Sunlight Beyond The Grave

Book excerpt: 'Sunlight Beyond The Grave' is a classic true story of five brothers all born in Liverpool during the 1850s.Their parents arrived on the banks of the River Mersey during the Great Hunger (Irish famine) in 1847. They lived in the slums of the town close to the north docks. The boys were left to fend for themselves because of the ill health and early death of both parents, they joined twenty-seven-thousand other children living and begging on the streets of the town.The Carling boys were blessed with the artistic ability of their mother and father which enabled them to earn more money than most other children, they could draw pictures and entertain passers-by. They were imprisoned for begging and sent to industrial schools and suffered harsh treatment. The also sailed before the mast in sailing ships at the age of 9 years, and one of them joining the Royal Navy. They started to educate themselves and eventually four of them sailed for New York and the fifth one, settled in Plymouth, England. They grew in stature and two of them are famous today in the art world of America. In this book Michael Kelly in his usual style brings to life his characters and takes you on an historical journey.