It is the early 1960’s. The Campbell family moves from their Philadelphia row home to a larger house in a suburb where they believe they will have a better life. For a while, they do. The parents, devoted grandmother and five children start each day with a song. Bonded by their happiness, they protect the one child who suffers from an undiagnosed neurological condition from abuse and negativity. The family’s joy is their strength.
Unfortunately, it is also the source of their demise.
The Campbells’ cheerfulness entices a jealous neighbor — someone whom they help in his time of need — to inflict irrevocable harm upon them. Each of the family members is struck hard by this strategy none of them can fathom. The family’s future is shattered. In an instant, the happiness and closeness are gone forever.
Most of the Campbells react in way that is uncharacteristic. One child does not. She realizes that family members need attention and, unwittingly, takes on the task of caring for them. The irony is, this child is the one who believes she has neither the perseverance nor the resilience to bear such a weight. The question is, will she, can she, in her own stumbling way, bring the family home once again.
Author Interview
What are the main themes of your book?
The main theme is resilience in the face of daunting odds. The story centers on a close-knit family who experience an unspeakable tragedy. The middle child, the one with the least confidence, is the one who must struggle alone to mend the closeness that was shattered.
Who or what inspired your story?
My childhood inspired me to write. My grandmother was an extraordinary person who was widowed in 1932, without resources for providing for her two children. Somehow, she gave my mother both a bachelor’s and master’s degree and sent my uncle for a degree in engineering. She lived with us and I will always remember her strength and optimism.
What do you like best about your primary characters?
The way they protect the child with a neurological disorder that was not yet diagnosed in the early 1960s.
What are their worst peculiarities?
Bud is a prankster; Betsy is snotty; Annie lacks confidence and isn’t too bright; and Carolyn Rose (Crosey) tries to be naughty because she doesn’t mind the consequences and, in her view, it’s fun to pester Betsy.
How does your main character evolve?
Annie is the narrator. She’s a loveable child but has no faith in herself whatsoever. By the middle of the book, she is starting to figure out that she does have strength. In the end, she is has developed her own confidence.
What’s the principal message you want to send to your audience?
There’s no intended message. At least I didn’t write it with something I wanted the reader to discover. I wanted people to have a good read.
What’s the nicest thing anyone has said about your book?
Angella Graff, an accomplished author herself, said that my book had literary value and compared it to Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women. Yes, I was surprised, too. Her review can be found at Indie Reviews as well as Goodreads.
Where can we purchase it?
About the Author
I’ve always enjoyed writing, fiction, nonfiction, some poetry, and even some plays. Once I wrote a parody of Edgar Allen Poe’s poem The Raven, which bemoaned having to do homework. My teacher loved it and praised my imagination. My parents didn’t. They thought I wasn’t paying attention in class. Fortunately, that experience didn’t stop me from putting my thoughts on paper.
I’ve had a career and am finally at a point where I can write full-time and relish my days creating a world of my own. My characters, the towns, the events become real to me.
My friends tell me that, although I write about serious events, my sense of humor and love of ironic comedy is always apparent. That’s providential, as if saved by my lack of recognition of my own motives.
I’m on such a low budget that I had to use the only decent photograph I had, taken years ago. Please forgive me. I feel the same inside even though my face now has more “character” than I ever wanted.
I currently live in a suburb of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania USA and love classical music, classic cars from the 1950s and early 1960s and classic towns of that by-gone era.
Social Media Links
To learn more about Julia visit her personal website and Facebook page.
