I love all things Irish, the language, a good cup of tea,
soda bread, Guinness stew, smoked salmon, banoffee
pie, green hills, happy cows, cheddar cheese,... and all
things Southern, sweet iced tea, southern hospitality,
everything written by authors Louise Penny and
Elizabeth Buchan, Johanna Trollope, winter sunsets,
driving through hot desert nights with the windows
open, coffee and conversation with good friends,
Katherine Hepburn movies, dessert, intimate
gatherings and bright breezy days.
I live in Southern California where I learned humility
by teaching school to remarkably well-behaved 6th
graders, and in County Kerry, Ireland where I take
long walks, listen to traditional music, sigh over gray
skies, Skype with my four adorable grandchildren
and, when the muse strikes, write another novel.
Jeanette Baker
MEET JEANETTE
NEW RELEASE
Birthright
Now Available
Two women on a course to confront the past, one to expose its secrets, the other to bury them.
Claire Williams travels halfway across the globe from Southern California to Ireland to find the mother who gave her up and the questions that need answering. Norah O’Connor is equally determined to avoid revisiting the most shameful time of her life and the devastating decisions she was forced to make.
Claire’s presence fifty years later is the engine for the confrontations to come when neighbors Norah has known forever recognize Claire’s resemblance to a younger sister. Norah must face the man who fathered both her daughters, and decide to either hold the secrets that continue to embitter her or release them for the shame that will surely mark her.
IN THE PRESS
"Birthright will find a welcome place in any library strong in stories of mother/daughter relationships, Irish culture, and the special conundrums faced by adult children who seek answers to the decisions their birth parents made."
Midwest Book Review