The Irish Within Us


Book Description

Strange things happen in Ballybeg when three distant cousins come together as the summer solstice approaches. In the spring of 2016, newly retired Kara leaves her home in Canada on a genealogical quest to rediscover her grandfather’s ancestral village on the north coast of Ireland. She is quickly captivated by Ballybeg’s rural beauty; the idiosyncratic locals; the Giant’s Causeway and the traditional myths and legends. David arrives in the village with his eyes fixed on a huge development deal, which would wipe out the area’s charm - if only his streak of bad luck would stop. Imogen is a conservationist who keeps herself apart from the villagers because of an old family scandal, but new circumstances may draw her back. The three clash over a reputedly enchanted grove on the townland of Lisnasidhe that generations have left untouched out of respect for the fairy inhabitants. In Ballybeg, everyone has their opinion and no trouble in sharing it. Even the land has her own perspective of history. Then there’s the greedy speculators, the unsuspecting lovers, yarnbombers, and a quirky local storyteller who may hold all the answers. And Irish fairies? Well, that depends...










The Irish in the American Civil War


Book Description

Just under 200,000 Irishmen took part in the American Civil War, making it one of the most significant conflicts in Irish history. Hundreds of thousands more were affected away from the battlefield, both in the US and in Ireland itself. The Irish contribution, however, is often only viewed through the lens of famous units such as the Irish Brigade, but the real story is much more complex and fascinating. From the Tipperary man who was the first man to die in the war, to the Corkman who was the last General mortally wounded in action; from the flag bearer who saved his regimental colours at the cost of his arms, to the Roscommon man who led the hunt for Abraham Lincoln's assassin, what emerges in this book is a catalogue of gallantry, sacrifice and bravery.




An Anthropology of the Irish in Belgium


Book Description

The first anthropological account of the Irish diaspora in Europe in the 21st century, this book provides a culture-centric examination of the Irish diaspora. Focusing less on an abstract or technical definition of Irish self-identification, the author allows members of this group to speak through vignettes and interview excerpts, providing an anthropological lens that allows the reader to enter a frame of self-reference. This book therefore provides architecture to understand how diasporic communities might understand their own identities in a new way and how they might reconsider the role played by mobility in changing expressions of identity. Providing firsthand, experiential and narrative insight into the Irish diaspora in Europe, this volume promises to contribute an anthropological perspective to historical accounts of the Irish overseas, theoretical works in Irish studies, and sociological examinations of Irish identity and diaspora.







The Scotch-Irish in America


Book Description




The Irish in the South, 1815-1877


Book Description

This book explores the story of the Irish in America and southern culture. The Irish who migrated to the Old South struggled to make a new home in a land where they were viewed as foreigners and were set apart by language, high rates of illiteracy, and their own self-identification as temporary exiles from famine and British misrule. They countered this isolation by creating vibrant, tightly knit ethnic communities in the cities and towns across the South where they found work, usually menial jobs. Finding strength in their communities, Irish immigrants developed the confidence to raise their voices in the public arena, forcing native southerners to recognize and accept them--first politically, then socially. The Irish integrated into southern society without abandoning their ethnic identity. They displayed their loyalty by fighting for the Confederacy during the Civil War and in particular by opposing the Radical Reconstruction that followed. By 1877, they were a unique part of the "Solid South." Unlike the Irish in other parts of the United States, the Irish in the South had to fit into a regional culture as well as American culture in general.




Rethinking the Irish in the American South


Book Description

A fresh look at a multifaceted minority culture




The Irish in Philadelphia


Book Description

Reveals a number of significant and interesting insights into Irish immigrant history in America