The Remembering Of Leather & Stone by Charles Paul Collins is a historical novel that traces the intertwining lives of two immigrant families, one Irish and one Italian, in 19th and early 20th-century America. Written as a fictional account based on personal journals, the story follows Cornelius Collins's journey from famine-stricken Ireland to Boston, and Giuseppe Ambrosini's pursuit of a fortune in America's granite industry. As they and their descendants endure challenges from economic shifts to social upheavals, the families' legacies merge, revealing the unbreakable threads of heritage.

Author Charles Paul Collins demonstrates remarkable skill in bringing historical America to vivid life through meticulous attention to detail and rich, evocative prose. I was immersed in the historical settings thanks to the multisensory detail, and the author's ability to weave together multiple generations of two families while maintaining distinct voices and personalities for each character. This shows masterful empathy and imagination. I was deeply moved by how Collins captures the emotional depth of the immigrant experience, from the heartbreak of leaving home to the triumph of building a new life. It is beautifully told with narration that homes in on very poignant truths for specific characters at the right moment. What I found most compelling was the author's ability to make the traditions and daily struggles of these families feel immediate and relevant, creating an intimate connection that spans centuries because we see them as real people, just like us. Overall, The Remembering Of Leather & Stone is an extraordinary achievement in historical fiction that will transport readers through time while touching their hearts.

The Remembering by Charles Paul Collins is the story of two families who emigrated to America in the nineteenth century. At the age of twenty, Cornelius Collins boards a steamer, aptly described as a 'coffin ship', from Liverpool to Boston. He leaves behind his family on the brink of starvation due to the An Gorta Mor, the time when disease hit the potato crop in Ireland. Living in dire poverty on land they did not own, tenants to absentee landlords in England, there was little hope of survival. Arriving in Boston, Massachusetts, Cornelius found employment in a shoe factory in the town of Milford. The work was hard, the hours long, the conditions very basic, but he persevered, sending money home to his family in Ireland. Slowly he advanced to journeyman and apprentice until he became a master craftsman. He married and over the years their family grew, first-generation Americans. The Italian stonecutter Guiseppe Ambrosini arrived from Lombardi a few years later to escape the political unrest in his country. He was already well qualified. He too married and raised a family. Later, through marriage, the two families united.

Charles Paul Collins has traced his family through documents and heritage sites, but the official papers in the public domain told him little of their thought and lives. Thus, in The Remembering, he imagined how they felt and described their daily lives. His description of Cornelius’ journey on the coffin ship across the Atlantic is so realistic that I was there, experiencing the conditions he suffered, the seasickness, lice, and open sores. Many died on the journey. All were emaciated from the potato famine. Much of the book is a historical account of life in America in the last century, a fascinating and informative read. The hardships, the integration, and the fellowship of the Irish and later Italian immigrants are all recounted through the eyes of the immigrants. It was an age of wars, major advances, industrialization, cars, flight, and the wireless. The author takes the reader into the minds of his family as their characters leap off the pages. I cared about them and enjoyed their triumphs and sorrows. This is a history book and a family saga wrapped in a novel and is an excellent read.