We have been e-mailing back and forth for a while. She told me she was a member of a book club that wanted to read, "For Every Mother" and asked if I'd be willing to answer a few questions that club members would submit. Then they would use those answers in their book club discussion. It has been so fun for me to connect with this wonderful group of women who love reading as much as I do.
You know writing is such a solitary work. Being able to connect with my readers is what keeps me writing. Thank you Garden Book Club for reading my book. Thank you Estella for taking the time to tell me their reactions.
Here is Estella's letter to me explaining how their evening went after reading "For Every Mother".
Hi Janene,
I wanted to follow up with you to let you know that our book club discussion of "For Every Mother" went SO well! Every single one of my Book Garden friends who read the book LOVED it, and those who hadn't had a chance to read it were totally inspired to do so after hearing our discussion. I might add that it is *extremely* rare for there to be a unanimous positive reaction to a monthly book club selection. There are usually opinions all over the place from "I didn't like it at all", to "It was okay", to "I liked it", "I loved it" (you get the picture). EVERYONE loved this one, and our discussion was one of the best we have ever had because, of course, we had your beautiful answers to our interview questions. Many hearts were touched and some tears were shed as we listened to the tender and encouraging thoughts you shared with us. There are a few in our group who can especially relate to what you said about abuse, and we are all looking forward to reading your book on this subject when it comes out in June. Thank you for never giving up on getting it published!
I learned during the book discussion that one of our Book Garden members who is a Relief Society president in our stake has been using quotes and stories from "For Every Mother" to encourage and uplift sisters in her ward who are facing some tough challenges right now. She searched for some copies of it to give as gifts to these sisters, which led to her discovery of "15 Secrets to a Happy Home". She loved it, too (of course), and now the rest of the group wants to read it! We are having trouble finding copies of it. Karen found a couple of used ones online, but we are wishing that we could purchase some new ones somewhere. If you know of somewhere they can be found, let me know so that I can pass the information along. We have been snapping up copies of "For Every Mother" as they become available in the online Seagull Bookstore, as many of us want to get copies to give our mothers, sisters, children and friends, but those keep getting sold out! We will, however, persevere!
Thank you again, so much, for your participation in our book club discussion. It was one of the best we have ever had, and we have been reading and discussing books for many years now. . . Some of our members are young moms with kids who can't make the meetings but who read the book selections and get the notes from our discussions by email, and we have some members who have moved to other states but who also read our books selections "from afar"! Here is a photo taken at one of our Christmas functions. Thank you again, dear friend, for being a part of our book club in May, and for continuing to uplift and inspire women throughout the world with your wonderful books.
Love,
Estella
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