"Since my last comment I have read every book you have written, except 2 by Bonnie Drake. I couldn't find them. I am a big fan of your writing. I read Family Tree and I loved it. I especially liked the theme regarding knitting. There is no love stronger than a Mother's love. I have recommended it to several people. I frequent the Annie's in Belmont,MA and the owner, Maria, is a wonderful woman.I find myself recommening you as an author often. Thank you again for a wonderful read. Audre Ray" — AR, waltham, MA "Being a huge fan of Barbara's books I was very keen to read The Family Tree. I have never been compelled to contact an Author before, but really want to pass on my thanks for this superb novel. As always you are immersed in the emotions of the story, which is wonderfully told, but I feel this book goes beyond pure entertainment, to raise questions of the Reader's emotions which allows you to explore what your reactions would be, and provides a greater understanding of the concept of the story. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED" — JG, Mansfield, United Kingdom "Dear Barbara, I just read Family Tree and The Secret Between Us, I love your books and ordered 5 more, I just wanted to tell you. I am looking forward to reading more. Thank-you!!!! Susan Kmiecik" — SK, Muskegon, MI "I really liked this book a lot, could not put it down. Easy reading. Would love to see a follow up to this book." — MC, madison heights, MI "Dear Barbara, YOU DID IT AGAIN!! I just finished reading FAMILY TREE. What a wonderful novel. It made me feel all the deep emotions your books always do. Not since FLIRTING WITH PETE have I been moved by such heartfelt words..chapter after chapter. Authors like yourself are indeed rare in my book (pardon the pun here). Your heart and soul are entwined in all your books. May God grant you a long life. May He bless you and those you love always and in all ways. Fondly, Stella" — SM, Saddle Brook, NJ "I have never read such a heartwarming, yet heartbreaking book about the color of a person's skin. It's the story of the search for the identity of a white father, Hugh, who was raised by parents whose family tree was impeachable and traceable back to the revolutionary war, and his wife Dana, whose background wasn't as clear as his, who find themselves with a newborn baby with African American characteristics. The search is for the mother's biological father, and the surprises she discovers when she does locate him. It's about acceptance and looking beyond the color of the skin and the mistakes made by those we love and loving unconditionally. About finding the place in your life where you are most comfortable, and the things that really matter in life. A must read! Barbara Delinsky delivers a powerful story with a valuable lesson that should be read by all." — TK, Cicero, NY "Okay, I enjoyed the challenging aspects concerning heritage, self-righteousness, selfishness, and finding yourself. While I loved the story and its characters and read it all in one sitting, I have to say I feel let down that two major issues in the story were never solidly resolved. The issues of Jay's paternity (and health) and whether or not Eaton embraced his true identity publicly were vaguely implied, but neither was absolute. This didn't exactly leave me yearning for a sequel, but it leave me wondering why the sudden end, particularly in the case of Jay and Crystal. Its reminiscent of a friend of mine who never has a conclusion to her stories. This one simply did not end properly. All in all, I enjoyed my time in the tiny New England town, but having been privy to all the "dirty little secrets" of the characters, I feel robbed of this last bit of information." — SB, North Augusta, SC "I heard of this book on my first day of 8th grade. I was very interested. I am so glad the teacher told me about this book. I was glued to it day after day. I was suprised by all the twists and turns that this story brought. I was suprised that I have found a book that I read through, and start gradually wanting more. I am 3 pages away from being done, and I want more. I have told many people to read this book. You should! It was amazing. Hugh and Dana were deeply in love. When having their first child, things have changed. When Hugh saw the baby he was happy but speechless at the same time. The baby was a light tone of brown. His parent come to see the baby and say that that can't be the child, or at least his child. They try to convince him that her dad, who Dana never met, had to be black, or she had an affair. Her mom had past away and Ellie Jo never met her father. How can she get Hugh and her inlaws to believe her?" — MA, williamstown, NJ "I was thoroughly surprised at this book. It's the first one that I've read of Ms. Delinsky's. I picked it up in the grocery store when I saw the cover, and read the synopsis. I was intrigued. I purchased the book on a Friday and completed it the very next day. This book touches on a subject that is still a sore point in America - color of one's skin. Minorities are faced with the subtle and not-so-subtle reminders that the whiter your skin the better off you are. It also brings home the point for me as an African-American woman that I am not one hundred percent African nor am I one hundred percent white. I am what this country claims to be, and that is a melting pot. My ingredients are African, American Indian, and White. I am more proud of my "minority" elements than I am of my White one. For too long (and it continues today), my colorful elements are suppressed by the "majority" one. Ms. Delinsky, thank you for broaching a subject that is still a touchy one. There are thousands, if not millions, of African-Americans who are passing as White. It's a sad commentary on how far we have NOT come as a nation." — TS, Chandler, AZ "This quite lovely book very much resonated with me. I thoroughly enjoyed it, and can sympathise with the family here, as my great-greatmother passed for white, and having been half Cherokee and half Scots-Irish. The things you can find in a family tree are surely interesting indeed." — SH, East Lansing, MI "This was a wonderful story that was told so detailed! I can't wait to see what else Barbara has in store with her other novels." — SB, Arcadia, CA "I have just spent every waking moment for the past two days reading Family Tree!! I have emailed all my friends and told them that this is the best I have read in a long time! I love it! Please tell me there is a sequel in the works? I have read all of Ms. Delinsky's books and enjoyed every one but this one is the best yet! " — CR, Appleton, WI "I just finished reading "Family Tree" and I have to say it is the best one I have read yet! I love the turmoil and suspense in finding out how the baby got her black features. It was definitely a can't put down book! I absolutely LOVED it! I can't wait for the next one!" — TB, Shepherdsville, KY "Being Native American, I found this book to be an invaluable window into the mindset of the upper class elite in our society who value their pure geneological heritage such as Hugh's family who came over on the Mayflower. Even though these early Europeans were fleeing social and religious persecution, and found the freedom they were searching for here in America to be who they were, they set the tone for the racism and bigotry that exists today. In Europe, they were the ones persecuted for being different, yet then turned around and passed the persecution down on others who were not racially equal in their eyes. Whether immigrant, slave, or native we have all endured the painful process of blending and fitting in to the 'melting pot' we all share, with the standard having been set by the 'founding fathers' as to who can and cannot be considered equal. Through my own experience in a boarding school environment that was meant to civilize the savage out of me and teach me the better ways of the white people who conquered us, I know first hand that shame and self-loathing was the ultimate result. Because I was taught that another culture's ways were better than my own, at one time I actually turned my back on my own culture because I had learned to hate the color of my own skin and the people I came from. I am so thankful that through my healing process I have been able to reclaim my cultural identity and the rich heritage of my people. Also, because of my boarding school experience, I tried to find other people/victims I could identify with, and this search led me to research, not only the Jewish experience during the holocaust, but other culture's as well. It was a surprise to me when I found out that even the Italians and Irish and others who I would have assumed to be included as white, were at one time excluded by the dominant society and were on the same par as Indians and Black Americans. These people struggled to be included as equals in the 'melting pot' and fortunately for them, they did succeed long before those of us who have darker coloring. I'm sorry I'm not reporting on the book so much as I am attempting to make a comment about the mindset that has held us all prisoner over the past two hundred years or so that Hugh's Mayflower geneology brings up for me. I think everyone in our society goes through formative experiences that either brings shame or pride in who we are. Often, those of us with shame wear the mask of bigotry to cover up what we least like about ourselves, not fully realizing that what we least like is what we've been taught to despise, and thus can be unlearned with determination and effort. Thank you for your thought provoking book, Ms. Delinsky. May we all think twice about who we are and who we judge others to be as we travel this earth together. " — BG, Denver, CO "I enjoyed Family Tree immensely. Through an engaging story of a couple having their first baby, Barbara asks some very interesting questions in it. What is prejudice? How do I know if I'm bigoted? What actions say that I'm not? What if we bring race closer to home--then am I bigoted? At no point did Barbara use the story to grind an ax about this charged social issue. Her characters, as always were quite human, people with whom I could identify. So . . . the book both entertained me and invited me to consider. It doesn't get much better than this! " — BW, Milwaukee, WI "Barbara Delinsky has done it again. She brought us a character, Dana, who we wanted to support, yet who was strong enough to handle anything sent her way. As in the past, Ms. Delinsky shapes characters that you feel you truly know. You even understand why some of them act the way they do. We are brought up to believe certain things about ourselves and our environment but in a moment all that can change when the truth comes out. This book shows us that we can handle whatever is thrown our way - just keep an open mind and believe in who you truly are. Thank you again for a wonderful read!" — BW, Natick, MA "Bought the book Thursday, finished it last night--as always a thoughtful, well written book. I think I have read everything you've written and you just keep getting better. I have read most of them again, and enjoy them just as much as first time. This subject was thought provoking, makes you wonder what you would have done if this happened in your family." — JN, Warsaw, NY "I just posted a review of this book up on my knitting blog at http://knitplaywithfire.wordpress.com. Here is what I had to say - I stayed up a bit last night to finish reading Barbara Delinsky’s book Family Tree. First of all, I will admit to loving her books and I will often stay up quite late reading if a book is really good or has caught my interest. This is a book that is worthy of putting down your knitting and just reading. The basic premise of this novel is that a white couple (Dana and Hugh) has a baby who is born with obvious African-American features, including skin coloring. The husband blames the wife for this because he can trace his ancestry back to the Mayflower. The wife on the other hand has no clue as to who her father is. Therefore, the problem is from the wife’s side of the family. The story unfolds at a very nice pace and along the way, we learn about Dana’s past and the damage inflicted by long-held family secrets. Or more accurately, that the reasons some things are held secret by one generation really do not matter as much to the next generation. There is also a nice lesson in genetics and how people are treated in this country based on their skin color. (Although we deny that people are treated differently because of their skin color, it happens every day on all sides of the fence.) Dana has no problems accepting her daughter as she is yet Hugh is more concerned with how his family and others will perceive their daughter. This book will make you, hopefully, stop and think about your family ancestry and how you would react in a similar situation. As a knitter, what is nice is that Dana’s grandmother owns a yarn shop. And from the description of the shop, it is the place that all of us as knitters would love to have as our LYS. And I read on Barbara Delinsky’s blog the other day that Berroco is sponsoring her book tour for this book. And that all of the sweaters that she will be wearing are Berroco designs. (And yes, Barbara Delinsky is a knitter.) And Berroco has just released a book with 4 patterns based on patterns knit up in the novel. (read about it here.) I am in love with the throw and the bag." — MV, Walkersville, MD "I have to say that this is a pretty different from your usual writing style. I like it! Unfortunatly and sadly as much as I'd like to give this book to every person I know, it would change nothing with them. Don't get me wrong I love my family. You're right though, it's all about where you grew up and the people you grew up with. I went to an all white school in Maryland in the 80s and early 90's. I didn't see anyone that wasn't white until I was 12. My sister had gone to her junior prom with the son of my grandmothers neighbor, he was african american. My dad was livid! He accused me of being too young to know the difference. What'd I know, I still played in the sandbox with my little brothers? African americans, polish... he joked about everyone that wasn't "white". A few years ago while I was doing my family tree, I learned that his grandparents had fled here from Poland in 1901. (I was going to give this to my grandmother for a 100th b-day present) He lit it on fire and watched as it burned in the yard before forbidding me to tell anyone what I had learned. So I learned one thing from that, My dad and everyone else I'd grown up with were all two-faced biggets. I have since embaced my polish heritage and thank God for who I am!" — TK, york, PA