Miss Emily By Nuala O’Connor The Irish put great store in spinning a narrative around every small thing,” quips Emily Dickinson in Nuala O’Connor’s revelatory American debut novel Miss Emily. O’Connor’s narrative is no small feat, bringing together the life of Dickinson the poet and her fictional Irish maid Ada Concannon. What follows is a moving and often engrossing tale of … [Read more...] about Review of Books
Photo Album:
The Shields Family
I’ve written about several Irish American mothers for this magazine – Eugenia Biden, Lorna Colbert, and Anne Meara – and the word that always comes to mind is indomitable. Nothing breaks them, which makes it all the more shocking when we lose them. My mother was a member of this club.
The last-minute child in a Jersey City family that included two older sisters, Mom was named … [Read more...] about Photo Album:
The Shields Family
The Last Word:
Who the Irish Really Are
The shocking news leapt across the airwaves and sped along the Internet – the Irish, by national vote, had declared gay marriage equal to the straight version. Gay marriage, something virtually unknown just a few years ago, had been approved as fully lawful and valid within the borders of the Irish Republic. Had been approved, not just by a majority of Irish voters, but by … [Read more...] about The Last Word:
Who the Irish Really Are
Weekly Comment: John Boehner's Irish Travels (Photos)
July 10, 2015
U.S. Speaker of the House John Boehner spent the Fourth of July in Ireland last weekend. After a week of diplomatic talks with European allies like Lithuania, Finland, and Poland, U.S. Speaker of the House John Boehner finished up his trip in Ireland for the Independence Day, or Irish America Day as it’s known in Wexford, speaking extensively with Taoiseach Enda Kenny. The … [Read more...] about Weekly Comment: John Boehner's Irish Travels (Photos)
George M. Cohan: “Born on the Fourth of July”
By M.V. Quinn, Contributor
The life of George M. Cohan, the greatest song and dance man of all time. Not far off from his song's boast, George Michael Cohan was born on July 3, 1878, according to his birth certificate, however his mother always claimed that he was born on the 4th, and as he proved again and again in his plays and songs, he remained “a real live nephew” of America’s Uncle Sam throughout … [Read more...] about George M. Cohan: “Born on the Fourth of July”