Donna Meredith

Released

November 2010

First place for unpublished women’s fiction in the Royal Palm Literary Awards, sponsored by the Florida Writers Association, 2009

Runner-up in the Gulf Coast Novel Contest, 2009

"The Best of West Virginia" showcase at Tamarack in Beckley

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Coming of age is supposed to be easy in the 70s. After all, women are liberated and love is free. Why does Sarah Stevens find life so hard? The men in the union and tradition still ban women from making glass, an art form Sarah views as part of her family heritage. And regard for virginity is not as dead as Sarah thinks when she gives hers up to a college boyfriend.

 Her husband, unable to get past his jealousy, isolates her in a backwoods trailer and tells her he always wanted to marry a virgin. Unintentionally reinforcing his criticism, Aunt Livvie treasures a family heirloom, a glass figurine of the Madonna. It shines with perfect purity no real woman could achieve.

The novel weaves together stories of three generations of glass workers who emigrate from Germany to West Virginia. From Aunt Livvie, Sarah learns about women in her family who overcame wrenching losses, brutal working conditions, and rape. Her aunt’s stories, wisdom, and unconditional love give Sarah the courage to forge a new life for herself and her child.

Now available at Tamarack in Beckley, WV. The novel was selected by a juried panel for inclusion in a showcase of "The Best of West Virginia." The Glass Madonna also won first place for unpublished women’s fiction in the Royal Palm Literary Awards, sponsored by the Florida Writers Association, and runner-up in the Gulf Coast Novel Contest in 2009.

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Listen to interviews with the author on the writing of the novel.

   Interview on Global Talk Radio

  WFSU Public Radio Interview

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If your book club wants to read The Glass Madonna, Donna would be thrilled to attend your meeting if you live in the Tallahassee area. If not, she can arrange a Skype conference to answer your questions and hear your comments on the novel.

Please contact her at meredithds at comcast dot net, replacing the at and dot with symbols. Or call 850-878-2931.

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The Glass Madonna addresses women's issues. How much do you really know about women? Take this quiz and find out! ____________________________________

Pepperoni Rolls

An authentic West Virginia food mentioned in The Glass Madonna

My brother's recipe

To go with pepperoni rolls--or anything else!

Chocolate Eclair Cake

A recipe from The Glass Madonna

Cousin Cathy's Orange Creamsicle Dessert

A recipe from The Glass Madonna

Praise for The Glass Madonna:

In this beautifully written and compelling novel, Donna Meredith skillfully intertwines the lives, loves, heartbreaks, and triumphs of a family of glassmakers with the personal journey of the protagonist, Sarah, a woman who will steal your heart.

—Cassandra King, author of The Sunday Wife

Donna Meredith’s debut novel The Glass Madonna tells the powerful story of a woman’s determination to create her own destiny. Although Sarah is born with glass in her genes, she is anything but fragile as she stands up to an abusive husband in order to protect her child and make a life for herself. The Glass Madonna underscores the importance of the women’s movement in freeing women (and men) from debilitating secrets and ruinous marriages.

—Pat MacEnulty, author of Wait Until Tomorrow: A Daughter’s Memoir

We root for Sarah as she learns to navigate her way through a world where she suffers by turns sexism, abandonment, abuse, and comes out the other side a resilient woman full of courage. This story is a page-turner, and I so admire Meredith's writing that I can't wait to read her next novel.

—Mary Jane Ryals, author of Cookie and Me

The novel successfully contains stories within the story; the author skillfully intertwines the lives of the German ancestors with the lives of their modern-day descendants to show the changing roles of men and women.

—Phyllis Moore, reviewer

I was pulled into the desire, quandary, expectations, and disappointments of the protagonist.

—RPLA judge

Tight, well-paced. The writer has a gift for expressing universal thought in a fresh way.

—RPLA judge