Description
“For readers of historical fiction featuring resilient women.”—Booklist
“ . . . vivid and compelling . . . with a strong female lead who shines with resilience.”—Kirkus Reviews
“The novel follows the story of Mary Agnes Coyne as she emigrates to America. . . . While it is fiction, the author relies extensively on oral history and memorabilia from her grandmother, whose mother’s story this is. The selection and portrayal of details and the emotion they generate drive home the immediacy of the immigrant experience. The author shares encounters, perceptions, and feelings of one young woman facing exceptional difficulties. She makes us feel part of that life and those times.”—Historical Novels Review
“This historical coming-of-age novel follows young Mary Agnes across the ocean as she seeks her place in the world and within her own soul. Sweeney shows the futility of trying to run from that which truly belongs to us, as well as the promise of finding that which does. A beautifully crafted story that will both transport and transfix readers.”
—Jude Berman, author of The Vow
“The Irish Girl is a story of resilience amidst trauma, love amidst loss, self-acceptance amidst rejection. Reminiscent of our immigrant ancestors and the unfathomable hardships they undoubtedly faced, I read this story in one sitting and found myself thinking about this fiercely strong girl long after I finished.”
—Kelli Estes, USA Today best-selling author of The Girl Who Wrote in Silk
“I fell deeply under the spell of The Irish Girl—a heroic yet relatable immigrant’s tale of a thirteen-year-old girl sent to America who faces every challenge with steely determination and, ultimately, hope.”—Martha Conway, author of The Physician’s Daughter
“Mary Agnes Coyne leaps off the page, lively, troubled, hungry for life and love. The Irish Girl is another winner!”—Susan J. Tweit, author of Bless the Birds
“Singing with drama, rooted in history, and rich in action, The Irish Girl’s independent and bold protagonist makes her way from Ireland to America at age thirteen in 1886. Pitted against the challenges of poverty, misogyny, and abuse, Mary Agnes Coyne navigates the twisty streets of New York and Chicago and expansive cattle ranches of Colorado and Santa Fe. But her longing for family and home is deep, and her search to find both leads to a gutsy conclusion. Sweeney’s fourth winner!”—Gretchen Cherington, author of Poetic License
“With the spunk of the Irish, Mary Agnes wins your heart from the start. With writing as lush as the Connemara countryside, The Irish Girl is a powerful story of a young woman’s discovery of hidden strengths against all odds—a story emblematic of the resilient American emigrant spirit that keeps the love of home country while embracing, wholeheartedly, the new.”—Deborah Thomas, author of Luz
“The Irish Girl captured me from the very first page! At times both tragic and hopeful, this sweeping literary drama is ultimately a story of perseverance—one to which we can all relate somewhere in our immigrant past. Brimming with rich historical details and beautiful, lilting prose, this addictive book is a delight!”
— Michelle Cox, author of The Henrietta and Inspector Howard series
“Sweeney’s vivid sentences are descriptive, filled with sensory details . . . (and) punctuated with literary gems and lyrical prose.”—EverReady Book Reviews
