cummins crooked branch

Join Jeanine Cummins at The Ivy Bookshop on Tuesday, March 19 at 7:00 as she reads from her new novel, The Crooked Branch, the moving story of two women: Majella, who is shocked by her entry into motherhood in modern-day New York, and her ancestor, Ginny Doyle, who must keep her young family alive during Ireland’s Great Famine.

After the birth of her daughter Emma, the usually resilient Majella finds herself feeling isolated and exhausted. Then, at her childhood home in Queens, Majella discovers the diary of her maternal ancestor Ginny – and is shocked to read a story of murder in her family history.

With the famine upon her, Ginny Doyle fled from Ireland to America, but not all of her family made it. What happened during those harrowing years, and why does Ginny call herself a killer? Is Majella genetically fated to be a bad mother, despite the fierce tenderness she feels for her baby? Determined to uncover the truth of her heritage and her own identity, Majella sets out to explore Ginny’s past – and discovers surprising truths about her family and, ultimately, herself.

About the Author

Jeanine Cummins is the bestselling author of the groundbreaking memoir A Rip in Heaven and award winning novel The Outside Boy. She worked in the publishing industry for ten years before becoming a full-time writer. She was born in Spain, and has lived in California, Maryland, Belfast, and New York City, where she lives now with her Irish husband and growing family.
Join Jeanine Cummins at The Ivy Bookshop, 6080 Falls Road, on Tuesday, March 19 at 7 p.m.  For more information, visit the Ivy Bookshop website.