Murky Overhead by Michael Connolly

Murky Overhead is the story of an Irish immigrant family, the Folans, scratching out a living in the coastal city of Portland, Maine – See what makes them laugh. Feel what makes them cry.

Mike Connolly brings a lifetime of experiences, stories, and lessons learned on both sides of the Atlantic to this, his first novel. Murky Overhead is the story of an Irish immigrant family, the Folans, scratching out a living in the coastal city of Portland, Maine – but reflecting the larger struggles of immigrants everywhere. Step into their lives for one day. See what makes them laugh. Feel what makes them cry.

“Murky Overhead reminded me of so many memories of growing up on Munjoy Hill. It actually made me feel better about myself. Mike Connolly could not have done a better job in capturing the spirit of those times, and I found that his words agreed with the long‐held thoughts of my own mind.”

~ Joseph E. Brennan, former two‐term Maine Governor and a longtime resident of Portland’s Munjoy Hill

“This book goes deep into the lives and into the hearts of Irish emigrants in Portland, Maine, at the turn of the 20th Century. It resonates with me, as my own family experienced many of the same triumphs and difficulties as the family depicted in this true‐to‐life historical novel. These stories of emigrants’ courage and heartache are central to the story of America.”

~ Martin J. Walsh, Secretary of Labor for the United States and former Mayor of Boston

“Michael Connolly is a renowned historian of the Irish in Maine, who has worked extensively with the Maine Irish Heritage Center to research and communicate the experience of the generations of Irish immigrants who settled in Portland and elsewhere in Maine. In Murky Overhead, he combines historical fiction with meticulous research to bring to life in vivid detail the hopes, struggles, and dreams of those Irish who made their homes in this ‘next parish west of Galway.’

~ Laoise Moore, Consul General of Ireland for New England