Its prices greatly reduced by an ongoing economic crisis, but its spirit undaunted and its population as garrulous and outgoing as ever, Ireland has a special appeal to the tourist, as shown by the large yearly number of visitors. Our author, Jack Jewers, may make his headquarters in London, but he proposed to his Irish-American wife at a spa on the Ring of Kerry (it gets a great review in this book). We're sure our readers will enjoy his affectionate guide to the Emerald Isle.

On the eve of the Civil War, the Irish were one of America's largest ethnic groups, and approximately 150,000 fought for the Union. Analyzing letters and diaries written by soldiers and civilians; military, church, and diplomatic records; and community newspapers, Susannah Ural Bruce significantly expands the story of Irish-American Catholics in the Civil War, and reveals a complex picture of those who fought for the Union.