Give: a novel

by Erica C. Witsell

very unusual family saga written with unusual intelligence and compassion. Erica Witsell has a gift for depicting complex relationships.  -Phyllis Rose, author of Parallel Lives, The Year of Reading Proust, and The Shelf.

Every summer, Jessie and Emma leave their suburban home in the Central Valley and fly north to Baymont. Nestled among Mendocino's golden hills, with ponies to love and endless acres to explore, Baymont should be a child's paradise. But Baymont belongs to Laurel, the girls' birth mother, whose heedless parenting and tainted judgement cast a long shadow over the sisters' summers---and their lives.

Caught in a web of allegiances, the girls learn again and again that every loyalty has its price, and that even forgiveness can take unexpected turns.

Luminous and poignant. Give is the story of one family's troubled quest to redeem the mistakes of the past and a stirring testament to the bonds of sisterhood.

"This is a gripping narrative about family, identity, and loyalty . . . Beautifully written! -Kate Rademacher, author of Following the Red Bird

"At times subtle and at times cutting to the quick Give digs deep into the heart and soul of a family as connected as it is torn apart. Give pulls no punches, delivering an honest look into the lengths we will go for family.  -Amy Willoughby-Burle, author of The Lemonade Year

430 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 25, 2023

About the author

Born in Maine but raised in Florida, Erica Witsell lived in Connecticut, California, Ecuador, and Italy before settling in the mountains of western North Carolina sixteen years ago. A graduate of Wesleyan University and University of California, Berkeley, she taught high school for over ten years and now teaches English as a new language in Asheville. She enjoys languages, bicycling, camping, and dance.