{"product_id":"the-search-for-valentina-getsch-sandra-franks-9798244385854","title":"The Search for Valentina Getsch: The True Story of A Family's Enduring Love, A Wish Granted, And A Promise Kept","description":"\u003cp\u003eSome journeys begin long before we are born. Some names are taken from us before we can speak them.\u003cbr\u003eAt fourteen months old, a baby boy sails from Russia to America in his mother Valentina's arms. For twenty-one days they wait at immigration for the husband and father who never comes. Turned away from his Finnish family's farm because she is Russian, Valentina is forced out. When the marriage collapses, her husband takes their five-year-old son to Maryland, changes their surname so she can never find them, and later abandons the boy at thirteen.\u003cbr\u003eDecades pass. The silences harden. His children grow up knowing almost nothing about the grandmother whose absence shaped their father's life. Then, after a heart attack in 2016, he makes a single request: \u003ci\u003eFind out what became of my mother.\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Search for Valentina Getsch\u003c\/i\u003e is the story of what happened when his daughters tried to keep that promise. Following scattered records and fragile memories across time, borders, and generations, they search for a woman erased from the family story-and for the lost relatives who still carry her name. What they uncover is not a tidy reunion, but something quieter and more enduring: dignity restored, questions finally asked, and a love that survived in the spaces between what was taken and what was chosen.\u003cbr\u003eThis story will resonate with readers who are drawn to: \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eImmigration stories and the cost of leaving a homeland\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eFamily secrets, name changes, and hidden histories\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eGenealogy quests, lost relatives, and late-in-life reconnections\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eNarratives of abandonment, resilience, and choosing a different legacy\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\u003cp\u003eWritten with tenderness and restraint, \u003ci\u003eThe Search for Valentina Getsch\u003c\/i\u003e is a testament to the promises that wait years for the right moment-and the courage it takes to look back so we can finally understand who we are.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Sandra Franks\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9798244385854\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Independently Published\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 01\/25\/2026\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 178\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.40lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 8.00h x 5.00w x 0.41d","brand":"Sandra Franks","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":48447273697535,"sku":"9798244385854","price":9.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0662\/2982\/9887\/files\/img_df656ccd-615c-42e5-b963-60e97b29047d.jpg?v=1777230008","url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/the-search-for-valentina-getsch-sandra-franks-9798244385854","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}