Jacket flap book blurb / Wheels to Liberty plot: When Carol secretly learns to drive against her husband’s wishes to help her disabled daughter, she sets in motion dire circumstances that tests both her and her daughter’s courage and perseverance. Handsome Sam, a news reporter covering WWII and the polio epidemic wants to help but involving him will put all of them at risk of Joe’s wrath, knowing he will hunt them down. 

Readers will love this storytelling while their curiosity will be satisfied knowing more about the history of the polio virus as it draws parallels to today’s issues, with intimate partner violence still an issue globally. Fears and cheers are in order when readers watch Ellie learn to walk again and gain employment without discrimination. Tears of frustration then joy come about when readers cheer for Carol to beat the odds and get out of the way of her controlling husband. Romance lovers will fall for Sam for his gentleman qualities people will recognize in a healthy relationship. These two young women are their own heroes as they discover their unique strengths and learn to set each other free. 

Wheels to Liberty is an inspiring story with a cause for advocacy on several fronts: women’s global rights to drive, the necessity to protect women from domestic violence, and the continued need to remove barriers preventing persons living with a disability to fully take part in society. Consider my novel a mash up between Small Steps: The Year I Got Polio, (Albert Whitman & Co., 2006) meets the romantic longings in Collen Hoover’s It Ends With Us, (Atria Books, 2016). I finished writing the novel during Fall 2020, and plan to release it in 2022 if not sooner.

My grandmother inspired me to write this book after I listened to her stories of helping my mother during her struggle with polio, all while my grandfather caused their household to constantly “walk on eggshells.” The cliché comes from having to think again before one says or does anything that will invoke rage or a beating. The novel is fiction, imagining the hardship and longing knowing my grandmother kept her sparkle and joy for her later years in life.

As a child, I saw my mother face discrimination while we grocery shopped, or walked into a bank, and saw her struggle to access her church when there was no ramp. These daily struggles made me realize that while society has improved access over the years for the disabled, there remains underlying whispers behind our backs, and a reluctance by decision-makers to put in that ramp, that wider door, that elevator. I also realized that women in my community may need help and feel ashamed to ask for assistance. If you ask, “Are you okay?”, you might get an answer that allows you to share the resources listed in the back of my novel for a domestic abuse hotline, local or regional shelter or offer a safe space to someone in need.

I hope that Wheels to Liberty empowers people to recognize signs that a person is struggling and be the step forward so everyone can thrive. Book club guides are forthcoming once it is in print.