Jack Lynch, A Biography

Dermot Keogh,

Gill & Macmillan, €26.99

IT says something about the tumultuous period in which Jack Lynch led this country that to this day such a mild-mannered and essentially decent man can attract such divergent views about his tenure as taoiseach.

While Dermot Keogh's new biography of Lynch is certainly not an uncritical eulogy, the book's final words – "A far-seeing and practical patriot" – make it pretty clear where the University College Cork professor stands on the subject.

The level of research in this latest biography of Lynch is staggeringly impressive. Helped by three sacks of personal papers, given to Keogh by Lynch's widow Máirín, this book was eight years in the making and is a major addition to our knowledge of Lynch. It has to be said, however, that it is not a particularly easy read and, at times, the research is a little too comprehensive. A three-page-long description, in the opening chapter, of the "social milieu" in the Shandon area of Cork into which Lynch was born in 1917, is just one example where this reader at least was left feeling a little overwhelmed.

The tendency to republish large tracts of correspondence or reports – for example, the report by the Irish ambassador in London to Lynch dealing with what came to be known as the 'Littlejohn affair' – may add to the historical accuracy or thoroughness of the work, but for the more casual reader, it can be off-putting.

Lynch's quite stunning GAA career is covered in reasonable detail, but in a somewhat sterile manner. The book is strongest when dealing with Lynch's handling of the North, in particular the arms crisis, where the narrative becomes genuinely riveting and the thoroughness of Keogh's research is a definite asset.

While he is critical of Lynch's tenure as taoiseach in some respects – for example, the way he stood by ministers who should have been sacked – Keogh concludes that, "thanks to Jack Lynch and his close party supporters, the post-arms trial Irish state was 'alive and strong, safe and sound'".

Lynch's positives far outweighed the negatives. The same holds true for this biography.

Shane Coleman is Political Editor of the Sunday Tribune