THE IRISH BROUGHT IT ALL TO AMERICA Irish contributions to the American life from Corned Beef and Cabbage to Submarines. Typically American: Moonshine and Square Dancing. Murphy's Law and Mickey Finn. McGuffey's Readers and Good ol' Pat and Mike jokes. These are just a few of the wonderful things that make America the warm-hearted, good humored, flag-waving country that it has been for two hundred and fifty years, and they all came from the grand green land of Ireland. It was and has been, since Patrick Maguire stepped off the decks of Columbus' Santa Maria ship in 1492 to drag his dinghy onto the shores of San Salvador, the Irish have had one foot in the muddy black soil and brilliant green grass of Ireland and one on the mountains and lakes and prairies of the Land of the Free. The Irish and Americans have been indubitably interconnected by heritage, convictions, and spirit since the beginning.
About the Author: Helen Walsh Folsom was born in Armourdale, Kansas, on a snowy morning the day after All Hallows Eve in the house of her great-grandmother, Lizzie Walsh Smith. Helen knew she was part Irish and she grew up delighting in both Irish and Scots-Irish music, theater, and characters. When she left community-service work several years ago, Helen knew there was one thing she most definitely wanted to do: research Irish history and write books. She studied, and the more exhaustively she studied the more enchanted she became with Ireland's legends and whimsical characters, as well as the isle's most prominent figure, Saint Patrick. Helen found so many quirky and fun-filled little facts about Ireland, she wanted to share them. She published her first book, St. Patrick's Secrets: 101 Little-Known Truths and Tales of Ireland, in 2002. However, as charmed as she has been, Helen also understood the battle against injustices that the Irish people have had to endure. It is not surprising that her next book was Ah, Those Irish Colleens!, published in 2003. It helped to explain the history of Ireland as seen from the women who affected it. This book was listed for several years on the bestseller list of the former Irish Books and Media. Helen visited Ireland and still remains enchanted with the country, its ancient history, and charismatic people. Many times she met friendly, down-to-earth people who loved her American heritage and were not too shy to inquire, "Are you spending your money?" Helen published her next book, Fianna: The Dark Web of the Brotherhood, which was released in 2012. It is part of a fictional series where she developed characters in the Fitzmichael family that, to her, represent the different types of Irish people-strong and knowledgeable, smart and stubborn, but always with a flair of independence. Brandeen, In the Shadow of Captain Moonlight, the second book in the series was released in 2014, and Kells, The Risin' of the Rebellion, 2015, is the story of the start of the Fitzmichael Freighting Co. and how it all began and focuses on one of the most horrific eras in Irish history, 1798. In 2016, Helen published another book, An Irish Christmas and the Storyteller, which was, as she said, "Pure fun!" This book included Christmas traditions and delicious food and young and old love of a hard-working, lovable Irish family and their village set in 1894.