Jayne Gongol

Jayne Gongol, a former social worker who directed a literacy program for homeless families for 21 years, witnessed firsthand the enduring strength of women and children who faced dire hardships, and the small acts-of-kindness from community members who intervened to save them. She resides in southern California and enjoys music and swimming.

Hand That's Dealt, a memoir about a boy who suffers from parental abuse that psychologists refer to as the Cinderella phenomenon, is an insightful analysis of an abusive family dynamic that directs its abuse toward just one family member. In 1960s Riverside, Rhode island, little Robby, singled out by his father among the six siblings for extreme verbal and physical attacks, fights to save his life. Finally escaping and living in the local treehouses he has built, Robby finds support among the local community members. Rarely has this confusing type of family dynamic been documented in a manner that offers clarity into how this type of scenario can happen inside a family. It's final, uplifting message gives testimony to how minor intervention from caring, community members can change a child's life.

Jayne Gongol's first novel, a historical book called, Where Flowers Grow, is a fictional account of the southern women's plight during the historic 1860s American Civil War. Few stories have documented so profoundly the war's cost to the southern women. The book gives testimony to the resiliency of women who faced many hardships and losses during the war's duration. Julia Jackson Archer, a plantation wife who is against slavery, fights to save her family on the battlefield and on her homefront, where she faces a costly reckoning to her family and witnesses the slaves march toward their hard-won freedom.