Insurrection (O'Flaherty novel)

Plot

The narrative follows a diverse group of characters dispatched to defend the main road from Dublin to Dún Laoghaire against expected British reinforcements. Each man's motivations, fears, and hopes are explored through the ensuing battles and violence. Principal characters include the uneducated Bartly Madden; disciplined commander Kinsella; anarchist and would-be poet Stapleton; and youth Tommy Colgan, consumed by fear and self-doubt.

Critical reception

Insurrection received generally positive reviews, though it was compared unfavorably to some of O'Flaherty's other work, such as The Informer and Famine. Kirkus Reviews described it as a vigorous, penetrating study of organized rebellion. Writing in The Saturday Review, Thomas Sugrue suggested it might be the best thing O'Flaherty had done, calling the book brief, sharp, blazing with action and lit by a radiance of idealism. The Bell was more reserved, questioning whether only readers ignorant of Easter Week could get the best value from it, and criticizing passages that attempted to find philosophical meaning for violence.

John Hildebidle, in Five Irish Writers, was equally indifferent, stating that in trying to make fiction out of a theory of revolutionary history, O'Flaherty produced characters without the persuasive energy of his earlier novels. Goodreads gave the novel a 3.67 out of 5 rating.