Remembering Jeffrey Zaslow

Earlier this year I received an Email from fellow author Jeffrey Zaslow, with whom I had corresponded a time or two over the years, but never met.  Jeff’s amazing books and articles in the area of end-of-life times, especially The Last Lecture, have touched me, and I so admire his work.  Jeffrey was writing to let [...]

Read Full Post »

A Must Read: Callins’ first novel

A dear friend of mine and first-time author, Cindy Callins, has a novel hot off the press called Under the Windmills.  Check it out; I hear it is great.  I’m looking forward to the read.  Melody    

Read Full Post »

Same kind of different as me …

“A dangerous homeless drifter who grew up picking cotton in virtual slavery. An upscale art dealer accustomed to the world of Armani and Chanel. A gutsy woman with a stubborn dream. A story so incredible no novelist would dare dream it. That’s a description of the book Same Kind of Different as Me, which I [...]

Read Full Post »

Making toast: a must read!

This week I had the true privilege of reading Making Toast: A Family Story.  It’s eassyist Roger Rosenblatt’s personal narrative on family life after the loss of his beloved daughter, Amy.  The cover of the book includes this quote from E.L. Doctorow: “A painfully beautiful memoir telling how grandparents are made over into parents, how people [...]

Read Full Post »

Journeys goes Electronic

Thanks to my wonderful book publisher from LangMarc Publishing, this week the Journeys of Heartache and Grace book has been approved for Kindle reading.  If you’re interested, check out this link: | http://www.amazon.com/dp/B004VS2ECE. Happy E-reading and many blessings during this special week of new beginnings. Melody

Read Full Post »

Listening to a lively commentary

One of the columns I enjoy most in our hometown newspaper, the Austin American-Statesman, is from Rev. Bob Lively, Teacher-in-Residence at First Presbyterian Church in Austin.  Pastor Bob’s commentary for this week was a true blessing for me in that the subject matter was the Journeys of Heartache and Grace: Conversations and Life Lessons from Young [...]

Read Full Post »

A referral for ‘Letting Go’

This past week on NPR’s Fresh Air with Terry Gross, I heard an outstanding interview on end-of-life issues with Dr. Atul Gawande.  Dr. Gawande also authored a recent piece in The New Yorker entitled “Letting Go“. Check out these works.  They are wonderful, and will go a long way in advancing the much-needed death and dying [...]

Read Full Post »

The Extraordinary Oscar!

Books on end-of-life times are not always plentiful nor good.  That’s not the case with a book I recently had the pleasure of reading entitled Making Rounds with Oscar: The Extraordinary Gift of an Ordinary Cat by David Dosa, M.D.  The book is just like the title suggests: extraordinary, and I recommend it to all! Happy summertime [...]

Read Full Post »

Books for the Browsing …

As we come upon the holiday season, however you celebrate and share with others, books are always a favorite.  For the Journeys book, I was blessed with the privilege of working with LangMarc Publishing, as I’ve mentioned on prior postings.  LangMarc Publishing is a great source for your holiday shopping in the way of great [...]

Read Full Post »

Growing Up with Pat.

One of my workout friends from The Hills in Austin, Texas is Patricia Riggs Flathouse, a fabulous writer who has a new book out entitled Growing Up in the Texas Panhandle.  As mentioned by a National Public Radio reporter who recently interviewed Pat, the book is a “glimpse into the history of small-town Texas life in [...]

Read Full Post »