#TheSiegeofJadotville – Rosepoint Publishing

Rosepoint Review Recap-March-Hello April!

Definitely going to be a wet and wild April with lingering thunderstorms from March—a crazy pattern with warm temps to 70s plunging 40 degrees in a few hours. Normally, I’d be starting seedlings, thinking garden, planning appropriate veggies and symbiotic flowers.

First goal: Take down that poor tree in front of our kitchen window that only had one viable limb left. The CE surprised me by getting a big jump on it before I was even dressed and by mid-afternoon we had it down, limbs in the garbage bin, area raked and swept. What a job! I’m hoping it will be a good spot for some water plants. I tried lotus flowers last year, but failed to provide sufficient sun. This may be too much sun. We’ll see.

Old tree on the left and after it's cleared. — Old tree on the left–tree is gone on the right.

Hail, same spot — Hail one day later, same spot.

March is birthday month for me and I was celebrated with a visit from our daughter, granddaughter, and great-grandkids. The little ones are so much bigger than last we saw them, the youngest still a baby. They got to have a tour of Chicago from our son who works there, a short and sweet visit, but so happy to see them all.

Of course, we also celebrate Reading Ireland Month in March and I participated once again, experiencing a recommendable movie, a wacky newly released series, as well as ebooks and audiobooks. We made our usual corned beef and cabbage (better this year), which also made delicious leftovers—the CE’s fav.

The CE and I read or listened to a total of ten books in March. As always, the major source of our books is the library (audiobooks and ebooks). (We also review books from NetGalley and author and publisher requests.) The links on titles are to our reviews that include purchase information.

Rosepoint Reviews - March Recap

Singing Bones by S G Ullman (CE review-publisher request)
Countdown by Sara Driscoll
The Burning Soul by John Connolly (CE review)
Murder in an Irish Churchyard by Carlene O’Connor

Audiobooks

See How They Hide by Allison Brennan (mini-reviews)
My Husband’s Wife by Alice Feeney (mini-review)
Thirst Trap by Gráinne O’Hare
The Compound by Aisling Rawle
To the Moon and Back by Karen Kingsbury
The Storied Life of A J Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin

Favorite Book of the Month

Can I cheat just a bit and nominate a movie instead of a book? What if the movie was based on a book–written by Declan Power? The Siege of Jadotville was compelling and powerful.

Favorite for March – The Siege of Jadotville

My Reading Challenges page…March was just too busy to update. My Goodreads count is still off, but landing page shows 40 of a challenge of 175.

To all my dear readers and fellow bloggers, thank you so much for taking the time to check out my posts and reviews. I’m trying to up my bloghopping and hope to see you soon.

The Siege of Jadotville - Netflix movie — Background courtesy Military Archives, color pics courtesy Facebook, movie camera courtesy Freepik

Introduction

I am reviewing this movie for Reading Ireland Month. It is hosted by Cathy at 746 Books. Please check out her page for suggestions on reading, audiobooks, or music on her spotify list and use the hashtags #readingirelandmonth26 or #begorrathon.

The Movie

According to Google, the movie was first a book detailing the 1961 battle called Seige at Jadotville: The Irish Army’s Forgotten Battle. It was written by Declan Power, an Irish security analyst published in 2005. This Netflix film was released in 2016. There are other books on the battle detailing the 157 UN Irish peacekeepers who were grossly outnumbered in the skirmish in the Congo.

My Thoughts

Although the film is a bit slow getting into the story, the storyline becomes quite engaging and the movie well acted. Not exactly the Alamo of Ireland, this is the account of the UN Irish peacekeeping forces facing a vastly outnumbered force (20-1) who not only managed to hold on while suffering no casualties against the Katangese forces (in reality, a mix of hardened European mercenaries with untested locals), but inflicting several hundred casualties on the opposing forces as well as more than one thousand wounded.

While not entirely historically accurate, the movie conveys the “last stand” spirit of the Irish. They defended their position (possibly five days according to internet accounts) until they ran out of ammunition and water, which resulted in surrender and imprisonment until a negotiated prisoner exchange resulted in their release, where they suffered the derisive term “Jadotville Jacks.”

The acting is gritty, hard-bitten, and filled with tension. Cast members included Jamie Dornan, Guillaume Canet, Emmanuelle Seigner, and Jason O’Mara, among many others better known to the Northern European theatre. Jamie Dornan as Commandant Pat Quinlan did an Academy-level job of conveying the brutality, desperation, and power of his position and the decisions he made under terrifying and desperate conditions. It’s the heroics of men plunged into circumstances no one should or could prepare for.

Filmed on locations in South Africa (north of Johannesburg) and Ireland, an honest representation of the atmospherics of the Congo, the look and feel of the battle.

Released by Netflix in 2016 – currently streaming

Genres: Irish, Military Movies, Drama, Movies based on books, movies based on real life…

Watched with the CE, we both enjoyed this one. The CE, being a veteran, enjoys most military movies and we both celebrate St Patrick’s Day, my grandfather being from County Cork and his grandmother from Dublin.

Rosepoint Recommended-5 Stars

There is plenty of action, great acting, tension, emotions, and a lovely epilogue at the end. Yes, the men finally get recognition of their efforts, if too late for some. And, movies based on true stories are history come alive, the best. If you haven’t viewed the film, I heartily recommend it. If you have, I’d love to know if you agree with my sentiments.

Happy St Patrick's Day!