Belfast Diary: War as a Way of Life

For those puzzled by Northern Ireland, Belfast Diary offers a well-written, sympathetic and clear-eyed view of life during the Troubles (New York Times Book Review)

In the late 1960s, the ongoing conflict between the Protestant unionists and Catholic nationalists of Northern Ireland-divided by their stance on the country’s constitutional position as part of the United Kingdom-escalated to new, terrifying heights. Chicago journalist John Conroy was there on the frontlines, living among the people most affected by it. In Belfast Diary, Conroy offers a street-level view of life in a Catholic Ghetto in West Belfast, painting vivid portraits of its citizens and the violence they faced during the Troubles: bomb threats, murder, police brutality, and more.

Conroy’s recounting of this tumultuous moment in Northern Irish history has been hailed as the best explanation of the more than twenty-five-year conflict. Now with a new afterword, Belfast Diary conveys an understanding that is an essential prerequisite to peace: the resolution of intractable problems around the world requires understanding ordinary people as well as leaders.