"Spending time in both the middle-class environs of South Belfast and the rougher areas of Derry's housing estates, Edith Shillue recorded the prevailing moods of this long-troubled land as she lived and worked with its plain-speaking citizens. Whether she's reading in a library, listening to a cafe conversation, or transcribing legal documents, her keen powers of observation are always on display. The result is a revealing portrait of a people and a place caught between past and future during a time of profound change."--BOOK JACKET.