Judy McConnell presents "Dreamhouse"

Radley and Shane Gallagher are a golden couple in the world of the 1960s and '70s. Attractive and educated, their success seems assured on all fronts. Shane will steadily climb the corporate career ladder and Radley will become a happy mom busy creating an ideal home. They've even found their dream house in an upscale suburb that offers the best of everything. But as the Vietnam War drags on a half-a-world away, disillusionments settles in. Radley is frustrated by her homemaking role, and Shane doesn't really like traipsing off on weekends on family outings. He'd much rather stay home with his highball. Increasingly unhappy, Radley finds an outlet in a  consciousness-raising feminist group, where she meets women activists also drawn to the need for social change. As her involvement in the civil rights and women's movements deepens, Shane retreats, too. Deeper into alcohol.

Only when an accident nearly claims one of their children are Radley and Shane shocked into looking at what they've become--and what they've lost through their idealized expectations. And it could be too late. Set against the backdrop of the social movements of the era, Dreamhouse is realistic and disturbing,while offering a ray of hope.

 

Judy McConnell was born in Charleston, West Virginia and moved to Minnesota with her family in 1939. She became interested in writing at an early age, but didn't get around to writing a book until age 73. After graduating in Comparative Literature from the University of Southern California, she traveled and lived on the coasts for a while before marrying and taking up careers as a teacher, training specialist, and documentation writer. Divorced, she lives in active retirement in St. Louis Park and is the proud parent of two and grandparent of five.