Few Americans know the history-changing story of the men of the USS Mason, the only African-American sailors to take a World War II warship into combat. At a time when most blacks in the Navy were relegated to stewards or laborers, the crew of the USS Mason escorted six convoys across the perilous North Atlantic, helped to win the Battle of the Atlantic and directly influenced President Harry S. Truman's decision to integrate all of America's armed forces. Recommended in 1944 for a commendation for their heroic actions during a violent storm, the Mason sailors finally...

In a hidden Ireland where fishermen and tenant farmers find solace in their ancient faith, songs, stories, and communal celebrations, young Honora Keeley and Michael Kelly wed and start a family. Because they and their countrymen must sell both their catch and their crops to pay exorbitant rents, potatoes have become their only staple food.

But when blight destroys the potatoes three times in four years, a callous government and uncaring landlords turn a natural disaster into The Great Starvation that will kill one million. Honora and Michael vow their children will live. The family joins...