Family Tree by Susan Wiggs

◊ FAMILY TREE by Susan Wiggs

◊ Narrator: Christina Traister

◊ Audible Audio Edition

◊ Listening Length: 12 hours and 18 minutes

◊ Program Type: Audiobook

◊ Genre: Romance, Fiction, Literature

◊ Version: Unabridged

◊ Publisher: HarperAudio

◊ Audible.com Release Date: August 9, 2016

◊ Language: English

◊ ASIN: BO1G49TOHA

SYNOPSIS:

From the #1 New York Times bestselling author comes a powerful, emotionally complex story of love, loss, the pain of the past—and the promise of the future.

Sometimes the greatest dream starts with the smallest element. A single cell, joining with another. And then dividing. And just like that, the world changes. Annie Harlow knows how lucky she is. The producer of a popular television cooking show, she loves her handsome husband and the beautiful Los Angeles home they share. And now, she’s pregnant with their first child. But in an instant, her life is shattered. And when Annie awakes from a yearlong coma, she discovers that time isn’t the only thing she’s lost.

Grieving and wounded, Annie retreats to her old family home in Switchback, Vermont, a maple farm generations old. There, surrounded by her free-spirited brother, their divorced mother, and four young nieces and nephews, Annie slowly emerges into a world she left behind years ago: the town where she grew up, the people she knew before, the high-school boyfriend turned judge. And with the discovery of a cookbook her grandmother wrote in the distant past, Annie unearths an age-old mystery that might prove the salvation of the family farm.

Family Tree is the story of one woman’s triumph over betrayal, and how she eventually comes to terms with her past. It is the story of joys unrealized and opportunities regained. Complex, clear-eyed and big-hearted, funny, sad, and wise, it is a novel to cherish and to remember.

This, to me, is a story about losing yourself on the way to your dreams only to realize you really didn’t know what your dreams were.

Author Susan Wiggs has created characters that feel like friends (and a few enemies). The characters are realistic and well-developed. They have strengths and weaknesses readers/listeners can relate to.

Narrator Christina Traister does a wonderful job making each character sound unique. Her accents and mannerisms enhance the story bringing out the highs and lows of the characters’ emotions.

The story moves at a steady pace with a smooth flow between the past and present for a look at where the characters were and where they are now. The settings, especially the Vermont locations, come alive through vivid descriptions.

The author blends humor with heartbreak, loyalty with betrayal, family and friendship for a well-balanced story. Wiggs weaves tidbits of food advice throughout the story for a rich flavor.

FAMILY TREE will delight and entertain and maybe just encourage you to pursue your dreams.

Family Tree by Susan Wiggs, Narrated by Christina Traister, HarperAudio, @2016, ASIN: BO1G49TOHA, Unabridged, Audible Audio Edition, Run Time: 12 Hours and 18 Minutes

FTC Full Disclosure – A copy of this audio book was sent to me by the publisher in hopes I would review it. However, receiving the complimentary copy did not influence my review. The thoughts are completely my own and given honestly and freely.

Thanks so much for stopping by. Have you ever considered what it would be like to awake from a coma after months or years?

From Nonfiction to Fiction in One Easy Trip

I’m thrilled today to welcome friend, fellow blogger and author Karen Helene Walker to Thoughts in Progress to talk about her latest release, THE WISHING STEPS.

Karen’s story took hold of her sometime back and won’t let go. She joins us today to tell how she went ‘from nonfiction to fiction in one easy trip.’ Please join me in giving Karen a warm TIP welcome. Thanks for stopping by Karen, welcome.

Thank you, Mason, for hosting me today.

The year 2009 changed my life. In February, my memoir, Following the Whispers, which took 10 years to complete, was published. It was the culmination of a dream come true. I’d quit my 35+-year career in marketing and public relations to write full time in 1999. Writing the memoir was just another step in that nonfiction writing life – from writing press releases, brochures, essays and articles with my client’s name on them, to putting my story down on paper. Easy peasy, right?

Wrong. It took my taking every creative writing course the University of New Mexico had to offer, plus multiple sessions with writing coach/editor Mark David Gerson (www.markdavidgerson.com) for me to whip my manuscript into publishable form. So when it was finally out in the world, I wanted, no, needed, to celebrate in a big way.

My husband and I had a dream trip planned to go to Machu Picchu (high on my bucket list). Then I had to have shoulder surgery and we couldn’t go. We had a limited amount of time in which to use the airline tickets. The only places we could find to travel during the timeframe were Scotland and Ireland.

Terrified to tackle the narrow, winding roads on our own, and fearful we wouldn’t find any of the sites we were interested in seeing, we hired drivers. Our trip began in Edinburgh, Scotland. On the second day, as soon as I stood amidst the ruins of Balnauran of Clava (a 2000-year-old burial site), I heard an unfamiliar inner voice say, “Tell my story.” Having never heard voices before, I was taken aback and wasn’t sure I heard what I thought I heard. So I said, “Sorry, I’m on vacation.”

The voice came again a week later when I was exploring the Wishing Steps at Blarney Castle in Ireland. This time, the energy I felt was stronger and harder to ignore. We finished our trip and when I came home I thought that was the end of the mysterious voice. But it wasn’t. As I said, I’d never heard voices so when this voice/energy continued to plague, er, speak to me, I knew I needed to listen.
 
Mark David had written a book called “Voice of the Muse.” I decided to do the exercises in the book and work with him once again. In the first session, I said, “I can’t write fiction.” Despite getting straight A’s and graduating Summa Cum Laude, it was clear to me that I was not a fiction writer. In my mind, you must have a great imagination, write great metaphors, use similes and other writing techniques. Be able to write lush, rich descriptions. That doesn’t come naturally to me. I was used to the who, what, where, when, and why of a press release.

Mark David’s gentle coaching style helped me move past my own limiting beliefs and I began to allow this story to emerge. Believe me, I kicked and screamed the entire six years it took to get this story out of me. I’ve lost count of the number of drafts. It was bare bones after the first draft.

Writing a novel was perhaps the hardest thing I’ve ever done. I am not an analytical thinker when it comes to writing. I write from the heart. So I didn’t think through a character’s motivation or even character traits. They just came through and I wrote it down. I guess it was kind of like automatic writing.

I’m still much more comfortable writing nonfiction. I’m pretty sure that will be my next project – in fact that same voice is now asking me to write a companion piece to The Wishing Steps – one that imparts all the wisdom that came through during the writing of the book. I’ve learned that it doesn’t pay to ignore those callings. Stay tuned…

Karen, thanks again for joining us today and for sharing how you came to write fiction. How the story came about is such a wonderful story in itself.

Now here’s the scoop on THE WISHING STEPS:

Three Women and a Single Story That Unites Them Across the Millennia

      “Totally engrossing. A must-read for today’s wise woman!” Rev. Kathleen McKern Verigin, minister/priestess

      Brighid, Ashleen and Megan: Bound through time by a curious light, a mysterious voice and a call they dare not ignore. Yet in obeying this strange force, the women must face soul-searing trials that call into question everything they know and believe — about themselves and about the world around them.

      “Guaranteed to inspire you to a deeper level of spirituality and a new appreciation for Goddess.” Rev. Clara Z. Alexander

For those not familiar with Karen, here’s a bit of background on her.

Author Karen Helene Walker

Karen Helene Walker is a widely published essayist and author of the 2009 memoir, Following the Whispers.
 
When she isn’t writing, you will often find Karen performing in nursing homes and retirement communities as part of the Sugartime or Sophisticated Ladies musical groups, traveling with her husband of 20 years, Gary, or relaxing with a good book at their home in Albuquerque, New Mexico. 

For more on Karen and her writing, visit her website at www.karenhelenewalker.com

THE WISHING STEPS is now available to purchase in both print and eBook versions at: Amazon.com. You can also purchase it as an eBook on Kobo, I Tunes, and at Barnes and Noble.

Thanks so much for stopping by today during Karen’s visit. If you have any questions for Karen, just leave them in the comments. Have you ever had something pop in your head that just won’t go away until you did something about it?

Damascena: The Tale of Roses and Rumi

It’s always a delight to be able to share new books with you. Today I’d like to tell you about internationally acclaimed author Holly Lynn Payne’s latest fiction novel, DAMASCENA: The Tale of Roses and Rumi.

This is a story about a legendary girl saint whose life is changed forever when she meets the great Persian poet, Rumi, in the 13th century. Here’s a brief description of the book.

      Holly Payne's spellbinding tale brings the unparalleled poet, Mevlana Rumi, to life, and transports readers to the enchanting world of 13th century Persia. Simply but elegantly told, the story unravels the mystery surrounding a legendary orphaned girl, who discovers her gift of turning roses into oil.
      Named after the flowering rosa damascena, the girl reluctantly assumes the role of a living saint for the miracles she performs-longing for the only one that matters: finding her mother. Deeply wounded by the separation since birth, Damascena undergoes a riveting transformation when she meets Rumi and finally discovers the secret of the rose.
      Imbued with rich historical research and inspired by the devastating disappearance of Rumi's most lauded spiritual companion, Shams of Tabriz, Holly Payne has courageously opened herself to receive Rumi's teachings and offer a timeless love story. 

Here’s what others are saying about this tantalizing new release.
“Damascena is a stunner. Holly Payne takes us into the yearning at the heart of the mystic’s search. She turns the Sufi quest for connection with God into a human drama that is both moving and soaring.” — Tamim Ansary, author of Games without Rules: The Often-Interrupted History of Afghanistan 

“Holly Payne has deftly captured the magic, beauty, and ecstatic energy of the Sufi's ancient sema dance with her story about a girl, Damascena, whose life transcends her own world, and ours. The prose transports the reader creating astonishing characters and at times, a thriller-like the plot, carrying us into a world that is part hallucination and part real as Payne weaves in themes of loss, beauty, devotion, evil, struggle, magic, and, ultimately, love.” — David Ewing Duncan, best-selling author of Experimental Man: What one man's body reveals about his future, your health, and our toxic world

“Holly Payne's latest novel touches Jelaluddin Rumi's essential beauty within the fragrance of 13th century Turkey and the rich tapestry of his life as a mystic, poet and honored scholar. Payne exposes the very human challenges Rumi encountered as he grew into one of the greatest poets of all time.” — Murshida Mariam Baker, author of Woman as Divine: Tales of the Goddess senior teacher, Sufi Ruhaniat International and the Mevlevi Order of America

“This is one of the most gorgeous novels I've ever read. Payne’s research was so thorough. It makes me want to learn more about the dervishes, their religious practices, and about Rumi and his achingly beautiful poetry. The themes of forgiveness, spirituality and all the different forms of love resonated with me on every page.” — Laura Marquez, Emmy Winner and former ABC News Correspondent

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Holly Lynn Payne is an internationally published novelist in ten countries whose work has been translated into eight languages. Dutton/Plume published her first two novels, The Sound of Blue and The Virgin’s Knot, her debut novel, selected as a Barnes & Noble Discover Great New Writers and Border’s Original Voices book. Her third book, Kingdom of Simplicity, won the Benjamin Franklin Award, a Marin Arts Council Grant, Grand Prize for the Writers Digest Self-Published Book Awards and was nominated for a National Book Award in Belgium. It was published in Taiwan, China and the Netherlands. 

A native of Pennsylvania, Payne graduated from University of Richmond with a degree in journalism and earned a MFA from University of Southern California. She has taught throughout the San Francisco Bay Area, serving on the faculty at California College of the Arts and Stanford.  She lives in Northern California with her young daughter and serves the literary community as a writing coach, editor and volunteer producer for Litquake.

For more on Payne and her writing, visit her website and blog and connect with her on Facebook and Twitter.

DAMASCENA: The Tale of Roses and Rumi can be found at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and Goodreads.

Thanks for stopping by today. I hope I’ve enticed you to check out this book further. Hope you’re having a great week and have all your holiday preparations underway.

Author Neel Burton: Plato: Letters to my Son

I’m always amazed at how many intriguing books you can discover and the authors that write them. I’m delighted today to introduce you to just such an author and book. Please help me welcome author Neel Burton to Thoughts to talk about his first foray into fiction, PLATO: LETTERS TO MY SON.

Here’s a first synopsis of PLATO: LETTERS TO MY SON: 

    My doctor tells me that, at last, I am dying. The time has come for me to write, or, rather, dictate these letters to you. I pray that I might remain lucid for long enough to finish the task and ask that you forgive any lapses in my memory or reason. I propose not so much to counsel you as to furnish you with an account of my life and thought; not the impersonal and incomplete fabrication that you or anyone might piece together from my books, but the real account–in so far as there could ever be such a thing. For all the man and the god that I have found in you, I do not, and cannot, expect your tender years to tease out my every accent and every nuance, and I am writing as much to account myself to you as to account myself to myself.

Neel, a psychiatrist who lives and teaches in Oxford, has authored a number of non-fiction books to date. Early reviews of PLATO: LETTERS TO MY SON, a lively and intelligent book, have been strong, with one reviewer calling it a “wonderful and gracefully written introduction to the world of ancient philosophy.”

Neel joins us now and has graciously answered some questions about his book and his writing.

Mason - What inspired you to write this book?

Neel:
Plato is perhaps the most impressive of all thinkers, in fact, of all men. I first read him a long time ago whilst on holiday in Venice, and it moved me to tears. He doesn’t offer only abstract ideas, but also real solutions to the problems of living. He is so much more than people think, so much more than just the cave or the Republic or the Theory of Forms. I really wanted to tell everyone about him, not just what he thought but also how he lived and what he might have felt.
 
Mason - How did you go about doing research for your book?

Neel:
Given that this is a work of historical fiction, creating my characters and my setting involved a lot of painstaking research in history and philosophy. Some years ago, I wrote a primer on Plato, so I was not entirely new to the field. The characters that really stand out are Plato and his teacher Socrates, but there is a large supporting cast of historical figures such as Aristotle, Diogenes the Cynic, and Xenophon. It was a tremendous challenge to bring such great characters to life. In particular, I really enjoyed portraying the relationship between Plato and Socrates. For example, did they or did they not sleep together? You’ll have to read the book to find out!

Mason - With the book’s release, as you look back what was the biggest surprise that occurred while you were writing the story?

Neel:
As I was writing the last paragraph of the last page, I felt this enormous surge of emotion. It was as if the book had come alive and turned on its creator! That gave me tremendous satisfaction, and I can only hope that my readers feel something similar.

Mason - Have you always wanted to write or was there an event that lead you to writing?

Neel:
I did not choose writing, it chose me: it found its way into my blood like some sort of disease. In the beginning, I wanted to be a doctor, but, after I qualified, writing gradually got the better of me. First I started writing medical books, then self-help, then non-fiction, and, at last, fiction. I love living in my head, it’s the only place I find peace; and, yes, I have a real need to speak to strangers!

Mason - How would you encourage someone who has never read your genre to give it a try?

Neel:
I would say to that person, look, here you have the chance to get into the mind of a man far greater than anyone you have ever met or will ever meet. What could it feel like to enter his world and see it through his eyes? Just read the first chapter—it shouldn’t take you more than ten minutes—and see if you want to read the second.

Mason - What can readers look forward to next from you?

Neel:
Something completely different! A book entitled, ‘The Concise Guide to Wine and Blind Tasting’. I am currently half way through the writing.

Neel, thank you for joining us today. Your undertaking of this task is amazing. I can see how this project could take on a life of its own.

Now let me share a bit more about Neel with you. He was born in 1978 in Curepipe, Mauritius to a Mauritian father and a Zanzibari mother, and grew up in Geneva, Switzerland. From 1996 to 2002, he studied medicine and neuroscience in London. 

He then moved to Paris, where he worked as a strategy consultant and, later, as an English teacher.

In 2003, he returned to medicine and the UK, and, in 2004, went up to Oxford to specialize in psychiatry, whilst simultaneously reading for a Master’s in philosophy in the University of London. He currently lives and teaches in Oxford.

For more on Neel and his writing, visit him on Facebook and Twitter.

Thanks so much for stopping by today. What are your thoughts on Plato? Have you ever wondered about his private life?