Ask any Dubliner for the location of Bloody Bridge and you will be graced with a mystified "ye wha' ?" Request the rough location of the Ath Cliath and observe the wry smile accompanying the response, "You're an American, aren't ye?" Not an American, but a native of the capital city armed with John de Courcy's The Liffey in Dublin (Gill & Macmillan, £25). Be you professional historian or curious resident, this book is a treasure trove of historical facts and legends surrounding the Liffey and its adjacent streets. Dublin will never look the same after you have read this.