What the Red Oak Saw

Norton, Janis

Five generations forge a path from famine-fueled immigration to prosperity in America. In the 19th Century the Clearys flee Ireland to scratch out survival in rural Virginia, relying on farming, hard work and a connection to the spiritual to move the family forward. With each generation there are new obstacles to face and overcome including less than hospitable land, illness, injury, and threats to family bonds. With a timeline of 1849 to 1974 the family faces danger as the story winds through the Civil War, World War II, and finally Vietnam, each epoch leaving its mark. A fresh crisis hits in the 1930’s when the state seizes mountain land to make way for the Shenandoah National Park. The family’s way of life is destroyed, how will they adapt? And what about the distinctive red oak gracing the property, the burled giant that has been a spiritual presence watching over the family for decades? How does nature find a way when modern life comes calling?

377 pages, Historical Fiction, Moonshine Cove Publishing, LLC, 2025.