In this intricate biography, Tim Pat Coogan carefully crafts a structural framework for the legend that Collins' life has become. The book opens with an account of the Rebels captured after the Easter rising in 1916. The purpose of this chronicle is to provide a mini preview for the reader of where it is that Collins will be headed in his life. From here the author reverts back to the childhood of Michael Collins in the chapter titled "The Little Fella." Now for those readers, who are unclear on who Michael Collins

In his chronicle of Irish history, Coogan is never shy to tell the complete truth or shatter several of the myths surrounding key figures or incidents. For example, in the general election, through the combined efforts of campaigning and voter fraud, Sinn Fein won an astonishing 73 seats in the Westminster Parliament. On January 21, instead of heading to Westminster, 28 of the 105 Sinn Fein members who were not in jail or on wanted lists, gathered at the Mansion House in Dublin to form the Dail Eireann. At a second secret meeting of the Dail Eireann on April 1, recently escaped Eamon De Valera was elected Priomh-Aire, the equivalent of being head of state and chief executive officer. Arthur Giffith, Michael Collins, Cathal Brugha, Con Markievicz, and William Cosgrave all took their seats in his administration. With this new administration established, the "gun" in Irish history began to take on a severe political identity. While Collins' official title was that of Minister of Finance, there was no doubt that Collins himself now had the IRA, formerly the IRB, as his pawn. Ominously, on January 21 that very day that the Dail Eireann convened in Dublin, the first two murders of Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC) members by Volunteers took place in county Tipperary. From this point on the next several years were marred by ruthless violence, which would be inextricably intertwined with the creation of the Republic. Coogan openly admits that there was fraud involved in the election, but does not condone or condemn the actions. For Coogan, he does not glorify the violence or "gun" in Irish history; rather he sees it as an eventual necessary evil. Without this violence and military action there would have been continual efforts by the British to keep the Irish down. And while he does point out the instances where the Irish use excessive force, he counter points this with any similar actions by the British themselves. A prime example of this strike and counter strike maneuvering can be seen in the occurrences of November 21, 1920. On this day the IRA executed 11 unarmed British officers in Dublin on suspicion of their being intelligence operatives. A day later, two angry Black-and-Tans fired into the crowd at a Gaelic League football match, their actions resulted in the death of 12 seemingly innocent individuals and the injuring of hundreds more. This incident is historically referred to as "Bloody Sunday." (In Irish history there are two dates typically referred to as "Bloody Sunday", this is the first of such incidents)

was or what he eventually did for the nation state of Ireland, there is an important foreshadowing at the beginning of this chapter. Placed in a non-attention-drawing manner at the top of the page is a quote from Michael Collins Sr.: "One day he'll be a great man. He'll do great work for Ireland." If a reader is unaware or not paying attention, they are likely to miss this forecast. The elder Collins uttered these prophetic words on his deathbed...when the younger Collins was only 6 years old. The focus of Coogan's work is given to the time mainly from the Easter rebellion in 1916 to his untimely assassination in 1922. But even though the emphasis is not placed on the early years of Collins development, there is a significant link for Collins of who he was to who he would become. Collins as a young boy was little, but extremely tough. He always wanted to play with the older boys and would never let anyone bully him around. In addition, the 6 years that Collins knew his father were highly influential on him as his father stressed the importance of history, learning patriotic ballards, and at the early age of 11 he began subscribing to Arthur Griffin's "The United Irishman." Although not a lengthy portion of the text, nonetheless Coogan makes every effort to show that what occurred early on contributed greatly to the development of Collins, the Irish legend.

Eventually, shaped mostly by

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Approximate Word count = 2730
Approximate Pages = 11 (250 words per page double spaced)