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Rating: 
Summary: Short-term view of a long war
Review: I think this books deserves to be labeled "good" only if you take the bare tactical or military approach.
I red a lot of NI conflict stuff in the past, and I see this one as the best source both in terms of tactics (from all sides) and warfare analysis (the most completed I ever found about the republican war machine). There are at least four whole chapters dedicated to describe the PIRA weaponry, its making, its smuggling an its use (or misuse)by the organisation. I also reccomend chapter IX, where Mr. Gherarty makes a reflexion about the survellaince and intelligence sistems developed by the British State during the "Troubles" and the aftermath and consequences to the British people such a "Big Brother" policy could have. I also should mention part III of the book, an interesting pre-independence historic account.
Put the rest to rest.
Erratic writing and typos (at least in the edition I have) match a biased and short-term vision. As an example, at some point the author states that in 1979 there were just 13 (¿?) trouble-related deaths in Ulster and that this reflected a sharp decline of violence in the province. Anybody who has ever red the basics about the NI conflict knows that August 27 1979 was one of its bloodiest days, with the killing of 23 people,18 soldiers plus 5 civilians, including Lord Mountbatten.There were almost 50 fatalities just among the security forces that year. Another biased statistic management appears in the 1972 death account: for Gherarty, ALL the civilians killed in NI this year (323) were victims of the PIRA. Indeed, as it was for the entire war, loyalist paramilitaries killed more innocent people (106) than the republican ones (88) in 1972.
Some conclusions also show the wishfull thinking judgment of Mr. Gherarty. His quotes about the PIRA as a "defeated army", regarding all the concessions they won throughout the conflict, are laughable. Yes, you can say that NI is still a part of the UK; but a part whose political system, policing, security and justice were negotiated with another country (namely the Irish Republic). Had the PIRA been effectively vanquished, all this would prove to be unthinkable. Republicans certainly failed to meet the unrealistic goal of an United Ireland under their own terms, but through the GFA, they gained full access to a non less certain road to a de facto integration between North and South. I believe the troubles were, from the military point of view, a stalemate, as acknowledges Mr. Gherarty in other chapters of his book. But a real stalemate is produced by the parity of strength between two contestants; when this parity doesn't exist, and there is still a no-winner situation; should you call that an stalemate, or a defeat of the stronger force?
Rating: 
Summary: Fair Account of a Dirty War
Review: In America, the literature about the conflict in Northern Ireland falls into two categories: pro-Irish Republican or British military (mainly special forces) accounts which do not encompass the broader historical picture. Tony Geraghty's The Irish War is a welcome change in that it impartially explores the historical roots of the conflict and the methods and tactics of each side. For anyone interested in the Irish Republican-British conflict, this is a must read. The first section of the book deals with the recent outbreak of "The Troubles" in 1969. Geraghty draws on his experience as a journalist covering the sectarian violence. Geraghty brings a unique perspective in that he was born in England of Irish parents and served in the British Army. The second section details the counterinsurgency tactics of the British Army, special forces, police, and intelligence services in Northern Ireland. The third section details the weaponry and tactics used by Irish Republican groups. The final section then provides a historical overview from the 17th Century. If there is one weakness to Geraghty's work, it is that it does not provide much detail on Loyalist Protestant groups, except in reference to other events. The American edition includes sections updated to account for the 1998 Good Friday peace agreement, and they tend to awkwardly counterpose Geraghty's overall pessimistic thesis. American readers may be surprised to find just how much this country has influenced--and been influenced by--The Troubles in Northern Ireland.
Rating:
Summary: Who dares wins
Review: Mr Geraghty was arrested after publication of this book for alleged breaches of British National security - he should have been arrested for his appalling abuse of the English language!! This is a very poorly written book. It seems to have been written, or edited, with the American market in mind. The entire history of war in Ireland has been reduced to good cowboy-bad cowboy. Well I am afraid there is only one cowboy regarding this dreary effort!There is so much basic factual error and contradiction in these pages as to defy belief. Have the IRA in the last 30 years killed hundreds or thousands? Did they or the loyalists blow up McGurks? I thought Lord Edward Fitzgerald was captured in Belfast? Explain how a supposedly myth fueled, alcohol fueled, incompetent, naive, uneducated rabble fought the darlings of the SAS and the might of the British Army to a stalemate?! There is a story in these pages that needs telling. However, it will take the efforts of an objective historian who does not have old scores to settle and is not aroused by the image of muscle bound thugs careering around the field of South Armagh - no matter which side they're on!
Rating: 
Summary: Useful way into a sad conflict
Review: There are no winners in Northern Ireland. This is the unmistakable conclusion I drew after reading this book. It was very useful in gathering a historical perspective on the troubles, and had an excellent section on the collection and use of intelligence by British Forces after 1971.
Rating:
Summary: How the British defeated the sectarian killers
Review: This book demonstrates how the IRA were defeated by the British Army. The role of the Loyalist self-defence forces such as the UVF and UFF is also shown and the role they played in bringing the PIRA to their knees. Although there is not much coverage of the sectarian tactics employed against the brave Protestant population, Geraghty shows how the IRA tried to fool the world about their true nature. He shows how they rose from a few ill equipped troops to becoming well-armed but still aiming at killing women and children because they were Protestant. The book details that ruthless war they waged against normal law-abiding people in Northern Ireland. Thoroughly outmaneuvered by the famous SAS and running scared of the mid-Ulster UVF and C company UFF the IRA put their hands up and eventually gave in, begging for mercy from the loyalists. This is an excellent book about how the Protestant population of Northen Ireland took on the tyranny of the PIRA and defeated them soundly.
Rating:
Summary: An Excellent Book About The IRA And It's Long War
Review: This Book shows in graphic detail how the IRA was able to systematically defeat the British Army and the Loyalist terrorist they employed against the Catholic population.
Geraghty shows how the IRA rose from a few ill equiped troops, to become the world's most formidable guerilla army. The book details that ruthless war they waged against the British Army and thier loyalist counterparts in the UDA and UVF. Through a brutally effecient assassination and bombing campaign,(which even managed to outmaneuver the famed SAS),the IRA outfought and eventually crippled the British military and the loyalist paramilitary groups, untill they were forced to state publicly that the IRA "could not be defeated". At the same time as they waged thier successful campaign against the British and unionist forces, they made thier political party (Sinn Fein) the most successful in Northen Ireland. This is an excellent book about how the oppressed Catholic population of Northen Ireland took on the tyranny of the British and for the second time in a century defeated them soundly.
Rating:
Summary: Interesting
Review: This is a good book that describes the the brutal war that was waged between the baby-kilers of the IRA and the British. It recounts how unevenly matched the British Army and the IRA were in that the IRA were more than happy to kill people because they were Protestant whilst the heroic British Army had their hands tied by the politicians. Perhaps one of the most disturbing aspects in the book concerns the use by the IRA of human bombs (like Al Qaeda only these were not voluntary) and how the IRA systematically targeted women and children because of their Christian faith. But pehaps most troubling of all though was the blind eye the Irish governemnt turned to the murder of hundreds of innocent Protestants by the IRA. In response, the UVF and UFF were forced to take out hundreds of IRA activists, something which compelled the Provisionals to hastily surrender. This book is a good read but is not for the weak willed if you don't like reading how the IRA targeted young children and innocent women.
Rating:
Summary: One of the top books about Northern Ireland
Review: This is a mostly excellent book that describes the the brutal war that was waged between the IRA and the British Military machine. It recounts how evenly matched the British Army and the IRA were and how each group used exceptionally good intelligence units to try and out manuever eatch other, it also however shows how vicious and cruel each side could be. the most disturbing aspects in the book concern the use of the SAS as a hit squad against the IRA and how the IRA retaliated by killing unprecedented amounts of soldiers and police and how the IRA managed to conduct a ferocious bombing campaign in england that killed hundreds of people, most troubling of all though was the blind eye the British and RUC turned to the murder of hundreds of innocent catholics by loyalist paramilitary members,and how the IRA and Republican paramilitary response to this was to systematically kill over a hundred loyalist paramilitary commanders in particularly brutal fashion. this book is a good read but as per its subject matter it describes the 30 year war in Northern Ireland in shocking detail and such is not for the weak willed
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Summary: The Irish War
Review: Unfortunately Mr. Geraghty cannot resist showing his British wishful thinking - The Real IRA replacing the 'defeated' Provisional IRA or the SAS successfully taking back South Armagh. Further, only the British know how many SAS casulties there were for they are not going to own up to any of them. Moreover,I don't think you could find one of them who want to spend another day there. A big part that is significantly underreported is the now clearly understood role of the British government actively murdering its citizens through assassination campaigns run by the likes of Brian Nelson. This collusion with loyalist murderers was clearly a definite strategy pursued by the British government. That somehow Nelson was trying to alert the "authorities" is simply not true. Brian Nelson was recruited and operated by the British government as an assassin of people the British wanted to get out of the way. Other examples include the collusion with Billy "King Rat" Wright in the assassination of innocent Catholics in order to terrorize the nationalist community into rejecting the IRA. This book is worth the read but it is pro-British all the way.
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