Offering a colourful interpretation of a child's view of the Great Depression in New York and the Hudson River Valley, this book is both a testament to a family's history and to the history of New York. The author recounts her past with humour and candour -- including stories of encounters with President Roosevelt and her 20 years serving in the army. The book also traces the author's ancestry through 25 generations from the Dutch lowlands, through the Protestant Reformation, to pre-colonial America. It uncovers these individuals' contributions to religious freedom and government, offering surprising bits of religious history shared between the earliest settlers of Manhattan.