Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland

I’ve not spent much time reading about the more recent history of Ireland, the IRA and the Troubles, so picking up Say Nothing was definitely an educational experience. Patrick Radden Keefe’s true crime novel about the abduction and murder of Jean McConville goes beyond her murder and deep into the historical timeline of the politics, decades of conflict, and what the violence produced.

“Who should be held accountable for a shared history of violence? It was a question that was dogging Northern Ireland as a whole.”

The Troubles were a decades long political and nationalistic struggle in Northern Ireland over whether the region should remain part of the UK or form a more united Ireland. The predominant Protestant population wanted to remain with the UK, meanwhile the Catholic population mostly sought Irish unification. This sets up the stage, and Keefe does a terrific job to get further into the details of this to set context.

The book is meticulously researched and arranged for the reader to absorb the history and nature of the era, however its not so dull like a history book, it goes beyond a list of facts. Keefe puts extra attention at uncovering motives and decisions that members of the IRA and other groups or individuals develop. For instance, he focuses on Dolours Price and how radicalization can occur to normal everyday people, describing her life before getting involved with the IRA and after:

“…in a place contorted by generations of discrimination and bloodshed, ordinary people can come to believe that violence is a moral imperative—an idea reinforced by ritual and pageantry.”

Keefe rotates across a few key players:

• Jean McConville, mother of ten, ‘disappeared’ by the IRA.. her murder frames Keefe’s story and is central to the conflict
• Dolours Price, started as a peaceful civil rights type, but ended up becoming a mastermind of a car bombing
• Gerry Adams, the political face of the republican movement, but behind the scenes mastermind
• Brendan Hughes, loyal street level enforcer of the IRA, ensuring secrecy

Throughout the book, you get the sense for how united the people in Northern Ireland are, especially with details around the culture of silence. Some examples include when entire neighborhoods worked as a team to hide weapons from British soldiers, or ring trash bin lids when British soldiers entered a neighborhood for all to hear and be aware of. In fact, the books title ‘Say Nothing’ comes from an IRA slogan, “Whatever you say, say nothing.” This all alludes to what they regard as the greatest crime: treachery - of which the sentence was death.

Before reading Say Nothing, I was already familiar with Keefe’s work Rogues and Empire of Pain. Say Nothing basically cemented that he’s a rockstar writer and journalist. I’m looking forward to reading more of his work. I highly recommend this one, I know its part of many top books lists out there, and for a good reason.