Mom Quixote: From Kalamazoo to Kilmolara: a Search for Two Families

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What does a widow under 40 do when she's destitute, must depend on her tight-fisted Irish in-laws for income, and has two daughters to raise? Dorothy Alton Rowlard bolted her front door against both in-laws and the outside world. Armed with Philip Morris cigarettes, Nescafe instant coffee, and her all-purpose yardstick, this Mom Quixote devoted herself to her quest: turning her daughters into "proper young ladies."Unshackled by convention, she out-tilted her adversaries whether from the Catholic Church, the all-male medical establishment, or the "damn fool kid instincts" of her own two girls. The only chink in her armor was the girl's fascination with all things Irish, which drove them on their own quest.