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Galway Bay
Galway Bay | Mary Pat Kelly
4 posts | 5 read | 7 to read
Here at last is one Irish family's epic journey, capturing the tragedy and triumph of the Irish-American experience. In a rousing tale that echoes the myths and legends of Ireland herself, young Honora Keeley and Michael Kelly wed and start a family, inhabiting a hidden Ireland where fishermen and tenant farmers find solace in their ancient faith, songs, stories, and communal celebrations. Selling both their catch--and their crops--to survive, these people subsist on the potato crop--their only staple food. But when blight destroys the potatoes three times in four years, a callous government and uncaring landlords turn a natural disaster into The Great Starvation that will kill one million. Honora and Michael vow their children will live. The family joins two million other Irish refugees in one of the greatest rescues in human history: the Irish Emigration to America. Danger and hardship await them there. Honora and her unconventional sister Maire watch their seven sons as they transform Chicago from a frontier town to the "City of the Century", fight the Civil War, and enlist in the cause of Ireland's freedom. The Kelly clan is victorious. This heroic story sheds brilliant light on the ancestors of today's 44 million Irish Americans. In the author's colorful and eclectic life, she has written and directed award-winning documentaries on Irish subjects, as well as the dramatic feature Proud. She's been an associate producer on Good Morning America and Saturday Night Live, written books on Martin Scorsese, World War II, and Bosnia, and a novel based on her experiences as a former nun - Special Intentions. She is a frequent contributor to Irish America Magazine and has a PhD in English and Irish literature.
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review
wideeyedreader
Galway Bay | Mary Pat Kelly
Bailedbailed

Nope, I‘m out! Those were the most boring four chapters I‘ve read in a while

review
KtheBookwyrm
Galway Bay | Mary Pat Kelly
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Bailedbailed

DNF after 13 pages. Unfortunately, I found myself bored to tears just over a chapter into the book, before anything even happens. Aside from repeatedly mentioning that things were being translated from the Irish, I couldn‘t get past the massive info dump that is the beginning of chapter 2. As a fan of Edward Rutherfurd, I expected to enjoy this multi-generational story, especially as it‘s set in Ireland. Sadly, this book is definitely not for me.

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Amiable
Galway Bay | Mary Pat Kelly
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Pickpick

Historical fiction based on the real life of the author's great-grandmother. It tells the story of one Irish family's epic journey throughout the years of the potato famine, their emigration to America, and their struggle to make a new life in a new world. As a descendant of great-grandparents who made that very same journey, I enjoyed the story, although some of the flowery dialogue was a bit over-the-top and left me rolling my eyes in parts.

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booksandsympathy
Galway Bay | Mary Pat Kelly
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Three very different books with compelling stories and characters. #bodyofwater #maybookflowers

Nebklvr I love Susanna Kearsley's books! 8y
booksandsympathy @Nebklvr So do I! 💜💜 8y
17 likes2 comments