5 Things a Snow Day Shows Me
How Do You Find the Courage to Choose?

Before the labor reforms that the twentieth century brought, workers had virtually no protection under the law. Employers did not need legal grounds for terminating employment, and they could demand whatever they wanted from workers. If the workers didn’t like it, employers could simply hire someone else. Working in domestic service actually offered more security […]
Why Do People Do This?
Installment 11: The Corner Trumpet
Twenty-one December 1942 Charlie left again as quickly as he had come. The days marched toward Christmas, another Christmas without Charlie. Mama was nervous, Daddy listened to the radio, the girls fussed about decorating the house. I heard Mama and Daddy talking early one morning, the way they did. Mama didn’t feel much like […]
Installment 10 The Corner Trumpet
Nineteen August 1942 Slowly and quietly, Charlie was gathering his few things and getting ready to leave us. He had come home with only a duffel bag and his uniform, and he would probably leave with just the same stuff. Mama had washed and starched his sailor uniform and it hung, looking bright and […]
Is Archie Shepard an Anarchist?

One of Charlotte’s dilemmas in The Dilemma of Charlotte Farrow is what to do about Archie Shepard. Is he really somebody she can trust with her deepest secrets? Mr. Penard, the stuffy butler in the Banning household, also faces a dilemma about what to do with Archie. How can he be sure Archie is not […]
Mama Says: Special Presentation
Installment 9: The Corner Trumpet
Seventeen August 1942 Charlie’s time at home was almost up. In less than a week he’d be gone, and we didn’t know when we would see him again. Nobody seemed to talk about it much, but I saw Mama sitting on the porch a lot, praying, with her Bible open in her lap. I suppose […]
The Model Modern Kitchen

Is your kitchen one of those compact, efficient spaces where you can stand in one place and reach everything? Or does it sprawl and attract guests and family for long hang-out sessions? While writing the Avenue of Dreams series, I spent a lot of time imagining what the kitchen in the Banning household had to […]