Acclaimed author, Peter Quinn, will speak about his newest book at the meeting of the Irish Cultural Society on Tuesday, November 11 . The meeting will start at 8 p.m. in the Garden City Library, 60 Seventh Street, across the street from the Garden City Hotel. The meeting is open to the public.

Mr. Quinn's talk, "When New York Was Irish," will focus on his collection of essays, Looking for Jimmy: a Search for Irish America (Overlook Press, 2007). Mr. Quint will not only give his personal reflections on Irish America, but also promises to reveal the identity of Jimmy.

Peter Quint last spoke at a Society meeting in October of 1994. At that meeting he introduced his audience to his first novel Banished Children of Eve. Winner of a 1994 American Book Award, Quinn's saga of Civil War New York -- the time of the draft Riots, Stephen Foster's tragedy, the Five Points Slum, the Orphan Trains and so much more -- has just been reissued in a new edition by Overlook Press. The novel was praised by the Chicago Sun-times as "a stunning portrayal of New York in 1863... Would all that history be told as well."

Peter Quint recently retired as corporate editorial director of Time Warner. A graduate of Manhattan College and Fordham University, Quint was a speech writer for Hugh Carey and Mario Cuomo. Along with Banished Children of Eve and Looking for Jimmy, as well as innumerable essays and articles, he is the author of the WWII thriller Hour of the Cat. He has been a commentator on several PBS specials, including Ric Burns's New York: A Documentary film. He and his brother authored McSorley's New York, which won a New York-area Emmy for best historical programming.

Mr. Quinn's writing skills edge out, but not by much, his presentational skills. Mr. Quint will bring the same blend of history and imagination, presented with the verve and boldness found in his books, to the Garden City Library stage on November 11 . Predictable after his talk will be the question. "Where can I get these books?"