​Echoed In My Bones

A Novel Inspired by the Author's Experience as an Inner-City Therapist
When sixteen-year-old Lakisha White surrenders her newborns, Jasmine who looks black, and Tessa who looks white, are raised in neighboring New Jersey towns, but worlds apart. Jasmine scrapes through a harrowing childhood in the foster-care system while Tessa struggles with her perfectionist mother and the pressures of being the youngest child in a high-achieving family of physicians and attorneys. Neither Jasmine nor Tessa know of each other’s existence until Lakisha’s son is diagnosed with leukemia. In order to find a compatible bone-marrow donor, Lakisha is forced to choose between keeping her traumatic history hidden from her longtime boyfriend, or searching for the daughters she abandoned. How Lakisha, Jasmine, and Tessa come together again is the story of the mistakes that threaten to destroy us and the injuries that echo in our bones; the ones that only love can heal.

Praise For Echoed in My Bones

“This uplifting story reminded me that the invisible threads that create a family are often stronger than time, distance, and hardships.”
-- Jennifer Haupt, bestselling author of In the Shadow of 10,000 Hills

" Lyrical language, compelling dialog, and original slam poetry that pounds like a beating heart – all this will remain long after you’ve turned the final pages of this beautifully written book."    
-- Nancy Gerber, A Way Out of Nowhere and The Dancing Clock  
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"Drawing on her experience as an inner-city psychotherapist, Lisa Sturm reminds us just how much distinct environmental stressors, or advantages, pave our paths in life, and also how profound our need for family is. This well-crafted and well-imagined novel will keep you reading well into the night."   
-- Ellen Sherman, Just the Facts and Monkeys on the Bed

"This book helps you believe in God. It is a combustible mix of race, economic inequity, trauma, secrets, family, faith, and – not at all last or least – resilience."
--Lloyd I. Sederer MD, Director of Columbia Psychiatry Media and former Chief Medical Officer of the New York State Office of Mental Health. 

"Echoed in my Bones is an incredibly well written and breathtaking read. The believable characters and engrossing story will keep you spellbound for hours as you take a journey filled with sadness, joy, mistakes and second chances."
--Jeanetta Singleton, Irvington Public Library Director

"Echoed in My Bones is a captivating page-turner that kept me wanting to read more. The Jasmine and Lakisha characters were similar to many people I have worked with in my career as a social worker and mentor in an urban school district. The way Ms. Sturm was able to bring Jasmine, Tessa, and Lakisha together was simply magical."
--Malika Berry, School Social Worker and Founder of Berry’s Butterflies

"Echoed in My Bones is heartbreaking and, ultimately heartwarming.  These are families of urban northern New Jersey who are shattered and scattered by the foster care system, by the shaming of young girls and women, by the lack of choices to determine their own futures.  The secrets and lies told due to love and fear of loss traverse generations.  There will be lives in upheaval as the indomitable Jasmine finds her way back to the past in order to assure herself of a present not freighted by deprivation, and takes on a sense that a wider life can be hers." 
--Frances Bartkowski, An Afterlife
Rutgers University-Newark

"Echoed in My Bones didn’t just hold my interest, it actually may have helped me become a better caseworker for my families! Jasmine and Lakisha are authentic characters, and reading their stories reminds us of how a little compassion can go such a long way with these kids. I think the book should be required reading for everyone who works with at-risk youth. I was cheering for Jasmine, Lakisha, and Tessa every step of the way!"
--Allison James, Founder of Girls; Live, Love, Laugh Inc., Newark, NJ. Caseworker for the NJ Department of Children Protection and Permanency

"Echoed In My Bones is a moving and important novel about characters whose lives we come to care deeply about, told with elegance, warmth, and grace."
--Jackie Parker, Our Lady of Infidelity
 
"This heartfelt novel takes a close look at how circumstances pull people apart and bring them together. The twins separated at birth are compelling characters each seeking a fulfilling life when they learn the truth about their past. They are forced to change in ways they didn't expect, and I found myself wondering what I'd feel and do in their situation. This is a page turning story of family and society and growth."
--Alice Elliott Dark, author of In the Gloaming and Think of England
Rutgers University, Newark

"I loved this book. It is a well-crafted piece of work that is compelling and realistic. This is especially true regarding the challenges of becoming caught up in the social services system of this country.  I think this would be a great read for teens and young adults and those providing parenting to them. Having adopted a child and having worked in the foster care system, I appreciate this author’s understanding of it. The characters in this novel exhibit many of the skills and attitudes of resilience that me and my colleagues have been teaching through our work.
--Ron Breazeale Ph.D., Founder of The Maine Resilience Program and author of Duct Tape Isn’t Enough: Survival Skills for the 21st Century as well as two novels Reaching Home and First Night. 

"The author is clearly a very talented writer...Echoed in My Bones is a compelling read."  
​--The BookLife Prize