Journeys: An American Story

Every family has a story of how they arrived in America, whether it was only a few months, years, decades, or centuries ago. Journeys: An American Story celebrates the vastness and variety of immigration tales in America, featuring seventy-three essays about the different ways we got here. This is a collection of family lore, some that has been passed down through generations, and some that is being created right now.

Journeys: An American Story captures the quintessential idea of the American dream. The individuals in this book are only a part of the brilliant mosaic of people who came to this country and made it what it is today. Read about a Governor'’s grandfathers who dug ditches and cleaned sewers, laying the groundwork for a budding nation; how a future cabinet secretary crossed the ocean at age eleven on a cargo ship; about a young boy who fled violence in Budapest to become one of the most celebrated players of American football; the girl who escaped persecution to become the first Vietnamese American woman ever elected to the US congress; or the limo driver whose family took a seventy-year detour before finally arriving at his original destination, along with many other fascinating tales of extraordinary and everyday Americans.

In association with the New-York Historical Society, Andrew Tisch and Mary Skafidas have reached out to a variety of notable figures to contribute an enlightening and unique account of their family’s immigration story. All profits will be donated to the New-York Historical Society and the Statue of Liberty Ellis Island Foundation. Hardcover, 360 pages.

Featuring Essays by:
Alan Alda, Arlene Alda, Tony Bennett, Cory Booker, Michael Bloomberg, Barbara Boxer, Elaine Chao, Andrew Cuomo, Ray Halbritter, Jon Huntsman, Wes Moore, Stephanie Murphy, Deborah Norville, Dr. Oz, Nancy Pelosi, Gina Raimondo, Tim Scott, Jane Swift, Marlo Thomas, and many more!

About the authors:
Andrew Tisch is cochairman of the board and chairman of the executive committee of Loews Corporation. Mary Skafidas is the head of Investor Relations and Corporate Communications for Loews Corporation.

The two have been writing together for the last five years on a variety of topics including immigration, education as the great equalizer, the importance of bipartisanship and fiscal responsibility in government, and other topics of the times.

In the summer of 2016, Andrew was asked to speak at a swearing-in ceremony for one hundred new immigrants held in the New York Historical Society’s auditorium. In researching his own family’s journey to the United States, it hit him that almost everyone has a similar story to share. He and Mary decided to solicit stories from friends, associates, and others to remind us that, aside from the indigenous people of North America, we are all immigrants.