‘The Naked Irish’ goes beyond the clichés: What does it really mean to be Irish?

Non-fiction The Naked Irish Clare O'Dea Mentor Books, paperback, 220 pages, €14.99

Clare O'Dea. Photo by Elaine Pringle

If there's one thing that most defines us as a nation, you could argue, it's self-reflection. Not that this reflection is always very deep; it's more that we love to talk about ourselves, discuss ourselves, define ourselves, hopefully in the end coming to some sort of consensus about What It Really Means To Be Irish. (This generally lasts about the length of time it takes for someone to make a contrapuntal argument, and the merry-go-round of self-reflection begins anew.)

The unexamined life isn't worth living, someone wrote once; if this be true, the collective life of Ireland must be considered more worthwhile than any other country on the planet. Does anyone gaze at their navels as much as us?