The Fifth and Final Name: Memoir of an American Churchill

By: Rhonda Noonan

Narrated by: Carrington MacDuffie

Length: 5 hrs and 21 mins

Publisher's Summary

In a family memoir that reads like a detective novel, Rhonda Noonan recounts her 30-year quest to find the truth of her own background - and what she uncovered will surprise listeners as much as it did her. Rhonda was born and adopted in Oklahoma, a state with closed adoption records. And, although she was cherished by her adoptive family, she - like so many adoptees - felt a burning desire to find and make contact with her birth parents.

Her three-decade-long search involved institutional stonewalling; the intervention of numerous judges, attorneys, and detectives; mountains of paperwork and court filings, and thousands of dollars in expenses. Tirelessly tracking down lead after lead - and with the otherworldly help of a friend named Lillie - Rhonda finally unearthed her true history.

Her father was none other than Randolph Churchill, son of Sir Winston Churchill. The State Department of Human Services and the FBI laid down an intricate cover-up, with Averell Harriman and President Truman on the periphery. The evidence was clear - there was no question in her mind (though her efforts to secure incontrovertible proof in the form of a DNA test were stymied by the Churchill family).

Rhonda had gone about finding her heritage just as her paternal grandfather had conducted his military campaigns: relentlessly and with no small amount of courage. Like him, she triumphed. The events leading up to her discovery, as well as the aftermath of the astonishing revelation and her face-to-face confrontation of the Churchills, will leave you in awe of this intrepid heroine of her own life.

As full of twists, turns, and suspense as the best fiction, The Fifth and Final Name should prove inspiring to all who yearn to uncover the secrets buried within their own family histories.

©2013 Rhonda Noonan (P)2013 Rhonda Noonan

An Adoptee’s Struggle for the Truth.

I spent my weekend listening to Rhonda Churchill’s audiobook. Her account of discovering her story was both captivating and inspiring. The fact that it took decades to uncover her story is a tribute to her tenacity, resilience, and grit.

Randall Churchill's Daughter

Would you try another book from Rhonda Noonan and/or Carrington MacDuffie?

Ronda Noonae yesCarrington MacDuffie never

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Fifth and Final Name: Memoir of an American Churchill?

The general ignorance and recalcitrance of the court officials.

Who would you have cast as narrator instead of Carrington MacDuffie?

Almost anybody elsrmance.e! Her accent seemed true enought, but the WHINE was nearly unbearable. The story was compelling enough to carry the perfo

Could you see The Fifth and Final Name: Memoir of an American Churchill being made into a movie or a TV series? Who should the stars be?

no