The Silent People

’The long tale of terror and bravery . . . is told with the deftness of a professional storyteller’ - Irish Press

1826. Millions in Ireland know only famine, oppression and degradation. The landlords have ground down the tenant farmers; tithe wars and injustice are rife.

Dualta Duane battles against tyranny, struggling to survive the perils of hunger, poverty and disease. Courageous and fortified by an enduring love, Dualta’s unconquerable spirit personifies the passion for freedom that rages in the soul of Ireland.

The Silent People is the second beautifully told instalment of Walter Macken’s acclaimed trilogy, which impressively imagines and portrays Irish history as it was across hundreds of years.

’Poetic, but not sentimental - an engrossing and extremely well-written saga’ - Kirkus Reviews

Walter Macken was born in Galway in 1915. He was a writer of short stories, novels and plays. Originally an actor, principally with the Taibhdhearc in Galway, and The Abbey Theatre, he played lead roles on Broadway in M. J. Molloy’s The King of Friday’s Men and his own play Home Is the Hero. He also acted in films, notably in Arthur Dreifuss’ adaptation of Brendan Behan’s The Quare Fellow. He is perhaps best known for his trilogy of Irish historical novels Seek the Fair Land, The Silent People and The Scorching Wind. He passed away in 1967.