I’m reaching out about a Florida story that looks at the state through the eyes of a child

who experienced it in the 1950s and ’60s.

Author Michaelia Morgan was born in New York and moved with her family to a Florida

dairy farm as a child. There, she encountered the realities of segregation, family

dysfunction and devastating upheaval, but also discovered unexpected places of safety.

Her debut memoir, That Yankee Girl: The Early Years, tells that story through the eyes

of the girl who lived it.

One of the memoir’s most striking themes is where children find refuge when the

adults and institutions around them fail them.

For Michaelia, some of that refuge came from Nature: the dairy farm, horses, wild

animals, pastures and enormous oak trees gave her a sense of peace and continuity. Growing up in a segregated community, Michaelia found unconditional support within the local Black community “on the other side of the tracks,” a relationship that

profoundly shaped her understanding of belonging, race, and humanity.

At 13, Michaelia found herself navigating juvenile hall and a reform camp. Rather than

allowing those experiences to define her, she eventually built an extraordinarily varied

life.

Today she is a writer whose careers have included IRS tax auditor, programmer,

systems analyst, teacher, interpreter for the Deaf, cook, dancer, actor, editor and

proofreader. In 1982, she rode her bicycle across the country.

Michaelia can discuss:

• Growing up on a Florida dairy farm during segregation

• The realities of being a child trying to understand racial divisions

• Finding an “accidental family” across the tracks

• Why Nature can become a child’s sanctuary

• Surviving juvenile hall and reform camp at 13

• Why she chose to tell the story without adult anger or self-pity

The audiobook is narrated by Michaelia in the blended Southern dialects she grew up

hearing, making the story particularly evocative for listeners interested in Florida and

Southern history.

I’d love to explore whether Michaelia could be a fit for a Florida/Southern feature,

interview, book review or conversation about the lived history behind her memoir.

Best,

Sofia

ThatYankeeGirl.com

Purchase That Yankee Girl: The Early Years on Amazon