Ambitions - by Frank Baillargeon (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

How does an impoverished and illiterate Irish Catholic immigrant rise from abject poverty and discrimination in mid-19th Century America to become America's boxing champion, a millionaire gambling entrepreneur, a twice-elected member of the United States Congress, and a twice-elected member of the New York State Senate?

The accomplishments of John Morrissey (1831-1878) are well-documented. What's missing is how? Certainly, luck, timing, resolve, and intelligence played key roles, but there was something else, something more powerful and motivating, that helped lift him, against all odds, to the pinnacle of success in sports, business, and politics during a time when hatred of Irish Catholics permeated American society. That something was the unlikely marriage to a young woman from a respected Protestant family, a recent graduate of Emma Willard's Troy Female Seminary, and a person with driving ambitions as powerful as her husband's.

In Ambitions, a three-book series of novels, the author teases Susannah Morrissey out of the shadows of John Morrissey's life and places her and her ambitions in the critical roles played in this extraordinary story of love and struggle, perseverance, and triumph.

Review Quotes

"Ambitions is one of the most riveting novels I've read, capturing the inconceivable life of John Morrissey, evolving from clever street thug to the heavyweight boxing crown and eventually landing the noblewoman of his dreams. This is a love story full of grit and struggle and powerful messages about class, family roots, upbringing, chasing passions, and never letting the world tell you what you're capable of, an incredible tale written with sheer passion and a tight, powerful voice. This book has it all... and maybe then some."

Jonathan Starke, author of You've Got Something Coming