Judith Kirwan Kelley
Judith Kirwan Kelley is the author of Dorchester Girl (SDP Publishing, 2021). In her second book, Since Dorchester, Kirwan Kelley continues her journey, only persuaded to 'get in the car or we’re moving without you!' by extreme familial pressure to leave her beloved Dorchester birthplace behind when her family moved to Boston’s South Shore in 1968. This is a memoir-but one infused with historical, sociopolitical, and economic background that molded the family’s choices. Possessing academic degrees, including a bachelor’s degree from Boston State College and a Doctor of Philosophy from Brown University, Kirwan Kelley brings theoretical perspectives from numerous fields to her book. The stories presented in Since Dorchester show us Kirwan Kelley growing up as a city girl in tumultuous social times, the causes and consequences of frequent moves, and the effects of rapid social change on family structure and society as a whole from women’s rights, civil rights, the sexual revolution, and dynamic political changes. Enjoy!
