Part history, part memoir, Fintan O’Toole describes his story and that of Ireland’s from the year he was born, 1958, to the present. He depicts the country over the last 60 years politically, economically, spiritually, sociologically and morally. O’Toole’s life as an altar boy, a good student in a Catholic school, and an investigative reporter for the Irish Times help shed light on Ireland then and now.

If you are very pro Irish, you might want to be warned that We Don’t Know Ourselves describes a country, its political and religious leaders as well as its everyday citizens with all of their many blemishes. However, for anyone who has some interest in modern day Ireland We Don’t Know Ourselves is a work of nonfiction that should be read.