National Book Award and Pulitzer Prize winner Timothy Egan will give a presentation at the University of Wyoming Tuesday on his newest book.
The Immortal Irishman tells the story of 19th century Irish orator and revolutionary Thomas Francis Meagher, whose speeches moved people to action in Ireland, Australia, and the United States. Meagher eventually became territorial governor of Montana before he disappeared.
Egan said he wrote the book partly because he became more interested in his own Irish heritage.
“There’s a huge surge, a reawakening of interest in people just wanting to know their story and where they’re from and how they got here. And the Irish story is the first of many, many repetitive immigrant cycles. Germans, Eastern European Jews, Southern Italians, Poles, Russians, Asians, now largely Mexicans and Latinos from south of the border. It’s just the American Story repeating itself,” said Egan
Egan is also the author of “The Worst Hard Time” – a history of the Dust Bowl – and writes for the New York Times on the environment, the American West, and politics. His talk is free and open to the public, and takes place Tuesday, April 18th at 1:30pm in the Union Ballroom on the UW campus.
