Trinity in the eighties was a pluralistic island of intellect and swagger in a grim Ireland steeped in recession. In this timeless haven students imbued with possibility show the verve of those on the brink of independence. This third installment of Trinity Tales includes the recollections of novelist Anne Enright, economist and author David McWilliams, politician Ivana Bacik, playwright Michael West, journalist and publisher Michael Doherty, actress Pauline McLynn, rugby international Hugo MacNeill, inner-city GP and disabled rights activist Austin O'Carroll, along with a Foreword by Mary McAleese. Set against a background of anti-apartheid movements, the Troubles and loosening conventions, these former students recount how they came to steer their own course, emboldened not only by inspirational lecturers such as Brendan Kennelly and Mary Robinson, and the aspirations of fellow students, but also by the bittersweet knowledge of the fleeting nature of 'the best days of your life'. In reading these tales we are reminded of the intricacies of time; its ability to propel us to adulthood through the brief blaze of college years, as well as its propensity to continually encircle us with age-old issues of class, camaraderie, love and civil liberties. Contributors: Tom Doorley, Aine Lawlor, Hugo MacNeill, Linda Hickey, Dermot Horan, Eoin, McCullough, Carl Nelkin, Shane O'Neill, Jackie Kilroy, Pauline McLynn, Lynne Parker, John Reid, Katie Donovan, Alan Gilsenan, Declan Hughes, Austin O'Carroll, Nick Sparrow, Patrick Wyse-Jackson, Dermot Dix, Luke Dodd, Anne Enright, Sean Melly, Luke O'Neill, Vandra Dyke, Sallyanne Godson, Quentin Letts, Jane Mahony, Michael O'Doherty, Rosita Boland, Rosheen McGuckian, Patrick Prendergast, Heidi Haenschke, Fiona Cronin, David McWilliams, Ivana Bacik, Michael West, Leslie Williams, Brian F. O'Byrne.