PETITE BELLE: HOW I GOT MY NAME

About the Book

Imagine, every day of your life being told that you was born weighing less than a pound and not knowing what an infant of normal weight looked like. My mom said I was so tiny, I could be held in one hand. I am presently over sixty years old. My name is Petite Belle: How I Got My Name is a non-fiction account of the first five months of my life. I weighed less than 400 grams. I will take you on a day-to-day journey of my survival. I survived with almost no medical issues. This is almost unheard of for a baby weighing less than a pound. I have dedicated my time to the production of three more books in the works. No parts of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recordings, media, or by any information, storage and retrieval, system, without expressed written consent of the author. Until this day, I have not seen a live infant of this size- less than 400 grams. I graduated in 1972, as a clinical Laboratory Technologist. My study was the field of Clinical Pathology – Disease causing organism. My first job was, A Histology Technician. This field of medicine studied human tissue, preserved to show its state as it is in life. I did see infants that weighed less than 400 grams, but the preservative caused it to alter its shape. The normal infant no longer existed by the time I saw it. In my ten years of searching for information about my birth, I heard many stories, many, many times, up until months of completing of my book. On a visit to South Carolina, to nurse a bed ridden aunt back to health, I spent a month with them. It was like a family reunion. We talked, cooked many dishes, talked and argued about our family history. There was much discussion of oral family history, which much of it was before I could remember. This helped me put the puzzle of my young life together.

About the Author

Petite Belle Hammond is a multi-medium artist / designer and author. Her artistic career began as the creator of the P.B. Belle Collection of artistic expression entitled Eachonereachone, Eachoneteachone thru the use of fabrics & textile, she created fiber art. In her figurative art, the people tell a story. “All of my artistic expression; it is not hard to understand” states Petite. “I understand and appreciate my own culture and heritage as a basic for exploring and understanding others”. Various faces are visible in her art which reveal her lifelong passion for education and activism. She uniquely combines art and history bringing a visceral impact while leaving room for the imagination to explore. Her love of writing, mixed textile and art was first discovered in her during her high school education. From there, a passion for designing clothing was born. Since then, a love of writing was encountered. She wrote the speech for her Laboratory Technology College graduating ceremony. Her intricate Afro-centric clothing line blends traditional African fabric with contemporary American designs with the results being an amazing collection of unique, couture pieces. Her touching story of her birth and miraculous survival will equally astound you. Each of her works affirms this love; her connection to the arts as she states, “when I take a piece of fabric or a writing pen into my hand, an artistic concept takes on life and becomes reality”.