The IRISH IN AMERICA: A History (Pbs Documentary Series)

Disney, Roy; Hamill, Pete; Disney, Patty; Noonan, Peggy; Duggan, Dennis; McCourt, Malachy

ISBN 10: 0671580353 ISBN 13: 9780671580353

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio, 1998

Synopsis

On the 150th anniversary of the Irish famine which sparked the wave of emigration that forever shaped the course of the American nation, The Irish In America celebrates the comprehensive and vibrant history. Through illuminating essays and contributions from noted Irish American personalities, the audiobook paints a vivid picture of the Irish experience in the United States.

This history is told through selections whose themes are taken from the most important institutions of Irish life: the Parish, the Precinct, the Work, the Players and the Family. The Irish identity in America is captured through the personal stories of families workers local churches. entertainers, and many others, culminating in an unusually moving and modulated social, cultural, and political history of Irish Americans.

About this title

Review:

When public television aired The Irish in America in early 1998, the program received several tepid reviews from big-city TV critics. It seemed the drama of the early episodes--with their chilling, poignant stories of the "Famine Immigrants" of 19th-century Ireland--couldn't be sustained throughout all six hours. Well, words may be worth 1,000 pictures--at least, as read by Irish actor Colm Meaney (The Commitments, The Snapper) in this audio version. With a gentle elocutionary lilt, Meaney makes every event immediate, every personal history intimate. The story of the Irish immigrant experience is told here in six parts: "Hunger," "The Parish," "The Precinct," "Work," "The Arts," and "The New Irish." Along the way, we hear the interweaving of personal accounts--of Patrick Kennedy, great-great-grandfather to John; and James O'Neill, great-grandfather to Eugene. And in an imaginative pairing of scripted narration and personal narrative, each section closes with an essay written and read by a present-day American with deep roots in the Irish story. The most moving is a poetic eulogy to hunger from Frank McCourt, Pulitzer-Prize winning author of Angela's Ashes. As with the TV version, it's the first section of the narrative--where we follow the journey of the 19th-century Famine Irish as they flee the recurring potato blight--that makes these cassettes worth a long car ride. The insidious fungus that killed a million people also wiped out the ancient myths and honored traditions of an entire culture, transplanting its survivors to a country that was, at best, hostile. Still, the Irish in America managed to pull themselves up by their bootstraps, and in the century that followed, went on to influence every aspect of American life. (Four audiocassettes; running time: 4.5 hours)

About the Author:

Michael Coffey is a scholar of Irish studies with a master's degree in Anglo-Irish literature from Leeds University. He lives in New York City.

About this edition

• Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio
• Publication date: 1998
• ISBN 10: 0671580353
• ISBN 13: 9780671580353
• Binding: Audio Cassette