Embedded Files
Capes and Crosses
This novel is historical fiction. Some historical episodes in my story contain fictional characters intermingling with actual history. I intimately know the main characters I created, and I feel their trials need to be told. History cannot gloss over facts. It did happen. Colorado became a Ku Klux Klan state!
In these pages, the characters are Jenny and Gil who were ostracized by the KKK because they were Catholics and would not join the Klan. Gil could not obtain a job in Denver. He hopped the trains to find work elsewhere. More trouble followed him. Jenny was left searching for work in Denver to buy food for her family, including two children. Soon a Klansman harassed her. More trouble.
This novel cannot properly describe the troubles of Black people because this author cannot do justice to their suffering. However, this does reveal some of the struggles of others at that time who also received the KKK hate.
Available at Amazon.com and through Joanne Brand.
The Last War - Here and There
Three women’s lives change in 1917, when the U.S. joins the allies in World War I to stop Emperor Kaiser Wilhelm’s German army from conquering France. This story spans from back home to overseas and a husband declared missing in action. Each character has their own fears, sufferings, and secrets they need to work through.
Available at Amazon.com and through Joanne Brand.
Molly's House
No, this is not about Molly Brown who was a famous Colorado woman in the mining days. This is about another Molly, Molly McMurphy. She was a young widow, trying to find her way without her husband and no income in the mining town of Caribou, Colorado. She listened to speakers at a rally in 1892 against women acquiring the right to vote. Those men scared her yet bolstered her to fight for her rights!
She joined the suffrage movement and received insults and other dreadful barrages in the suffrage marches in Denver. Molly also had to deal with a banker holding the mortgage on her home. Not only did he have his eyes on her property, but more so on her. Threats against her accelerated to vandalism of her home. More threats followed. Molly’s fear still could not stop her from fighting for her right to vote. She became a strong activist for the Colorado Women’s Suffrage movement. Molly helped to make Colorado History.
Available at Amazon.com
A Daughter's Wages
This is the story of Brand's grandmother. In 1889 when Isabella was only ten years old, when her father left her standing on the street alone in Yankton, South Dakota. He ordered her to find work and he'd collect her pay every week--and he did. That began Isabella's lonely life with no more schooling, no Mama or family, no friends, and no one to guide her. She did get home for short breaks. Her father ruled or the whip came down hard.
This young girl lived through historical times such as the Wounded Knee Massacre, the Silver Purchase Act, the Gay Nineties, and the 1893 Crash.
Available at Amazon.com
Dancing to Memories
Dancing to Memories is a novel based on fact and imagination about the romance of the author’s parents. Joanne Brand had little information; she researched history for the time frame to mingle throughout her story. The few possessions she received along with her mother’s ancestral information helped her. Yet she had little of nothing on her father. Her mother did not talk about him or display his few photographs. Brand built the characters of Grace and Jack as she imagined they might have been and she developed this into a love story that the reader will wish were true, except the ending.
The author reveals some of the struggles that Grace and Jack may have encountered in their lives. Life was a different era with no cures, little technology, little or no child protection and less amenities than we see today. It was also the Great Depression, the drought era with much suffering of most in the Midwest, and then World War I.
Available at Amazon.com and through Joanne Brand.
Ten Miles from Aspen
This captivating true-life story tells of one woman’s unique experiences living on a guest ranch high in the Rocky Mountains during the 1960’s and 70’s. Joanne Brand introduces you to the other side of the world-renowned ski resort of Aspen, Colorado—not all glitz and glamour, but the year-round struggles of rustic mountain living against the backdrop of an exploding new culture sweeping the country. She shares her adventures with antique wood-burning stoves, horses, snowmobiles, tourists and even an occasional celebrity and film crew. Her family was involved in mountain rescues, challenged by belligerent cross-country skiers, and braved terrifying fires. Many clashes with rebellious hippies brought out the author’s feistiness and some conflicts came with threats to her family.
Ten Miles from Aspen is an entertaining read that flows easily. It explains how one woman came through that era with a more open mind, yet maintained her values. It also depicts her deep appreciation and love for the majesty of the Rocky Mountains. At every turn of the pages, you will experience humor as well as serious situations that will compel you to read more.
Available at Amazon.com and through Joanne Brand
Acute Justice
Detective Janie James isn’t eager to find the killer of this violent case. Commitment, though, will keep her investigating every angle and every suspect. She discovers the missing clue and an arrest is made. Janie knows all too well what the accused has gone through. She fights her own fears while fulfilling her duties.
The prosecutor’s proof is compelling, but the defense tears away at the evidence. Causes which created this brutal crime shock the courtroom. After days of deliberation, the jury must decide: is this cold-blooded murder or justice served fittingly? A bombshell rocks the trial’s ending and it even shocks Janie James.
This story could be true for many lives. A must read to learn more about lives that are destroyed and tortured.
Available at Amazon.com and through Joanne Brand.
Life and Nature Poems
Joanne Brand wrote many of these simple poems while grieving. Others were when she found joy in life. All her poems are short, simple and some may mean a great deal to you. Brand encourages others to write their thoughts into poems—regardless if they rhyme or not.
Brand does not claim to be a poet, but she felt comfort in putting thoughts onto paper in no special format--just as the words came.
Available at Amazon.com and through Joanne Brand.
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