Just Willa Family Secrets and Strength Revealed

In this episode, Betsy Wurzel interviews author Helen Sheehy about
her novel Just Willa, a story inspired by Helen’s own mother.
Growing up on tenant farms in Oklahoma and Kansas, Helen’s family
history shaped her deep curiosity about her mother’s life, which
remained largely unknown to her until after her mother passed away
when Helen was 36.Helen Sheehy, a long-time theatre professor at
Southern Connecticut State University, has authored biographies of
three theatre pioneers: Margo:

The Life and Theatre of Margo Jones, Eva Le Gallienne: A Biography,
and Eleonora Duse: A Biography — with the latter two named New York
Times notable books of the year. After years of writing nonfiction,
Just Willa marks her first venture into fiction, returning to her
love of storytelling.In

Just Willa, the fictional Willa Hardesty is modeled after Helen’s
mother, Wilma. The novel follows Willa, the daughter of a
homesteader, as she navigates the challenges of farm life, the
Great Depression, and decades of personal and social hardships.
Willa encourages her daughters to pursue education for a better
life, showing strength, grit, and determination despite the
difficulties of the 1930s and 40s. Her husband Jake, a tenant
farmer, also earned money bootlegging whiskey at local
dances.

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