On Saturday, May 1, 2021, at 4pm the New York Irish History Roundtable is presenting a first-time event.

Using the internet and Zoom, the Roundtable will host a discussion of Terence Winch’s recent coming-of-age novel, Seeing-Eye Boy. Through Zoom, participants at home can listen to and join discussion with the author and other Roundtable members.

Winch’s Seeing-Eye Boy is set in the Irish Bronx of the 1950s and brings to life the Irish immigrant urban world of that time. It gives an inside look at the two cultures, Irish and American, through the adventures and misadventures of young Matt Coffey. Winch shows immigrant adults interacting with their first-generation sons and daughters, while Irish and rock music co-exist uncomfortably as the Irish become Irish Americans in the Bronx. Seeing-Eye Boy is a special blend of history, imagination, and nostalgia.

Poet and musician Terence Winch is a winner of the American Book Award and Columbia Book Award. He is a poet, editor, and musician—and a co-founder of band, Celtic Thunder. He was born and raised in the Bronx. His best-known composition is “When New York Was Irish.”

The discussion of Seeing-Eye Boy will take place from 4–5:15pm on Saturday, May 1, 2021. Roundtable president John Ridge will open the program, and Prof. Linda Dowling Almeida, from Glucksman Ireland House, will lead the discussion. For more information, go to Roundtable@irishnyhistory.org.

Instructions on making the Zoom connection will be provided beforehand by email. All you need is a computer or smart phone with a camera. For more information, write to roundtable@irishnyhistory.org.