Pilgrim State: A story of mothers & daughters and the bonds which can never be broken.

PILGRIM STATE is a stunning memoir which tells the story of Dorothy Walker - equal parts beautiful, headstrong, brave and tragic. Her life is lovingly recreated by her daughter Jacqueline in homage to the remarkable woman she was. In the haunting opening pages, set in Pilgrim State mental facility in New York State in 1951, Dorothy has been forcibly sectioned and is battling to keep her children and her sanity. She will struggle all her life to retain both. Dorothy and her children return to Jamaica before finally making a home in post-Windrush London in the early 60s. Dorothy and her children face prejudice and loss but are bound by incredible love and their unique sense of family. This will prove to be Dorothy's greatest gift. Stories like PILGRIM STATE don't come along that often. And when they do you recognise you have something very special. And when a voice is this strong and original, you stop to listen. PILGRIM STATE celebrates place, the life-affirming nature of family and the bonds between mothers and daughters that can never be broken. The story is haunting and powerful and speaks for generations of women, resonating long after the story ends.

About the Author :
Jacqueline Walker arrived in Britain in 1959. She has been a teacher, a mother of three, taught creative writing as well has having completed two Arvon writing courses. PILGRIM STATE is her first book.

Review :
Pilgrim State is an extraordinary memoir that may become a word-of-mouth hit in the same way as Andrea Ashworth's Once in a House on Fire or Lorna Sage's Bad Blood. Throughout this intensely personal book, the fierce love and pride that the author feels for her mother punctuates every sentence. This will be read by mothers and daughters alike, and both will find a resonance in the lives of these two women. - Kate Bradley, The Bookseller's Choice From behind the boarded up windows of one of Americas most awful psychiatric institutions emerges a most profound woman: Dorothy Walker, who spirited her family to the relative safety of Great Britain despite enormous odds. A wonderful, deeply moving book. - James McBride, Author of The Color of Water "Haunting, powerful and beautifully written, Dorothy's story resonates long after the final page." - International Woman's Month Magazine Fine, honest writing and acute personal insight . . . Jacqueline Walker has written this fond, striking memoir as a homage to a brave and beautiful woman. - Iain Finlayson, The Times