The day is finally here! It’s exciting for me to announce that Nellie, Book Two of the Apron Strings Series, has been officially released and is available for purchase in digital and paperback formats. I was so happy to get a copy to hold in my hands after nearly two years of preparing for this day. It’s the second in a special collection of books that will be complete and on my shelves by the end of the year. I have had the fun privilege of teaming up with ten other authors for this project. The Apron Strings Series is a string of heartfelt inspirational stories featuring a single cookbook that changes hands to different women from decade to decade, from 1920 to 2020. A new title will released by a different author each month of this year.
My own book, Kristen, is book nine (2000) and will be released in September ‘24. I’m looking forward to telling you more as we get closer, but now is the time to introduce you to Nellie and author Amy Walsh.
First, here’s the back cover copy to tell you what Polly is all about:
Finances are tight for the O’Dwyer family who live on a mountain outside of Scranton, Pennsylvania in 1931. Life gets even harder when their beloved Dadaí must cease work as a coal miner to become a patient at the West Mountain Sanitarium.
Nellie is her preferred name, but family and friends have heard Mam shout “Fenella Aileen O’Dwyer!” all too often with the countless predicaments she got herself into throughout childhood. So, it’s not altogether surprising when Nellie impulsively accepts a job as an assistant cook at the Clarinda House in a case of mistaken identity -- though she’s the last person her family would ask to prepare a meal.
Fortunately, along with determination, a talent for acting, and the gift of blarney, Nellie has Mrs. Canfield’s Cookery Book, a treasure she discovered at a Red Cross drought relief sale. As her reluctant admiration for her employer grows, Nellie wishes she could be the truthful woman of faith that Mr. Mason Peale esteems. If she confesses all, will she lose her job along with the friendships she’s formed at Clarinda House?
Here’s my review:
Nellie is a heartwarming story that will take you to a time in history, the 1930s, that was full of challenges and change. I really loved the character of Nellie and enjoyed seeing how she grew as a person from beginning to end.
Get to know the author, Amy Walsh:
Tell us what you enjoy most about writing historical romantic fiction.
I love the research component very much, especially when I can visit actual places that are settings in my stories. I also enjoy digging through files at local historical societies, and I am quite addicted to perusing old newspapers. I even have a blast looking up specific words and phrases to make certain they were actually used in the time period I’m writing about. As I was researching Nellie, I was surprised at the amount of slang that was used during that time. Coming out of the 1920s, there was almost an obsession with youth – and wanting to act young. Language became surprisingly informal during those years. As I read newspaper serials and plays written in 1931 to get into Nellie’s mindset, I realized I couldn’t even incorporate the slang phrases because many are either obsolete or have taken on sexual connotations since their origin in the 1920s.
What are some books or authors that you would recommend to our readers?
Oh my goodness! It’s very hard for me to pick favorites as far as authors or books. I love a variety of genres, tropes, and voices. Often my favorite book is whatever book I’m reading at the time. However, one recent read made me greatly appreciate the freedom I have as an American – and the fact that as a woman I am largely in control of my own destiny, God-willing of course. Anne Perrault’s novel If I Dream, is about a woman who was taken as a child-bride to a much older, cruel man who already had two wives. I don’t want to give too much away, but I will say that the book had me at the edge of my seat.
Is there anything you would like people to take away from your book?
One lesson I hope women will take away from Nellie is to stop comparing oneself to others. Nellie is so self-conscious about being underweight – she describes herself as “Not womanly at all.” Her twin sister is much calmer than Nellie, and Nellie envies Joanna’s extra pounds, sewing skills, and cooking abilities. One truth that comes out is that God created a wide assortment of personalities for a reason and that differences bring purpose to relationships. We need each other to fill in the missing gaps. Each of us has something to offer the world.
Do you have any odd (writing) habits?
Odd writing habits? Well, I should explain that I’m a 5th-grade teacher in a public school in Pennsylvania. Since I have the summers off, I do most of my writing then. Two summers ago, I wrote two books while sitting/lying on a trampoline under some giant spruce trees. (Voices in the Sanitorium and A Dark Lustre) I had to get the books done, but I felt like I was wasting the summer away if I sat indoors.
I wrote a good portion of Nellie while sitting on the beach during our family vacation last summer. I got so wrapped up in writing that I didn’t move for hours. Even though I was out of the sun, under a Shibumi Shade, my legs ended up getting a painful dark-red sandblast rash, and I didn’t even realize it until hours later.
I am pretty excited because we recently finished putting a large front porch onto our house, and this will be the first summer that I can set up a desk area where I can comfortably write outdoors.
What is your favorite line from your book?
One of my favorite lines from Nellie is proof from creation that God loves diversity. Nellie has had one upset after another, including some jams she got herself into, by this point in the novel. She’s basically sick of herself. She is lying beside her little brother at the edge of a grove of trees as he takes a Sunday afternoon nap. Her mind is whirling with regrets and worries when she notices something in nature that I think could be a message from God to us all.
She rolled onto her back again and rested her hands under her head. Why had God decided to create poplars just as He had? With leaves that bristled and danced in the faintest wind even when other trees stood solemn and immovable. Was there a message from the Creator in these heart-shaped leaves with silver underbellies? In how from a distance these trees looked like a swarm of joyful fairies celebrating sunlight?
Nellie, Apron Strings Book Two Order Link
Thank you, Amy! It was a pleasure to chat!
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May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you: wherever he may send you; may he guide you through the wilderness: protect you through the storm; may he bring you home rejoicing: at the wonders he has shown you: may he bring you home rejoicing: once again into our doors.