"Hello, my name is Grace, as in Amazing." With those words and a big smile that brought a sparkle to her deep brown (Indian?) eyes, my mother would have made another friend.
Although this book has been written particularly for the descendants of Grace Diamond and contains the Diamond family tree, others may be interested in learning the way of life for a poor Kentucky girl born in 1929. Her trials and triumphs have been an inspiration to many.
Excerpt
IT WAS FREEZING cold outside. The night was black and three children, Howard, Effa, and Ray were snuggled together under the homemade quilts trying to keep warm. Howard, the oldest, tried to reassure the two younger ones that everything was going to be fine. But was it?
They could hear the mumbling of soft voices in the next room. Occasionally they would also hear their mother cry out in pain. They all knew that a baby would be added to their family that very night.
Howard could remember when the last baby had been born three years earlier, in 1926. John Robert, a baby boy had been still-born. He never cried, never even took a breath, and was later buried in a small grave in the Jobe Family Cemetery.
Would the children hear a baby’s cry tonight or would they only hear silence and the soft sobbing of their heart-broken mother?
This book is unusual in that it tells of the life and times of Grace, the lead character, in an entertaining manner with great imagination. Having been born and raised in a rural sitting myself, I found it very easy to imagine myself in the same situations. The stories brought back memories of the days before our home had running water and reminded me of my mother’s joy the day Dad brought home her first wringer washing machine. Rather than a dry recital of dates and facts, you actually find yourself living the life. Bravo, BRAVO!
Jack Kelly was a child performer, son of New York model, Nan Kelly, brother of actress, Nancy Kelly, brother-in-law of actor Edmond O'Brien and cinematographer Fred Jackman, Jr. On TV, from 1957 until 1962, he was James Garner's brother on the show,
