Wednesday's Children: Memoirs of a Nurse-Turned-Social-Worker in the Appalachian Mountains

Delivering welfare babies, warding off voodoo spells, and living in a culture that still seems to be fighting the Civil War-small wonder young registered nurse Kate Jacobs quickly grows disenchanted with nursing in the "lowcountry" of coastal South Carolina. When a friend urges her to switch from nursing to paramedic and child protection services social work, Kate accepts the challenge and finds herself in one of the most isolated areas of rural Appalachia.

Here a whole new set of challenges await: technical cliff rescues, hikes into remote back-woods "hollers" to remove child victims of sexual assault from their homes only to have an indifferent judge order them back the next day, and dealing with some of America's poorest and most distrustful citizens. And from all appearances, and even though she's white, former members of the Ku Klux Klan have just set her house on fire...

Based on the memoirs of a registered nurse-turned-social worker, this is a tale of heartbreak and laughter, courage and cowardice seasoned with a candid look at the early days of social work and emergency rescue medicine that will both challenge and renew your faith in humanity.