Leila Philip 's first book, The Road Through Miyama, won the PEN 1990 Martha Albrand Citation for Nonfiction in 1990. She has received awards for her writing from the National Endowment for the Arts, the National Endowment for the Humanities, and the Guggenheim Foundation. She is a professor of Creative Writing and Literature at the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester.

"Philip is an extremely gifted writer who doesn’t skirt somber emotional notes. She has created a brave, eloquent, and beautifully constructed memoir of a remarkable place and the remarkable family that belongs to it." — Chronogram"Author Leila Philip presents a tribute to her family's long and illustrious history, revealing a piece of Americana that is hard to replicate. A Family Place is … recommended reading for anyone who wants to see the evolution of the American family first hand." — Reviewer's Bookwatch"Philip grafts history, natural history, and autobiography into a stunning performance." — Maureen Howard, author of Big as Life"Mesmerizing … Both narrative threads are profoundly personal. Braided together with insight, they pay homage to the ideals of home and family with a resonance that should extend beyond her home region." — Publishers Weekly"…an unpretentious, subtly shaded story of the importance of understanding the ghosts and heroes that reside in every ancestral home." — New York Times"An exquisite rendering of a Hudson Valley family farm, as detailed and colored as a Persian miniature. Philip’s family history is alarmingly transporting, and her sense of place so rich you can taste it." — Kirkus Reviews (starred review)"Riveting … one of the most finely written family histories available." — Library Journal

• Introduction: In the Beginning1. One2. The Count3. Claverack, 17324. After5. Yesterday’s Harvest6. Talavera, 19697. Wild Bees8. In the Hollow of His Hand9. Writing to the Wind10. Talavera, 186611. Household Accounts12. Hardly a Hasty Word13. Talavera, 191314. The Lives of Aunts15. Anna16. Another War17. In the OrchardEpilogueFamily TreeSourcesAcknowledgments