A Shy Priest from Cavan Who Helped Tame a Frontier Town Imagine him, pale Irish skin against a black robe. On that bright spring morning in 1845 when he first arrived in the little town that was fast-filling a mud shelf overlooking the Missouri River, the Indians – the Shawnee in their calico flocks and turbans, the Sac and Fox with their shaved heads and painted faces – must … [Read more...] about A Founding Father
Come to Ireland
Ireland is a wonderful place to visit at any time of year. Advantages of traveling during this time of year, include fewer crowds, authentic experiences, and the island of Ireland’s autumn and winter landscapes. Considering travel outside the typical summer months? Ireland's autumn and winter season is rich with vibrant festivals that bring the island’s culture, history, and … [Read more...] about Come to Ireland
Review of Books | Recently Published Books
Somebody Knows By Michelle McDonagh This is only Michelle McDonagh’s second novel, but the Galway native (transplanted to Cork) already has the knack of making it look easy. Journalist Cara Joyce is grieving the imminent loss of her adoptive mother, when she overhears something about her origins that leads her to an old case she thinks about from time to time – the discovery … [Read more...] about Review of Books | Recently Published Books
Nora Joyce: The Girl from Galway
Nora Barnacle was 20 when she arrived in Dublin and met James Joyce in 1904. She had run away from Galway, her absentee mother, her strict uncles, and her friends, without goodbyes. She began work as a chambermaid in Finn‘s Hotel. Nora and Jim spotted each other on Dublin’s Nassau Street. Noting his nautical cap, canvas shoes and long frame, she thought he must have been a … [Read more...] about Nora Joyce: The Girl from Galway
A Daughter’s Journey to the Land of Her Father
It had been 20 years since my first and only visit to Ireland -- a month-long stay on my grandparents' farm in County Mayo with my mother, father, six siblings, two cousins, and a lot of cows. I was only six at the time, and in my mind Ireland remained a place where I could of play among haystacks twice my size, choose a pretty calf to be my own, buy Cadbury chocolate bars in … [Read more...] about A Daughter’s Journey to the Land of Her Father