A Midlife Bloom

A rousing, funny, straight-talking, inspirational and generally awesome book from social entrepreneur Lucy Bloom, part memoir, part life-lessons, which urges us all to find our courage, take joy in life and celebrate our extraordinary ordinariness... Stirring, straight-talking, incredibly inspiring, funny and full-on - Lucy Bloom is one of a kind, and so is her memoir. Lucy's openhearted interest in the world has taken her from jillarooing on a cattle farm to maternity hospitals in Ethiopia, from marshalling a cross-country carnival in northern Uganda to CEO briefings in the back of a tuk-tuk in Cambodia. Hers has been a life of fighting for the underdog only to find out that, sometimes, the underdog is actually her. Taking all dramatic life-turns, side-steps and face-plants in her stride, Lucy has rebuilt her life every time, with love and adventure at its heart, plus a side order of mischief. Rollicking, rude, brimful with joy, and written with a take-no-prisoners, bare-all honesty, this book is a call to arms - a book to make you laugh out loud, nod your head in recognition, re-charge your life and let loose. 'My deepest wish is that reading this book makes you want to do cool stuff, make plans, launch that business, pack your bags, shave your head, ride that horse, date that hottie, apply for that job, chuck that party - and, most of all, get your girls out, whatever that means for you.' 'This memoir is so full of life and its ups and downs, you will start reading it again as soon as you finish. We are all richer for knowing Lucy.' Wendy Whiteley OAM 'Lucy tells powerful stories of human tenacity and love; she inspires all with her insight into the human spirit.' Bernard Salt AM

‘Feisty and fabulous. Love it. Love Tracy Bloom!’ Milly Johnson ‘Pure Joy!’ Katie Fforde ‘Love this – just the pick me up I needed!’ Jo Thomas 'Guaranteed to put a smile on your face.' Debbie Johnson ‘It's laugh out loud!’ Adele Parks

A smart, personal, darkly funny examination of what it’s like to be a woman at the crossroads of a midlife crisis, from the New York Times bestselling author of People I Want to Punch in the Throat “I inhaled this book in one sitting; it’s a must-read for anyone over forty. This should become the gift all girlfriends give one another.”—Zibby Owens, host of the award-winning podcast Moms Don’t Have Time to Read Books Jen Mann had what appeared to be the perfect life: a successful career as a bestselling author and award-winning blogger, a devoted husband, teenage kids who weren’t total jerks, and a badass minivan. So imagine her surprise when, at forty-seven years old, a midlife crisis kicked her straight in the ladybits. Midlife Bites offers Jen’s trademark wit and honesty when it comes to important conversations and observations about women in midlife. Here, readers will be able to come together and find anecdotes and practical ideas to help navigate through this major point in their lives. For women who may feel isolated or overlooked, this collection of original essays offers valuable insights, takeaways, and, most important, a productive way forward. Jen shares her own story as well as advice and wisdom from the online community she built, tackling everything that bites about midlife, where nothing is off-limits: raging hormones; sex (after forty); finding your purpose; learning to make new friends (yes, even as a grown-up); moving out of your comfort zone; having conversations that count, no more small talk; and how to deal with rogue chin hairs (and other nuisances). Jen Mann is leading the movement to create a new space where middle-aged women can share openly and honestly with one another. This no-BS collection of essays will help start the conversation and keep it going, because as women, we all have a right to be happy, fulfilled, and whole, no matter what stage of life.

Gary Giddins's Weather Bird is a brilliant companion volume to his landmark in music criticism, Visions of Jazz, winner of the National Book Critics Circle Award in Criticism. More then 140 pieces, written over a 14-year period, are brought together for the first time in this superb collection of essays, reviews, and articles. Weather Bird is a celebration of jazz, with illuminating commentaryon contemporary jazz events, today's top muscicians, the best records of the year, and on leading figures from jazz's past. Readers will find extended pieces on Louis Armstrong, Erroll Garner, Benny Carter, Sonny Rollins, Dave Brubeck, Ornette Coleman, Billie Holiday, Cassandra Wilson, Tony Bennett, and many others. Giddins includes a series of articles on the annual JVC Jazz Festival, which offers a splendid overview of jazz in the 1990s. Other highlights include an astute look at avant-garde music ("Parajazz") and his challenging essay, "How Come Jazz Isn't Dead?" which advances a theory about the way art is born, exploited, celebrated, and sidelined to the museum. A radiant compendium by America's leading music critic, Weather Bird offers an unforgettable look at the modern jazz scene.

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • A powerful memoir of a love that leads two people to find a courageous way to part—and a woman’s struggle to go forward in the face of loss—that “enriches the reader’s life with urgency and gratitude” (The Washington Post) “A pleasure to read . . . Rarely has a memoir about death been so full of life. . . . Bloom has a talent for mixing the prosaic and profound, the slapstick and the serious.”—USA Today ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR: NPR Amy Bloom began to notice changes in her husband, Brian: He retired early from a new job he loved; he withdrew from close friendships; he talked mostly about the past. Suddenly, it seemed there was a glass wall between them, and their long walks and talks stopped. Their world was altered forever when an MRI confirmed what they could no longer ignore: Brian had Alzheimer’s disease. Forced to confront the truth of the diagnosis and its impact on the future he had envisioned, Brian was determined to die on his feet, not live on his knees. Supporting each other in their last journey together, Brian and Amy made the unimaginably difficult and painful decision to go to Dignitas, an organization based in Switzerland that empowers a person to end their own life with dignity and peace. In this heartbreaking and surprising memoir, Bloom sheds light on a part of life we so often shy away from discussing—its ending. Written in Bloom’s captivating, insightful voice and with her trademark wit and candor, In Love is an unforgettable portrait of a beautiful marriage, and a boundary-defying love.

From the acclaimed bestselling author of Must Love Dogs comes a winning and witty new novel about a woman who emerges from the shadow of her overbearing family and finds herself “dancing with the stars.” Deirdre Griffin has a great life; it’s just not her own. She’s the around-the-clock personal assistant to her charismatic, high-maintenance, New Age guru brother, Tag. As the family wallflower, her only worth seems to be as gatekeeper to Tag at his New England seaside compound. Then Deirdre’s sometime boyfriend informs her that he is marrying another woman, who just happens to be having the baby he told Deirdre he never wanted. While drowning her sorrows in Tag’s expensive vodka, Deirdre decides to use his massive online following to get herself voted on as a last-minute Dancing with the Stars replacement. It’ll get her back in shape, mentally and physically. It might even get her a life of her own. Deirdre’s fifteen minutes of fame have begun. Irresistible and offbeat, Wallflower in Bloom is an original and deeply satisfying story of having the courage to take a leap into the spotlight, no matter where you land.

Tessa Sanders is a modern-day Calamity Jane. After ten miserable years married to horrid Rupert, Tessa finally decides to leave him. Her exit is made possible following a chance meeting with Major Adam Parker-Hurst, the golf club captain. The major offers her and her five-year-old twin sons, Sam and Freddy, a place to stay at his magnificent country house, Manorbier Estate. Thinking that marriage is eventually on the cards, Tess is miffed to find out that shes not the only lodger at the house. Simon, a corporal in the local Territorial Army is also a guest, or so it seems; the relationship between the senior officer and his subordinate appears to be a bit too friendly for her liking! To make matters worse, Rupert becomes more of a burden now shes left him than he ever was when they were together! Put into the pot, her dithery mother and Tess is slowly being torn apart with everything thats going on! And all this is performed in front of the boys who provided such an innocent background to the entire saga it makes her cry! But when shed finally managed to get herself on an even keel, even the rivers of tears shed shed over the boys didnt compare to what happened in the end. It was the saddest part of her entire life; it was tragic. The reader is taken on a hilarious and very witty roller-coaster ride that exudes a calamity of heartache, agonising sorrow, stupidity, naivety, sleaze, chance, and unbelievable romance; the incredible journey seasoned with large servings of humiliation and disappointment along the way.

Summer Rigby has been contemplating her life choices lately. Her dad comes from a family of witches, but her mother wants her to take over her family’s bar. In a way, it’s as important of a legacy as the witchcraft. But is it really what she wants to do? While walking along the beach, Summer is hit with a powerful premonition, one she can’t help but act on. Brandi Best must move to Cornellis Island, Summer must take over her mother’s bar, and Summer is the one who is tasked with making these things happen. So much for Summer’s wants and needs. Her life is going in a direction she can’t control, but it’s not all bad. At least she has her elderly bestie, Maggie, and her visions keep life interesting. On to the next adventure. __________ Brandi Best has nothing tying her down. Nothing keeping her in Arizona. No kids, no husband, and her parents passed away years ago. When she finds out a town in Ireland will actually pay her to move there? Why not spend the second half of her life in a gorgeous country by the sea? But things aren't all that they seem. In preparing to move, Brandi discovers some big secrets about herself and her parents. First and foremost, that she's adopted. And then she finds a journal written in her father's handwriting claiming Brandi was found in that same Irish town she's heading to. Is it a coincidence, or something more? Still, starting over is everything she hoped for and more. An exotic location, new friends, and new adventures working in the local bar. Things are going really well... until she falls into the ocean. Touching salt water for the first time does something to her. Something... fishy. And her life gets even more confusing when she meets the handsome descendant of a pirate who swears he can help her find the truth about her past. All it'll take? More adventure. More danger. And a hunt for an incredible treasure. Brandi doesn't know what to believe, but she's going to have to figure something out soon, or she's going to have one whopper of a tail to tell.