Dublin: A View from the Ground

by Neil Hegarty

Dublin is one of only a handful of cities that holds international appeal and influence—a fact made more unique because its fame is based almost exclusively on cultural output. Dublin may not have an instantly recognizable building or landmark, but ask a listener to come up with images of Dublin and the results flood Molly Malone, a cold pint of Guinness, a late-night pub session. Dublin follows a general chronology, but the chapters are organized around themes—crime and punishment, power and rebellion, urban calamity (fire, flood, disease), the sacred and the profane—that occur and recur throughout the city's history. Larger historical trends—the effects of the city's Penal Laws, the establishment of a Catholic middle class, the dizzying pace of change in the wake of the Celtic Tiger's economic reforms—are seen through the experiences of leaders and pioneers, as well as that of ordinary citizens, to create one of the most wide-ranging and nuanced portraits of Dublin ever published.

Genres: Travel, Ireland

368 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2008

About the author

NEIL HEGARTY grew up in Derry, Northern Ireland, and now lives in Dublin.

Neil has written a range of fiction and non-fiction. His books include:

THE JEWEL, a novel published in October 2019;
INCH LEVELS, a debut novel published in September 2016, and shortlisted for the Kerry Group Novel of the Year award;
FROST: THAT WAS THE LIFE THAT WAS, the definitive and best-selling biography of Sir David Frost;
THE SECRET HISTORY OF OUR STREETS, which accompanies a major BBC season of programming on London;
the best-selling STORY OF IRELAND, written to accompany the BBC-RTE television history of the same name; and
DUBLIN: A VIEW FROM THE GROUND, a cultural history of the Irish capital over a thousand years.

Reviews

[Bill · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reading this book could almost have been a sequel to ‘A Short History of Private Life’ which I read recently, as it deals with the dreadful conditions experienced in Dublin and Ireland, spanning well over a thousand years since Invasion by the Vikings and earlier reference to the Romans
Ref: http://quotations.hubpages.com/hub/Ir...

Over several centuries the British dominated Ireland as a Colony and repercussions are still evident in today’s society – divided by Catholic and Protestant religious views. This is particularly so in the six counties of Ulster, which is still part of the UK. The 26 counties in Eire were granted independence in 1922, now ‘The Republic of Ireland’ and a separate member of the EU.
Ref: http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/ca...

A defining event in the troubled Irish history is the awful famine caused by failure of the potato harvest from 1845 through to 1852, when a million people died from starvation or disease and well over a further million emigrated.
Ref: http://www.wolfetonesofficialsite.com...
That the English establishment appeared to be relatively unconcerned with the famine, while their aristocracy continued to live the good life in Ireland, caused much bitterness in Anglo/Irish relations.

An earlier but significant event mentioned for Dublin is the Rebellion of 1798.
Ref: http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/...

This book was published in 2007, just prior to the sudden downturn that burst the bubble in the banking and escalating housing market in Dublin, though the author did seem to be aware of it coming.

Dublin is a great city with lovely countryside through which I cycled occasionally from my home in Belfast during my teenage years. That I moved to Scotland in my twenties and settled there is partly due to the bigotry that still permeates Irish society, which persists even today, despite the ‘Peace Agreement’ of 1998.

The text is full of interesting detail of which I was previously unaware, despite my early association with this lovely country. The book is beautifully written and I would recommend it to anyone with Irish connections. My only reservation is that it requires the reader either to have a personal knowledge of Dublin streets, or to read it with a map to hand.

[Rebeca · Rating 5 out of 5]

Stunning, so well written and informative. I had lived in Dublin for a year, then went back to my home country, then read this book, and thanks to it, when I returned to Dublin the next time, I saw it under a new light. Reading this book is the next best thing if you can't travel to Dublin right now.

[Wojtek Babisz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well
I wasnt expecting much about the book with this title.
I am so positively impressed with this title!
The trip to Dublin is a Must. Author managed to convey something so magical about this city.

Great book about interesting city

Well done and congratulations to the author 🍻