What Peace There May Be - Susanna Barlow

SUSANNA BARLOW drops in on CJ to share what it was like to be the 23rd child of 46 children, the quintessential middle child. Growing up in a Mormon fundamentalist religious home shaped her life values, and her views on literally everything. Susanna Barlow’s Memoir “What Peace There May Be”… Finalist in the Prestigious 2010 Indie Excellence Awards in the Memoir Category, is about growing up while suffering abuse in a polygamous family living in Utah. She says, “In writing the book, I let the rotting parts of myself die and I asked the book to carry the emotional truth that my body could no longer hold.” Young Susanna didn’t know anything other than the family environment that was created for her; a system without regard for society or man’s laws. Raised in a sequestered home in a busy city neighborhood, everything beyond the front gate was off-limits. This coming of age story is as much a testament to survival as it is to surrender. Pushed to the limits of her coping abilities, Susanna tried everything she could think of to bring about the peace that always seemed out of reach. In an impulsive moment and an act of daring, she contacted a newspaper journalist and found herself in a predicament that she never before considered. That decision became the impetus that propelled her to where she wanted to be and to finally find personal peace. Susanna is married and the mother of six children, writer, author, painter, teacher and has written plays. She is currently working on her second book. Ms. Barlow has been interviewed across the United States and Canada on radio, Good Things Utah, Keynote Speaker in Portland Oregon for an abuse recovery group, book clubs, approached by different polygamy groups helping transition those who have left. www.SusannaBarlow.com