OUR IMMIGRANTS' SON

A debut work combines an epic prose poem about the lives of the writer’s Irish immigrant ancestors with a manual on how to narrate a family history.

“When we tell our story, we also give voice to our family’s values,” writes Murphy in his introduction. This prose poem about the author’s great-grandfather Michael begins with the man’s parents, Patrick and Mary, immigrating to Boston from County Waterford, Ireland, in 1845. The first chapter, “An Cinneadh,” meaning “The Decision” in Irish Gaelic, is a “standalone and self-contained prose poem” that the author later incorporated into this book, reimagining their sea voyage to the New World. After settling in the outskirts of Boston, Patrick found work as a stonemason and the couple had seven children, one of whom was Michael. Although Murphy’s research stretches across generations of his family history, Michael’s story is central, detailing his 1864 enlistment in the Union Army to serve in the Civil War and his later ascension to the role of chief of police of Lawrence, Massachusetts, and also chief mills inspector for the city’s textile industry. The author also records how other family members went on to join the military, serving in World War I and Vietnam. The second part of the book acts as a brief guide on “how you can write your family story,” addressing issues such as “Why write about the past?”; approaches to research; and how to creatively fill in gaps in knowledge.

The intriguing story of the Murphy family’s carving out its place in the New World is one that many immigrants will find familiar. Michael’s tale reveals an impressive depth of research, drawing on family photographs and interviews and even delving into Lawrence Police notices to examine cases that he may have been involved in at the time. Unfortunately, a great deal of the account involves speculation. The author uses the words may have repeatedly and pads out the narrative by presenting anecdotes from the wider immigrant experience. This is forgivable on occasion, but the frequency of reference book–like passages depersonalizes an intentionally personal story: “Because it had low value as a commercial export food, the potato had long been considered food for Ireland’s poorest, leading to the nickname of ‘potato people’ for the struggling lower class.” This language betrays what is expected from a prose poem. Indeed, Murphy’s descriptive skills sometimes lack poetic creativity: “Mary was a strong woman”; “It was clear Patrick was a strong man.” The narrative is also jumbled and repetitive. The opening chapter chronicles Patrick and Mary’s sea voyage. The author then goes over the same ground by discussing the voyage again midway through the text. The “how to” part of the book is similarly digressive. Although it enthusiastically encourages others to explore their ancestral histories, the manual lingers on trivial subjects, such as the use of the Oxford comma and the importance of mentioning family pets. This work will prove a vital and highly informative document for the author’s family. Still, the volume may struggle to attract a wider audience.

A well-researched but rambling family account and guide.