She Cruiser

She Cruiser is currently in revision.

Set in 19th century Ireland, at a time when most women wanted to settle down and marry, Mary Ann Donnan set her sights on becoming a fisherwoman. How difficult would that be? Enormously difficult given women were not employed on boats or even allowed to step onto them in case they brought bad luck. In 1841 Mary Ann was born into a poor family who could not help finance the purchase of a fishing boat. Even if she could buy her own vessel, there was no tradition of women captaining or crewing boats. Follow the story of Mary Ann from the age of six until forty as she struggled against the conventions and culture of the day. This is a roller coaster of real life in the middle to late 19th century in Northern Ireland.