"A black blacksmith from Alabama decides to make a name for himself through hard work, thrift and the relentless acquisition of land in Atlanta, Georgia. He has a loving and mutually supportive relationship with his wife Bira, five beautiful daughters and one son who is handicapped. The household is run according to a strict discipline and timetable, everyone to her or his task. As the daughters grow up, the blacksmith is most particular as to who they consort with and in which order they will eventually marry. Suitors must be educated and on their way to acquiring wealth in order to assure the blacksmith that his daughters will be appropriately provided for in the future. Then along comes the Piano Man who has been brought up principally in the North and in Europe, who is circumspect and sophisticated, and who is dazzling at the piano and in appearance. Furthermore, he is about to become a professor of music at the local university. This man is a catch worthy of one of the blacksmith's daughters - of Minnelsa, the eldest - or so the blacksmith decides. Then June, the rebellious youngest daughter has already determined otherwise. She has seen the Piano Man playing in the dive in the forest and this man is for her. To clinch the deal, the blacksmith tells the Piano Man that if he marries Minnelsa, he will be given a house and 50 acres of land as a dowry. For the previously itinerant Piano Man, this represents a grand settling down indeed. However, the strikingly attractive and musical June has other ideas."--Publisher's website.

This book is a moving drama that explores the struggles and triumphs of a young girl growing up in a small town in the American Midwest. It is a touching tale of love, family, and the power of the human spirit. The characters are vivid and fully realized, and the writing is top-notch. This is a must-read for anyone who loves a good story. This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work is in the "public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.

An introduction to an African world that will haunt and surprise; an exquisite story told from a point of view that is rarely heard. This is a tale of two women separated by four hundred years but linked by history. Maxine a modern American woman who is half white and half African comes across a set of diaries written by a slave in the 16th century in her quest to connect with her Nigerian father. Then there is Onaedo a young woman from that era who found herself in the middle of events that were set in motion in a country far away from her small town in Igboland in West Africa. This is a coming of age novel set in a terrifying age - the age of Portuguese discovery.

An introduction to an African world that will haunt and surprise and an exquisite story told from a point of view that is rarely heard. This is a tale of two women separated by four hundred years but linked by history. Maxine a modern American woman who is half white and half African comes across a set of diaries written by a slave in the 16th century in her quest to connect with her Nigerian father. Then there is Onaedo a young woman from that era who found herself in the middle of events that were set in motion in a country far away from her small town in Igboland in West Africa. This is a coming of age novel set in a terrifying age - the age of Portuguese discovery.