On the Blanket The Inside Story of the IRA Prisoners' Dirty Protest [Paperback]

The H Block protest is one of the strangest and most controversial issues in the tragic history of Northern Ireland. Republican prisoners, convicted of grave crimes through special courts and ruthless interrogation procedures, campaigned for political status by refusing to wear prison clothes and daubing their cell with excrement.Were they properly convicted criminals, or martyrs to political injustice? In a masterpiece of investigative journalism, Coogan provides us with the only first-hand account of the protest. His investigation led deep into the social, cultural, and economic maze of Northern Ireland's history to give readers an unmatched analysis of a troubled place and its sorrowful history.

Tim Pat Cooganis one of the best known journalists and historians in Ireland. Former editor of theIrish Press, his books includeThe Troubles,The IRA, andWherever Green is Worn.

From the very first sentence, it grips as it horrifies. One would have to be extremely insensitive or extremely prejudiced to fail to be moved by it. The Irish Times

A must for anyone interested in the contemporary history of Anglo-Irish relations. Sean MacBride, Winner of the Nobel Peace Prize