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A Life of Tears is the story of Rosie, a
young girl who lives in a coal camp with her mother, father,
and many brothers and sisters. Because they are poor, her
parents decide that she must marry a young friend of her
father's to ease the burden at home. Rosie is twelve years
old and the man is nineteen years old. She is afraid and
does not want to leave her family but after a short
courtship, they are married and within a few months she is
pregnant. Gradually, Rosie falls in love with her husband,
Willie, and they begin to build a good life for themselves
and their growing family. But tragedy strikes and Rosie
begins a life of heartbreak as she quests for the one thing
that seems to be just out of reach, love. A Life of Tears is
the story of a young girl who must become a woman very early
in life. It chronicles her struggles to hold her family
together through the many adversities that come into her
life. As she desperately tries to bring her family out of a
life of poverty, she begins to understand what she must do
to survive.
About the author
Barbara Smith took English courses part-time at the local college while working full- time to earn a living. A first-generation Italian, she was born and raised in the southwestern part of Virginia. She now lives with her husband outside of Richmond, Virginia. This is her first book.
