The Bloody Red Hand: A Journey Through Truth, Myth and Terror in Northern Ireland.

Janet Collins is a freelance writer in Sechelt, British Columbia.

Much as been written about the that have plagued Northern Ireland, the majority of the text coming from those close to one side or another of the many-sided conflict. And while there was likely a sincere attempt by those authors to tell “the truth,” reality sometimes blurs when one is personally embroiled in any upheaval.

So it comes as a refreshing change to read Derek Lundy’s take on the “truth, myth, and terror” that has become so synonymous with Northern Ireland. Using the real-life stories of a trio of his own ancestors as a springboard, Lundy (who was born in Belfast but grew up in England and Canada) makes a valiant attempt to lay bare the harsh and murderous mythologies underlying the conflict. Yet while his insider-outsider perspective highlights the major flaws in both Catholic and Protestant perspectives, he concludes that even though progress has been achieved in some quarters, the region’s troubled past will continue to play a role in the statelet’s future.

A mural painted on the gable end of a house in Belfast insists that “history is written by the winner.” There as yet appears to be no real winner in the ongoing struggle in Northern Ireland. The latest round of peace is a fragile one. As recently as January 2008 police were investigating attacks on a number of homes and cars in sectarian flashpoints in the northern area of Belfast. So, it seems, the Bloody Red Hand may be a fit symbol for Ulster for some time to come.