Sally Jameson Bond worked on her debut novel, My Mother’s Friend, for decades. She just didn’t know it.
Sally comes from a large, close-knit, musically talented, Iowa Lutheran family of Swedish descent. Her protagonist, Phee Swensson, one of five children and a gifted pianist, lives in Iowa and is the daughter of a Lutheran pastor of Swedish descent. Sally found ways to blend that flavor she knows so well into her story.
After struggling to “get” history in her early years, Sally eventually became passionate about the subject. In time, World War II became her primary interest, and over the past forty years, Sally and her husband Joe have visited many prominent European WWII sites. Their Berlin experience in 1991 provided the foundation for the opening and closing chapters of My Mother’s Friend.
After a thirty-year career in academic libraries, Sally retired in 2017. Her eagerly awaited sequel, My Mother’s Son, was published in December 2023.
In November 2022, My Mother’s Friend received the 5-star Highly Recommended Award of Excellence from The Historical Fiction Company, and in September 2023, it was awarded the Global Book Awards Gold Medal for their Teen & Young Adult, Literature & Fiction category.
Sally lives in southwest Virginia with Joe and their rescue dog Bart (aka The Best Dog in the World).