Summary of John Little's The Donnellys

By IRB Media

Get the Summary of John Little's The Donnellys in 20 minutes. Please note: This is a summary & not the original book. Original book introduction: n the 1840s, the Donnelly family immigrates from Ireland to the British province of Canada. Almost immediately problems develop as the patriarch of the family is sent to the Kingston Penitentiary for manslaughter, leaving his wife to raise their eight children on her own.

The children are raised in an incredibly violent community and cultivate a devoted loyalty to their mother and siblings, which often leads to problems with the law and those outside of the family.

The tensions between the family and their community escalate as the family's enemies begin to multiply. The brothers go into business running a stagecoach line and repay all acts of violence perpetrated against them, which only worsens the situation.

• Language: English
• Publisher: IRB Media
• Release date: Nov 22, 2021
• ISBN: 9781638157502

IRB Media

With IRB books, you can get the key takeaways and analysis of a book in 15 minutes. We read every chapter, identify the key takeaways and analyze them for your convenience.

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Insights on John Little's The Donnellys

Contents

Insights from Chapter 1

Insights from Chapter 2

Insights from Chapter 3

Insights from Chapter 4

Insights from Chapter 5

Insights from Chapter 6

Insights from Chapter 7

Insights from Chapter 8

Insights from Chapter 9

Insights from Chapter 10

Insights from Chapter 11

Insights from Chapter 12

Insights from Chapter 13

Insights from Chapter 14

Insights from Chapter 15

Insights from Chapter 16

Insights from Chapter 1

#1

The city of London, Ontario, was founded in 1826 and was initially settled by British colonists. It was located near Detroit, Michigan, and Toronto, Ontario.

#2

The murder of the Donnelly brothers was big news in London. A young reporter named John Lambert Payne was sent to cover the story.

#3

The Donnelly farmhouse was destroyed by fire, and the reporter who covered the story, Payne, estimated that it had been started by a person or persons unknown.

#4

The Donnelly farmhouse was burned to the ground, but the reporter noted how the corpses were burned in such a way that one could still make out what they had been wearing.

#5

The home of the Donnelly family was raided by gunmen, and despite the family’s pleas for mercy, they were all killed.

#6

The author was at the scene of the fire when it happened. He saw the devastation first hand.

#7

The Donnelly farm was burned down during the night, and the police were not informed about the incident until around 4:00 p. m. The boy who had witnessed the murder, however, had told his parents about it earlier that morning.

#8

On the night of the murder, John Donnelly, the son of the murdered couple, was shot in the home of his brother, William.

#9

The Donnellys were killed the next day, after a mob of around 500 people stormed their house looking for William.

Insights from Chapter 2

#1

The author’s great-great-great-grandfather, John Little, was one of the first people of European descent to set foot in the area that is now referred to as Markham.

#2

The Irish Potato Famine played a large part in the Great Irish Migration. In the 19th century, the Irish