Ebbie is the autobiography of James E. Martin, who as an infant suffered the loss of his mother, a victim of a post-World War I influenza epidemic. For reasons never clarified, Martin's father abandoned him. The child's aunt and uncle took custody of him and planned to rear him as their own, but further family tragedy intervened which cast him upon a cruel journey of mistreatment and intrigue. A forty year saga transpired before Ebbie was able to discover his 'roots' leading him back his relatives. By telling his story of perseverance, the author does not wish himself to be perceived as a 'victim', but rather as an inspiration to many youth of today who are struggling to survive similar or worse circumstances than his own. His message to them is: Childhood is temporary. It is a time when others are in charge of your life. If your existence is dire, learn how to survive, to keep your sanity, and resolve not to allow your present conditions to wreak and sour your ultimate goal to endure and to become the kind of person which you will be proud of. It can be done. Others have done it and you can also do it.