The Irish experience in the Southern U.S. has long been a neglected area of study, though that is changing. "Mystery of the Irish Wilderness: Land and Legend of Father John Joseph Hogan's Lost Irish Colony on the Ozark Wilderness" (by Leland and Crystal Payton) explores the matters. It is a fascinating look at a forgotten experiment led by a visionary Catholic priest who attempted to create a colony for refugees of the Irish Famine in the Ozark mountains of Missouri. The priest was John Joseph Hogan, from Limerick, and his plan was to give struggling Irish Catholics a foothold in America, even if they would have to live side-by-side with the Scotch Irish, with whom they often battled. The land became known as the Irish Wilderness, and many of the Catholic Irish were displaced during the U.S. Civil War, never to return. Almost 100 years later, a land dispute brought this story back into the public eye, and the Paytons are right to suggest this is an important chapter in the Irish-American story. "Many themes come together in this story," the authors explain. "Immigration, war, and the challenges of being Catholic in a fundamentally Protestant culture." ($18.95 / 128 pages / Lens and Pen Press)