Clinging to Hope

"This is exactly the kind of historical fiction I treasure, grounded in well-researched fact, rich in character, and told with heart. Clinging to Hope is more than a survival story, it is a testament to the strength of family ties, the endurance of friendship, and the power of hope in the face of devastation." - Reedsy Discovery Texas Gulf Coast, 60 miles north of Galveston, September 8, 1900. The Ward family is dancing and mud-jumping in much-needed late summer rain. Without warning, the storm turns violent as winds force the family indoors. When shingles and siding are ripped from their home and breaking glass delivers terror, Gilbert and Willie Ann must scramble and improvise to save their children and livestock. The family survives the historic great hurricane of the century with only the clothes on their backs and a few jars of fruits and vegetables that are now buried in mud. Willie Ann realizes that survival is not enough if they let fear win. She must teach her children ways to discover hope, but how? She is unaware that this is the beginning of many dark-cloud life events that will plague their future for the next nine years and create an abundance of fear. Based upon oral family history of actual events, Clinging to Hope is a rich, sweeping debut novel that journeys through escalating traumatic hardships while it embraces thin silver beams of hope. It is a testament of the tenacity of one woman whose courage, faith, and perseverance chart a way of life for her coming of age children.