The Irish Famine

by Peter Gray

A new addition to the innovative, highly illustrated series examines the Irish potato famine of 1945, explaining its causes, the misguided efforts to relieve it, and its effect on modern Ireland and America. Original.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, European History, Ireland, Travel

192 pages, Paperback

First published October 15, 1995

Reviews

[Persephone Abbott · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'd recommend reading the yellow pages at the back first and then the white pages. Backwards then. The reason for this is that the paintings and the pictures in the white pages are quite emotionally charged but the text is fairly dry and runs immediately into the political issues involved in the disaster, while the yellow pages start with first hand accounts of the time, and tap more into the atmosphere of the tragedy.

[Emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent study of the Famine. Impressively well-balanced, well-rounded, and well-researched, Gray manages to pack significant depth into quite a small book. The illustrations and firsthand accounts make the litany of facts much more tangible for the reader. I've read widely on the subject, and this is by far one of the best sources on the topic for offering a general understanding of the Famine.

[Bill38silver · Rating 4 out of 5]

This pocket sized book is a useful, informative collection of documents and illustrations on a catastrophic and seismic tragedy, the effects of which still permeate Irish/English relations some 170 years later. The author presents a general overview that will suffice for most readers coming new to this mid-eighteenth century tragedy but for most readers already familiar with the subject the book offers little in the way of fresh thinking. There are plenty of other books that delve deeper into the detail. But this narrative is a worthy addition on the subject.

As with much in history with benefit of hindsight, the actions and inactions of many politicians, landlords and those with the means to prosper let alone survive in the darkest of times, produce a sense of anger and injustice. There are few who come out of the narrative with much, if any, credit.

One result of renewing acquaintance with this particular tragedy is that it can enable a re-assessment of our attitude to modern problems . This includes our opinion of charitable-giving, are there deserving and undeserving poor, the continuing cost of living crisis with the shame of food banks, growing not narrowing of inequality in society, our attitude to the unemployed, refugees, asylum seekers to name but a few.

[Charlotte]

I first read this book in 2003 and was planning to take it to Goodwill in a few days but took another look at it and decided it is a keeper for now. It has pictures in color and in black and white, an index, a map of Ireland from 1848, some old Irish documents, and a list for further reading. What a gem!

[Catherine Judd · Rating 5 out of 5]

Indispensable reading on the Famine. Gray, Cormac O Grada, and David P. Nally should be everyone's starting point for understanding the Famine--along with Cecil Woodham-Smith, Christina Kinealy, and R. Dudley Edwards and T. Desmond Williams edited 1957 "The Great Famine: Studies in Irish History."

[Roy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is documents and illustrates the causes of the famine, how Ireland was in particular vulnerable before the blight reached it and the various responses to it, Irish, those in mainland Britain, and others.

The book draws upon a wide range of sources in an impartial way.

[Scott Satterwhite · Rating 4 out of 5]

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[WaldenOgre · Rating 3 out of 5]

文不如图：叙述得七零八落，连起码的逻辑线索都没有；正文不如附录：附录里最好的文字出自托克维尔，不愧是大家。