And She Shall Have Music — Janet Joyce

Rosie Shannon's life is shattered when, at the tender age of four, her mother dies, leaving her and her brother Robbie in the hands of their self-obsessed father, who ultimately abandons them. After a brief, deeply traumatic period with their Aunt Agatha, the children finally find a home with “Tiny” Katie and Jamie McFarland. What this couple lack in riches they make up for in the unconditional love they shower on the traumatized children. The children's struggle is set against the dramatic backdrop of Northern Ireland in the 1920s and '30s. The Catholic/Protestant divide is opening up and the foundations of the island's “troubles” are being laid. As the Depression hits hard, the people are jobless and hungry. This story depicts all the facets of human nature; the good, the bad and the wealth of emotions in between. …And She Shall Have Music is a celebration of the human spirit.