She was everything the times told her not to be: intelligent, ambitious, and bold. The world tried to tame her. It failed.
In the 1960s and 70s Midwest, Peg Adelsberger knows exactly what’s expected of her: marry young, be agreeable, and never want too much. But Peg does want more: a mind alive with work that matters, a life built on her own terms. And the longer she tries to smother that dream, the more she feels herself slipping into a darkness she may never climb out of.
When she earns a place in a prestigious doctoral program, Peg chooses growth over safety. The consequences are immediate and brutal: a vindictive husband, a bitter divorce, and years of poverty that threaten her daughters’ well-being. Even so, she pushes forward, determined not to be erased.
Peg discovers that becoming herself is a dangerous, radical act—and the only way to survive. The question is: Can she endure it?
“Stop building walls around women. Give them boxing gloves.”
― Peg Timperly Adelsberger
Inspired by the real struggles and triumphs of my mother and family, SQUARE PEG explores how emotional and social forces can shape a woman’s life and the courage it takes to live it on her own terms.