Ireland, 1912–1985: Politics and Society is a book by Irish historian and politician J. J. Lee, published in 1989. It studies 20th-century Irish history, and emphasizes the influence of Irish cultural, social, and economic history on Irish national politics since home rule. The book was mostly well-received, and won several awards.
 | |
| Author | J. J. Lee |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Genre | Non-fiction |
| Published | November 1989 |
| Publisher | Cambridge University Press |
| Publication place | Republic of Ireland |
| Pages | 754 |
| ISBN | 978-0521377416 |
Reception
editIreland, 1912–1985 was met by mostly positive reviews. Since its publication in November 1989, it was reprinted twice in 1990, and once again in 1991, 1992, 1993, 1995, 1998, and 2001.[1][2]
In the United Kingdom and Ireland, the book was well received. In the Irish Journal of Sociology, Gearóid Ó Tuathaigh called it "an engaging and consistently original historical commentary."[3] D. W. Harkness of Queen's University Belfast praised it as "witty, stimulating, and provocative" in The English Historical Review, but opined that the text showed "signs of haste" and "typographical errors."[4] In History Workshop Journal, David Cairns lauded the book as "one of the most powerful analyses of any contemporary society that I have read."[5] In Studies: An Irish Quarterly Review, published by the Irish Province of the Society of Jesus, Raymond Crotty called it "well written, well researched, and copiously referenced," and believed that its length was an "attraction... to the non-specialist."[2]
In the United States and other countries, reception was also positive. In the American journal of British history Albion, University of Connecticut professor Paul M. Canning described it as "a perceptive and at times brilliant analysis of Ireland's performance as an independent nation," though he thought it could have used some "judicial pruning."[6] In The American Historical Review, Virginia E. Glandon of the University of Missouri–Kansas City called the book "a critical survey of Irish society and politics."[7] In the French-language Annales. Histoire, Sciences Sociales, François-Charles Mougel of the Institut d'études politiques de Bordeaux wrote that Ireland, 1912–1985 was "one of the first great syntheses on the history of the whole island in the twentieth century."[8]
Awards and honors
edit- 1991: The Irish Times/Aer Lingus Irish Literature Prize (Non-Fiction)
- 1991: Irish Life/Sunday Independent Arts Award (Prize for History)
- 1992: James S. Donnelly Sr. Prize for History and Social Sciences
References
edit- ^ Lee, J. J. (1989). Ireland, 1912-1985: Politics and Society. New York: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9780521266482.
- ^ a b Crotty, Raymond (Autumn 1990). "Books Reviews". Studies: An Irish Quarterly Review. 79 (315): 319–21. JSTOR 30091981.
- ^ Ó Tuathaig, Gearóid (1 May 1991). "Book Reviews". Irish Journal of Sociology. 1: 157–59. doi:10.1177/079160359100100116. S2CID 157261970.
- ^ Harkness, D. W. (July 1991). "Reviews of Books". The English Historical Review. 106 (420): 678–80. doi:10.1093/ehr/cvi.ccccxx.678. JSTOR 573268.
- ^ Cairns, David (Spring 1991). "Recent Irish Histories". History Workshop Journal. 31 (31): 156–62. doi:10.1093/hwj/31.1.156. JSTOR 4289061.
- ^ Canning, Paul M. (Summer 1991). "Reviews of Books". Albion. 23 (2): 374–75. doi:10.2307/4050662. JSTOR 4050662.
- ^ Glandon, Virginia E. (December 1991). "Reviews of Books". The American Historical Review. 95 (5): 1548. doi:10.2307/2165350. JSTOR 2165350.
- ^ Mougel, François-Charles (March–April 1991). "Comptes Rendus". Annales. Histoire, Sciences Sociales. 46 (2): 478–81. doi:10.1017/S0395264950062302. JSTOR 27583102.