Journeys Home : Inspiring Stories, Plus Tips and Strategies to Find Your Family History

Addressing the explosive growth in ancestral travel, this compelling narrative combines intriguing tales of discovery with tips on how to begin your own explorations. Actor and award-winning travel writer Andrew McCarthy’s featured story recounts his recent quest to uncover his family’s Irish history, while twenty-five other prominent writers tell their own heartfelt stories of connection. Spanning the globe, these stories offer personal takes on journeying home, whether the authors are actively seeking long-lost relatives, meeting up with seldom-seen family members, or perhaps just visiting the old country to get a feel for their roots. Sidebars and a hefty resource section provide tips and recommendations on how to go about your own research, and a foreword by the Genographic Project’s Spencer Wells sets the scene. Stunning images, along with family heirlooms, old photos, recipes, and more, round out this unique take on the genealogical research craze.

Featured author ANDREW MCCARTHY is an actor and television director (known for his roles in St. Elmo’s Fire, Mannequin, Weekend at Bernie’s, Pretty in Pink, and Less Than Zero) who also has an illustrious writing career. He is an editor-at-large at National Geographic Traveler, and has written for The New York Times, The Atlantic, The Wall Street Journal, Slate, Travel+Leisure, Afar, Men’s Journal, Bon Appétit, National Geographic Adventure, and others. The Society of American Travel Writers named him 2010 “Travel Journalist of the Year,” and he was cited three times for notable work in the “Best American Travel Writing” series. His 2012 memoir, The Longest Way Home, became a New York Times bestseller.