Dear readers,

What a thrill it was to learn that LILLI DE JONG, my debut novel and the labor of a decade of my life, is a semifinalist for the Choice Award in Historical Fiction. Won't you please give your vote to this novel, which highlights the power of a mother's love and the bonds between mothers and infants? It's not every day that a novel gives voice to an unwed mother and shows the hard, vital work of all mothers.

Thank you so much for loving books and taking care of their authors. With warm regards, Janet Benton