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Book Review: Yes, Again by Sallie H. Weissinger

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Yes, Again:(Mis)adventures of a Wishful Thinker by Sallie H. Weissinger

Publisher:  She Writes Press, (October 26, 2021)
Category: Memoir, Grief, Loss, Romance, Dating
ISBN: 978-1647423155
Available in Print and ebook, 224 pages

In this laughter-through-tears memoir, Sallie H. Weissinger, a late-in-life widow, recounts the highs and lows of navigating the tricky online dating world of the 2000s. Interwoven throughout her adventures in search of a new relationship are stories from her childhood as a military brat, her southern heritage, her various marriages, and the volunteer work in Central and South America that helped her keep moving forward through it all.

Weissinger keeps her sense of humor as she meets men who lie, men who try to extort money, and men with unsavory pasts. When she experiences even more loss, her search for a partner becomes less important, but—with the help of friends and dogs—she perseveres and, ultimately, develops her own approach to meeting “HIM.” Blending the deeply serious and the lighthearted, Yes Again shows us that good things happen when we open up our minds and hearts.

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Guest Review by Sal

‘Yes, Again: (Mis)adventures Of A Wishful Thinker,’ by Sallie H. Weissinger contains the inner thoughts of a woman on the lookout for love.

At the age of 57, Sallie was widowed when her husband unfortunately died of esophageal cancer. Despite missing her husband dearly, Sallie eventually realized that she was lonely and wanted to find someone else to spend her life with.

So, she decided to try online dating, and I think those of us who have tried it before know what an adventure that can be. Trying sites like match.com brought Sallie an assortment of emotionally constipated middle-aged men.

Finally getting frustrated with the men that she was meeting, Sallie decided to develop a system. She called it PASTRAMI, which was an acronym for the things that she was looking for in a man (physically fit, adventurous, spiritual, etc.) And, Sallie decided to raise the stakes even higher by bringing her friends into the deal, offering them five thousand dollars to the charity of their choice if they could find her a man that she stayed with for one year. What followed was a hilarious and entertaining jaunt through the world of dating in your 50’s and 60’s in the mid-2000’s.

Between the descriptions of these sometimes ridiculous men and the witty prose, ‘Yes, Again,’ is sure to tickle your funny bone at points. Sallie’s openness and full-hearted optimism make for an inspiring read that, despite her pitfalls, might just get you wondering if you should put yourself back out there, too.

This memoir is a one-of-a-kind adventure filled with laughter and surprising depth and one that I would recommend to anyone who has ever tried online dating in any form. I know that I couldn’t put this book down and I would gladly read more from this author in the future!

About the Author

Sallie H. Weissinger is a native of New Orleans and was raised as a military brat away from the South (Germany, New Mexico, Ohio, Japan, and Michigan). Every summer, she and her family returned to visit her mother’s relatives in New Orleans and her father’s family in a small Alabama town. She has lived most of her life in the Bay Area and also in New Orleans. These days, “home” includes not only New Orleans and Berkeley, but also Portland, Oregon, where she lives most of the time with her husband, Bart McMullan, a retired internal medicine doctor and health care executive, and their three dogs.

A retired executive herself, she now teaches Spanish and does medical interpreting for non-profit organizations in Central America and the Dominican Republic. Weissinger is a passionate member of the Berkeley Rotary Club and has served on the boards of Berkeley Rotary, the Aurora Theatre in Berkeley, and the East Bay (formerly Oakland) SPCA.

Website: https://www.yesagainmemoir.com/

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Book Review & Giveaway: Odyssey of Ashes by Cheryl Krauter

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Odyssey of Ashes: A Memoir of Love, Loss, and Letting Go by Cheryl Krauter

Publisher:  She Writes Press, (July 20, 2021)
Category: Memoir, Grief, Loss, Healing
ISBN: 978-1647421328
Available in Print and ebook, 168 pages

Odyssey of Ashes: A Memoir of Love, Loss, and Letting Go begins with the sudden death of Cheryl Krauter’s spouse. Five months later, in a stroke of irony and magic, her husband wins a long-desired guided fly-fishing trip in a raffle―and Cheryl decides to go in his place, fulfilling a promise to scatter his ashes by a trout stream.

Part I of this memoir is an account of the first year after Cheryl’s husband’s death, where she becomes an explorer in the infinite stream of grief and loss, a time traveler between the darkness of sorrow and the light of daily life. Part II concludes with stories of the poignant and humorous adventures she had during the ensuing year. Tying it all together and woven throughout is Cheryl’s account of the creation of an altar assembled during the three-day ritual of Los Días de los Muertos.

Poetic and mythological, Odyssey of Ashes is a raw story of loss and the deep transformation that traveling through darkness and returning to light can bring.

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Guest Review by Sal

A stunning, emotional memoir about one woman’s struggle with grief, acceptance and the life beyond both.

Cheryl Krauter’s husband, John, died suddenly of a stroke one night in their home. Having only recently recovered from a bout of breast cancer that almost took her own life, Cheryl is devastated and overwhelmed by the loss.

A few months later, while her world is still in upheaval, Cheryl is shocked to discover that John has won a raffle for an all expenses paid fly fishing trip that he had always wanted to go on. When he was alive, John was an avid fly fisher and although, in the beginning of her marriage Cheryl wasn’t too keen on the sport, she began enjoying it as therapy while recovering from cancer.

Knowing that her husband had always said he wanted his ashes scattered in a fly-fishing stream, Cheryl decides to go on the prized trip in order to fulfill that final wish for the man that she loved. What follows is a touching and sometimes downright funny trip into the wilds of Montana that any memoir-lover will enjoy.

Cheryl Krauter’s writing is marvelous. As an avid Buddhist, she shares many quotes and meditations from her religion as well as quotes from famous authors, musicians, and other sources.

The book is divided into two parts, the first of which gives more of a background on John and Cheryl’s life together. The second contains most of her fly-fishing adventure in Montana.

This was both a poignant and beautiful book and one that I know I will remember for a long time to come. Cheryl’s take on grief and healing are so universal that anyone can relate to them and she writes with the conviction of a woman who has been through the worst and come out the other side.

About the Author

CHERYL KRAUTER is a San Francisco bay area psychotherapist with more than forty years of experience in the field of depth psychology and human consciousness. A cancer survivor, she is the author of Surviving the Storm: A Workbook for Telling Your Cancer Story (Oxford University Press, 2017) and Psychosocial Care of Cancer Survivors: A Clinician’s Guide and Workbook for Providing Wholehearted Care (Oxford University Press, 2018). She lives with her personal assistant, a cat named Amie.

Website: http://www.cherylkrauter.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tellingcancerstories
Twitter: https://twitter.com/CherylKrauter

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Book Review: Aches and Epiphanies by Aries

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A collection of poetry, prose and thoughts from poet and songwriter, Aries.
From love lost to happiness found; from pain to joy and vice versa. The words of the unspoken and raw human emotions come to the fore.
For those who have stood face to face with love and it has been terrifying or have hidden secrets behind closed doors. For those who find comfort in the hands of another, you will learn, page by page.
As the universe takes its last breath, it looks at you with glittering eyes and smiles. You were worth the destruction.

My Review

I chose to read this book after receiving a free e-copy from the author. All opinions in this review are my own and completely unbiased.

I have come to appreciate poetry more and more over the years. This group of poems from Aries are separated in two sections: aches and epiphanies. I liked the poems, although the ones in the first section do fit the name. An example:

I have too much love inside me
to waste my time with someone
who won’t even look me in the eye
before he kisses me.
I am not just a body; I am a soul, too.

Even though this poem is short, it rouses a lot of emotion.

Then there are the epiphanies. Some of them are great and really hit home. An example:

Dear Body,
This has been a long time coming but I have begun to fall
in love with you at last.
I know God made you for me for a reason.
I think about the things I said before and it brings me to
tears.
You have loved me unconditionally and now; it is finally
time for me to do the same.
All my love


Aches and Epiphanies is definitely a book I recommend if you like poetry that makes you feel.

About the Author

Aries is a poet from Kuwait who currently lives in the UK. She is passionate about writing down feelings and turning the pain into something beautiful.

She has enjoyed writing from a young age, as well as composing songs, and is currently releasing music on several platforms.

Aries draws on personal experience as well as the experience of others for her work, and aims to express real feelings on paper to reach out to anyone who is willing to listen.

Book Review & Giveaway: From the Lakehouse by Kristen Rademacher

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From the Lake House: A Mother’s Odyssey of Loss and Love by Kristen Rademacher

Publisher:  She Writes Press (July 21, 2020)
Category: Memoir, Grief, Motherhood

ISBN: 978-1631528668
Available in Print and ebook, 237 pages


Dizzy with grief after a shattering breakup, Kristen did what any sensible thirty-nine-year-old woman would do: she fled, abandoning her well-ordered life in metropolitan Boston and impulsively relocating to a college town in North Carolina to start anew with a freshly divorced southerner.

Dismissing the neon signs that flashed Rebound Relationship, Kristen was charmed by the host of contrasts with her new beau. He loved hunting and country music, she loved yoga and NPR; he worried about nothing, she worried about everything. The luster of her new romance and small-town lifestyle soon―and predictably―faded, but by then a pregnancy test stick had lit up. As Kristen’s belly grew, so did her concern about the bond with her partner―and so did a fierce love for her unborn child. Ready or not, she was about to become a mother. And then, tragedy struck.

Poignant and insightful, From the Lake House explores the echoes of rash decisions and ill-fated relationships, the barren and disorienting days an aching mother faces without her baby, and the mysterious healing that can take root while rebuilding a life gutted from loss.

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Guest Review by Linda Lu

A deeply moving and absolutely heartbreaking tale of one woman’s struggle to cope with loss and change in her life and to keep moving forward.

Kristen Rademacher suffered a lot of tragedies in a short amount of time. Kristen was deeply affected by the attacks of 9/11 after having lived in New York during her childhood and then living in Boston but the grief was compounded by the fact that her serious boyfriend left her on that day.

After coping with that and trying to get back on her feet emotionally, Kristen met a new man while staying at her brother’s house. Jason was everything that Kristen is not, conservative, southern, a lover of guns and country music to Kristen’s liberal, Boston-dwelling self.
They were almost polar opposites, but of course, as the saying goes, opposites attract. Shortly after they started dating and at the age of 39, Kristen became pregnant.

After nine months of excitement and anticipation, Kristen missed her due date and soon found out that her baby, though previously strong and healthy, had died in the womb. Kristen’s account of her delivery of her stillborn daughter and the despair and depression that she suffered afterward were heartbreaking to read. I would be lying if I said I didn’t tear up when she gave birth to her little girl and had to say goodbye to her only one hour later.

This book almost felt like an exorcism for the author, in a really healthy way. Kristen’s writing was very beautiful and I felt for her on such a deep level while reading. She truly made the experience of giving birth to a stillborn baby so devastatingly real for the reader in these pages.
This is one to read if you love stories about overcoming life’s toughest circumstances and the enduring love of a mother.

Advance Praise

“Over the course of this book, in well-structured, descriptive prose, Rademacher effectively leads readers through a gradually withering romantic relationship that culminates in a tragedy . . . Some of the most painful sections of the book are her loving letters to the little girl whom she held for but an hour, and whom she named Carly. It soon becomes clear that these missives helped to lead her back from a precipice of despair, so that she could finally face her future. A poignant and painful remembrance with comforting messages for the grieving.”-Kirkus Reviews

“Kristen Rademacher’s achingly honest memoir about her losses of place, partner, and much-anticipated baby daughter Carly resonates with courage and an abiding gratitude for the preciousness of life. A truly tender reflection about loss that illuminates the devastating experience of baby loss.”-Janel Atlas, writer and editor of They Were Still Born: Personal Stories about Stillbirth

“From the Lake House is an intimate, inspiring story of surviving in a world where blessings and tragedy walk hand in hand. Written with tender honesty and luscious language, it is a joy to read, even amidst the pangs of heartache and loss. As a bereaved mother, I found myself nodding in agreement with so many of Rademacher’s experiences of life after the death of a child . . . This book is for memoir-lovers and anyone who finds themselves in a turbulent relationship or who has said goodbye to a dearly loved child . . . Rademacher champions solitude for its healing capacities and the wholeness birthed from dogged, hard-earned resiliency. Perceptive and endearing, it is a moving saga of motherhood.”-Alexis Marie Chute, award-winning author of Expecting Sunshine: A Journey of Grief, Healing, and Pregnancy After Loss

“In this beautifully written and poignant memoir, we learn that though people and dreams die, relationships don’t. If we’re attuned, the dead can transform our lives, offering enduring love and guidance―and hope.”-Carol Henderson, author of Losing Malcolm: A Mother’s Journey Through Loss and Farther Along: The Writing Journey of Thirteen Bereaved Mothers

About the Author

Kristen Rademacher has lived in Chapel Hill, North Carolina since 2002, which is when she began writing. FROM THE LAKE HOUSE is her first memoir. With a Master’s Degree in Education and a Professional Coaching Certification, Kristen is an Academic Coach and ADHD Specialist at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She also leads trainings and presentations at national conferences on the topic of academic coaching.

Website:  https://kristenrademacher.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kristenrademacherauthor/

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Book Review: Tiny Poems for Gentle Hearts by Isabol Scheck

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A collection of 150 poems for warming hearts and thawing souls.

My Review

I chose to read this book after receiving a free e-copy from the author. All opinions in this review are my own and completely unbiased.

Most of these poems are very short. They’re about love, love lost, loss of a loved one, and every once in a while, I found a gem that made me giggle like this one:

Poison dripped
from her acidic
lips,
since all he cared
for were her
hips.

I haven’t read a lot of poetry, but I’ve been reading more lately. I think if someone younger (teens or early twenties) asked me to recommend some simple poetry, this would be a good one to suggest.

About the Author

Isabel comes from England but lives in
Switzerland with her parents and her brother.
She works with children, which she adores,
but she also loves to write; especially poetry.
She uses experiences, images and people as
inspiration to create words. Isabel also loves
to express herself by drawing.

Book Review & Giveaway: Someone Died…Now What? by Corrie Sirota

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Someone Died...Now What

About the Book

Someone Died… Now What? is a GPS for grieving. Corrie Sirota provides Guidance, Perspective and Support to help navigate through the grief process. Whether someone you love has died or someone you know is struggling with a loss, this book addresses many of the issues and questions that surface, providing concrete assistance on what to do immediately following a death, how to deal with feelings of sadness, anger and guilt, non-death losses and how to support grieving children. You will learn that grief is an ongoing process, and is as unique and individual as you are.

 

Link to Montreal Gazette:    Article

 

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My Review

I received a free copy of this book for an honest review.

This is a great resource for those who have lost a loved one or those who know someone who has suffered a loss. It starts out explaining the process of grief and that everyone grieves in their own way. I’ve heard so many times that someone didn’t seem sad enough or, in the other extreme, that someone was a “basket case.” It’s always bothered me because I know that people grieve in their own way. This book explains all of the stages of grief as well as possible psychological and physical responses.

My favorite chapter in the book is Chapter 7 which is titled, “Comforting the Mourner, or, A Chapter for your Friends.” It’s always difficult to know what to say to someone who has lost a loved one. This chapter helps you know what to say as well as things that you can do that will help the mourner.

I definitely recommend Someone Died…Now What? for everyone. You never know when you, or someone you know, will suffer a loss. This is a good resource for when that happens.

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Author’s Bio

Corrie SirotaCorrie Sirota holds a Masters degree in Social Work as well as a Graduate Certificate in Loss and Bereavement from McGill University (Montreal) where she has been teaching as a lecturer in the School of Social Work for over 20 years. Corrie is a licensed psychotherapist who currently maintains a private practice specializing in Loss and Bereavement, Parenting issues and Relationship issues. She is a well-known lecturer who regularly presents at conferences and workshops, both locally and abroad. Working in the Montreal Community for over 2 decades, Corrie has developed numerous prevention and intervention programs for families, children and professionals, students and various community agencies as well as Day and Residential Camps.

Corrie has also written numerous articles and blog posts and is regularly interviewed on local radio, news and TV programs to consult on issues relating to loss and bereavement, Child Development and Parenting.

To learn more information about Corrie Sirota visit her website www.corriesirota.com.

 

Connect with the author:    Website    Twitter    Facebook

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