Flight from Famine: The Coming of the Irish to Canada [Paperback]

Donald Mackay (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1, 1991

This is the moving story of the mass migration that brought a million Irish men and women to Canada in the first half of the nineteenth century. After leaving conditions so bad that one witness described how “they wandered into towns and died in the streets,” many arrived penniless, hoping to “make good” in the new world. In one tragic year, 5,000 died at sea and another 5,400 got no farther than a grave on Grosse Île. But, despite the countless daily hardships facing settlers in a harsh new land, by the time of Confederation the Irish were the second-largest ethnic group after the French.

Editorial Reviews

Review

“Terrific popular history.…Death ships lurching across the Atlantic, epidemics raging in Quebec, Catholic-Protestant skirmishes in the Ottawa Valley, the body of Thomas D’Arcy McGee being paraded through packed Montreal streets.…Flight from Famine is a testament to the resilience and courage of a community.”
–Montreal Gazette

From the Inside Flap

This is the moving story of the mass migration that brought a million Irish men and women to Canada in the first half of the nineteenth century. After leaving conditions so bad that one witness described how ?they wandered into towns and died in the streets,? many arrived penniless, hoping to ?make good? in the new world. In one tragic year, 5,000 died at sea and another 5,400 got no farther than a grave on Grosse Île. But, despite the countless daily hardships facing settlers in a harsh new land, by the time of Confederation the Irish were the second-largest ethnic group after the French.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 368 pages
• Publisher: McClelland & Stewart (April 1, 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0771054459
• ISBN-13: 978-0771054457
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 5.9 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,554,739 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An intriguing and comprehensive history, August 17, 2009

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Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Flight from Famine: The Coming of the Irish to Canada (Paperback)

America was not the only place Europeans looked to for salvation from the problems of the Old World. "Flight from Famine: The Coming of the Irish to Canada" tells the story of the Irish who came to the America's northern neighbor when the infamous potato famine wreaked havoc and starvation upon Ireland's population. An intriguing and comprehensive history, "Flight From Famine" is highly recommended for scholarly collections.