"My Mother's Daughter"

By Alice Hartsuyker

This collection of stories brings to life a time in New York City's history, the early half of the 20th century. The Bowery was the theater district then and her mother's Irish family found jobs there. The narrative moves on to the waves of immigrants trying to find a place in this new world. They settled in the Lower East Side where the author was born and grew up. She lived side by side with Middle-Eastern Jews, Italians, Chinese and the Irish.

She writes a richly-colored account of her encounters with these neighbors that contains humor and insight as well as details about life during that formative time in America. The text is enlivened by numerous archival photos, maps and drawings.