“In this solid debut, USA Today global affairs reporter Lynch tells the story of a small nation that has changed profoundly in recent decades…Incisive and well-reported.” —Kirkus

“A sturdy and unsentimental tale of how Ireland reached its current predicament.” —The New Republic

“When the luck of the Irish ran in, morality ran out. David Lynch's book is an amazing story of rampaging greed, dirty doings, even adulterous sex. Old Mother Ireland doffs her peasant's garb and emerges as a svelte, sexy, provocative siren infecting the willing Irish with diseased materialism. Holy Mother church affects a total hypocrite and politics is just another word for corruption. Along with a simple, concise history of Ireland Lynch even makes economics funny and fascinating. The artists of Ireland--Bono, Seamus Heaney, Roddy Dolye, Bill Whalen of Riverdance--emerge nobly from this cesspool.” —Malachy McCourt, author of Malachy McCourt's History of Ireland and Danny Boy

“A brilliant set of insights into the true and completely general nature of ‘crony capitalism'. Close connections between politicians, bankers, and property developers brought Ireland great apparent prosperity – while really creating the conditions for a huge and horrible crash. Lynch is optimistic that Ireland can rise again and find a more robust model for growth. Let's hope he is right.” —Simon Johnson, author of 13 Bankers: The Wall Street Takeover and the Next Financial Meltdown

“A tour de force of reportage and analysis. As much social anthropology as economic forensics, it is a cautionary tale of post-colonial success and excess. As cold as the eye he casts upon the land of his forebears is, Lynch retains an unmistakable affection for Ireland and a confidence that it can change, change utterly, for the better.” —Kevin Cullen, columnist and former Dublin bureau chief of The Boston Globe

“David Lynch has produced a terrific read – a hair-raising gallop through the hills and valleys of modern day finance. After reading this book, you'll never think about Ireland – or global financial markets -- in quite the same way.” —David M. Smick, author of The World Is Curved: Hidden Dangers to the Global Economy

“Lynch marvelously weaves together politics, history, and religion to explain the incredible economic and social transformation that has swept Ireland over the past three decades and the deep financial crisis that Ireland is grappling with today.” —Kenneth S. Rogoff, coauthor of This Time is Different: Eight Centuries of Financial Folly

“David Lynch's book will enrage, enlighten, and sadden you. His superbly written account of what really happened in Ireland during the boom of the Celtic Tiger and the ensuing bust is, to be sure, a story about Ireland. But it is a cautionary tale for all of us. The next time somebody tells you that the market can only go up, run away and re-read this book!” —Terry Golway, columnist for The Irish Echo and history professor at Kean University

“Lynch's book is that rare thing, an economic study that's also a captivating snapshot of the society it's exploring. Written in lucid prose that will appeal to both the general reader and the economist, Lynch (a former Nieman fellow at Harvard University) understands that there's a lot more to a nation's story than the performance of its markets...he has appraised Ireland's particular strengths and weaknesses with a gimlet eye of an outsider who can see through all the palaver.” —Irish Central