From The Great Blasket to America - Michael Carney

Mike Carney, the oldest living native Blasket Islander, was born on the Great Blasket Island in 1920. Raised in that unique, isolated Irish-speaking community, Mike left in 1937 to seek a better future in Dublin - and eventually in America. A chain of events led to the island's evacuation, with Mike playing a pivotal role, lobbying Eamon de Valera to relocate the remaining islanders living in increasingly desperate conditions. This is the story of his life and his efforts to preserve the memory of the Great Blasket, to promote Irish culture in America, and to set down roots in a new land.