Lottie's Gift: Book Review and Author Interview

Lottie's Gift
by: Jane M. Tucker
published by: Crossriver Media Group
copyright 2016

Book Summary from GoodReads:

She’s a little girl with a big gift.




Lottie Braun has enjoyed a happy childhood in rural Iowa. Her mother was gone, but she knew her father and older sister loved her and her aunts, uncles and cousins surrounded her. But the quiet, idyllic life she enjoyed as a child ended with tragedy and a secret that tore the two sisters apart.




Forty years later, Lottie is a world-class pianist with a celebrated career and an empty personal life. She moves from city to city, guarding her privacy with fierce vigilance, all to protect herself from the past. But one sleepless night, she allows herself to remember and she discovers that memories, once allowed, are difficult to suppress. Can she make peace with the past? Will she ever find her way home?

In Memory of Ralf

Ralf  (3 months) on the hearth - his favorite spot

We had to say good-bye to our dear, sweet Ralf today.

He has been a part of the family for the last twelve years and helped us celebrate numerous milestones. Honestly, it’s hard to remember a time when Ralf was not a part of the family.

Ralf saw three high school graduations, two weddings, two deaths, and the birth of a grandchild.

He was there for each job shift – and there were many.

While life constantly changed around us, Ralf remained the constant.

Ralf helped Mandy overcome her fear of dogs

A-Z Challenge: Reflection Post

The 2016 A-Z Blogging challenge ended nearly a week ago, and we have had time to relax, regroup, and now reflect on a month of blogging.

This was my first such challenge, but it will definitely not be my last. In fact, I may challenge myself to do a similar blogging spurt during the holidays (we shall see...)

What did I love about this challenge? Let me count the ways:

Sunday Salon: May 1, 2016

Happy May Day! I hope your weather is warm, pleasant and reminiscent of spring flowers.

Reading:

I started another audiobook this week through the library's Axis 360 app.

This go round I'm trying a non-fiction book, Element: How Finding Your Passion Changes Everything, by Ken Robinson.

It began a bit slow and dry, and the author reads the book himself with little dramatic inflection. However, he has a great wit and several times I found myself laughing out loud driving down the road.