In My Father's Poland

Thirty-nine-year-old Elizabeth has never been out of Boston. She boards a plane to keep a death-bed promise to her father. After a sheltered urban upbringing, she finds herself in a small village outside of Warsaw, in the home of an eccentric, recently widowed woman with a tragic past. The two women come from completely different generational, cultural, political, and religious backgrounds, but share a common struggle. Through a chance meeting, Elizabeth discovers a secret she cannot share, as the tragedies of an inescapable past, collide with the uncertainties of the present. While the characters and incidents are fictional, the author lived in Poland where the story takes place. She visited the camps and cemeteries and was present at the ceremony commemorating the fiftieth anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz.

Leilani Ruland studied at The Ohio State University and has published short stories and poetry. She lives in Ohio with her husband and cat. This is her second novel.