Tracing the unforgettable tale of a little black girl from a small Ohio town who dared to dream above her station, this memoir captures the larger history of black people in America, from the arrival of Ellamae Simmons' ancestors aboard a slaving vessel in 1775, to the electrifying election of the nation's first African American president.

Ellamae came of age at a time when even the most gifted Negro girls were expected to become domestics in white homes. But Ellamae yearned to study medicine, and she set about creating a world in which she could do just that. For most of her 97 years, she has been writing her story of struggle and triumph against the odds, refusing to let disappointment or heartbreak turn her aside.

Delving into themes of inclusion and social justice, education and mental health, marriage and family, this is the story of a woman who wasn't content to just witness history, she went out and made her own.