Marilyn Gardner

Marilyn Gardner was raised in Pakistan and went on to raise her own five children in Pakistan and Egypt before moving to small town New England. She is the author of Between Worlds, published in 2014 by Doorlight Publications, and a memoir, Worlds Apart: A Third Culture Kid's Journey (Doorlight Publications 2018). Both books will resonate with those who have lived outside of their passport country, as well as those who have not.

In Worlds Apart: A Third Culture Kid's Journey, Marilyn traces a journey of growing faith and emerging identity in a small missionary community. From the close quarters of boarding school, to the strangeness of furloughs in her parents' native Massachusetts, this honest portrayal of a young girl's struggles with faith, friendship, and belonging will resonate deeply with a wide range of readers. [Worlds Apart] tells the captivating story of Marilyn Gardner's childhood as a 'third culture kid', raised by her Christian, American missionary parents in the heart of Pakistan. Gardner's eloquent story of the trials, tribulations, and lessons of growing up as a bridge between these rich cultures serves as an important lens through which Americans and Pakistanis can learn more about one another and their important long-term partnership in a time when the gap between the two nations seems to be growing ever larger.... Ambassador Akbar Ahmed, Ibn Khaldun Chair of Islamic Studies, American University, Washington, D.C

Between Worlds is a set of essays that explore the rootlessness and grief as well as the unexpected moments of humor and joy that are a part of living between two worlds. Between Worlds charts a journey between the cultures of East and West, the comfort of being surrounded by loved ones and familiar places, and the loneliness of not belonging. "Every one of us has been at some point between two worlds, be they faith and loss of faith, joy and sorrow, birth and death. Between Worlds is a luminous guide for connecting---and healing---worlds." - Cathy Romeo, co-author, Ended Beginnings: Healing Childbearing Losses

Marilyn's work also appears in What a Woman is Worth (Civitas Press, April 1,2014) Finding Home edited by Rachel Pieh Jones, and in essay form in Among Worlds magazine, Plough Magazine, and Fathom Magazine