Books like The Irish brawn drain
Loved The Irish brawn drain by Patrick McGovern? Here are 7 books with the same pull, and why each one fits.
About The Irish brawn drain →7 books
- 1Brooklyn

Brooklyn
Colm TóibínA novel about a young Irish woman who emigrates to New York in the 1950s, covering the personal cost of leaving Ireland for work.
- 2The Irish Diaspora

The Irish Diaspora
Donald Harman AkensonA historical survey of how and why Irish people left Ireland and settled across the English-speaking world.
- 3The American Irish

The American Irish
Kevin KennyA history of Irish immigrants in the United States, with attention to their work, communities and settlement.
- 4Black '47 and Beyond

Black '47 and Beyond
Cormac Ó GrádaAn economic history of the Irish Famine and the emigration that followed it.
- 5'Tis

'Tis
Frank McCourtA memoir of a young Irishman's emigration to New York and his early years working there.
- 6Angela's Ashes

Angela's Ashes
Frank McCourtA memoir of a poor childhood in Limerick, which shows the economic pressures that pushed many Irish families toward emigration.
- 7The Commitments

The Commitments
Roddy DoyleA novel about working-class Dublin life and the grit of ordinary young people, a useful companion for the physical side of Irish working life.
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