Journeys of discovery aren’t only about men, as fathers of daughters know full well. Carolyn Jourdan’s Heart in the Right Place is just such a journey, one that comes not from leaving home, but from returning to it. A Washington, D.C., attorney and the personal counsel to a powerful U.S. senator, Jourdan enjoyed living in an important city filled with important people. But when her mother suffers a stroke, Jourdan fills in temporarily as the receptionist for her father’s storefront health clinic, where she encounters the People on a daily and even nightly basis, from hypochondriacs to accident-prone farmhands and in so doing, rediscovers where her heart truly lies. Heart in the Right Place is an absolute delight of a book: warm, funny and written with great heart and understanding. It is alive with characters who are as unbelievable as they are real and their reality reveals how community, family and friendships build connections that run much deeper and matter far more than all the high-power deals, plans and programs of politicians and lobbyists. In the end, Jourdan discovers not only herself, but a new respect for her father and the meaning his life has in a place she forgot was home.
Valiant Women is a vital and engrossing attempt to correct the record and rightfully celebrate the achievements of female veterans of World War II.
