Professor Mike Rose, Ph.D.

"​In this beautiful, keenly observed, and evocative book, Balgley takes us on a journey to find her origins, and as with all good literary journeys, this one is rich in history, in characters large and small, in revelation and heartache. Balgley’s writing is thick with everyday life, reclaimed and honored. And Balgley succeeds on another front: reading her quest stirs the desire to explore our own history, excavating the events that we know shaped us and, possibly, events we have yet to uncover."