In 1847, the McCord family, filled with hope for prospects of a better life, packed all their earthly belongings into covered wagons and left their homes in Indiana for Texas. The world beyond was in front of seven-year-old Fidelia, and little did she know, as the wagons traveled down the dusty trail to the southwest, that there would be the need for all the courage she could muster. Her faith would be tested and fortitude found in the most unexpected places.

Let the Little Birds Sing is the beginning of Fidelia McCord’s story, of the hardships she encounters and sees around her, told through the eyes of a precocious and determined girl. It is a tale set in early America inspired by the journey of a girl coming of age amidst the perils of settling in a new and untamed land.

Sandra Fox Murphy wrote her first novel in 2015 after retiring from the U.S. Geological Survey. She is intrigued by the journeys of our ancestors, and before writing Let the Little Birds Sing, she published A Thousand Stars, set in Rhode Island, and a Civil War tale called That Beautiful Season. Sandra finds that the history of early America begs for the stories of the characters, both real and imagined, to be told.

Born in Delaware and growing up as a USAF “brat,” she eventually found her way to Texas where she graduated from The University of Texas at Austin. She has lived throughout the USA and on islands in both the Atlantic and the Pacific. She now resides in central Texas and dreams of living in Marfa.

Learn more at www.sandrafoxmurphy.com.