It's a Long Way from Penny Apples

"The story of a Dubliner reflecting with stunning honesty on his city and his past. With characters that leap off the page, it combines blunt realism with the everyday humor of Northside Dublin life. An incredible book that will soon rank as a bestseller."—Bertie Ahern, Prime Minister of Ireland

"Bill Cullen has taken the compelling story of his difficult times in the slums of Dublin and used it to help better the lives of the youth in Ireland. What a great way to give something back to the community that shaped his life."—Arnold Palmer

"An exhilarating example of what one can achieve with determination and good humor. Cuchulainn and Brian Boru would be proud of this latter-day hero."—Morgan Llywelyn

"Penny Apples is a book I just couldn't put down. Finally we get to read a story of inspiration to counterbalance the exquisite pain in Angela's Ashes. I know how bleak life must have been in Dublin in those days, but I cheered the courage and spirit that flowed from these recollections."—Dr. Denis Waitley, author of Being the Best

"Penny Apples is a saga of wonderful characters who laugh through tough times with the wit and wisdom that Dubliners are known for. An inspiring story that brings tears of joy and will push you to get up and make your own dreams come true."—Padraig Harrington, Ryder Cup golfer

"A fascinating read, an absorbing and compelling human story. I felt I was part of the Cullen family as they struggled in the inner city slums of Dublin, yet one is left with an abiding sense of the human spirit's ability to survive and to triumph. As Molly Darcy said, 'Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, so make the most of today.' This book is an inspiration."—Páidí Ó Sé, All Ireland Footballer, Ventry, County Kerry

"Penny Apples is a great story of my Dublin in the Rare Ould Times. While Bill Cullen enjoys great success, he has never forgotten his roots. His enthusiastic determination was shaped by the humour, the compassion and the common sense of the tenement community where he was born and reared. Penny Apples is a wonderful tapestry of Irish people and events that will touch your heart and make your spirit sing."—Pete St. John, composer of Dublin in the Rare Ould Times and The Fields of Athenry

"Growing up poor—but happy and clever—in postwar Dublin, from a self-made business success. There were many in late 1940s Ireland like the Cullens, who were working dirt-poor. But the extended family was also compassionate and supportive: the men were bricks, some with a better sense of humor than others, and the women bred self-respect into the children. 'You have a great heart and you must always do what's right,' young Liam (a nickname to distinguish him from his father) heard more than once, along with 'You'll never meet a man better than yourself. Do yar best in everything.' Cullen's business sense became canny through working at his mother's street stall, which provided 'a thorough grounding in economics and marketing. A business course on the streets it was.' The author tells his story with considerable warmth and doesn't spare the low points, moments of humiliation and degradation. (After surprising a red-faced friend and a priest buttoning his trousers, 'he never [again] left an altar boy with a priest or a curate in the privacy of the sacristy.') This is a very intimate portrait . . . and the author takes particular care to provide evidence that the dictums his family abided by formed a steady source of good fortune in his life. 'Always be willing to do any man a good turn, son,' his grandmother would note, followed by the comforting, 'Never forget your roots, son. They'll always be there for ya,' the last coming after the women in the street stalls made a collection to help him meet his payroll after the banks turned him down. A few breaks, plenty of hard work, a sense of fun and fair play, and this poor boy made financial good . . . [A] heartfelt tribute to all those who made sure that economic hardship didn't result in emotional poverty for a beloved child."—Kirkus Reviews

0"Cullen's memoir attempts to do for Dublin what Angela's Ashes did for Limerick. Born in the slums in 1942, one of 12 children, Cullen lived a life shaped by hard work, the Catholic Church and family. But unlike McCourt's unrelentingly sad account, Cullen's work trumpets the inner strength and humanity of Irish tenement dwellers. The Cullens may have been poor, but they were resilient. Young Liam, as he was called, worked the market stalls, selling everything from fish to newspapers. En route, he acquired an early and invaluable business education. His parents are a study in true grit, often toiling 15-hour days, while his grandmother instills in Liam a fierce pride in all things Irish, insisting, 'Never forget your roots.' And he never does. Indeed, he parlays a gift for math into a scholarship, managing to attend school and work every day. By the time he's a teen, he's putting in 75 hours a week at a Ford dealership. And it's there, aided by luck and street smarts, that he strikes it rich. The poor boy turns millionaire, moving from Ford franchise owner to CEO of Glencullen Motor Group . . . Cullen tells this rousing, heartfelt story with flair, honestly recounting the verbal and sexual brutality of some priests, the generosity of his community and his drive to succeed."—Publishers Weekly