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ISBN 1-4208-4349-4 ( Softcover )
  ISBN 1-4208-4350-8 ( Hardcover )

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About the Book

       Paddy is a novel about family life in Somerset, Michigan during the first year of the American Civil War. It's a novel of adventure, intrigue, romance and comedy set in a background of historical places, many of which you can still see today as you drive along the Chicago Road from Jonesville through the Irish Hills to Clinton.

       Christmas 1860 is far from joyous. Clouds of war hover above a nation in disarray, and a break up of the Union seems inevitable. In a few months, president-elect Abraham Lincoln will be inaugurated. Continuing unrest among the southern states has emboldened slaves to flee north with bounty hunters in pursuit, and life in Somerset is about to change.

       Paddy O'Toole is the owner and driver of a stage coach that makes shuttle runs along the Chicago Road between the towns of Jonesville and Clinton.

       Paddy's favorite stop is the Somerset Inn where Shella Heflin, its famous cook, works with young Mary Bunday in the kitchen. Ransom Foster, Paddy's dear friend and frequent passenger, is extremely fond of Mary Bunday. Whenever Ransom is on the stage, Paddy times his arrival at the Somerset Inn for just before dark so the young lovers can be together.

       Paddy, the optimist, loves everyone dearly and is always willing to help. At home in Jonesville, he spends most of his spare time with his friend Chauncy Coolahan, the town's only undertaker. With hilarious results, Paddy often helps Coolahan.

       In the summer, Ransom Foster's life is in grave danger when he becomes secretly involved in a covert government assignment that puts him on Paddy's stage for a suspense-filled trip through the Irish Hills.

       As the war escalates, each side tries to outmaneuver the other by inventing new methods of offence. In the fall of 1861, the Federal Army developed and launched a manned aerial observation balloon, and the U. S. Balloon Corps was born.

Preview

       It was almost high noon when they arrived at the Somerset
Inn. Paddy drove the stage directly into the yard so that he could
feed the team. Worth and Kramer got out, went inside through the
front door, and seated themselves in the tavern. Ransom tucked
the portfolio under his arm and walked briskly to the kitchen
entrance. Sam had just removed the door and had set it on end in
the doorway so that he could replace an old hinge with one that he
had just made. Ransom hurriedly maneuvered around Sam and
went directly into the larder where he hid the portfolio behind some
flour sacks. Startled, Sam looked after him with a puzzled smile
but continued fixing the door.
       "What's you doin' in there, now, Mista Ransom? Checkin'
out the pies or lookin' for Mary?" Shella laughed, calling to him.
       "Both," he replied, grinning with a sigh of relief as he came
out and sat down at a small table in the corner of the kitchen. He
was glad that hiding the portfolio had mostly gone unnoticed.
       Paddy came in and sat at the table with him.
       "The usual?" Ned Ashley asked, as he passed through
carrying linens and tableware on his way to wait on the guests in
the tavern.
       "Aye," replied Paddy, knowing the question was his.
       Ned returned with a pint of ale with the name Paddy etched
in its glass base, and set it on the table.
       Ransom sat quietly and watched Mary's every movement as
she hustled about.
       "Who you got with you this time?" Shella asked.
       "A Mr. Worth who is surveying this area for the railroad and
a man by the name of Kramer," Ransom answered.
       "That Kramer's travelin' light and packin' a gun too," Paddy
commented.
       "Maybe he's a detective or something," Ransom offered.
       "Shhhhh," Shella cautioned them, peeking through the door.
"They just came into the dining room with their drinks, and your
words go through this door real easy when it's open."
       "Kramer could use a bath too. He's so strong he made my
nose sting," Ransom gestured, holding his nose.
       In the dining room Worth was explaining to Kramer how
the railroad acquires land from the farmers with government
help. "It's a set price per acre no matter where it's located," Worth
explained.
       "I don't think the government should have any part in it.
It's like stealing their land," stated Kramer, raising his voice and
noisily shifting his chair.
       "If the government didn't get involved, we'd never build a
railroad," Worth explained.
       "I don't care what you say," Kramer replied in a loud gravelly
voice. "I still say it's stealin', pure and simple."
       Mary held the door open with her foot, as she balanced a tray,
and Kramer's words resounded into the kitchen.
       Sam dropped his hammer and stood transfixed.
Ransom looked at him, puzzled. "You okay, Sam?" he asked,
staring at him.
       "What's the matter, Sam?" Shella joined in. "Are you all
right?"
       Sam went to the door, opened it a crack and studied the men
at the table for several moments. Then Kramer got loud again
and stood up to make his point.

About the Author

       Dan Doyle was born in Canada and spent his early years working in the family candy and restaurant business in the small town of Guelph Ontario. It was here that his desire for writing took root as he enjoyed many relaxed conversations with the town's citizens that represented every walk of life.
       While in high school he wrote a variety of articles and humorous stories for the Guelph Review, a weekly newspaper.
       In 1950 he married and emigrated to the United States in search of a career in automotive design and, in 1957 he joined the Product Engineering Division of Cadillac Motor Car in Detroit. His thirty-year career in management encompassed several design departments and corporate committees. As the Cadillac Safety Engineer, he coordinated division responsibilities with the F.B.I., the Secret Service and other government agencies.
       In retirement he began writing humor again and Paddy is the result of stories he remembered from long ago.
       Dan and his wife Cecilia have been married for 59 years and are currently living in Somerset Michigan. He is the father of four children, seven grandchildren and three great grandchildren.
       The author's connection and interest in the American Civil War began at an early age. He grew up in a family with his great grandfather, Stephen Hadfield, who served with the 53rd Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry. In 1997 Dan created a site on the Internet for the 53rd and is also trying to locate all the Civil War veterans that are buried in Canada.

          Since 1970 author Dan Doyle divided his residency
          between Somerset and Dearborn, Michigan. When he
          retired in Somerset, Dan began researching the history
          of the area and discovered the role that the community
          played during the Civil War. His novel is set in a
          background of actual places and political events of 1861.
          Drawing from the humorous side of his Irish heritage,
          Doyle has woven a tale of everyday life as he imagines it
          might have been at that time.

Contact Dan
E-mail:   dancee1950@comcast.net
or  Box 31 - Somerset MI 49281-0031

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