O���Toole, Fintan

Making every minute of this long book enjoyable, narrator Aidan Kelly’s voice is smooth and clearly Irish, and it carries an air of authority without sounding like a documentary. Kelly’s timing and pacing help listeners comprehend long passages and convoluted stories as if they are being recounted firsthand.

In O’Toole’s case, sharp reporting makes good history.

A harsh and thorough skewering of the worst parts of English nationalism, though the narrative’s narrow focus undercuts its potential to be more than a caustic takedown of the country's self-image.