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The Telling Life of Ellen O'Hara
NYU Press
November 2022
On Sale: November 15, 2022
Featuring: Ellen OβHara
200 pages
ISBN: 1479817511
EAN: 9781479817511
Kindle: B09X2J49SB
Hardcover / e-Book
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Non-Fiction Biography | Non-Fiction Memoir
Ellen O’Hara was a young immigrant from Ireland at the end of the nineteenth century who, with courage and resilience, made a life for herself in New York while financially supporting those at home. Hereafter is her story, told by Vona Groarke, her descendant, in a beautiful blend of poetry, prose, and history.
In July 1882, Ellen O’Hara stepped off a ship from the West of Ireland to begin a new life in New York. What she encountered was a world of casual racial prejudice that characterized her as ignorant, dirty, and feckless, the butt of many jokes. From the slim range of jobs available to her she, like, many of her kind, found a position as a domestic servant, working long hours and living in to save on rent and keep. After an unfortunate marriage, Ellen determined to win financial security on her own, and eventually opened a boarding house where her two children were able to rejoin her.
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