About the Book

Book: The Broken Weathervane

Author: Laura DeNooyer

Genre: Women’s fiction, dual timeline fiction, literary fiction, book club fiction

Release Date: September 2, 2025

Two co-workers seek the same information. One wants to publish it; the other has good reasons to keep it hidden.

As Leslie Wickersham, Raymond University grants officer, seeks information to unravel a family mystery, English professor Gregory Stafford seeks an elusive interview with one more Buckwalter relative for his upcoming author biography. While Greg and Leslie guard coveted details from each other, her goals are further complicated by letters of blackmail threatening to reveal all she has worked hard to hide.

In this dual timeline novel alternating between 2015 and the 1950s, loyalty is tested and secrets abound when family honor collides with truth. Leslie grapples with the trade-off: how far will a person go to help a loved one thrive?

 

Click here to get your copy!

 

About the Author

Laura DeNooyer thrives on creativity and encouraging it in others. A Calvin College graduate, she is a teacher, wife, parent of four adult children, and an award-winning author of heart-warming historical and contemporary fiction. Her novels are perfect for fans of Patti Callahan Henry, Erin Bartels, or Amanda Cox. When she’s not writing, you’ll find her reading, walking, drinking tea with friends, or taking a road trip.

 

 

 

More from Laura

The Shame of Silence

In the 1950s, nobody talked openly about mental illness. We think it’s stigmatized today; it was worse then.

When a family member is physically ill or in an accident, folks will line up outside your door to bring comfort or casseroles. It’s an easily shared prayer request. But when a family member has an episode related to mental illness, it’s shrouded in secrecy and shame. Thus, the people most needing prayers and support don’t get them.

That’s the experience of Fritz, Eddie, and Klara Buckwalter in the 1950s timeline of The Broken Weathervane.

Leave It to Beaver

Television in the 1950s became a household word with its daily entertainment. Sitcoms included Danny Thomas’s Make Room for Daddy, I Love Lucy, Our Miss Brooks, and Father Knows Best. Variety shows like The Ed Sullivan Show along with comedy shows featuring George Burns, Jack Benny, and Red Skelton had viewers laughing in living rooms across America.

But those shows illuminated the lighter side of life. Today, we fondly embrace the innocence and nostalgia of Leave It to Beaver. But that’s far-fetched from everyday realities. Especially for those plagued by mental illness.

Old Dog, New Tricks

In the 2015 timeline, two co-workers are at cross purposes—both seeking the same information for different reasons.

When my protagonist Leslie Wickersham is hired as the grants officer at Raymond University, she doesn’t count on having to teach an old dog new tricks. By dog, I mean the brassy, pretentious English professor, Dr. Gregory Stafford—who isn’t all that old, but is behind the times.

The dean expects Leslie to drag Greg into the 21st century via social media, something Greg has relegated to the annals of Hogwash and Absurdity.

Their proximity becomes her chance to pick his brain for nuggets from his upcoming biography of local author Linus Fritz Buckwalter.

But she can’t let him know that Fritz is her great-uncle. Or that the one last interview Greg is holding out for—Klara Buckwalter—is Leslie’s grandmother.

Due to Klara’s silence, Leslie hopes Greg holds the key to knowledge about the family rift.

Answers start appearing when Klara gives Leslie her 1950s diary. The answers are shocking—but also contradict Greg’s research.

If you appreciate stories with:

• small town family secrets
• family drama
• dual timelines (2015 and 1950s)
• moral dilemmas
• family loyalty vs. honesty
• an honest, tender treatment of mental illness

. . . then this story will touch your heart.

My hope is that book club discussions will help increase understanding, transparency, and empathy for those who suffer. Open dialogue about mental illness is that important first step toward reducing the stigma associated with it. The Broken Weathervane is the perfect catalyst for that.

Author Interview

• What is your favorite genre of books? Why?

 

I love reading the kind of stories I write—complex and character-driven with complicated relationships and messy family dynamics. I like delving into the gray, murky areas of life, into false appearances and misjudgments. I like stories that serve food for thought as well as hope and second chances—tales that “redeem the years the locusts ate.”

I find these kinds of stories in my favorite genres: historical fiction and contemporary women’s fiction. But I read a variety, both Christian fiction and general market, plus non-fiction.

• Are you a one project at a time author or do you have multiple projects going at once?

Working on only one project at a time would be frustrating for me! I’m able to shift gears and move from one project to another, especially when I need a break from one. At any given time, I’m in the process of writing one story, editing another, and marketing yet another. I’m constantly striving for balance among them.

• How has your life experience helped in your writing journey?

My life experiences have brought hard-earned wisdom and empathy for others going through difficult times. This automatically infuses my writing.

In The Broken Weathervane, I wrote from firsthand experience for some of the incidents. Writing about similar incidents was a way of wrestling through the devastation and angst of how the situations impacted me.

Storytelling in novels is often more than just telling a tale. It’s a baring of the soul; it’s working through tough issues. It pulls me through the gamut of emotions; it stretches my limits and my faith. Much like journal writing does as a means to an end. It’s both exploration and a journey.

As a teacher, I always taught that the writing process—or any creation of art—is just as important as the end product, if not more so. Same with those life experiences that now imprint my writing.

• Where do you find your greatest inspiration?

My biggest inspiration comes from everyday anecdotes, articles, and observations. Sometimes visiting a particular spot or seeing a poignant photograph sparks a story.

Then I start asking, “What if . . .?” I brainstorm, considering which juxtapositions of characters and situations will cause the most tension.

For example, in The Broken Weathervane, I was inspired by a family story my dad often shared about his father and uncle. They were in business together with their youngest brother who struggled quite a bit. The two older brothers did everything in their power to help him succeed in his own businesses and later hired him to work at theirs. I loved the way they cared for him despite all the difficulties they encountered. I often wondered what the issues were.

This was the spark of the 1950s timeline in my novel. Then the characters took on lives of their own.

In the 2015 timeline inspiration, I needed two people at cross purposes with each other—both seeking the same information (from the 1950s) for different reasons.

One of my other books, A Hundred Magical Reasons, grew from reading a biography about L. Frank Baum, author of The Wizard of Oz.

• Do you have extensive outlines when writing or do you write a book as you go?

I love the creative process. Sometimes that means putting stories together like a puzzle. Other times it means writing without a clear plan in order to discover a story.

Most of the time, I start with a premise and a couple of characters. Ideas start percolating when I’m sitting down writing a scene. I see connections to other characters and situations that will raise the stakes, increase the tension, and further the plot.

For The Broken Weathervane, I had a loose idea of the story’s direction. (See the inspiration question.) The details and dialog filled in as I wrote.

Blogs Stops

Simple Harvest Reads, July 7 (Author Interview)

She Lives To Read, July 8

Artistic Nobody, July 9 (Author Interview)

Guild Master, July 10 (Author Interview)

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, July 10

Fiction Book Lover, July 11 (Author Interview)

Book Reviews From an Avid Reader, July 12

The Bookish Ledger, July 13 (Author Interview)

A Modern Day Fairy Tale, July 14 (Author Interview)

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, July 14

Books Less Travelled, July 15 (Author Interview)

Texas Book-aholic, July 16

History, Hope & Happily Ever After, July 17 (Author Interview)

Lily’s Corner, July 18

Paula’s Pad of Inspiration, July 19 (Author Interview)

Stories By Gina, July 20 (Author Interview)

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Janis is giving away the grand prize of a $50 Amazon gift card and a paperback copy of the book!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

https://gleam.io/0jxOq/the-broken-weathervane-celebration-tour-giveaway