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Published by She Writes Press
Distributed by Simon & Schuster
Table of Contents
About The Book
If you believe in the power of dreams and intentions, this inspirational coming-of-age memoir set in 1950s Australia where an immigrant girl swimmer turns challenges and disappointments into opportunities for success is for you.
Henny was just a little girl when she experienced brutal violence and hunger in WWII Amsterdam, but she is now a teenage immigrant swimmer in 1950s Australia where she must learn to turn challenges into success. She is smart, she swims fast, and she has definite opinions about the kind of woman she intends to be.
She hears the timeless Land speak and sees the Southern Cross as a beacon when she walks in the bush with her father. She enjoys swimming star fame and championship victories and turns to the pool in her search to belong, to face fears and dashed hopes, until at every turn she sees more clearly her unique path ahead.
“Intentions are like prayers, if you pay attention they come back as destiny,” her mother has taught her. Is it intention or destiny that propels this young New Australian into her future long life?
Henny was just a little girl when she experienced brutal violence and hunger in WWII Amsterdam, but she is now a teenage immigrant swimmer in 1950s Australia where she must learn to turn challenges into success. She is smart, she swims fast, and she has definite opinions about the kind of woman she intends to be.
She hears the timeless Land speak and sees the Southern Cross as a beacon when she walks in the bush with her father. She enjoys swimming star fame and championship victories and turns to the pool in her search to belong, to face fears and dashed hopes, until at every turn she sees more clearly her unique path ahead.
“Intentions are like prayers, if you pay attention they come back as destiny,” her mother has taught her. Is it intention or destiny that propels this young New Australian into her future long life?
Product Details
- Publisher: She Writes Press (September 2, 2025)
- Length: 256 pages
- ISBN13: 9781647429515
Raves and Reviews
“This beautiful book speaks for all traumatized and displaced children. An inspiring tale of a young girl’s intentions, guided by parental wisdom and love, to find her inner champion in a land where she struggled to belong. A powerful reminder that we can all dream and manifest a brighter future.”—Maryanne Mooney, author of The Worthy Leader: from Potential to Mastery
“This coming-of-age story reveals the working of destiny. It will inspire the migrant within each of us seeking home. You won’t be able to put this book down!”—Maureen Murdock, author of The Heroine’s Journey
“What a powerful continuation of Hendrika de Vries’ story! It begins in 1950 when 13-year-old “Henny” and her family emigrate to Australia, a completely new and different world with no understanding of the war trauma she has just survived. I loved the way this honest, sometimes sad, but ultimately hopeful book evoked memories of my own experience as an immigrant and as an adolescent.”––Christine Downing, Ph.D, scholar and author of The Goddess: Mythological Images of the Feminine
“Open Turns asks three essential questions: Who am I apart from my talents and dreams? What destiny is calling me to become who I authentically am? What does remembering my past add to the texture of who I have become? Moving between becoming and being, Hendrika’s coming-of-age adventure into herself and out to the world resonates with all of us who have wondered about our identity, our destiny, and our purpose in life.”—Dennis Patrick Slattery, Distinguished Emeritus Professor, author, most recently, of The Fictions in Our Convictions: Essays on Cultural Mythology
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- Book Cover Image (jpg): Open Turns Enhanced eBook 9781647429515
