Last of the Donkey Pilgrims - by Kevin O'Hara (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

Kevin O'Hara's journey of self-discovery begins as a mad lark: who in their right mind would try to circle the entire coastline of Ireland on foot--and with a donkey and cart no less?

But Kevin had promised his homesick Irish mother that he would explore the whole of the Old Country and bring back the sights and the stories to their home in Massachusetts. Determined to reach his grandmother's village by Christmas Eve, Kevin and his stubborn but endearing donkey, Missie, set off on 1800-mile trek along the entire jagged coast of a divided Ireland.

Their rollicking adventure takes them over mountains and dales, through smoky cities and sleepy villages, and into the farmhouses and hearts of Ireland's greatest resource--its people.

Along the way, Kevin would meet incredible characters, experience Ireland in all of its glory, and explore not only his Irish past, but find his future self.

"One of the finest books about contemporary Ireland ever written...In a style evocative of Steinbeck's Travels with Charley, O'Hara writes memorably of his most unusual way of touring his ancestral home of Ireland." --Library Journal

Review Quotes

"One of the finest books about contemporary Ireland ever written...In a style evocative of Steinbeck's Travels with Charley, O'Hara writes memorably of his most unusual way of touring his ancestral home of Ireland." --Library Journal

"A witty, whimsical walk around an Ireland before the 'Celitc Tiger' of the European Union found its economic legs, before the roads were improved, and before battalions of Audis and Mercedes replaced the donkey carts, farmers, and unhurried pedestrians of another day." --Boston Globe

"A delightful book to be enjoyed by everyone on a life pilgrimage." --Catholic Library World

"Kevin O'Hara is neither a madman nor a saint; he is an original. The story he tells will be an inspiration to any person who has ever tried to patch a broken life." --Morgan Llywelyn

"Skillful piece of travel-writing; like the Irish fog, it's both glowing and lightly pushed by an unacknowledged melancholy." --Kirkus Reviews

About the Author

Kevin O'Hara is the author of Last of the Donkey Pilgrims, an autobiographic telling of his travels around the coastland of Ireland with his beloved donkey Missy. He also wrote a memoir--A Lucky Irish Lad--detailing his experience growing up as an Irish-American in the shadow of the Second World War. A psychiatric nurse for more than 25 years, O'Hara still resides in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, the place to which his parents emigrated.