Born in San Francisco, I grew up in Mill Valley, California, and now live in Seattle. Graduating with Phi Beta Kappa from Stanford University in history, I worked for many years in scientific and technical communications. Finally I was able to return to my first love--history. I inherited an intriguing story of forbears who converted to Mormonism in Scotland in the 1840s and spent seven months traveling to Utah in the 1850s. Finding that it was a fanatical period among the Mormons--with insistence on absolute obedience to religious authorities and with a few bishops taking it upon themselves to eliminate those they considered enemies of God--most of the family became disaffected within five years of settling there. Fearing for their lives, they requested an army escort out of Utah to California. Their leaving split the family, for several daughters had married, remained faithful, and stayed in Utah. In 2010, "Mormon Convert, Mormon Defector" was awarded "Best Biography" by the Mormon History Association and was also named Spur Award finalist for historical biography by the Western Writers of America.My second book came out of associations with historians in Utah. My major piece was the autobiography of George A. Hicks, a truly amazing Mormon pioneer. Hicks had a gift for language and wrote with vigor. He was outspoken and was a keen observer of human nature, especially of people's foibles. But at the same time, he also pointed out people who had done a kindness. He was insightful and did not hesitate to express his own opinion. All this makes for a wonderful read and gives a view of pioneer life and events in especially turbulent times among the Mormons that is hard to equal."Playing with Shadows: Voices of Dissent in the Mormon West" was awarded the Smith-Pettit Foundation Best Documentary History Award by the Utah State Historical Society in 2012.