In MY MOTHER’S HOUSE, A Memoir, Alexa Wolf depicts a mother-daughter relationship which undergoes radical transformations during their shared half-century. Ms. Wolf’s mother combines conventional and holistic medicine to become a cancer survivor. Through that event, the hatred between the two women that began in Wolf’s teens turns to love and shared humor.
When Ms. Wolf contracts a mysterious virus, her mother extends her support. When Ms. Wolf’s mother shows signs of early Alzheimer’s, Wolf becomes her protector. But their story ends tragically when a common hip replacement surgery catapults Wolf’s mother into our for-profit health care system, specifically, in her case, the long term, skilled nursing care system, where she suffers unnecessarily and terribly, finally dying, due to the neglect and elder abuse endemic to that system.
“One of my goals with this book,” states Ms. Wolf, “is to illuminate what my mother and I had to endure, in the hopes that others might learn and avoid a similar catastrophe.” Those “others” include the majority of the elderly already in the system as well as many of the seventy million Boomers both looking after their parents now and coming up behind them.
At the beginning of her time in the hospital, Ms. Wolf’s mother referred to it as a metaphorical prison. A few months later she believed she was about to be executed for murdering her husband, and begged her daughter to believe in her innocence. Her metaphor had dissolved into her interior reality as she lay awash in drugs, infections, dementia and pain.
Ms. Wolf offers her own metaphor. “In archetypal symbolism, the dragon represents the system of power under which we live, in this case, for-profit health care. In the old stories, the dragon steals gold and eats virgins. Today, the for-profit health care system devours the innocent and steals the wealth of the nation.”
Coping with her grief, Wolf reveals the tragic mistakes she made and the knowledge she gained when trying desperately to save her mother from that system.
“But this memoir is unlike any other,” Ms. Wolf states, “because of its scope. There are many mother-daughter memoirs. There are books about the adult children of emotionally abusive parents, adult children of narcissistic parents, reconciliation between mothers and daughters, cancer survivor parents, taking care of elderly parents, and even memoirs about parents in the nursing care system. However, there are no memoirs about a mother and daughter whose 55-year relationship includes all of the above in an arc of profound change which occurs as a result of the health crises the mother and daughter face.”
"A heart-wrenching story of a daughter's struggle to care for her dying mother while coping with her own debilitating illness,” says Eve La Salle Caram, award-winning editor, novelist, Senior Instructor in Fiction Writing, The Writers' Program, UCLA Extension. “An indictment of our health care system. Powerful. Moving. Beautifully written."
Michael Connors, of California Advocates for Nursing Home Reform (CANHR), calls Wolf’s book “very moving.” He adds, “Unfortunately... (on) a daily basis we hear heartbreaking tales of neglect and abuse...”
Author Alexa Wolf began her writing career by winning first place in a poetry contest for her age group and a fellowship to the MacDowell Colony. She has written for the L.A. Weekly, Psychological Perspectives and The New York Native. She has appeared on The Today Show, a Dan Rather special, Oprah! in Time Magazine, and elsewhere. This is her first book. She is available for interview by contacting her at the address below.
My Mother's House – A Memoir
Infinity Publishing
ISBN 0-7414-3520-9
Available at AlexaWolfOnline.com
Contact:
Alexa Wolf
Web: www.AlexaWolfOnline.com
866-242-4541
Email: alexawolf@AlexaWolfOnline.com
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
My Mothers House - Mother Daughter Relationship Culminates In Tragedy In A Broken Health Care System
Sunday, February 15, 2009
Authors Show Radio Announces Interview Lineup For Week Of February 16, 2009
February 16, 2009
The broadcasts for the week and the schedule for all upcoming shows can be accessed at www.theauthorsshow.com.
The Authors Show radio, produced by eBroadcastMedia.com features one new author per day and features published and self published authors across all genres. Fiction and non-fiction authors are featured on the show. In addition to radio broadcasts, eBroadcastMedia.com also offers a number of other venues for authors, including The Authors Show TV segment, Mind Your Bizness and The Women Authors Book Club.
The broadcast schedule for the week of February 23, 2009 includes Michelle Dunn, author of 'Become The Squeaky Wheel', Lev Shneider, author of 'Matryoshka', Kathy Cummings, author of 'The Wind Whispers War' Larriane Wills, author of 'Mark Of The Sire', and Ric Morgan, author of 'The Keys: The Textbook To A Successful Life'. More shows will be announced later.
The Authors Show venues are the brainchild of Danielle Hampson, founder of eBroadcastMedia.com. The company also produces a television version of The Authors Show and the Women's Book Club. “Our combined outlets,” stated Ms. Hampson, “offer a multi-faceted approach and a very well targeted opportunity to those hoping to get the word out about their books.”
Interviews on the radio version of The Authors Show are offered at no charge to authors. Applicants for the show are required to fill out a simple form to provide basic information about their publication, and must provide a synopsis of the book, a simple headshot and a jpeg of the cover work. Interviews average 15 minutes in length and are rotated on a daily basis.
Further information regarding The Authors Show can be found at the group's website at www.TheAuthorsShow.com.
Ms. Hampson can be reached by email at danielle@eBroadcastMedia.com.
Further information is also available by contacting Don McCauley by email at don@freepublicitygroup.com, or by visiting http://www.freepublicitygroup.com.
The Authors Show Radio
http://www.TheAuthorsShow.com
Danielle Hampson
Phone: 1-877-955-8800
Email: danielle@eBroadcastMedia.com
RELATED LINKS
CONTACT INFORMATION
- Danielle Hampson (Client)
eBroadcastMedia.com
CEO
877-955-8800 (office)
Email: danielle@ebroadcastmedia.com
Web site: http://www.theauthorsshow.com
Technorati Tags: author | self published | Authors Show | Danielle Hampson | ebroadcastmedia.com | Don McCauley | free publicity focus group
Monday, February 2, 2009
Sensible Home Design: Author William Hirsch Releases Designing Your Perfect House
Architect William Hirsch has released Designing Your Perfect House: Lessons From An Architect, a guide for those who understand that the economic woes experienced by the US housing market have created an opportunity to design and build their dream home at a lower cost than any time in recent history.
“It is the dream of most Americans to own their perfect home,” said Mr. Hirsch, “and now is the time to do it. I released the book now to help prospective homeowners eliminate many of the problems experienced by first-time homeowners. After working in the home design field for many years, I came to realize there were many problems common to all new homeowners. Unfortunately, there were no real resources out there for my clients to draw on. It was for that reason that I wrote and released Designing Your Perfect House: Lessons from an Architect.”
The book uses twelve lessons to help new homeowners design that perfect house. It explains in detail the benefits of a good design process. Many prospective homeowners experience frustration due to the lack of information about house design, house plans, floor plans, and a host of other unfamiliar topics. Design Your Perfect House: Lessons from an Architect explains the process from start to finish and helps the reader recognize and avoid common problems that can occur. The book was a Best Book Award Winner in USA Book News and has reached number one bestseller status on Amazon.com.
“Housing starts are down dramatically,” stated Mr. Hirsch, “so at first blush it would seem that this is not a great time to build. But the opposite is actually true. Because of the slow construction industry, prices of materials, fixtures and labor are the lowest we've seen in years. Home builders who make a move now will get terrific deals and save a lot of money. I would not recommend that people wait too long to begin the home planning and home construction process. We will come out of this recession. When that happens, the prices of everything will jump up significantly.”
Mr. Hirsch is available for media interviews. He was recently interviewed on The Authors Show radio at www.theauthorsshow.com. Designing Your Perfect House: Lessons from an Architect is available at Amazon.com, Barnes and Nobles, Borders, and at the author’s website at www.designingyourperfecthouse.com.
Designing Your Perfect House: Lessons from an Architect
ISBN: 9780979882036
Contact:
William Hirsch
Phone: 919-469-9290
Web: www.designingyourperfecthouse.com
Email: hirschnc@nc.rr.com
Posted by Don McCauley
Free Publicity Focus Group
Authors Radio Show Announces Author Interview Lineup For Week Of February 2, 2009
Every week, the Authors Show radio features interviews with up and coming authors from around the world. This week the Authors Show radio features five new and established authors. Don McCauley, founder of the Free Publicity Focus Group and host of the Authors Show radio had the opportunity to speak with Bob Brumm, author of 'Do You Have Money To Burn?', Chamein Canton, author of 'The More Things Change', Courtney Brandt, author of 'The Line', Debi Silber, author of 'The Lifestyle Fitness Program' and Jeff Knott, author of 'Navigating The Healthcare Maze'.
The broadcasts for the week and the schedule for all upcoming shows can be accessed at www.theauthorsshow.com.
The Authors Show radio, produced by eBroadcastMedia.com features one new author per day and features published and self published authors across all genres. Fiction and non-fiction authors are featured on the show. In addition to radio broadcasts, eBroadcastMedia.com also offers a number of other venues for authors, including The Authors Show TV segment, Mind Your Bizness and The Women Authors Book Club.
The broadcast schedule for the week of February 9, 2009 includes Carol Hoenig, author of 'Without Grace', Alexa Wolf, author of 'My Mothers House', Diane Diekman, author of 'The Faron Young Story' Diane Teagarden, author of 'Getting Out Of Limbo - A Self-Help Divorce Book For Women', and Janet Elaine Smith, author of 'Hi Daddy!'. More shows will be announced later.
The Authors Show venues are the brainchild of Danielle Hampson, founder of eBroadcastMedia.com. The company also produces a television version of The Authors Show and the Women's Book Club. “Our combined outlets,” stated Ms. Hampson, “offer a multi-faceted approach and a very well targeted opportunity to those hoping to get the word out about their books.”
Interviews on the radio version of The Authors Show are offered at no charge to authors. Applicants for the show are required to fill out a simple form to provide basic information about their publication, and must provide a synopsis of the book, a simple headshot and a jpeg of the cover work. Interviews average 15 minutes in length and are rotated on a daily basis.
Further information regarding The Authors Show can be found at the group's website at www.TheAuthorsShow.com.
Ms. Hampson can be reached by email at danielle@eBroadcastMedia.com.
Further information is also available by contacting Don McCauley by email at don@freepublicitygroup.com, or by visiting http://www.freepublicitygroup.com.
Authors Show radio
http://www.TheAuthorsShow.com
Danielle Hampson
Phone: 1-877-955-8800
Email: danielle@eBroadcastMedia.com
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