Although the interviews are from roughly 2018-2021, McKay's book captures the complex reactions people are having to the shifting grounds of Northern Ireland both in terms of domestic and international situations. The drawing together of such an eclectic group of people allows the reader to glimpse into their lives and to see that there is not one voice of Protestant people but a myriad of voices that represent positions that are important to them. Her interviews engage voices from across the socioeconomic spectrum and they often speak with striking clarity. Both have same theme so if you don't read the reviews you might not know this is the up to date book.

Susan McKay published one of the definitive modern books on Northern Ireland in 2000: Northern Protestants: An Unsettled People (Belfast: Blackstaff Press, 2000). What emerges most forcefully from her myriad encounters is a quiet, matter-of-fact pragmatism about religion, identity and social issues that runs counter to that stridency of the DUP narrative. Maybe the title would be - 'A settled people, on firmer ground', having taken their place in a new Ireland where they had proper representation in parliament, their customs and traditions protected and they weren't subject to the whims of an increasingly weary and hostile westminster government.She seeks to understand how the Northern Protestant community is negotiating the ‘shifting ground’ on which it stands.

I had almost forgotten having read Susan's previous "Northern Protestants: An Unsettled People" - it was before I started keeping a record of the books I read and I never owned a copy. First published in 2000, ‘Northern Protestants – An Unsettled People’ was an instant success and is widely recognised as a ground-breaking book. With changing demographics, many protestant people are feeling insecure about their place in the union. What I mean by that is that there are vast swathes of Ulster Protestantism that have been without meaningful political representation for a long time.

His plea is echoed in various degrees of plaintiveness throughout the book, suggesting a profound frustration, particularly among the young, with the combative politics of unionism versus nationalism. Based on almost 100 brand-new interviews, and told with McKay's trademark passion and conviction, this is essential reading. Chief among them is the implementation of the post-Brexit trade protocol, which Boris Johnson assured the DUP would only happen “over my dead body”.

It may be the main reason why, as McKay points out, the progressive, cross-community, pro-EU Alliance party under Naomi Long is currently gaining support from disillusioned unionists. They include students, artists and entrepreneurs as well as former policeman, paramilitaries and victims of the violence of the Troubles.The presence of a range of female voices was particularly welcome, though the lack of progressive voices from a male, explicitly loyalist or faith-based perspective doesn't necessarily reflect my experience. Susan McKay is an award-winning journalist, commentator and author of five books: Sophia’s Story , Northern Protestants: An Unsettled People , Northern Protestants: On Shifting Ground , Without Fear: A History of the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre and Bear in Mind These Dead . This book is a very impressive collection of verbatim interviews with a broad spectrum of people who fall under the umbrella of Northern Protestants. They announced themselves during the thunderous parades that would pass close by our house a couple of times a year, when we'd be ushered indoors.