An Absence So Great

This sequel to Jane Kirkpatrick's A Flickering Light picks up where the first left off. Jessie Gaebele has moved to Milwaukee to become a photography studio assistant to the Widow Johnson. She's 18 with three years of experience behind her and a love of photography deep within her. Her goals are to earn money to send back to her family for their household support (a common occurrence in the early 1900's), save enough money to someday own her own studio, learn as much as she can about the business, and leave behind the adoration of her former boss and mentor, Fred Bauer, a married man with a family.

In An Absence So Great, Jessie struggles as she recognizes an inner voice often telling her "Don't do it" and just as often ignored, to her detriment, while she calculates different possibilities in her mind; those things she can do to generate additional income as she works to gain a respected foothold in what is considered a man's occupation. Often, verses of Scripture which she memorized as a child come back to direct and comfort her. Many of the mistakes she makes come from her desire to be in control and shape her life.

It's kind of a melancholy novel and sometimes I wanted the characters to make different choices. However, An Absence So Great and A Flickering Light are based on the author's own grandmother's life. She gleaned details from interviews, family histories and tales handed down, plus factual research supported by news of the day. Kirkpatrick takes family history and uses her imagination to flesh out what might have been.

Paperback, from WaterBrook Press, 2010.
I have two copies to give away.