campaigns : Campaign Archive

March 13, 2008

A Native American Elder; destiny and a dog; faith and hope

A funny thing happened on our way to reading our next book for The Three Tomatoes Book Club. Two authors reached out to us, one a New York Times best seller, and one with a first book, both of whom had written stories that intrigued us. And although both are very different, they share a theme of hope and faith, and are written by two very interesting tomatoes. We found ourselves reading way into the night, and after we had finished Strong Medicine Speaks: A Native American Elder Has Her Say, by Amy Hill Hearth, author of the best seller, Having Our Say, The Delany Sisters first 100 years; and then She Came From Heaven, a debut novel by Rosanne Pellicane, we knew we had to know more about the authors too. Here are their stories. (And by the way, we’re now playing catchup to finish The Knitting Club, our next The Three Tomatoes Book Club choice. So many books, too little time.)

Follow your heart

Amy Hill Hearth has been a writer her entire life, and went into journalism right after college. In 1991, as an exclusive freelance writer for the New York Times, Amy wrote an article about two African American sisters from Mt. Vernon, New York. Both were over 100 years old, the daughters of a man born into slavery, who had amazing stories to tell, if only they were asked. So many stories in fact that Amy knew she had to write their oral history, and based on her fascinating article, she found a publisher who was interested too. But at the same time, the New York Times offered her a full staff position, an opportunity most journalists only dream about. She found herself at a cross road, but knew exactly which path she had to take. So against the advice of several journalists, “mostly men”, who questioned her sanity in giving up this opportunity to write a book about “two old black women that no one will ever read”, she turned down the New York Times offer to write the Delany sisters’ stories. And the book that “no one will ever read”, Having Our Say, climbed to the New York Times bestseller list and stayed there for 105 weeks. It subsequently became a Tony Award-nominated Broadway show and an award-winning film.

A Native American Tribe, alive and well, and living in New Jersey

Shortly before the unexpected, skyrocket success of the Delany sisters stories, Amy found out that one of her ancestors was a Lenni-Lanape Indian, a tribe that is thought to be the first humans on the East Coast of America. They were also the first tribe to sign a treaty with the U.S. government and are infamous for selling Manhattan to the Dutch. But her quest to learn more about her ancestry took a back seat to the Delany phenomenon, until about two years ago, when she decided to learn more about her roots. Her quest led her to an enclave in southern New Jersey, where a small number of Lanape Indians have quietly held onto their ancestral lands , and the start of a friendship with “Strong Medicine" the Indian name of Marion Gould, a tribal elder. Marion who was born in 1922, still lives on the land of her ancestors, and Strong Medicine Speaks is her personal story, told in her words and beautifully penned by Amy, along with a history of the tribe and enlightening commentary from Amy along the way.

The Three Tomatoes were immediately intrigued to learn more about the Native American experience from an insider’s perspective. You see, for several years we mentored a young Navajo girl who lives on a reservation in Chinle, Arizona. We corresponded all through her high school days. Some of her letters were typical of any teenage girl, and others like, the suicide of an older brother, (not uncommon in youths on reservations) broke our heart. And when we proudly attended her high school graduation in Chinle, we found ourselves face to face with the poverty and many other issues that exist on reservations today. This was the beginning of our awakening to the many wrongs inflicted on these true Americas, and also the beginning of our appreciation for the “Indian Way.” We still correspond to this day with our Navajo "child" who is now a grown woman with a child of her own, and still living on the reservation. So it was indeed an amazing story to hear how Strong Medicine's small group of Lenni-Lenape Indians, managed to avoid relocation to reservations and keep their land.

As Marion’s story unfolds in Strong Medicine Speaks, we learn about years of hiding and staying very quite about who they were. Hiding from the KKK (yes, in New Jersey in the 1940’s); and hiding from the many prejudices that came their way. An illuminating story is told of her husband and his brother enlisting for WWII. Her husband, who was light skinned, was sent into the “white army”, while his darker skinned brother was send to the “Negro Army”. And we hear stories of her love for the earth, nature, and the Indian way of listening and living. There are many other stories that will touch your heart, bring tears to your eyes, but mostly will lift your spirits as you fall in love with this remarkable woman.

Listening to our elders

Amy Hill Hearth may well be the only writer penning the oral histories of older women in our society; most likely because no one is else is asking to hear their stories, which as Amy has learned, are transformative. Whenever she speaks and lectures, she encourages women to listen to the stories of their elders. While the Delany sisters are now gone, Amy still stays in touch with their various family members. And her friendship and bond with Strong Medicine she says, has changed her life. She has learned the Indian “way”. She has slowed down and reprioritized her life. She has learned to be still and listen, and to find peace in the gifts of Mother Earth. And she thanks the Creator for leading her to Strong Medicine. Oh, and 50% of the royalties of Strong Medicine Speaks will go to benefit the Nanticoke Lenni-Lenape Indians to make sure they keep their history, culture and traditions alive.

Destiny and a Dog named Whimsey

The publication of Rosanne Pellicane’s debut novel is a “little engine that could” story. Rosanne, a successful interior designer, and writer of numerous articles on design, antiques and historical preservation, spent 10 years, on and off, working on her book She Came from Heaven. Writing this story based on actual events in her life, was often a painful process. She finally finished the book, hated it, then rewrote parts of it, and submitted it to major publishers. They all liked the book, but ultimately rejected it (not mass appeal enough, they said).

Then she happened to meet writer and editor, Ginny DeMille (ex-wife of best selling author Nelson DeMille and editor of many of his books). Ginny loved the book, and worked with Rosanne to edit it and finally Rosanne had a book she really liked. So she decided to bite the bullet and go the self-publishing route, just for her own self-satisfaction. The book was posted at Amazon at the end of last year, and an amazing thing happened. With virtually no promotion, but lots of great word of mouth, She Came from Heaven started to sell on Amazon, and for several weeks now it has been listed as one of the “100 Hot New Releases” in the inspiration division. No small feat.

A mutual friend suggested that we read the book. And when we saw the cover with the beautiful black lab, we couldn’t resist, thinking we were about to read a “cute” dog story. She Came from Heaven is anything but, although Whimsey the lab, is a crucial character throughout this page turning story of a young couple who seem to have it all. But as the story progresses, Jim, the good looking and charming husband, becomes an increasing mystery to his wife. And when the eerie foreshawdowing of tragedy becomes a reality, some of the mystery surrounding Jim comes to light, along with harsh realities. Whimsey’s ever watchful and comforting presence, and a new found faith, guide the wife through her terrible grief, sorrow, and guilt and ultimately lead her to hope and a belief in possibilities again. As Rosanne said to us when we talked to her after having read her wonderful book, “even when you don’t know it, God has you in his hands.”

Now retired from her interior design business, Rosanne is working on her second book. But the writing success she is most proud of, is the selection of her poem “If They Could Speak”, by the New York City Fire Museum for their permanent 9/11 exhibit. Whimsey is now gone too, but Blue, another beautiful black lab, has now found a place in her heart too.

So here’s to strong women, listening to our elders, faith and hope, and to beautiful dogs everywhere.

The Three Tomatoes