the issue regarding The Troubles. It brought up a massive number of details I was either unaware of, or forgot about. From my perspective, it didn't appear to pull any punches, but instead laid things out precisely as they happened, and showed the blood on the shirts and knuckles of both side. It gave a personal insight to the people who were going through it first hand, and the ways in which they lived their lives; in many ways, it reminded me of some of the descriptions I had heard about the 2003-2011 Iraq War from civilians. (A common theme in both I recall hearing described was the fear of waiting in lines for things, as it meant that location might be targeted for bombing.)
"History Is Wrong" by Erich von Däniken
Although the book is meant to be a serious read, I take it as a comedy. I enjoy listening to various conspriacy theories to see whether I find any shreds of truth in them. In this book, there are some claims about how the way we understand human history is fundamentally wrong, and that "a lost subterranean labyrinth in Ecuador" held specific secrets in the form of "gold panels" - panels which mysteriously disappeared.
Note: I don't mean to sound overly dismissive to anyone who might be a "true believer" in this specific line of thinking, I just find the claims made to be preposterous.
- +1 for Say Nothing, Radden Keefe is one of the best non-fiction writers around today imo. Been meaning to read his latest on the Sacklers for a while also.
- I discovered Patrick Radden Keefe's writing this past year, and loved his writing style enough to immediately pick up a second of his books.
Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland
Empire of Pain: The Secret History of the Sackler Dynasty
I've also been listening to a lot of audiobooks and was really impressed by Rosamund Pike's reading of The Great Hunt by Robert Jordan (Book 2 of the Wheel of Time series) for Audible; enough that I'm waiting to listen to Book 3 to when her reading of it is released next summer.
