Pass by my Window is a love story. It is a love story of a different kind where part memories, part musings and partially new insights are blended to paint a picture of life in a small town during the 1940s and beyond. Your author, Marion Golarz, first takes you on a tour of her growing-up years in the quiet town of Conneaut, Ohio, during the 1940s and early 1950s and then widens her vision to concentrate on the America that has continued to struggle to honor its promises. After first beginning with an intimate look at her immigrant family of Irish and Scotch immigrant roots, she follows with portraits of the sounds, sights, and customs embedded in her childhood while growing up near the shores of Lake Erie. All this she surrounds with the dreams, disappointments, and courage of those people who were then part of her daily life. But, the love affair does not end there as she explores some of the magnificent moments and horrific tragedies of the American decades following the 50's. Sadly, you will be reminded of the long-lasting effects of war, disasters, civil discord, and accelerated change that have made America a more difficult place to understand. But, she also proudly recognizes an America where people from all walks of life still strive to take care of each other and still strive to live up to the ideals of our precious democracy. Sprinkled throughout the prose, Marion includes a collection of poems she has, over the years, written on the backs of napkins and scraps of paper. She hopes that her unique view of treasured memories and haunting concerns will add to the understanding and celebration of all that she has been a part of and loved.
