A letter mailed from Valentia Island, County Kerry, Ireland, in 1949 provides an important link that connects family in America to cousins in Ireland. Extensive research through archival records in Dublin as well as vital information gathered in America furnishes the author and her husband with the information necessary to locate the villages, townlands, cemeteries, and parishes of her great-grandparents. Centuries-old family cottages are located and “treasures” are revealed. Secrets are uncovered and attached to those secrets are heartbreaking accounts of lives rife with hardships, unhappiness, and fierce family pride.

Join the author and her husband as they journey through the towns of Cahersiveen, Ballinskelligs, Valentia, and Boyle in their relentless pursuit of family. Accompany them into the old cottages for conversations rich in folklore and truths. Follow in the footsteps of the author’s grandparents from Ireland to Connecticut and to the cowboy town of South Omaha in the late 1800s. Travel to the more modern city of Chicago at the turn of the century. Experience their lives first-hand—celebrate their joy and share in their sorrows. Guaranteed to capture your spirit and challenge your emotions, this 304-page book titled Finding My Irish will delight and hopefully inspire you to search for your Irish. An incredibly touching family story; you won’t be able to put it down.