The Untold Story of Ireland's Heroic Role From the Fall of Rome to the Rise of Medieval Europe (The Hinges of History)

I was thoroughly intrigued by this book and loved learning about Saint Patrick and other tidbits of information I had heard only passing bits about. This book got me interested in researching Irish history a little bit more and of course eventually I ended up reading Angela's Ashes. I highly recommend this work to anyone with an interest in history, my only negative comment comes from reading the next two in the series, Gift of the Jews and Desire of the Hills and finding that the second two are more "readable" than the first. I can't wait untill Cahill writes the next in his Hinges of History series as I definately plan on getting anything he writes.

Mr. Cahill states that there seems to be missing in the annals of history the "Irish contribution." He says "this is probably because it is easier to describe stasis (classical, then medieval) than movement (classical to medieval)." I take him at his word on this. Describing how this transition took place is the main purpose of the book.

The highlight of the book for me though was the history of St. Patrick. Those chapters alone warrant giving the book a good rating, they're that much fun and that informative! Second to the history of St. Patrick, for those so inclined, there is a good bit of old Irish poetry interlaced in his storytelling. The eight pages of pictures were pretty cool too.

I would probably rate the book at 3 & 1/2 stars if that were possible, taking away a half star for all of the Latin that is used without giving the meaning of the phrases. Just a pet peeve of mine. Cahill also writes about characters as though the reader should be familiar with them, many of which I was not. It's something I'm hesitant to fault him for though, I like being introduced to new people in history.

All-in-all, a very nice contribution to history. It's a mere 218 pages and very easy to read prose (minus the Latin).

Cahill was thorough on his research. He gave a new understanding on the collapse of the Roman Empire in the west. His disclosures about the Irish and their contribution in preserving literacy and civilization in Europe was fascinating. A glossary on how to pronounce the many names would have been beneficial. A very good read! cb

Mr. Cahill provides the critical link in what has been a neglected segment of history, woven with excellent story-telling and spiced with subtle humor. Sadly, it begs the question of how Western civilization will be saved from destructive forces today.

A very informative book that tells the story of how the Irish saved civilization. I enjoyed this book because I just never knew how instrumental the Irish were after Rome fell. Most of the time we just hear "Rome Fell", and that's it. A book worth owning.

Very readable book, smoothly and self-effacingly told. Clear and easy summary of roman history (nice Gibbon summary in particular) and the classical influences on early Ireland. In order to show us what it was indeed that the Irish saved, and the preciousness of what was nearly lost, Cahill gives an elegant run down of classical thought and literature; with lines like this “Augustine’s spirit resonates with the plangent chords of Plato.” Lovely histories of Saint Patrick, the first human to speak out against slavery and of Irish civilisation flourishing and blooming in some truly incredible works like the Book of Kells and the wandering monk/scholars.
It’s even got some good full page pictures. Only thing I didn’t like was the annoying way footnotes are inserted into the text in an obtrusive way and the inconclusive, tacked on conclusion.

I found the presentation interesting, though at times it was a bit repetitive. I would recommend this for those wanting to fill in a piece of history that should not have been ignored by most history books.

An excellent book. Hardly exhaustive but I find it to be unbiased and fair in its rendering of the topic. The author does a great job of going into methodology and the big figures in the history of the topic.

Well-written, meaning readable, history that fills in around a gap that often occurs in other books about a crucial time.. Every cultlure contributes its part to our knowledge of Western Civilization. The Irish preserved so much that otherwisewould have been lost. Definitely worth reading.

Mr. Cahill has written an entertaining work on an interesting subject, but for his premise to work, he has to take a narrow view. The Irish saving civilization indeed! They certainly helped, but what Cahill ignores are the efforts of the Byzantines and the Arabs, who also copied and preserved classical manuscripts. Cahill would make you think that the Irish are the only ones who went about this business. Let's spread the credit where it's deserved.

Only the Irish could have lived lives of hardship and sacrifice so willingly, so joyfully! I couldn't tell you how many times and years I've listened to Donal Donnelly read this to me. Please, never ever ask me to do without this treasure.
Elaine Glenn

What a great read! And full of previously unknown (or unrealised) information. Beautifully written, entertaining and informative. Take it on your next holiday - it will be far more worth your time than some cheap novel, and much more rewarding.