New York was the primary entry point for most Irish immigrants coming to America, so the history of the Irish in New York is, to some extent, also the history of the Irish in America. And it's safe to say that reading the essays in The New York Irish would enrich anyone's understanding of American history, which is, of course, the story of how different ethnic groups came together to form a nation. Of particular interest in the collection are essays about the Irish in New York's early days, from the Colonial period up to the years of the Great Famine (which led to the "Great Migration" of Irish to America). The history of the Irish as they sought to become Americans is often painful, and riots, church burnings, and rampant discrimination are recounted in chilling detail. Yet the essays, which have been intelligently selected and organized, are quite readable and often entertaining.