Tir Eoghain

Beckley, WV - (Release Date TBD) - A heartwarming story of John Burnside's family, friends, and early years awaits readers in author Nora Brabham's Tir Eoghain: The Life and Times of John Burnside. This historical fiction takes readers back to Northern Ireland of the early 1800s.



Brabham's novel unveils the shrouded story of the enigmatic John Burnside-from his last day in New Orleans to his homeland in Northern Ireland. It opens with the powerful, but ailing, entrepreneur and his ever-dependable valet, Jupiter Jones, as they step from their carriage at the train station in New Orleans. Almost everyone, especially the Irish immigrants, knew John personally or by reputation. Following the Civil War, he had pioneered the use of free labor in his sugar mills and plantations. His monumental success led the way, greatly influencing the restoration of the broken industry of the South. Being the largest grower, producer and exporter of sugar in the United States had earned him the title of "The Prince of Sugar".



Through a flashback presentation, almost as soon as Jupiter bade him goodnight, John Burnside was floating and drifting on a dream-filled sea of green; homeward bound for the windswept moors of County Tyrone. As the readers are immersed into him and his family's lives, they will learn how education, work ethic and wise investing became his keys to success.