Norah: The Making of an Irish-American Woman in 19th-Century New York
Cynthia G. Neale
Lucky Press, Feb 9 2011, $18.99
ISBN: 9780984631711
In the 1850s in New York, Norah McCabe watched her mother work sixty hours a week for the affluent ladies of Manhattan. Observant, Norah watches closely how the wealthy women walk and talk. She vows to join their upper class society, which means killing her Irish heritage as that is considered filthier than street dirt from the quality.
Norah owns the Bee in your Bonnet used clothing store. Her best friend Mary works at her shop. Both has come a long way from their impoverish roots. They wear expensive clothing while walking the streets alongside the Astor family. Their upward mobility takes a hit when they become embroiled in a murder. This leads them to a potpourri of Irish-Americans like a cop who dropped the O’ from his surname, an activist priest, and the Irish American newspaper editor; all in their way fighting against de facto and de jure racism.
This historical fiction novel is a great morality play as Norah learns the cost of her pretending to be what she is not. Character driven yet also filled with action, readers will feel they are in pre-Civil War New York as the audience tastes the contempt and prejudice held against the Irish. With strong messages to embrace your roots as well as the diversity of other groups, Cynthia G. Neale provides an entertaining insightful story of The Making of an Irish-American Woman in 19th-Century New York.
Harriet Klausner
Cynthia G. Neale
Lucky Press, Feb 9 2011, $18.99
ISBN: 9780984631711
In the 1850s in New York, Norah McCabe watched her mother work sixty hours a week for the affluent ladies of Manhattan. Observant, Norah watches closely how the wealthy women walk and talk. She vows to join their upper class society, which means killing her Irish heritage as that is considered filthier than street dirt from the quality.
Norah owns the Bee in your Bonnet used clothing store. Her best friend Mary works at her shop. Both has come a long way from their impoverish roots. They wear expensive clothing while walking the streets alongside the Astor family. Their upward mobility takes a hit when they become embroiled in a murder. This leads them to a potpourri of Irish-Americans like a cop who dropped the O’ from his surname, an activist priest, and the Irish American newspaper editor; all in their way fighting against de facto and de jure racism.
This historical fiction novel is a great morality play as Norah learns the cost of her pretending to be what she is not. Character driven yet also filled with action, readers will feel they are in pre-Civil War New York as the audience tastes the contempt and prejudice held against the Irish. With strong messages to embrace your roots as well as the diversity of other groups, Cynthia G. Neale provides an entertaining insightful story of The Making of an Irish-American Woman in 19th-Century New York.
Harriet Klausner
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