Book Review: Yankeeland

Title: Yankeeland
Author: Lacy Fewer
Genre: Historical Fiction
Book Length: 303 Pages
Format Read: Paperback
Year Published: March 25, 2025

Date Started: March 2, 2025
Date finished: April 3, 2025

Life was hard in Ireland, with no jobs and no hope for success, so Brigid and her husband, Ben, decided to make a new life in America. Leaving their extended family behind was a hard decision, but they didn’t have a choice. In America, Ben was busy working while Brigid was a homemaker. Along the way, Brigid had a miscarriage, and it seems from that moment on, something about her changed. This was in the 1900s, so the medical field wasn’t very advanced. That meant whatever mental illness Brigid had, the doctors didn’t have a name for it at the time, therefore, didn’t have the medication to help. Ben was not aware of Brigid’s illness, being busy with work and all. Eventually, he learned of it and had to make a tough decision.

Initially, I thought this story was about an Irish couple who found their way to America to build a better life for themselves and to start a family (with difficulty). I didn’t realize this was a story about mental illness, specifically schizophrenia, so I was a little surprised. I was holding out for something else, so I didn’t fully connect with the story until I was almost done with the book. Also, there were multiple main characters, which I found confusing because I thought the story was about Brigid and Ben. There was too much going on with all the characters that, at some point, I forgot who the main characters were. I had to read the back of the book to remind myself who they were.

My favorite part—well, most heartfelt part—would have to be when Ben made his decision. It was heartbreaking but it was a real situation (even in today’s world to have to make such a decision about someone you love so much) and painful to have to go through. That’s the reality of such illness and it really broke my heart.

This was a sad story, and one that I felt could have been told with a narrower view. I felt like I was being pulled in so many different directions with all the other storylines that the main point was lost. I’m not even sure I got the main point out, but I hope I did.

Who should read this book: If you enjoy or are curious about a historical fiction about mental illness, give this one a go. It’s worth the read just to understand the world they lived in and the lack of medical knowledge at the time. It might make you appreciate the world we live in now as well as realize how much harder the ill had it then.