First published 2015
When Frieda Harms died in 1983, she left behind a Bible, photographs, letters, and notes that would puzzle her granddaughter Sandra for three decades. Born in Indian Territory in 1906, Frieda lost her husband at thirty during the Great Depression and raised three children alone. She moved across four states, working as a farmer, railroad cook, mill worker, and nurse to survive. Sandra had lived with Frieda through most of her childhood and sensed the hard feelings her grandmother carried, but the full weight of Frieda's struggles remained hidden. Through careful examination of these inherited materials, Sandra begins to piece together the demands her grandmother faced and the sacrifices she made. The process also illuminates Sandra's own family history, particularly the tension that existed between her mother and grandmother. Sandra must navigate between her desire to understand Frieda's story and her respect for what her grandmother chose to keep private.
Genres: american-fiction, historical-fiction, 20th-century, biography-memoir, family-drama
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: family-legacy, found-family, personal-journey
Setting: Indian Territory, United States
Period: 1906, 1983, Great Depression
176 pages · Hardcover · Texas Tech University Press