Lark and the Loon (+ Giveaway)

Today it’s my pleasure to be a part of author Rhiannon Gelston’s virtual book tour for her latest release, LARK AND THE LOON.

This is an intriguing story that is a mixture of the author’s memories and transcendental fiction.

◊ Genre: Memoir with a Twist
◊ Publisher: WiDo Publishing (July 17, 2020)
◊ Print & eBooks
◊ Paperback: 284 pages
◊ ISBN-10: 1947966251
◊ ISBN-13: 978-1947966253

Lark and the Loon follows the adventures of a tentative boy named Lark, as he is catapulted out of all that he knows, into a courageous journey beyond his wildest imagination. 

Upon receiving a special gift from his Gramps, Lark embarks on a reflective journey of self-discovery as the innovative story weaves the true-life memoir of his mother (the author) in with a fantastical journey. With some special new-found friends, Lark travels back and forth from a symbolic tree to his mother’s true memories of life and death moments, and simple moments, found everywhere from wild Africa to their very own living room. Lark and his friends must ascend this tree and gain the important life lessons offered along the way if they ever hope to find their way out. Within this journey, Lark finds these lessons, and ultimately himself, in the space between imagination and truth in this wild tale.  

The story explores friendships, philosophies, and everyday challenges and joys, both from a child's perspective and from a parent's perspective. This memoir with a twist results in a coming-of-age story that ultimately leads to a new understanding of self, others, and the world that surrounds us.

LARK AND THE LOON is available at AMAZON * Barnes & Noble * WiDo Publishing. Also, be sure to add it to your TBR List on Goodreads.

Here’s an excerpt from the book for your reading pleasure.

 

Gramps

“Life is a verb.”

—Charlotte Perkins Gilman

Gramps was very thin and very tall. He used to be taller, but he stood a little bit hunched over these days. He had white hair that stood straight up out of his head as if he had his finger in an electric socket at all times. He had a long mustache too, but this was always perfectly groomed, not a hair out of place.

Sometimes he would put some wax in it and turn the hairs up at the ends so the curls matched the permanent, mischievous smirk on his face. Sometimes he let Lark’s little sisters braid it or put glitter in it, and he’d unapologetically wear it like that all day. He had been known to dye it green on St. Patrick’s Day or pink for Valentine’s Day. Gramps always had some sort of sweets hidden in his pocket; he always had a kind word or bit of good advice for those who needed it; and he always had a twinkle in his eye.

People often said Lark looked like Gramps, but Lark couldn’t quite see it. Lark was anything but tall; in fact, he was one of the smallest kids in his class.

He did have unruly hair like Gramps. No matter what he did, it stood up in every direction, and it was white—but a blonde white.

He was a towhead, even more so in the summer months. Perhaps they did have the same eyes if he looked really hard at Gramps’ eyes.

Sometimes it was hard to find the eyes behind the memories.

Gramps had lines of memories all over that smiling face. He had lines like the waves rolling in, notable especially next to his eyes, where the remnants of endless smiles lingered. These wrinkles served an important purpose as permanent reminders of both good and hard times lived. There was the depth of a blue ocean next to those lines, overflowing with memories from somewhere so very far away and yet so close and near.

Yes, that was the comment Lark heard the most: that he had the same smiling, blue eyes with that same twinkle.

Meet the Author: Rhiannon Gelston

 

RHIANNON GELSTON loves to lose herself in all things creative. She enjoys writing, painting, live music, traveling, sports, being outdoors, exploring, playing, spirituality, and energy work. She has a BA in English and an MS in Occupational Therapy with a pediatric focus. Rhiannon just had her first novel published. It is a memoir with a twist called, LARK AND THE LOON, available wherever books are sold. 

Rhiannon grew up on Spa Creek in downtown Annapolis. Home for Rhiannon will always be the sound of the halyards hitting the masts on a breezy day, a pile of crabs saturated in Old Bay, raft-ups with friends as kids cannonball off of the stern, and time with family and friends, in, on, and around the Chesapeake Bay.

She lives in Annapolis with her husband, their five lovely and lively children, and their black lab, McNasby.

Connect with Rhiannon on Facebook and Instagram.

Be sure to enter the tour wide giveaway. It ends May 3. The grand prize is a $25 Amazon Gift Card and an eBook of LARK AND THE LOON. The second-place winner has to be a US resident as the gift is a signed copy of LARK THE LOON. The third-place prize is an eBook that two winners will receive. If the Rafflecopter widget doesn’t work, you can still enter by clicking HERE.

Thanks for stopping by today. Doesn’t this sound like a fascinating memoir, especially with the twist?

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