A Class Coveted (A Matter of Class)
In 1836, growing numbers of Irish immigrants are moving into the city of Boston. The extended family of Cormac and Bridget McGovern is among them. They know they will face many challenges including anti-Irish and anti-Catholic sentiment and, most importantly, making a living to support themselves. Cormac also has a personal mission: to try and find his lost sister Bronagh, rumored to have been seen in Boston. As the years pass, their family grows amidst almost constant adversity while they labor intensively to improve their lives and adapt and
prosper in their new country. Then an unexpected letter arrives from across the ocean, disrupting their happiness.
This book, fourth in a series, is simply superb storytelling with poignant and evocative dialogue including brief dashes of perfect Irish Gaelic, which lend authenticity to the atmosphere. It is also a tale which constantly evolves in unexpected and intricate ways to further the reader’s interest. The novel clearly illustrates the immigrant experience at a time when poverty was endemic, there were no government aid programs for food, housing, and health, and the only way to survive was through one’s own hard work.
Still, the novel is delightful and charming, with lovable characters, especially daughter Emily. We watch her grow up inseparable from her doll Mabel, and thrilled to get a pencil for her birthday, to becoming interested in boys. A romance extraordinaire, it is also a paean to the blessings of a large and close family. A Class Coveted is a book and a story of love and family to savor. Strongly recommended.
