On March 9,
1916, Susie Parks, age twenty, found herself in the center of battle the night Pancho Villa's rebel army invaded the border town of Columbus, New Mexico. At the telephone switchboard with her baby in her arms, she made the call that alerted the outside world of the attack. She was celebrated as an American hero but her broader story reveals a tenacity and grit that surpasses the events of that day. We first meet Susie at eleven growing up in the Northwest when a family tragedy prompts the family to move to Columbus, New Mexico. There she grows up unencumbered, free to hunt and roam the desert. At eighteen, she meets Garnet Parks, an intellectual cavalry soldier with dreams of owning a newspaper. They fall in love and together traverse the Great War, the flu pandemic, and a devastating fire. All the while babies come, businesses falter, and illness strikes. Susie must run the paper, care for her family and nurse her dying husband. Against all odds, a chance discovery saves his life but leaves him with an addiction and both of them vulnerable to the treacherous influence of his troublemaking brother. Susie must navigate the challenge of her life for herself and for the sake of her children. Includes Readers Guide.