Journey Beyond the Narrows explores the history of an American family whose origin is traced to eleven immigrants who arrived in America in the mid-to-late nineteenth century. These individuals came through the Narrows into upper New York Harbor to begin their American journey. They were escaping famine in Ireland, poverty, political oppression, or lack of opportunity-or all three combined in Finland, Germany, and Scotland. Journey Beyond the Narrows does not provide just names and facts about these individuals but puts their lives in the context of the times in which they lived in their home countries and in America. It is the story of how two of their descendants reared six children in the Bronx, New York.

This book is a translation of a family history book published in Norway in 1995 by Jostein Austrheim, called "Utsira, Gard og slekt." It is a genealogy and record of settlement of the island of Utsira, the outermost island off the west coast of Norway, from the earliest written records in 1521 to the present day (1995). Aside from a detailed genealogy of the families who lived there, it contains many fascinating old photos, newspaper clippings and anecdotes from the past.