The year is 1921. In Evansville, Indiana, a teenage girl from England keeps a diary of her new life in America. Suda Mae Jackson is a “proper girl from Hucknall” and life in a new land is often humorous, occasionally somber, and never boring. Suda meets a young man, Tommy O’Donnell, and enjoys a normal teenage life in the “Roaring Twenties.” But trouble brews. One day Suda finds herself in a conflict with the powerful leader of the local Ku Klux Klan. The conflict swells until Tommy, while trying to protect Suda, is accused of murder.
Fast forward to 2002. Joe Rocker, captain of his high school football team, is popular with classmates and teachers. His future is bright and Joe is content with life. But life is about to change. One day, while working with his father on an old house, Joe stumbles upon a hidden diary. It is the diary of a young English girl and her story captivates Joe. Some mysterious missing pages leave Joe with a mystery he must solve.
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“By interweaving a present-day high school senior’s adventures with a well-researched account of an immigrant girl’s experiences with the 1920s KKK in Evansville, Indiana, this suspenseful and fast-paced novel will intrigue young adult and mature audiences alike.”
– Dr. Susanna Hoeness-Krupsaw, Professor of English, University of Southern Indiana.
#1 by Savannah Hulin on November 21, 2009 - 3:32 am
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My step-daughter read it. She loved it. Its wonderful how students were incorporated into the making of it – its very relatable for the adolescent life, but at the same time its plot draws an older crowd’s interest.
#2 by Sarah Hirsch Smith on January 12, 2010 - 9:21 am
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I remember my Dad telling me stories about the Klan and how it was even active in nearby Poseyville. My Grandfather owned the local store and knew many of the Klan members by the shoes he had sold to them!!