Learning to be Irish
Learning to be Irish by Maria C. McCarthy, published by Siglum on April 25, 2025, is a reflective exploration of identity through the lens of a child of Irish migrants. This edition spans 204 pages and is presented in English. The book captures McCarthy’s experiences growing up in Surrey during the 1960s and ’70s, navigating her cultural heritage while grappling with the complexities of her environment.
Readers will find a rich tapestry of personal memoirs as McCarthy recounts her childhood memories, including dancing to Irish showbands and learning rebel songs. The narrative delves into the dynamics of family life, revealing the stories shared among women in her mother’s kitchen and the impact of historical events, such as the IRA bombings. Learning to be Irish serves as a poignant chronicle of a lost generation, reflecting themes of belonging and the search for truths that may remain elusive.
Official synopsis Publisher
Learning to be Irish showcases the best new and collected writings of a child of Irish migrants. Raised in Surrey in the 1960s and ’70s, ‘the filling in the sandwich’ of a family of five children, Maria C. McCarthy dances to Irish showbands, learns rebel songs at an uncle’s knee, hears home truths, half-truths and white lies from the women that gather in her mother’s kitchen, and learns to be English after the IRA bombs two pubs in Guildford. Learning to be Irish is a search for identity, a chronicle of a lost generation, and a yearning for truths that may never be known.
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