The Tragedy of Erskine Childers by Leonard Piper

The Tragedy of Erskine Childers by Leonard Piper

In "The Riddle of the Sands", a gripping spy story set amongst the shoals and mists of the North Sea coast in the years before the First World War, Erskine Childers fathered the modern genre of spy adventures, as well as writing a great yachting classic. Unlike John Buchan or John le Carre, however, Childers himself led a life involving spying, gun-running and conspiracy, and a constant search for adventure and danger, which led in the end to his execution by firing squad in Ireland in 1923. "The Tragedy of Erskine Childers" tells the extraordinary story of a brilliant and highly talented eccentric. A pioneering yachtsman in the early days of small yacht sailing, Childers became such a fervent supporter of Irish nationalism that he ran guns to Ireland on his boat. In the Irish Civil War, his extremism and wish to take part in active service rather than write propaganda, led to his betrayal, trial and execution.

"'Piper brings fresh insight to this fascinating, often contradictory lifeHis narrative twists and turns like a sequel to Childers' own novel'. New Statesman 'It is an immensely human narrative that puts a construct of flesh and bone around a sometimes denied figure.' Irish Times 'An exciting and readable account of an extremely strange life and a worthy companion to The Riddle of the Sands.' Sunday Times"

Leonard Piper is the author of Murder by Gaslight, a study of late Victorian murder. He lives in Exeter.

SKU	Unavailable
ISBN 13	9781847250209
ISBN 10	1847250203
Title	The Tragedy of Erskine Childers
Author	Leonard Piper
Condition	Unavailable
Binding Type	Paperback
Publisher	Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Year published	2007-04-01
Number of pages	264
Cover note	Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.
Note	Unavailable