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Upcoming Novel Based On True Events Set In Rockaway

“A baby dies in the hospital, and no reason is given.”


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Pamela Gwyn Kripke grew up with a well-kept family secret. In 1932, at St. Joseph’s Hospital of Far Rockaway (now St. John’s Episcopal), her grandmother’s four-day-old infant died—with no explanation given.

“Everyone kept it real hush hush,” said Kripke. “It was, ‘don’t ask questions because it’ll only upset Grandma Charlotte.’”

In her upcoming semi-autobiographical novel, Kripke answers the questions she’s had since childhood, and tells the story of a mysterious incident that has shaken her family for generations. “At the Seams” is a coming of age story that explores trauma, mother-daughter relationships, and the lengths we go to protect the people we love.

“At the Seams,” an upcoming novel set partially in Rockaway.

“The main character has a decision to make: does she do what she’s supposed to do, protect the grandmother and be quiet, or does she trust her instinct, which is to be inquisitive and curious?”

Much like her protagonist, Kripke chose the latter.

“I was divorced, and my daughters went to their father’s for the first time,” she said. “Weirdly, that’s when I started researching this story. I was experiencing these feelings of … separating from a child, and somewhere in my head I started thinking of my grandmother’s baby.”

Her research began with a death certificate from the Department of Records—there was no birth certificate for the baby. From there, she developed a contact list, sifted through census records, and uncovered family members she didn’t know she had. She consulted her brother, a physician, on the medical details of the story.

Pamela Gwyn Kripke, author of upcoming novelAt the Seams.”

Kripke’s family has long-established roots in Rockaway. She uses her family lineage of dressmakers to complement themes of pattern-making in her multi-generational story. The book includes scenes from Far Rockaway, where her mother attended high school (and was voted Best Dressed), and Belle Harbor, where Kripke used to visit her grandparents as a child.

“It’s such a distinctive place,” she said. “It was such a great, fun time when we were little kids, to go visit grandparents at the beach … They were really magical characters. It was really nostalgic writing about them.”

As for the medical mystery, Kripke believes she’s solved it.

“I found a reason, I think,” she said. “I did find other instances of baby deaths, and drew some conclusions in the book.”

Pamela Gwyn Kripke is an author and journalist whose work has appeared in The New York Times, The Chicago Tribune, The Chicago Sun-Times, The Dallas Morning News, The Huffington Post, Slate, and Salon. She holds an AB in English from Brown University and an MS in Journalism from Northwestern University.

“At the Seams” received the Arch Street Press First Chapter Award. It will be published by Open Books in May 2023, and is available for pre-order now on their website. 

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