What do you want readers to know about your novel, THE WAR OF THE ROSENS?

Despite writing and publishing fiction and nonfiction all my adult life, it has been extremely difficult for me to write about my Jewish identity and roots. I grew up in an emotionally and physically tumultuous Jewish family in the Bronx. Not until my husband and I began to raise our own daughter, who is adopted from Guatemala, was I able to begin to explore my Jewish identity in my writing. The War of the Rosens portrays the world in which I was raised, the world that shaped who I am and led to my becoming the deeply loving mother of this particular child at this particular time in my life. The War of the Rosens, rooted so deeply in truth, explores my Jewish identity, which has proven—for better and worse—to be hard-earned, unconventional, and sometimes controversial.

Would you speak more about your recent transformations and breakthroughs?

Becoming a parent has definitely helped me break through my "Jewish Writer's Block." Creating a multiracial family has deepened my identity as a Jew. This life transformation has led to a major breakthrough in my writing, as well as in my creative and emotional life. The War of the Rosens is the book I was always meant to write.

What do readers probably not know about you?

My family and I divide our time between New York City and San Miguel de Allende, Mexico. I would no longer feel whole or complete without a life in both cities.

What do you want readers to know most about THE WAR OF THE ROSENS?

My intention in writing The War of the Rosens, in its portrayal of a Jewish family from the Bronx, was to explore the timeless worlds of both childhood and adulthood, revealing their unique pain, humor, insight, clarity and grace. Although my story is about one Jewish family, I hope that I've made it universal and accessible.

For more information, visit her website, www.janiceeidus.com.