American Odyssey: One Family’s Path to Revolutionary America

Just in time for the commemoration of America’s 250th birthday, American Odyssey chronicles the extraordinary saga of the McKinley family, whose journey from the battlefields of Ireland to the American frontier helped forge a nation. It begins with James “The Trooper” McKinley, who fought in the bloody Williamite Wars, establishing a legacy of grit and survival.Generations later, his grandson John, a Dublin blacksmith, defies social convention to marry Mary Conolly, an aristocrat from the palatial Castletown House. Shunned by her wealthy family, the couple emigrates to America in 1768, trading luxury for the perilous freedom of the Virginia frontier. In the untamed wilderness of Wheeling, Mary transforms from a pampered noblewoman into a resilient pioneer, enduring the constant threat of Native American raids.When the Revolutionary War ignites, John joins the 13th Virginia Regiment, surviving the freezing trials of Valley Forge and the heat of battle at Brandywine and Germantown. His devotion to liberty ultimately leads him to join the Crawford Expedition at the Battle of Sandusky. American Odyssey is a powerful tribute to how one Scotch-Irish family sacrificed everything to build the American Dream. Read more