Ellis Island

A People's History

By: Małgorzata Szejnert, Sean Gasper Bye - translator

Narrated by: Carlotta Brentan

From Annie Moore, the Irishwoman who was the first to be processed there, to Arne Peterssen, the Norwegian who was the last to be taken away from the island in 1954, Ellis Island weaves together the personal experiences of forgotten individuals with those who live on in history: Fiorello La Guardia, Lee Iacocca, and other American leaders whose paths led them to the island for various reasons.

Award-winning journalist Małgorzata Szejnert draws on unpublished testimonies, memoirs, archival photographs, and correspondence from many internees and immigrants. But also brought to life are the Ellis Island employees: the doctors, nurses, commissioners, interpreters, social care workers, and even chaperones who controlled the fates of these emigres - often basing their decisions on pseudoscientific ideas about race, gender, and disability. Sometimes families were broken up, and new arrivals were detained and quarantined for days, weeks, or even months.

All told, the island compound spent longer as an internment camp than as a migration way-point - in addition to filling other roles through the years, including that of rescue station in the immediate aftermath of the 9/11 attacks. Now brought back to life by a master storyteller, this is a story of a place and its people, steeped in politics and history, that reshaped the United States.

©2009 Malgorzata Szejnert; English translation copyright 2020 by Sean Gasper Bye (P)2021 Tantor

Ellis Island History from a Polish author

In research my own ancestry which traces through Ellis Island I have been limited to sources written from an United Stated or British author due to my own English language limitation. I was thrilled to discover this book from a Polish author which has been translated into English.

It was well researched and written. The print book had many interesting photographs. The audiobook narrator does an excellent job with names and languages from so many different countries. This book presents an honest history of the Island’s history without the sterilized romanticism I was taught as a child in the United States. Thank you to the author for taking the time to research and write this book.

Excellent narration of various languages

I liked the very complete history, which told me much more than when I visited the island last year. Now I want to go back again!

Imminently boring

Too many facts, timeline disjointed and characters not expanded. Narrator: good voice but some English words oddly pronounced