Ursula Hegi has written two other works of fiction connected with Stones from the River: Floating in My Mother's Palm (1990) and The Passion of Emma Blau (2000). In addition to having interrelated characters from the same small town of Burgdorf, each novel features one very strong woman as a central or important character—Trudi in Stones, Hanna in Floating, and Emma in Passion. These women are independent thinkers who take pride in forging their own destinies regardless of society's limited expectations of women.

Floating in My Mother's Palm is the continuing story of Stones from the River. It features the next generation of characters in postwar Burgdorf. Much of what happens is seen through the eyes of Hanna, born in 1946. Though it was written and published before Stones from the River, Floating in My Mother's Palm is an accurate and satisfying sequel. Hegi expands a minor...