Manhattan is the continuing saga of Michael and Emily Ranahan's life as recounted in In The Time Of Famine. In fleeing the famine in Ireland to find a new life in the New World, they come ashore at New York City on an island called Manhattan, a chaotic, odoriferous city filled with rascals, ne'er' do-wells, rapscallions, and corrupt politicians. As they form their new life together they will experience the horrors of the infamous Five Points, the challenge of No Irish Need Apply signs, the Great Panic of 1857, the frightful Civil War riots, and finally, the building of the Brooklyn Bridge....