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ALONG THE RED DIRT ROAD: The uplifting historical novel rooted in the American Civil War/Great Depression era about secrecy, scandal, friendship, & truth. Paperback – 20 April 2020
Jane Yearout (Author) Find all the books, read about the author, and more. See search results for this author |
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The year - 1933.
The Great Depression is wreaking havoc on the great plains, and an ambitious new president takes office.
Under such circumstances, Dr. Carter Young, Ellen Young, and their twelve year old daughter Annie abandon the Oklahoma Dust Bowl for a fresh start in the Shenandoah Valley. Their new community harbors old wounds from the Civil War and strange undercurrents that defy reason or virtue. Annie Young is befriended by a mysterious boy soldier from the Appalachians of North Carolina and a grand old lady marked by scandal. The soldier, the woman, and the town are hostage to the same horrendous secret locals have buried since Civil War times. This secret ultimately draws Annie to its epicenter.
Along the Red Dirt Road is full of twists, turns, and fascinating characters. It is a story of how courage, perseverance, decency, friendship, and truth brought a closely held secret to light. It is about a reveal that liberated those it touched almost ninety years ago. May the power of the reveal always be with you!
- Print length293 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- Publication date20 April 2020
- Dimensions13.34 x 1.88 x 20.32 cm
- ISBN-101734828005
- ISBN-13978-1734828009
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Product details
- Publisher : Jane Yearout (20 April 2020)
- Language : English
- Paperback : 293 pages
- ISBN-10 : 1734828005
- ISBN-13 : 978-1734828009
- Dimensions : 13.34 x 1.88 x 20.32 cm
- Customer Reviews:
About the author

A JOURNEY ALONG THE RED DIRT ROAD, MY STORY
I was born in Kansas City, Missouri and grew up in Norman, Oklahoma. Good public schools and access to the University of Oklahoma had drawn my grandparents to Norman in 1920. They viewed education as the key to better opportunity. By the time of my birth, those hard times that defined Oklahoma during Great Depression had been replaced by considerable optimism and prosperity, at least in Norman. My home was within a few blocks of the main campus. Like most of my friends and family, I was a diligent student and predestined to attend college at OU.
Upon graduation, with a major in English and a minor in Journalism, I struck out on my own to accept a teaching position in Houston. In spite of the miserable heat and humidity, Houston expanded my horizons. Here, I met my husband, gave birth to our child, and spent several rewarding years teaching 8th grade English before co-founding a group of travel agencies with my husband. Those travel agency years were always interesting, and thanks to our dedicated employees, the business grew and was respected for its attention to customer service. After seventeen years in Houston, we were exhausted. We were hungry for a four season climate, fewer seven-day work weeks, and a more family-friendly lifestyle. We sold the business, and in 1987 it was off to the place of my birth, Kansas City.
If Houston was hard, Kansas City was delightful. Over the course of thirteen years, I enjoyed a career in the field of educational publishing, we raised our son, became involved in civic activities, and forged some lasting friendships. My career ended abruptly, due to a series of mergers and acquisitions. We were empty-nesters now, and my husband was offered a nice promotion that required us to relocate to the D.C. area.
Our new home was in the historic Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia, about an hour west of Washington. This spot of heaven in the upper Shenandoah Valley was to be our home for the remainder of our years. It offered natural beauty, cultural opportunities, good friendships, civic involvement, retirement, and easy access to our grandchildren in Washington. What could go wrong? Our son and daughter-in-law did exactly what my grandparents did so long ago. They sought a community with better schools for their kids and better opportunities for themselves. The place - Overland Park, Kansas.
After a couple of years, we followed and are happy to be back in the Midwest. Once again, we are close to our dearest ones and their pets, projects, and shenanigans. We live in far west Olathe, and the window of my study looks out on what was an old farm with a primitive grass runway. Occasionally, the sweet lady who owns the place will taxi her small airplane to the end of the runway, finish her coffee, and go up for a spin around the countryside. I am inspired by my new setting and am more than ready to share a few tales.
Customer reviews
Top reviews from other countries

Why did this book feel so good to me?
The main characters are so loving, caring, and considerate - to each other and to those they meet and befriend. This is a thoughtful read and was full of the kindness I’ve been desperately searching for these days. Also, I was delightfully surprised not to correctly anticipate (or guess) many of the book’s mysteries. There is a wonderful sense of discovery and curiosity by the characters - and I shared their journeys with my own questions.
A bright young teen girl is intuitively and innocently kind, respectful, and inquisitive. Incredible parents who taught her by example and trusted her and guided her with goodness. An adorable terrier romping throughout. A boy with a stutter and a nervous condition who becomes a wonderful friend. A fascinating old woman who has her own secrets and shares all she knows about them with her inspirited young friend. There are mysteries with some sadness and some interesting turns of surprise.
I spent part of the day after finishing the book, listening to the Music Playlist. A little bit of foot stompin’ and reflection for me, a century (plus) later! Another gift from this author.
I cried feeling all the kindness enveloped within the main characters. I got chills a couple of times. I felt a sigh of relief - YES, people are GOOD! I needed to feel that now and I wanted to “pass that forward.”
Just a few of several quotes I liked, without giving away content:
“Be friendly to everyone. People will respond in kind.”
“When we can lighten someone’s burden, when we can help someone who can never repay us, then we must do so, daughter.”
An alliteration in response to her dad’s alliteration: “Daddy, did you decide during the delectable dinner we just devoured that a delicious and delightful dinner at the diner will be dazzlingly decadent?”
“And without truth, this poor earth is no more than one big stinking mess of wild apple butter!”
Thanks for this book. Good for young adults and for some of us, not so young!



