No story is longer than a few pages, but most are such touchingly personal tales that you may find yourself reading just one or two at a time--unless you're in the mood for a good cry. The photo of a great-great-great grandmother's "free pass" (that proved she was not a slave) and its accompanying story of being made into a medal and touring the country during the bicentennial is a definite tearjerker, as are the multiple stories of lives being saved through families passing on information about genetically inherited diseases. To lighten the mood a bit, laugh along with the researcher who discovered his wife was also his fifth cousin, or with the fellow who managed to ruin his family's tales of famous ancestors, uncovering a war deserter instead. A few stories have relevant research information at the end--all for specific organizations--but the book isn't aimed at your practical side. More than anything, this collection is designed to simply share the warmth and surprises that genealogical research can bring if you stick with the hunt, keep your sense of humor, and listen to your heart. --Jill Lightner

101 Inspiring Stories of Serendipity and Connection in Rediscovering Our Family History!

Shaking the family tree is one of our fastest growing leisure-time activities-over 100 million Americans have started their own genealogical research.

With over 100 true stories of the amazing luck, unexpected kindness, and unusual serendipity encountered by researchers as they track down their family records, In Search of Our Ancestors offers an inspirational look at the rewards of family history. It includes the stories of:

An American researcher who receives a trove of valuable family documents from an old man in Luxembourg trying to repay the debt he feels for American aid during World War II.

A family that travels to France to visit their newfound cousins and is overwhelmed by their generosity and their enthusiasm for recreating long-lost family ties.

A woman researching obscure records a county Historical Society who discovers that the great-grandfather of the clerk helping her had helped her grandfather-as a signer to his citizenship papers.