Ireland's History provides an introduction to Irish history that blends a scholarly approach to the subject, based on recent research and current historiographical perspectives, with a clear and accessible writing style. All the major themes in Irish history are covered, from prehistoric times right through to present day, from the emergence of Celtic Christianity after the fall of the Roman Empire, to Ireland and the European Union, secularism and rapprochement with the United Kingdom. By avoiding adopting a purely nationalistic perspective, Kenneth Campbell offers a balanced approach, covering not only social and economic history, but also political, cultural, and religious history, and exploring the interconnections among these various approaches. This text will encourage students to think critically about the past and to examine how a study of Irish history might inform and influence their understanding of history in general. This is a general, introductory book geared to the college level and general reader. The book's strengths include a comparative element, taking account, as it does, of areas like literature, popular culture, and sport; a synthesis of the writing on Irish history in the last decade; and giving due allowance to the early period of Irish history, which not all survey works of this kind typically do. The book has an accessible style that will nevertheless appeal to those coming to the subject matter for the first time. Summing Up: Recommended. General, public, undergraduate collections.