Irish Journal by Heinrich Böll. Short summary

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The author created the notes while traveling through Ireland. He describes the history, modern realities, everyday life, and disposition of the locals.

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Travel notes on Ireland in the late 1960s. Describes the image of a poor country washed by oceans and seas. It rains all the time and you get the feeling that the country is just depopulated. People live in large families with seven or eight children each. But despite this, the number of residents is steadily decreasing. The reason is the great flow of migrants. Of eight children, six will grow up and go to America or England.

The author sees the empty villages and understands that it was not the war that drove people out, but the famine that gripped the country in the mid-19th century. This began the exodus of people from Ireland. The entire history of the state is a constant oppression by England. In 1949 the country gained its independence. This was the greatest event. The author notes that the Irish are a kind and compassionate people. Ireland is a country where drinking, loving, praying and fighting are done. God is fervently loved and probably hated here as well.