The Irish Famine: An Illustrated History

by Helen Litton

This is an account of one of the most significant-and tragic-event in Irish history. The author, Helen Litton, delas with the emotive subject of the Great Famine clearly and succinctly, documenting the causes and their effects. With quotes from first-hand accounts, and relying on the most up-to-date studies, she describes the mixture of ignorance, confusion, inexperience and vested interests that lay behind the good v evil image of popular deception. Here are the people who tried to influence events - politicians like Peel, public servants like Trevelyan, Quaker relief workers, local committees, clergy and landlords, who wrestled with desperate need, and sometimes gave up in despair. Why did millions of starving people seem to accept their fate without rebelling? Why starvation on the very shores of seas and rivers plentifully stocked with fish? This is a story of individuals - such as Denis McKennedy, dying in Cork in 1846 because his Board of Works wages were two weeks late - and of a society in crisis. It should be read by anyone who seeks a fuller understanding of the Irish past. Helen Litton took her Master of Arts degress in History at University College Dublin. She is a leading Irish researcher, editor and indexer.

Genres: History, Nonfiction

176 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1994

About the author

Born in Dublin, Helen Litton is the editor of Kathleen Clarke’s memoir, Revolutionary Woman, and the author of 6 illustrated history books. She is married with two children. Edward Daly was Helen’s great uncle; she has also written his biography for the 16 Lives series.

Reviews

[Rowan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good overview. Every time descriptions seemed too awful to be real the illustrations and primary sources forced you to face the tragedy head on. Fleshed out the financial complexities that makes the Irish famine not just a matter of simple uncontrollable blight..

[Bill38silver · Rating 4 out of 5]

Before reading this book I tried to imagine what it must have been like to be a poor starving person in poor health, trying to scrape a living in a home (or more like a hovel) with no light or sanitation, no money, no job, no prospects and with a family in similar dire straights. But my imagination could not come close to the reality for hundreds of thousands as evident from this narrative.

The author's brief-to write a short history of the tragedy listing the main events in readable form-is fully met. The narrative, full of contrasting and competing issues, but not solutions to the crisis, is simply stated and supported by numerous illustrations. Some of these are indistinct and I did not find the interspersing of extracts into the main text assisted the flow of the document. That aside, this is a straightforward introduction to a major tragedy that encourages you to read more about a scandal of human failing.

[Mari · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a great introductory book to understanding what went on during the Irish Famine.

[Luke Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a really good outline of the Famine, the illustrations and extracts from diaries, letters and official documents makes the descriptions even more resonant.

[Stacey · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well written. The story itself is devastatingly sad...

[Cara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good overview of the Famine with plenty of source documents and illustrations.