Plentiful Country
by Tyler Anbinder

Nonfiction ~ Audiobook ~ Irish Immigration ~ Great Potato Famine ~ New York City ~ Mid-1800s ~ Irish need not apply ~ Social strata ~ Perseverance ~ US history ~ Archival records ~ Well-researched ~ Highly recommended

I highly recommend this book! Most of my ancestors came to the United States from Ireland during this time period. This book helped answer many of the questions I’ve had about my family members. Thank you!

Thanks to NetGalley; Little, Brown & Co.; and, Hatchette Audio for an ARC copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

I found this narrative fascinating. The comprehensive research is remarkable and the relating of the personal stories of a so many immigrants in an engaging and interesting fashion makes, what might have been a tedious, dry, fact laden narrative, totally gripping and generates a continuous curiosity as to how the new arrivals adapted and settled in their new world.
The tragedies, failures, successes and ongoing efforts to do better are a testament to the tenacity and determination of so many to make a new life for themselves and their families.

Wow! What an excellent read! I learned some about the Irish potato famine in the book, The Untold History of the Potato by John Reader, and it was fascinating to then read a book with extensive details about the immigrants fleeing the famine.

I found the audiobook extremely easy to listen to! The narrator, David McCusker, is excellent! Especially as he speaks with an Irish accent (because why are most audiobooks narrated in an English or American accent?). He speaks with enough emotion to keep the reader engaged but keeps a steady pace for the speedy listener.

The premise of revealing history based on banking is brilliant and really interesting to read about.

Thank you NetGalley and Hachette Audio for an audio-arc to voluntarily listen to and honestly review. This book is BEGGING to be used for research for a historical fiction novel 👀😍🙏🏻

Thanks to NetGalley; Little, Brown and Company; and Hatchette Audio for ARC copies of this ebook and audiobook!

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Despite completing my degree being specialized in Gilded Age America, a lot of this was new information. Many of the Irish immigrants came over before that time period, but there were plenty of examples of these men and women leaving lasting impacts on their communities in its midst. So, I loved getting more information on this micro-history!


Tyler Anbinder has given us a wonderfully researched and detailed history of the Irish migration to America in the 19th century. I didn't realize how huge and influential their demographic truly was in New York! A lot of the research appears to stem from bank ledgers and documents that allowed individuals and families to be tracked. Anbinder gives examples of Irishmen working in a variety of different jobs and in several different social classes. We see some rise and others fall. A handful are able to give their children a leg-up and a few times prosperity is squandered. There is variety in these stories, but also consistency. None of the information feels like it's too minute and detailed to be relevant, but as a historian/reader, I'm also not left with unanswered questions. The balance is great! I would definitely recommend this one.

Plentiful Country - The Great Potato Famine and the Making of Irish New York written by Tyler Anbinder and narrated by David McCusker is a thoroughly reseached, highly detailed story of individual and collective stories of the Irish immigrants who are the very foundation of New York

This beautifully narrated audiobook details how Irish immigrants fled the potato famine in their native Ireland, seeking a new life in America, braving an arduous journey across the Atlantic, and in turn. transforming New York into the bustling metropolitan hub of the world that it is today, and indeed, the United States of America as a whole by their contribution in the War of Independance. These are just two of the examples covered in this stuning chronicle

Anbinder writes with excepttional eloquence about the facts of the migration and at the same time, is able to delve into the human aspect of this huge influx of people and their profound effect in shaping the nation. It is truly incredible how Anbinder has brought together so much information and retained its core hmanity

David McCusker reads this audiobook with an authentic, measured flow and a gentle cadence which is a joy to listen to. As lyrical as it is strong, the book is brought to vivid clarity by this narration

Thank you to Netgalley, Hachette Audio, Little, Brown & Company, the author Tyler Anbinder and narrator David McCusker for this highly immersive and informatvie ALC. My review is left voluntarily and all opinions are my own