Her Life as She Knew It

Book excerpt: Karen Schwind brings us Caroline McKee, a girl on the cusp of womanhood who is determined to right the wrongs former friends did to her. She gets her chance when Billy Taylor, a veteran of the Great War, returns to Greensboro and opens a newspaper in the spring of 1919. Together they dig into the lives of townspeople until Caroline discovers a secret that lays bare the sorrow and shame of people she "s known all her life. Publishing a front-page story of betrayal and tragedy, Caroline learns a lesson that only her devout Christian father could teach--about love, loyalty and letting go. Schwind has crafted Sa memorable setting that feels historically authentic and Sportrays Caroline McKee's longing for an idealized childhood . . . in tender, nostalgic language that captures the reader "s imagination until the last unexpected turn of this amazing story."Her Life as She Knew It is a beautiful and heartfelt Southern story about the ways in which the past we hide from ourselves emerges no matter what we do to stop it. Debut novelist Karen Schwind takes us deep into the thoughts and feelings of a young woman in 1919 who deals with betrayal on several fronts. Crafting a memorable setting that feels historically authentic, Schwind portrays Caroline McKee's longing for an idealized childhood, as well as her response to betrayal, in tender, nostalgic ways. Schwind knows this world/this memorable time in America's history, she understands why we need to keep secrets from ourselves, and she shares it all in her lyrical language."-Julie L. Cannon, author of Truelove & Homegrown Tomatoes