Orphans of the Living - by Kathy Watson (Paperback)

About the Book

"In the shadow of the Great Depression and Jim Crow south of the 1930s, an impoverished white family escapes--with the help of Black sharecroppers--from a vengeful Mississippi plantation overseer intent on lynching them ng in California to start a new life, Barney and Lula Stovall are haunted by the past, the children they've left behind, and the daughter they cannot love or protect"--

Book Synopsis

A debut historical fiction for fans of Kristin Hannah and John Steinbeck, Orphans of the Living follows the Stovall family's early 20th-century quest for home and redemption as they confront racism, poverty, and inequality across the American South and West.

In the shadow of the Great Depression and Jim Crow south of the 1930s, an impoverished white family escapes--with the help of Black sharecroppers--from a vengeful Mississippi plantation overseer intent on lynching them. Arriving in California to start a new life, Barney and Lula Stovall are haunted by the past, the children they've left behind, and the daughter they cannot love or protect.

Orphans of the Living follows the peripatetic life of the Stovall family, woven from four parallel stories: Barney and Lula Stovall, and two of their nine children, Glen and Nora Mae.

Their California sojourn--from their hardscrabble dairy farm, to the brig at the San Francisco Presidio, to the building of the Golden Gate Bridge--lead them on paths toward each other and forgiveness. But redemption doesn't come to them all.

Review Quotes

"The prose is powerful, often lyrical, and the narrative frequently heartbreaking. This is the kind of novel that may leave readers with the same sense of weary sorrow that accompanies a reading of The Grapes of Wrath."--Southern Literary Review

"The author notes 'This book is a work of fiction. It's also true.' In this sense, she taps into her mother's family history for inspiration, with an unsparing look that seems to come from deep inside her at the hardships and tragedies of the agrarian working class based on experiences of real people."--Historical Novels Review

". . . a thoughtful and deliberate piece of literary fiction on both individual and collective experiences when caught between survival, remorse, and hope."--Readers' Favorite, 5-star review

2025 Literary Titan Book Award Gold Medalist in Fiction

"Watson's writing hits like a storm. The language is raw, unvarnished, and aching with honesty."--Literary Titan, 5-star review

"Orphans is a stunning debut. Where has this writer been hiding? It's all blood and soul and heartache and survival. A story of the powerful and the powerless. I can't recommend it highly enough and I can't wait to see what she does next."--Willy Vlautin, winner of the 2025 Joyce Carol Oates Prize, and author of eight novels, including The Horse.

"In this stark and poignant novel, Kathy Watson crafts a heart-wrenching story of poverty, injustice, and fractured familial relationships before, during, and after America's Great Depression. . . . To what end will each of them go to find forgiveness? Redemption? An impressive debut."--Ashley E. Sweeney, author of The Irish Girl

"Orphans of the Living is a masterpiece of writing as spare as the hardscrabble landscapes that never quite support its characters. Watson's gift is that she weaves the threads of redemption like sinews that bind this poignant narrative into a story well worth knowing. . . . Brava to this debut novelist."--Barbara Stark-Nemon, author of Even in Darkness

"The language of this debut novel makes the Stovall family come alive. The images are fresh and poignant. Each voice is unique, memorable and invites us to the Southwest and West of Steinbeck and Barbara Kingsolver. I look forward to more novels written by this story master. So will you."--Jane Kirkpatrick, New York Times best-selling author of Across the Crying Sands

"In Orphans of the Living, Kathy Watson gives us an unflinching look at how Americans lived, worked, loved, and dreamed in the first half of the twentieth century. Watson brings history to life on the page bravely, honestly, and generously."--Ann Hood, author of The Stolen Child

About the Author

Kathy Watson spent years as a public relations executive and journalist, including six as editor-in-chief of Oregon Business magazine, before embarking on a new career as a chef and restaurant owner. This is her debut novel. She lives in Hood River, Oregon, where she writes, leads a chefs collective, and runs and hikes the Columbia River Gorge with her husband Stu and Satchel, the world's best dog.