Guest Blogger: Diane McAdams Gladow, Author of A Journey of Voices: Stewards of the Land

A Journey of Voices: Stewards of the Land is the second book in Diane McAdams Gladow's nonfiction series about common, ordinary families who lived American history, and in some cases, helped to make it. This book tells the story of the Crume family by interweaving old letters, pictures, land documents, Bible records, and historical references with an account of the family's life and movement through seven generations. The story of this family is truly the story of American history from 1746 to 1946 and the story of American agricultural life and how it changed over two hundred years. Whether flatboating in the frigid winter weather down the Ohio River, building homes in the wilderness, fighting in the American Revolution, enduring the Civil War in a border state, dealing with Indians in Texas, surviving the Great Depression and the Dust Bowl, and experiencing the misery and uncertainty of two world wars, this family lived it all. Come see America's history through their eyes and voices as they struggle to build lives on the land in a bold new country.

Voices From History

by Diane McAdams Gladow

Old, yellowed, mouse-chewed letters can be fascinating reading as they open the door to the past, to a time which can usually only be visited in history books. Because most people do not particularly enjoy reading history textbooks, reading the handwritten letters of people who lived in another time period can be an eye-opening way to discover history - through the voices of the people who lived it. Because I inherited a collection of old family letters from my parents, I had the foundation for crafting a nonfiction book about a family’s history and its connection to the history of America. Actually, it has expanded into a series of books due to the amount of material available. Along with the letters, I included diary entries, Bible records, and memoir accounts. These “voice excerpts” were supported by public documents, historical background, geographical setting descriptions, pictures and maps. Pulling all these elements together, a family’s story is portrayed as they journey through seven generations and well over two hundred years of American history. This second book of the series is A Journey of Voices: Stewards of the Land.

The book is written using a narrator whose voice changes with age and who is as much a part of the story being told as the main participants. The participants interact with most of the major events in American history, whether it be building homes in the wilderness of Virginia in 1724, fighting in the American Revolution, flatboating down the Ohio River, connecting with the Abraham Lincoln family, enduring the Civil War in the border state of Kentucky, dealing with Indians in Texas, surviving the Great Depression, or experiencing two World Wars. They lived it all as farmers, connected to the soil, and their lives give us a unique look at our country’s history as we listen to their voices tell their own personal story.

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Born and raised on the desert prairies of New Mexico, Diane McAdams Gladow moved to east central Kansas after her marriage where she still resides with her family. She and her husband have three grown children and five grandchildren who consume a large portion of their time. In her spare time she enjoys reading, traveling and being an avid sports fan. Always interested in history, she completed a minor in it at the University of Texas at El Paso and her Bachelor’s Degree with a major in English. She followed that with a Master’s Degree in English at the University of New Mexico. She taught English Composition at Emporia State University, was the voice of the Grammar Hotline, and coordinated the Emporia Literacy Program for some twenty-five years. Her work with family history began after she inherited her parent’s collection of letters and papers. She has written two previous books, one a memoir of her husband’s family, Rich Heritage, and second the first book in her A Journey of Voices series subtitled Chasing the Frontier. Living in the heart of the Flint Hills on the doorstep to the Great Prairies where history has been happening on a regular basis for hundreds of years is a constant inspiration for her writing. She is currently working on the third book in her A Journey of Voices series.

Visit the author online at http://dianegladow.com/