The brutality of man against man is the one thing that sets us apart from the rest of the animal world.
The insane cruelty that can grip, and devour a person beyond reason makes man the most dangerous thing to walk this beautiful planet.
It was into the hands of such men that Brian Keenan, ... Read review
Advantages: A moving, funny and terrifying read. Disadvantages: None
...such men that Brian Keenan, an Irish teacher, found himself when on his way to work at the English University of Beirut.
What was to follow for Brian, would have made a lesser man insane, I am sure that if it were me who had been taken I would have been dead by now.
Brian Keenan was raised in an Ireland full of troubles, sectarian values were abound and he was himself troubled by the futility of the young people dying ... ...complete horror with honesty and an understanding of how his captors viewed him in relation to themselves. He was, quite simply, an infidel and unclean, he was never allowed to look upon any of them and wore a blindfold whenever they were present.
He was determined that he would show no fear to them, despite the fact that he was, understandably, scared witless for much of the time.
His captors would try and engage him in conversation, ... more
The brutality of man against man is the one thing that sets us apart from the rest of the animal world. The insane cruelty that can grip, and devour a person beyond reason makes man the most dangerous thing to walk this beautiful planet.
It was into the hands of such men that Brian Keenan, an Irish teacher, found himself when on his way to work at the English University of Beirut.
What was to follow for Brian, would have made a lesser man insane, I am sure that if it were me who had been taken I would have been dead by now.
Brian Keenan was raised in an Ireland full of troubles, sectarian values were abound and he was himself troubled by the futility of the young people dying for a cause they understood little about, indoctrinated by narrow-minded parents and peers. The fighting and bombings made Brian uncomfortable in his own country, he made the decision to leave Ireland and see a bit of the world. Talk about “Out of the frying pan and into the fire!”, the Lebanon should have been the last place on his mind. However, he had a teaching post lined up and that part of the world interested him immensely so with one last trip around his home town (During which he met no one he knew to share his last hours at home), he set off for a new adventure.
When he arrived at his destination, he was advised to take accommodation within the campus, but this would prove to be too confining for a man of Brian’s curiosity, so he opted instead to share a house, some ten or fifteen minutes walk away from his place of work.
One morning, as he left for the short walk to the university, a car screeched to a halt just in front of him. He was bundled into the back and pushed down, a machine gun trained on his head, and taken to a building somewhere in the city. He was interrogated and asked if he was English, “No, I am Irish” he said “You like Thatcher?” the interrogators asked, “No, I hate Thatcher!” he laughed, “I’m a bloody Irish man!”.
Irish, English, American, French, it mattered not, these people were religious zealots with little capacity for lucid or rational thought, if you were foreign you were fair game for the hostage takers, a tool for their never ending fight against western influence’s and interference both politically and culturally. Brian was later to reflect on the absurdity of his captors hero worship of the American anti-hero types like “Rambo”, a character that many of them emulated both in the way they dressed and in the array of weapons they carried about their person.
This book is written with little sense of self pity on Brian Keenan's part, indeed he touches upon moments of complete horror with honesty and an understanding of how his captors viewed him in relation to themselves. He was, quite simply, an infidel and unclean, he was never allowed to look upon any of them and wore a blindfold whenever they were present.
He was determined that he would show no fear to them, despite the fact that he was, understandably, scared witless for much of the time. His captors would try and engage him in conversation, asking about his love life or family. He came to realise early on in his ordeal that many of them were fixated with sex in much the same way as an adolescent would be. They would also become almost sexually aroused when talking about the guns and weaponry they possessed and about battles they had witnessed or been part of. Brian had witnessed, just before his internment, a group of young Lebanese who, on hearing a gun battle start close by, jumped into a car and race towards the scene whilst in an obvious state of arousal.
Brian estimates that he was moved from hell-hole to hell-hole around seventeen times during his captivity , and the way they moved him was the most frightening thing. Usually he would be chained by the wrists and ankles, put into a large sack and unceremoniously dumped into the boot of a vehicle. Two journeys were particularly gruelling and full of horror. On these occasions he was wrapped in tape, mummy-like, and then pushed into a coffin sized box welded to the underside of a truck, both times he was accompanied by his cell mate John Mcarthy, on one of these occasions a guard lay with them, both these journeys nearly killed him and he was close to madness by the time they pulled him out.
John Mcarthy was Brian's saviour, his calming nature worked as a foil against Brian’s fiery temper, many times during their years of captivity these two men would be the healing balm for one another, they both recieved many beatings.
The one big thing that both these men had in their favour was humour! Although I was both shocked and saddened when I read this book, I also laughed my socks off. There are many references to Brian and John’s warped sense of humour rescuing them from the depths of depression, and later, when they are put in a cell with three American prisoners, it is their humour that binds together five men and gives them the strength to continue.
Oh I cannot begin to coherently tell you how this book has affected me, as it is I have waffled on for too long. Get a copy now, read it and then think twice before moaning about how sucky your life is, marvel at the endurance of a fiery Irishman (is there any other kind?), but above all thank your lucky stars that you live in a wonderful country like this.
Advantages: An extremely interesting read. Disadvantages: You'll be left shocked
Being 15 and in an english class at school, I was given the task of selecting a book, poem, short story etc. to do a kinda review of- specialist study is what it was called.
So, I trecked off to the small, nearly adequate school library to try and find that one special book amongst the seemingly millions that there were. I got 5 books out in total, one of them "An Evil Cradling"
I came across "An Evil Cradling" and because of the intimidating cover ... ...at a time, treated like an animal. Once, he was beaten so badly that he couldn't walk, for simply stopping a man from hitting him by putting up his arms to prtect himself. Another time, he was "mummified" in masking tape with only a small hole for him to breathe and squashed suffocatingly into a small boot. He's denied magazines, games - any sort of entertainment for the majority of his stay. In only 4 years so many things happen to him that he eventually ...
kwhyte 14.10.2001
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of An Evil Cradling - Brian Keenan
Advantages: Beautifully written, moving, horrifying, enthralling Disadvantages: Some of the experiences descibed are horrific
...UK. The style has an almost poetic meter about it that gives it real flow.
Rather than being a depressing read is is really about the joys of life and one man's (brotherly) love for another man - in this case John McCarthy, his fellow captive. It's never dull and is filled not just with description but about thoughts and feelings about life as much as it is about the situation he in which he finds himself.
It was a runner up in the Booker Prize ...
kingbing 30.11.2000
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of An Evil Cradling - Brian Keenan
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, too many dead, and too little support for human rights work. Anil must find a way to be at peace with her own country as she faces its horrors head on.
This is not an easy book, it is littered with casual violence and suffering, it's definitely not suitable for younger readers. However, it is a real wake up call to the kind of thing that's happening around the world all the time. If this doesn't motivate you to want to make some positive difference, I have no idea what might. Consequently, this is one of those books, like BrianKeenan's 'An EvilCradling', which I think everyone ought to read.
The story is a powerful one, of a hidden body, too decomposed to have a face or name. This is a body that might, for various reasons, speak for many of the dead, and Anil is drawn to work with it, alongside a local man. She becomes caught up in ...
Advantages: Encourages compassion and an insight into differing cultures and religions when the meet Disadvantages: None
Having read both 'Some Other Rainbow' by John McCarthy and Jill Morrell and 'An EvilCradling' by BrianKeenan, I found myself inspired to read this book. What I loved best about the books I have mentioned, was despite the hostages suffering, they were able to write so eloquently and so humorously about what had happened to them. Neither, was I disappointed with this book.
Once upon a time in the not so distant past, a boy met a girl. Big deal, you might say, so what? It happens all the time. However, when Jack met Zena their lives were set to change forever.
We all know the story of Romeo and Juliet, the star crossed lovers but this is no fictional tale and goes to prove how is so often said, that the truth is much stranger than fiction.
Living in a Yorkshire town, Jack is white. The object of his affection is Zena. She is ...
Advantages: see opinion Disadvantages: see opinion
the real nitty gritty of it all, but I was left feeling as though this was a sanitised experience. He displays a lot of positive characteristics from time to time, and it's all very laudable, but I somehow felt as though it was missing the darker dimension, especially if you read BrianKeenan's version in his book "An EvilCradling". It's not a criticism of the book, and it makes me feel awful, as though I think he didn't suffer enough, but it doesn't carry the same impact of horror as Keenan's book, and instead focuses on the hope and optimism being generated by his girlfriend's campaigns to raise public awareness, and at their possible (an impossibly romantic) reunion.
As well all know, Jill refused to have herself called his girlfriend and ultimately they have found other partners to share their lives with, but this book stands as proof ...
Product Information for "An Evil Cradling - Brian Keenan" »
Product details
Author
Brian Keenan
Title
An Evil Cradling
Genre
Biography
Type
Non-Fiction
ISBN
0091752086; 009999030X
Manufacturer's product description
Brian Keenan's release from captivity was the first ray of hope for those hostages held in the Middle East. He describes the plight of his fellow hostages with first-hand knowledge. The language he uses reflects his past efforts as a poet in describing the pain and claustrophobia of imprisonment. About the AuthorBrian Keenan was born in Belfast in 1950. An Evil Cradling, his account of being held hostage for four and a half years was published in 1992.--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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