Subscribe to our Daily Headlines newsletter.

When author Billie-Fae Gerard Gill tells you the story of mother Ruth Leonard in her book “White Sandals in the Snow,” just remember much of it is true.

Early in the novel, readers encounter Ruth in Battle Creek, Michigan, where she is diagnosed by the famous John Harvey Kellogg with arterial sclerosis, who said she wouldn’t live long, especially if she continued in school, married and had children. To that, Gill said her mother told him “Well if I’m going to die, I might as well enjoy doing what I do.” She did just that with her life.

“If you have the attitude of ‘I can survive this,’ you can survive a lot,” Gill said. “She smiled through it all.”

The events in the book are often seen through Gill’s mother, an exceptional and independent woman who didn’t always play by the rules of the time, but she stayed true to herself.

Whether it was her life as a gym teacher, going against her mother’s will to marry her husband, an immigrant and Lutheran, which was too much for the Methodist family, or just choosing to live as freely and independently as she choose, the stories blend together to tell the tale of change in America in the world in the 20th century. Gill, now 81, plays a small role in the book, she said, but the women in the family before her are the main characters.

And that she did. Gill’s mother is central to the story in which her 108 years of life covered the 20th century. Through the eyes of Ruth, her mother Hattie-Becky, and grandmother Lucinda, they go from the grandmother’s life as a woman twice-widowed by Civil War veterans to life before and after the Great Depression, World War II, and all the other changes over the century.

“I had someone tell me that they felt like they lived in the 20th century after reading the book, there’s a lot of details about how life was,” Gill said.

Gill, now 89, could answer some of the questions about life then, but between her own library, the public library, or her adult children with smartphones, she said she checked and doubled check to try to keep the story as historically accurate as possible.

Much of the narrative comes from oral history passed down in the family, but in some cases for the novel’s sake, Gill had to fill in gaps and add narrative flair in places. One of the times that the historical novel takes some license is when Ruth embarks to be a sulky racer, a type of harness racing with horses. While Ruth was certainly that, some of the details of racing and who she encountered required embellishment to keep the story moving along.

Those stories blend together, Gill said, to tell the larger story of the women in a changing world, but not always in positive ways. While Ruth was able to go to college, Hattie-Becky and Lucinda, who was blind, had to shepherd the family through a number of events, including the Great Depression. Tough times had the family living in tents at one point, another time when Ruth had to walk in sandals in the snow to go to the store, where the book’s title comes from, but through it all, Ruth and her family’s resiliency shined through.

“You know the saying about life and lemons? My mother made a lot of lemonade,” Gill said. It is that outlook of not taking a day for granted and taking care of herself with diet and exercise that Gill said allowed her mother to live more than a century.

Gill said she wanted to document much of her mother’s life, but she also believes readers can learn from the book while being entertained by the evolving relationships of the characters.

In 2017, Gill previously authored “The Sergeant Major’s Wife” which observation of family life stationed in post-World War II Europe. She is already working on her next book “Zebra in the Hall.”

Follow Ben Gibson on Facebook and Twitter at @BenGibsonSRL

"White Sandals in the Snow" is available on Amazon.

Subscribe to our Daily Headlines newsletter.

Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items.

Fun, games, rides and fantastic foods are coming back when the Hickory American Legion Fair opens for its annual run Wednesday, Aug. 31.

The following deeds were filed in the Iredell County Register of Deeds office from July 31-Aug. 6. For more information regarding specific plo…

The Corvettes of Statesville group gave local car buffs a chance to showcase their vehicles and help a worthy cause at the same time. The Corv…

The Statesville Back 2 School Bash had a steady line of vehicles circling Statesville High School and the volunteers were excited as the proce…

North Carolina Public health restaurant and food-stand inspections in Iredell County, July 31-Aug. 6.

A Conover man was charged with indecent liberties with a minor, said Iredell Sheriff Darren Campbell.

A Charlotte man is being sought on a felony drug charge after deputies responded to a noise disturbance Sunday.

Councilman Frederick Foster hands out a monthly Ward Six Community Service Award to recognize contributions by residents and others in Ward 6 …

A Vale man who tried to elude deputies early Wednesday morning on a traffic stop was arrested a short time later, said Iredell Sheriff Darren …

Iredell Health System, in partnership with the Iredell Physician Network, announced that Shykita E. Hill, MSW, LCSW-A, has joined Iredell Psychiatry.

Get up-to-the-minute news sent straight to your device.