Marguerite Hamilton

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Marguerite Hamilton was an American author who was best known as an author of two books written in the 1940s and 1950s. Red Shoes for Nancy is the real-life story of the birth and first twelve years of life of her daughter Nancy, who was diagnosed with lymphohemangioma, an extremely rare and crippling disease affecting the lymph nodes and blood vessels. Recently widowed and penniless, Marguerite must care for her child while the disfiguring illness — despite more than 40 operations — slowly spreads upward through Nancy's body. Nancy's legs and one arm are affected by the painful swelling, and Nancy's fingers and toes — and eventually both legs — are amputated in a desperate effort to slow or halt the progress of the disease.

Borrowed Angel is the sequel to Red Shoes for Nancy, as the Hamiltons prepare for a trip to Lourdes where they hope the healing waters will cure what medical treatments of the 1950s cannot.

Both books have been out of print for many years, although a paperback version of 'Borrowed Angel' was available in the 1970s.

Some time after Nancy's death, Marguerite Hamilton moved to Parker County Texas where she died in 1998.