Isobel has always yearned to uncover the mystery surrounding her birth and why her adoptive parents have refused to share what they know with her. About to enter vet school, Isobel’s life takes an unexpected turn after the death of Maggie O’Connor, Isobel’s de facto grandmother. Fueled by the pain of rejection, and willing to sacrifice her college plans and a burgeoning relationship, Isobel embarks on a quest.
Her search takes her from the tranquil landscapes of Wisconsin to the untamed beauty of New Zealand and ultimately to Bosnia, where she was born. Along the way, she encounters a diverse cast of characters, each with their own secrets and stories to share. Isobel discovers that the past holds far more than mere answers, setting her up for a future she could never have imagined.
Praise for the Novel:
Kirkus Reviews: An eventful story of an intrepid adoptee discovering her background and gaining strength for her future.
Self-Publishing Review: An absorbing and poignant novel about a woman's search for identity and path in life. . . Written with intimacy and realism, Finding Isobel is a probing story about what it means to belong, asking and answering deep questions about life and the meaning of family, for a truly moving work of contemporary fiction.
The Wishing Shelf: The compelling story of a young woman battling to discover who she is and where she’s from. Highly recommended.
Wholly original, clear-eyed, and fierce, Mary Behan’s Finding Isobel is infused with humanity’s instinctive longing for home...Behan writes with a deep sense of compassion, yet she has produced a propulsive page-turner that is global in scope, a beautiful tale of one woman’s drive and will to know. - Barry Wightman, award-winning author of Pepperland
This is a fast-paced, compelling narrative that takes the reader along for the ride. - Laurie Scheer, Writing Mentor, Developmental Editor, mediagoddess
Author Mary Behan explores the ripple effects of war, the complexities of parenthood, and the nuances of reconciliation and redemption. This memorable and moving tale reminds us that family is what we decide it is, and true acceptance can only come from within. - Maggie Ginsberg, award-winning author of Still True
This is a heart-felt story of love, longing, frustration, and the search for answers, not only about Isabel’s past but about her future. . . . Isobel is one of those captivating characters who stayed with me long after I finished the novel. - Gregory Lee Renz, international award-winning author
Finding Isobel goes beyond a riveting, page-turning story to explore what it means to be a parent, a child, and the effects that secrets and decisions cause throughout lives. As we journey along with Isobel, we discover how the past can influence the future, but more…how to find the strength to move beyond and create an authentic, meaningful life. - Kathy Steffen, author of the award-winning Spirit of the River series
Readers will applaud the book’s ending and will take great satisfaction from the revealing path Isobel must tread to get there.
- Larry Sommers, author of Price of Passage
Death and hunger to know her origins launch Isobel farther across the world and further into self-awareness than she, or we the readers, could have expected. The journey is thoughtful and engaging. - William Ried, award-winning author of Backstory, Five Ferries and Pandion
A compelling story of love and loss and the search for understanding and belonging, written in a beautiful, lyrical voice with delicious twists that are the hallmark of bestsellers. - Valerie Biel, award-winning author of the Circle of Nine series
Read the companion book to "Finding Isobel," A Measured Thread, to learn the story behind how Isobel started her life-changing quest.
Shelf Unbound Notable Indie Book for 2020 - 2020 eLit Awards Silver Medal Winner - 2021 Page Turner Awards Finalist
5-Star Review- Readers' Favorite
CLICK HERE TO BUY!
Paperback $15 (Large print available) - eBook $3.99 Audiobook from $9.99 (narrated by the author)
Or order from your favorite bookstore: Paperback ISBN 978-1734494303 Large print ISBN 978-1734494334
You can also download it through your local library ISBN 978-1734494327
Looking back on her life, Maggie O'Connor is rightfully pleased. Fifty years ago she left Ireland with a single suitcase and a dream. After a long and satisfying career, she is enjoying retirement on her farm in rural Wisconsin — until she falls.
Determined to regain her independence, she hires Isobel, a young woman who is also an immigrant. Helping Maggie clean house, Isobel discovers a cache of letters that Maggie wrote to her parents those many years ago and begins to read them aloud to Maggie.
But the letters contain a secret, one that Maggie has kept for fifty years. A secret that threatens to destroy her life and that of the people around her. With little time left she must make a choice — give up or face her past
Readers Favorite - 5 Star Review:
"The author constructs a plot with many twists and turns, building to an unforeseen ending. The character of Maggie is complex as her past is unveiled, bit by bit. As a retired science professor, she was professionally successful but she harbored painful life events. The author skillfully crafted this main character, as well as Isobel and Vic. Both characters are essential to the story, providing support and solutions to Maggie’s current dilemmas. Another charming feature of this book includes the colorful descriptions of Maggie’s Wisconsin property in the valley and the visit to her Irish homeland. Author Mary Behan has penned a remarkable novel in A Measured Thread. It is poignant in many ways, fully demonstrating the circle of life." ~ Rabia Tanveer (for Readers' Favorite)
Five Stars from Gregory Renz, author of the award-winning novel, Beneath the Flames.
"A MEASURED THREAD by Mary Behan was written in such an authentic voice and laced with such emotion, I felt I was reading a gripping memoir. But it’s not a memoir, it’s a wonderful novel that tells the story of a woman’s search for peace and forgiveness as she reaches the end of her years. The protagonist, eighty-year-old Maggie, is beautifully flawed. She’s set in her ways; knows what she wants and what she doesn’t want and makes sure everyone knows it. Her comfortable world is rocked when she falls and can’t take care of herself. This propels the story forward where she begins to examine her life and questions decisions she made; decisions that affected her parents and her search for a rewarding life. The setting of her rustic home in Southwestern Wisconsin is described in vivid detail and takes the role of an important character in the story. The reader is also treated to wonderful portrayals of Ireland and what her life was like there before immigrating to the United States. The story is masterfully told with dialogue that rings true and action that jumps off the page. The tension in the story built to a climax that left me breathless. Bravo, Mary Behan. Nicely done."
"I found it so gripping that I finished it in only two sittings."
"Extremely well written, clear, engaging and just what all good books do: make you turn pages and stay awake at 5.57am!"
"My copy just arrived, and I’ve started reading... I’ve consumed 50 pages and I am totally captivated!"
"I literally scanned ahead to see what was coming because I couldn't wait."
"I loved it, and the ending had me in tears."
"...deserves a place on Oprah’s book club! truly!"
If you enjoy A Measured Thread, consider writing a short review (or just clicking on stars) and posting it on Amazon and/or on Goodreads. This is a great way for indie authors like me to get our books noticed.
Accolades:
Shelf Unbound Notable Indie Book for 2020 - 2020 eLit Awards Silver Medal Winner - 2021 Page Turner Awards Finalist
Interview: Here's a link to Mary's Author Interview with Christine Keleny about writing her novel.
5-Star Review - Readers' Favorite - 5-Star Review - Writers' Digest
CLICK HERE TO BUY: Paperback $20.93. eBook $5.95. Audiobook $14.95 (Narrated by the authors)
An hilarious and poignant account of boarding school life in Ireland in the 1960s.
Mary and Valerie Behan were eleven years of age when they were sent to Loreto Abbey Rathfarnham, a convent on the outskirts of Dublin. The Abbey was the Mother House of the Loreto Order of nuns who had established convents throughout the world. In their 60s and living in the United States and Canada, Mary and Valerie began a correspondence about their six years at the Abbey. Although they shared many of the same experiences, to their astonishment and delight they found that they saw the same world through very different eyes. Their school days are recounted in a series of letters that describe a fascinating, self-contained world governed by religion and tradition.
As two sisters compare and contrast their memories and perspectives, it creates a conversation. Using this framework, your book engages the reader to join in the conversation by conjuring up her school memories during that time of her life, also comparing and contrasting those to yours and the issues you raise about the people, classes, arts and sports, traditions and the environment.
I want to thank you for taking me back to that time and place in my life. I had loads of fun thinking about it all. A joy to consider the similarities and differences between our worlds, yet the things i loved and the hurdles needing to be jumped weren't so different. There is a natural critique that occurs, illuminating those things it brought to my life and influencing who I am today. ~ EK
Loved it! A perfectly delightful and personal look into an Irish girls' boarding school in the 1960s. The recollections of these two sisters paint a vivid picture for the reader, a look into a world far different from the ones most of us have experienced. It's little wonder that Mary and Valerie have remained so close for all these years, sharing precious memories such as these. I loved reading it. ~ JM
Pure delight! What a charming story shared by two sisters. They definitely made the most of their educational foundation and became successful young women. (I just think they will be forever young) I have a strong feeling that they have so much more to share about their adventurous lives. It would be nice to read the next phase. ~ EHP
The format of letters back and forth is unique and makes for a fun read! Entertaining and enlightening view into life as a teenage girl in an all-girls school in Ireland. The format of letters back and forth is unique and makes for a fun read! ~ CO
Surviving the Abbey I found this book to be a thoroughly enjoyable traveling companion on a recent long flight from the Midwest to the west coast. From the start, it held my curiosity about what a "boarding school" education in the UK is all about. Especially one that's provided in a convent by a contemplative order of Catholic nuns. I was delighted to find out that being in the hands of strict, but kind, sisters during adolescence, all the while being separated from loving parents, could be something to look back on with gratitude and many fond memories. Mary and Valerie Behan, the two sisters who explore memories of the boarding school scene through back and forth letters over a two year period, find out to their surprise, that, though their memories of daily life and momentous events were often similar, how they experienced life during this time was unique and individual. The authors did more than survive the Abbey, the Abbey gave them the tools to live positive and productive lives. ~ JH
A delightful reminiscence of growing up in Ireland and in ... A delightful reminiscence of growing up in Ireland and in a Catholic private boarding school in the mid-1900’s. The authors (sisters) successfully convey the similar experiences and different perspectives of their boarding school lives. The connection between the education they received and their later success as scientists and scholars is remarkable, making this an enjoyable and worthwhile read! ~ JBP
What is memory? Intimate and we'll written, this is a brief and charming memoir in the form of letters between two sisters, who spent time in an Irish boarding school in the 1960s. Almost too brief, would have enjoyed more stories, an easy quick read, wish there was more to it. ~ R
Beautiful, enlightened, and hilarious! Beautiful, enlightened, and hilarious recollections of life at an Irish girls boarding school in the '60s. I loved reading the differing perspectives and memories of the same events, and how those boarding school years shaped their future lives. ~ KL
Delightful, insightful, and an interesting peek into the into the mysterious world of memory and recall of the childhood experience set a European private school setting. ~ CS
Absolutely delightful! I've only just read as far as the "look inside" pages online preview but look forward to continuing with the print version as soon as it arrives. ~ GS
I love reading childhood stories. The picture I imagined of Ireland in 1950-60's while reading the book was just delightful. More books !! :) ~ KSTK
Irish education in the '50s-'60s: A fine personal diary about the great education that can come out of the Catholic world view. Nicely told, with love and care. ~ AC
Readers’ Favorite - 5 Star Review
"Abbey Girls by Valerie Behan and Mary Behan is a non-fiction memoir that will take you back in time and give you an uncharted look at Ireland in the 1960s. Although this might seem like an ordinary memoir, it really is not at all. Imagine two girls living in a boarding school and spending a lot of time together. Now flash forward many decades and imagine the two women sharing their old times, only to find that they both perceived the events rather differently.
Abbey Girls is basically about the six years Mary and Valerie Behan spent at the Loreto Abbey Rathfarnham boarding school. The book is mostly in the style of letters that the two sisters wrote to each other. The two sisters are recounting their days at the boarding school that followed strict tradition and religion. The reader will feel a sense of camaraderie with these two women because we all have felt this connection with our very close/best friends.
Their letters are very humorous and downright hilarious in some places. Plus, readers get to see the old Dublin and Ireland, and how things were in the '60s. The storyline in itself is based on real events that happened in these women’s lives and is why this book has a certain charm to it that cannot be ignored. It is bittersweet, sweet, and very infectious. I am really certain that any person who reads this will not be able to put it down." ~ Rabia Tanveer (for Readers' Favorite)
***** 5 Star Review: Writers Digest Self Published Book Awards
Loved it! A perfectly delightful and personal look into an Irish girls' boarding school in the 1960s. The recollections of these two sisters paint a vivid picture for the reader, a look into a world far different from the ones most of us have experienced. It's little wonder that Mary and Valerie have remained so close for all these years, sharing precious memories such as these. I loved reading it. ~ JM
Pure delight! What a charming story shared by two sisters. They definitely made the most of their educational foundation and became successful young women. (I just think they will be forever young) I have a strong feeling that they have so much more to share about their adventurous lives. It would be nice to read the next phase. ~ EHP
The format of letters back and forth is unique and makes for a fun read!
Entertaining and enlightening view into life as a teenage girl in an all-girls school in Ireland. The format of letters back and forth is unique and makes for a fun read! ~ CO
Surviving the Abbey: I found this book to be a thoroughly enjoyable traveling companion on a recent long flight from the Midwest to the west coast. From the start, it held my curiosity about what a "boarding school" education in the UK is all about. Especially one that's provided in a convent by a contemplative order of Catholic nuns. I was delighted to find out that being in the hands of strict, but kind, sisters during adolescence, all the while being separated from loving parents, could be something to look back on with gratitude and many fond memories. Mary and Valerie Behan, the two sisters who explore memories of the boarding school scene through back and forth letters over a two year period, find out to their surprise, that, though their memories of daily life and momentous events were often similar, how they experienced life during this time was unique and individual. The authors did more than survive the Abbey, the Abbey gave them the tools to live positive and productive lives. ~ JH
A delightful reminiscence of growing up in Ireland and in ... A delightful reminiscence of growing up in Ireland and in a Catholic private boarding school in the mid-1900’s. The authors (sisters) successfully convey the similar experiences and different perspectives of their boarding school lives. The connection between the education they received and their later success as scientists and scholars is remarkable, making this an enjoyable and worthwhile read! ~ JBP
What is memory? Intimate and we'll written, this is a brief and charming memoir in the form of letters between two sisters, who spent time in an Irish boarding school in the 1960s. Almost too brief, would have enjoyed more stories, an easy quick read, wish there was more to it. ~ R
Beautiful, enlightened, and hilarious! Beautiful, enlightened, and hilarious recollections of life at an Irish girls boarding school in the '60s. I loved reading the differing perspectives and memories of the same events, and how those boarding school years shaped their future lives. ~ KL
Delightful, insightful, and an interesting peek into the into the mysterious world of memory and recall of the childhood experience set a European private school setting. ~ CS
Absolutely delightful! I've only just read as far as the "look inside" pages online preview but look forward to continuing with the print version as soon as it arrives. ~ GS
I love reading childhood stories. The picture I imagined of Ireland in 1950-60's while reading the book was just delightful. More books !! :) ~ KSTK
Irish education in the '50s-'60s: A fine personal diary about the great education that can come out of the Catholic world view. Nicely told, with love and care. ~ AC
This debut collection of short stories by author Mary Behan showcases her relentless curiosity and insight into the human condition, and displays her considerable talent for evoking an emotional reaction in the reader. In settings ranging from Ireland to Iowa, from Norway to New York and beyond, her characters embark on journeys that leave them indelibly changed. These are tales of loss and pleasure, of poignant relationships and chance encounters. Reading Kernels, one experiences heart wrenching moments of sorrow intertwined with unexpected surprises of joy and comfort.What readers are saying:
As two sisters compare and contrast their memories and perspectives, it creates a conversation. Using this framework, your book engages the reader to join in the conversation by conjuring up her school memories during that time of her life, also comparing and contrasting those to yours and the issues you raise about the people, classes, arts and sports, traditions and the environment.
I want to thank you for taking me back to that time and place in my life. I had loads of fun thinking about it all. A joy to consider the similarities and differences between our worlds, yet the things i loved and the hurdles needing to be jumped weren't so different. There is a natural critique that occurs, illuminating those things it brought to my life and influencing who I am today. ~ EK
Praise for the collection:
"The stories are really gripping. So intense and so satisfying. I loved them — I found myself deeply moved."
"A beautiful collection of short stories - I read the entire book in one sitting!"
"I loved these short stories, each held me emotionally. I empathized with the protagonist in these stories. I was in the plane in “The Boys Club”. I knew the score in the ‘Business of Science’, and I also fell in love with Dadanawa. Read it."
If you enjoy Kernels, consider writing a short review (or just clicking on stars) and posting it on Amazon or Goodreads or any of your favorite sites. This is a great way for indie authors like me to get our books noticed.
Accolades:
Notable Indie: Shelf Unbound Best Indie Book Award 2022
Honorable Mention: for "Here Lies Janet Cowles," Writers Digest 90th Annual Writing Competition.
"The String of Pearls" has been published in the Irish Literary Magazine, Crossways.
A third story, "The Conversation," was published in The Adirondack Review in March 2022.
Interview:
Author Interview (written - Christine-Keleny)