Untangling the Shadows: Searching for the Voices of My New York Irish Ancestors

What begins as a quest to unravel the mystery surrounding the death of an infant becomes a gripping odyssey. Immersing himself in faded photos, newspaper articles, dusty basements and fragments of his own memory, Charles Hale summons the voices from the past and seeks to discover how his ancestors lived. Traversing landscapes, beginning at the burial site of a baby, to a butcher's shop in Ireland, to a tapestry of tenements, bustling streets, and ballfields in the heart of New York City, Hale asks, Can we navigate the hidden recesses of history, untangling the shadows that shroud the past?

Weaving together a tapestry of stories, a realization emerges-our narratives shape our very existence, influencing how we perceive ourselves and the world around us. Examining both physical and personal terrains, Hale embarks on an exploration of family, grief, meaning and purpose, infusing his journey with intense self-reflection. Readers will be inspired to embrace the transformative power of family history, the interconnectedness of the human experience and become the torchbearer of their own ancestral tales.

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"A must for anyone interested in history, family and the thrill of searching through archives, graveyards and one's own heart for the gentle shades of those loved and lost."

--Verbena "Ben" Pastor author of Lumen

"Every page of this book shines with compassion and truth telling. The compelling mixture of family history is in a class of its own."

--Peter Quinn author of Banished Children of Eve

"Charles Hale digs into his family's history to unearth a treasure trove of compelling stories....A wise, wonderful, big-hearted tale."

--Patricia Morrisroe, author of Mapplethorpe: A Biography

"This book is a trap. It will hold you in its spell from the opening page to the very last word."

--Colin Broderick author of That's That: A Memoir



Charles R. Hale, a chronicler of New York life and culture, blends the city's rich history in his shows WWII and NYC: Connecting Time and Place, The Musical History of the Lower East Side, New York City: A Shining Mosaic and Jazz in the City. His essays have appeared in numerous publications and most recently in Colin Broderick's anthology, The Writing Irish of New York. A descendant of Irish famine immigrants, Hale lives in New York City.