This epic story of an Irish-American family speaks not only to Irish Americans, but all Americans. Indeed, it speaks to all people. History comes alive in this book!  The inspiring saga of this family makes us realize that we are all related links in an eternal chain, that intersects the human race.  The author has humanized history with gripping, emotional, unforgettable stories that will have you smiling, crying and sitting on the edge of your seat, waiting to see what is going to happen next, to characters you have come to care about.

    Then, just when you think there are no surprises left, the whole book suddenly becomes charged with a new type of energy, as the author's own story unfolds before you.  This overwhelming realization, that a living person's story is revealing itself, transports the reader from stories about the past, to the story of a person actually living now, and connects the living with the dead in the eternal chain of life.

    The vivid portrayals make this book more than just a novel.  These characters become real and the author becomes the sum total of all who came before her.  I did not want to put this book down--there is no stopping place--just like real life. I did not want it to end. I did not want to say goodbye to this family.  My first thought after finishing it, was to read it again, to capture even more of the rich detail and texture of the individuals and the historical context they found themselves in.  I must read it again!

Gloria J. Gannaway, Ph.D.

Dr. Gannaway has been a teacher and academic writer
for over twenty-five years. She has taught in many
universities and institutes in and out of the US, including The University of California at Berkeley, The University of Texas at Austin,  and universities in Turkey and Spain.She currently teaches online courses for UC Berkeley in cyberculture studies and creative nonfiction writing.  She has one booklength publication: Transforming Mind. She currently lives and works in Barcelona, Spain.

From Dr. Ann Rizzi

“I could not put this book down.  This is a
spectacular, spell-binding story which grips the reader’s attention and immerses one into the sorrows, joys, and triumphs of the characters.   The author has created, with a fine balance of reality and imaginative flavor, a classic, which embodies immigrant life, over a span of six generations, and yields a thrilling view of the drama which helped create this country.  All of this has been accomplished without resorting to gratuitous violence or sex.  I give it a 10."

Dr. Ann Rizzi, B.S., M.A., Ph.D. Professor, Masters
Teaching Program, Webster University. Dr. Rizzi is the mother of eight and has received many awards and commendations during her illustrious teaching career, including the Two Thousand Points of Light Foundation award and Woman, Mother and Teacher of the Year awards.