A search for roots and identity has rarely been captured with such illegible], unusual insight, and surprising humor as in this memoir of heartbreak and hope. Today a distinguished American poet; Colette Inez first came to the United States when she was eight years old, as an illegible] Belgian orphan illegible] by two complete strangers. Growing up in post World War II America, a stranger to her own past, she survived a illegible] adolescence and an increasingly illegible] abusive adoptive family by learning to define her single solace, a developing passion for literature. illegible] possible illegible] in the 1950s, Inez set out to prove her claim to U.S. citizenship. The result, as she recounts in this eloquent, wrenching memoir, would span two illegible], a trail of discovery, and a buried secret, one that ultimately allowed Inez to reconcile her past and present and finally come of age as an artist.

How do women writers cope with changes and juggle the demands in their already full lives to make time for their lives as artists? In this anthology, noted female novelists, journalists, essayists, poets, and nonfiction writers address the old and new challenges of "doing it all" that face women writers as the twenty-first century approaches. With eloquence, sensitivity, and more than a touch of wry humor, Sleeping with One Eye Open relates positive stories from women who lead effective lives as artists, emphasizing how sources of inspiration, discipline, resourcefulness, and determination help them succeed despite the obstacle of "no time.