Publisher's Synopsis
The Mennonites began their movement through Europe in the mid 1500s as the Spanish Inquisition was coming to the Netherlands. The 1700s found them in the land of the Czars, being granted special privileges by Catherine the Great for 100 years. At the end of this time period, they began to make their move to North America. This book tells the story of the author's great-great grandmother, Elizabeth Penner as she immigrated with her three children and a small group of family and friends. Against this backdrop of culture and family history the author tells of her struggle to find identity and meaning in life after excommunication and shunning from this strict religious group. She tells how to find meaning in exile and learn to sing in a strange land.
