Coming Soon in Paperback, "Dear Jacob: A Mother’s Journey of Hope"

Bestselling book by Patty Wetterling with Joy Baker is now available for preorder as paperback

ST. PAUL, MN, UNITED STATES, November 14, 2024 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Tens of thousands of readers embraced "Dear Jacob: A Mother’s Journey of Hope," first published by the Minnesota Historical Society Press in hardcover in 2023. On Jan. 14, the paperback edition, featuring a new afterword and cover, spreads its powerful message even further. The paperback is now available for preorder.

A Parent’s Worst Nightmare, 27 Years Waiting for an Answer

In 1989, eleven-year-old Jacob Wetterling was kidnapped not far from his home in St. Joseph, Minnesota. The community quickly rallied around the family, and Patty Wetterling, Jacob’s mother, stepped into the spotlight.

Punctuated by Wetterling’s letters to her missing son, "Dear Jacob" brings readers into the heartbreak of a parent’s worst nightmare. It also describes the development of an unexpected friendship with an inquisitive blogger, Joy Baker, whose deft research uncovered clues that ultimately led to the conclusion of the twenty-seven-year-long missing persons case.

As the criminal investigation into Jacob’s disappearance stretched from weeks to months to years, Wetterling devoted herself to advocating for children. She successfully lobbied for the passage of the 1994 Jacob Wetterling Act, which established sex offender registries. She served on the board of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children for over twenty years and became a nationally respected authority on child protection.

Co-written with Baker, this memoir chronicles both a personal and a collective story of contemporary history, one that permanently changed public policy and the way we parent our children. It also shows that communities can heal after tragedy, and that families can still experience love, joy, happiness, and hope.

Wetterling is a national advocate, visionary, and educator on the prevention of child abduction and exploitation. Baker works as an independent marketing consultant, writer, and blogger.

Available January 14, 2025
Memoir / True Crime, 354 pages, 6 x 9, 24 b&w images, new afterword
paperback, $22.95, ISBN: 978-1-68134-314-3
e-book, $12.99, ISBN: 978-1-68134-318-1
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Suzanne Herrick
Minnesota Historical Society Press
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