Steve Luxenberg's Blog: About "Annie's Ghosts: A Journey Into a Family Secret", page 2
November 29, 2010
Annie's Ghosts: The 2010 Holiday Gift and Giveaway Edition
I am making good on a promise.
Several times over the past year, while signing copies of Annie's Ghosts at events, readers have enthused, "This book would make a great holiday gift for someone in my family."
Then, invariably, they would sigh and say something like, "But I haven't decided which family member, and part of the fun would be having it inscribed."
I suppose I could have helped them with their dilemma. I could have generously said, "Buy several – I'll inscribe them all!" But I'm still getting in touch with my inner marketer.
One night, at a book talk in California, I had a better idea – or, at least, an unpressured one. "Well, if email me your address, I'll send you a bookplate with an inscription and my autograph," I proposed. "Postage on me."
I've now provided several dozen such bookplates to gift-giving readers. So here's my offer for the 2010 holidays: If you email me a request with your address, I'll send you an inscribed bookplate for that gift copy or for the one you bought for yourself. Please let me know if you'd like a specific inscription, or whether you want me to create one, or whether you just want a signature. Send the email to steve@steveluxenberg.com.
Also: As a way of thanking the many, many readers who have helped spread the word about Annie's Ghosts, I'm giving away two signed hardcover copies for the holidays. Just send an email to steve@steveluxenberg.com by December 15, or use the the email form at steveluxenberg.com. The two winners will be randomly selected. If you use the email form at the website, please be sure to include your email address in the space provided. Otherwise, I won't know how to contact you if you win.
(As they say, no purchase is necessary. But please feel free to visit the Steve Luxenberg author page on Facebook, and join the ranks of those who "like" it. You can click here to get there. The more the merrier!)
Happy holidays, and here's hoping that you find new books to captivate you in 2011.
Best,
Steve Luxenberg
Several times over the past year, while signing copies of Annie's Ghosts at events, readers have enthused, "This book would make a great holiday gift for someone in my family."
Then, invariably, they would sigh and say something like, "But I haven't decided which family member, and part of the fun would be having it inscribed."
I suppose I could have helped them with their dilemma. I could have generously said, "Buy several – I'll inscribe them all!" But I'm still getting in touch with my inner marketer.
One night, at a book talk in California, I had a better idea – or, at least, an unpressured one. "Well, if email me your address, I'll send you a bookplate with an inscription and my autograph," I proposed. "Postage on me."
I've now provided several dozen such bookplates to gift-giving readers. So here's my offer for the 2010 holidays: If you email me a request with your address, I'll send you an inscribed bookplate for that gift copy or for the one you bought for yourself. Please let me know if you'd like a specific inscription, or whether you want me to create one, or whether you just want a signature. Send the email to steve@steveluxenberg.com.
Also: As a way of thanking the many, many readers who have helped spread the word about Annie's Ghosts, I'm giving away two signed hardcover copies for the holidays. Just send an email to steve@steveluxenberg.com by December 15, or use the the email form at steveluxenberg.com. The two winners will be randomly selected. If you use the email form at the website, please be sure to include your email address in the space provided. Otherwise, I won't know how to contact you if you win.
(As they say, no purchase is necessary. But please feel free to visit the Steve Luxenberg author page on Facebook, and join the ranks of those who "like" it. You can click here to get there. The more the merrier!)
Happy holidays, and here's hoping that you find new books to captivate you in 2011.
Best,
Steve Luxenberg
November 4, 2010
Praising libraries, an author's best friend
Let us now praise libraries, famous or not.
They support authors and their work. They give us a space on their shelves and a place where communities can come to discuss our books. In my travels, I often find myself at the local library, sometimes to do a bit of research, sometimes because I like to surround myself with people and books when I'm working.
In October, I gave a lecture on Annie's Ghosts at a university library, where I happened to have spent a magical Saturday afternoon more than 40 years ago. I was 12 years old, visiting my older brother, who was then in the spring of his freshman year at the University of Michigan. He had invited me for the weekend, and I took advantage of my freedom to roam the campus by plopping myself down in a chair in the Hatcher Graduate Library's periodicals room.
Strange? Well, I admit, a bit unusual. Hour after hour, reel after reel, I conjured up historic dates and threaded microfilmed newspapers through the gigantic reader. I would be lying if I pretended that I remembered much about my choices, but I know that I wasn't particularly creative: I went for wars and sports and memorable news, not necessarily in that order.
Did my love of journalism begin on that afternoon in 1964, huddled in the dim light with the front pages on D-Day, the 1929 stock market crash and the Detroit Tigers victories in the 1935 and 1945 World Series? That's too neat, too romantic a notion. But I do remember this: I walked out of the library with a powerful feeling that witnessing history, and then reporting it, would be a job worth having.
To return to Ann Arbor, and to be invited to give a lecture in that same library, allowed me to say thanks in person, to pay tribute to a place that opened my eyes to the wider world around me. That's what the best libraries do. They don't give us knowledge. They allow us to find knowledge, to inquire, to explore.
The night after I spoke at the Grad Library, I stood before a crowd of nearly 200 at a very different sort of library, a public library in Novi, a suburb west of Detroit. Recently, Novi joined with four nearby public libraries (Northville, Lyon Township, Salem-South Lyon and Wixom) to form the Neighborhood Library Association.
As their first joint project, the NLA chose Annie's Ghosts as a "Community Read," and each library organized two months of activities around the themes of the book. The libraries had 183 copies on hand, and according to their records, the book circulated 765 times before I came to speak. (For a news article on my talk and the Community Read program, click here.)
As it happens, the Novi Public Library has just moved into a new home: a $15 million, 55,000 square foot, start-of-the-art building that opened a few months ago, in June 2010. A bond issue, passed by the Novi voters, provided most of the money to pay for the facility. In this time of tight budgets, it's an impressive commitment and investment in Novi's future.
As director Julie Farkas took me on a tour, I could see that it was much more than just a place for books or DVDs or computers or author talks. It's a place that draws people of all ages and interests, a place where a community comes together, a place for exploration and pursuit.
A place where a 12-year-old might find or nurture a life-long passion.
They support authors and their work. They give us a space on their shelves and a place where communities can come to discuss our books. In my travels, I often find myself at the local library, sometimes to do a bit of research, sometimes because I like to surround myself with people and books when I'm working.
In October, I gave a lecture on Annie's Ghosts at a university library, where I happened to have spent a magical Saturday afternoon more than 40 years ago. I was 12 years old, visiting my older brother, who was then in the spring of his freshman year at the University of Michigan. He had invited me for the weekend, and I took advantage of my freedom to roam the campus by plopping myself down in a chair in the Hatcher Graduate Library's periodicals room.
Strange? Well, I admit, a bit unusual. Hour after hour, reel after reel, I conjured up historic dates and threaded microfilmed newspapers through the gigantic reader. I would be lying if I pretended that I remembered much about my choices, but I know that I wasn't particularly creative: I went for wars and sports and memorable news, not necessarily in that order.
Did my love of journalism begin on that afternoon in 1964, huddled in the dim light with the front pages on D-Day, the 1929 stock market crash and the Detroit Tigers victories in the 1935 and 1945 World Series? That's too neat, too romantic a notion. But I do remember this: I walked out of the library with a powerful feeling that witnessing history, and then reporting it, would be a job worth having.
To return to Ann Arbor, and to be invited to give a lecture in that same library, allowed me to say thanks in person, to pay tribute to a place that opened my eyes to the wider world around me. That's what the best libraries do. They don't give us knowledge. They allow us to find knowledge, to inquire, to explore.
The night after I spoke at the Grad Library, I stood before a crowd of nearly 200 at a very different sort of library, a public library in Novi, a suburb west of Detroit. Recently, Novi joined with four nearby public libraries (Northville, Lyon Township, Salem-South Lyon and Wixom) to form the Neighborhood Library Association.
As their first joint project, the NLA chose Annie's Ghosts as a "Community Read," and each library organized two months of activities around the themes of the book. The libraries had 183 copies on hand, and according to their records, the book circulated 765 times before I came to speak. (For a news article on my talk and the Community Read program, click here.)
As it happens, the Novi Public Library has just moved into a new home: a $15 million, 55,000 square foot, start-of-the-art building that opened a few months ago, in June 2010. A bond issue, passed by the Novi voters, provided most of the money to pay for the facility. In this time of tight budgets, it's an impressive commitment and investment in Novi's future.
As director Julie Farkas took me on a tour, I could see that it was much more than just a place for books or DVDs or computers or author talks. It's a place that draws people of all ages and interests, a place where a community comes together, a place for exploration and pursuit.
A place where a 12-year-old might find or nurture a life-long passion.
August 15, 2010
FAQs on Annie's Ghosts (#5 and the last)
This is the final installment of FAQs on Annie's Ghosts. The questions are based on ones I have been asked at talks and other events since the book came out last year. If you have already read the book, and have a question that you would like me to answer, you can send me an email. The address is steve@steveluxenberg.com.
Q: How did writing Annie's Ghosts affect your relationships with your siblings and other family members?
A: I love this question. It implies that I was brave, that I had to wi...
Q: How did writing Annie's Ghosts affect your relationships with your siblings and other family members?
A: I love this question. It implies that I was brave, that I had to wi...
July 16, 2010
A tribute to Edward Missavage, 1924-2010
Readers of Annie's Ghosts will be familiar with the name of Ed Missavage, a generous soul and long-time psychiatrist at the hospital where my secret aunt spent 31 years.
Ed died last Saturday, July 10, at age 85. I wrote the following remarks for the funeral service held in Detroit today.
Ed died last Saturday, July 10, at age 85. I wrote the following remarks for the funeral service held in Detroit today.
Comments for Edward Missavage funeral,
July 17, 2010
From Steve Luxenberg,
author of Annie's Ghosts: A Journey Into a Family Secret
Our relationship began in contention.
It blossomed into friendship.
Boldness and a...
June 27, 2010
FAQs on Annie’s Ghosts (#4)
Another FAQ from my talks on Annie's Ghosts:
Q: "Did you find out exactly why your mom hid her sister's existence?"
A: Before I get to that, I'd like to answer another question that has come my way several times in the past week, including twice yesterday at the American Library Association's conference in Washington.
Q: Is your book available on Kindle?
A: Yes (as well as other e-book formats).
Now back to regularly scheduled programming.
My journey into our family secret took me around the country, as I tracked down unknown relatives and friends of my mom from the 1930s and 1940s. I read all the letters -- 600 of them -- that my parents exchanged during my father's Army days in World War II. As best as I could, I recreated my mom's worlds, both the one that she left behind and the one that she inhabited while I was growing up. I came away with a strong sense of what she did and why she did it, and of the social forces that influenced her.
I'm going to stop there, so that I stay on this side of the spoiler rules (don't give away the story).
Next and final FAQ: "How did writing Annie's Ghosts affect your relationships with ..."
Q: "Did you find out exactly why your mom hid her sister's existence?"
A: Before I get to that, I'd like to answer another question that has come my way several times in the past week, including twice yesterday at the American Library Association's conference in Washington.
Q: Is your book available on Kindle?
A: Yes (as well as other e-book formats).
Now back to regularly scheduled programming.
My journey into our family secret took me around the country, as I tracked down unknown relatives and friends of my mom from the 1930s and 1940s. I read all the letters -- 600 of them -- that my parents exchanged during my father's Army days in World War II. As best as I could, I recreated my mom's worlds, both the one that she left behind and the one that she inhabited while I was growing up. I came away with a strong sense of what she did and why she did it, and of the social forces that influenced her.
I'm going to stop there, so that I stay on this side of the spoiler rules (don't give away the story).
Next and final FAQ: "How did writing Annie's Ghosts affect your relationships with ..."
FAQs on Annie's Ghosts (#4)
Another FAQ from my talks on Annie's Ghosts:
Q: "Did you find out exactly why your mom hid her sister's existence?"
A: Before I get to that, I'd like to answer another question that has come my way several times in the past week, including twice yesterday at the American Library Association's conference in Washington.
Q: Is your book available on Kindle?
A: Yes (as well as other e-book formats).
Now back to regularly scheduled programming.
My journey into our family secret took me around the countr...
Q: "Did you find out exactly why your mom hid her sister's existence?"
A: Before I get to that, I'd like to answer another question that has come my way several times in the past week, including twice yesterday at the American Library Association's conference in Washington.
Q: Is your book available on Kindle?
A: Yes (as well as other e-book formats).
Now back to regularly scheduled programming.
My journey into our family secret took me around the countr...
June 16, 2010
FAQs on Annie’s Ghosts (#3)
Another favorite FAQ at my talks on Annie’s Ghosts:
Q. If your mom were still alive, would you have written your book?
A. Whenever I’m asked this question, I pause long enough for silence to set in, long enough for the audience to wonder whether I'm going to reply, and I say, “Are you kidding me?”
Then I take a more serious shot at the question. It’s not a tough one to answer: I’m pretty certain I wouldn’t have written this book, the one called Annie's Ghosts. Why? Because my mom’s death triggered the events that led me to believe that I could tell her motivations for keeping Annie a secret and that I could explore Annie’s unknown life.
If my mom were still alive, the story would not have unfolded as it did. The first concrete clue – the forwarded letter from the cemetery that listed Annie’s grave and finally revealing her name – only came to us because my mom was no longer alive to receive it.
Who knows what would have happened if my mom had decided to reveal her secret while she were alive? I imagine that conversation sometimes: Listening to her, gently asking her questions, trying to understand. I know this: I wouldn’t have been thinking about writing a book. As I wrote in Annie’s Ghosts, while my mom was alive, I was very much the son, not the journalist.
If she were still alive, the secret would still be her story. It only became my story – my journey into the secret – after she died.
That’s how I look at it. How would you have reacted? Feel free to leave a comment.
Next: “Did you find out exactly why your mom . . .”
Q. If your mom were still alive, would you have written your book?
A. Whenever I’m asked this question, I pause long enough for silence to set in, long enough for the audience to wonder whether I'm going to reply, and I say, “Are you kidding me?”
Then I take a more serious shot at the question. It’s not a tough one to answer: I’m pretty certain I wouldn’t have written this book, the one called Annie's Ghosts. Why? Because my mom’s death triggered the events that led me to believe that I could tell her motivations for keeping Annie a secret and that I could explore Annie’s unknown life.
If my mom were still alive, the story would not have unfolded as it did. The first concrete clue – the forwarded letter from the cemetery that listed Annie’s grave and finally revealing her name – only came to us because my mom was no longer alive to receive it.
Who knows what would have happened if my mom had decided to reveal her secret while she were alive? I imagine that conversation sometimes: Listening to her, gently asking her questions, trying to understand. I know this: I wouldn’t have been thinking about writing a book. As I wrote in Annie’s Ghosts, while my mom was alive, I was very much the son, not the journalist.
If she were still alive, the secret would still be her story. It only became my story – my journey into the secret – after she died.
That’s how I look at it. How would you have reacted? Feel free to leave a comment.
Next: “Did you find out exactly why your mom . . .”
FAQs on Annie's Ghosts (#3)
Another favorite FAQ at my talks on Annie's Ghosts:
Q. If your mom were still alive, would you have written your book?
A. Whenever I'm asked this question, I pause long enough for silence to set in, long enough for the audience to wonder whether I'm going to reply, and I say, "Are you kidding me?"
Then I take a more serious shot at the question. It's not a tough one to answer: I'm pretty certain I wouldn't have written this book, the one called Annie's Ghosts. Why? Because my mom's death trigger...
Q. If your mom were still alive, would you have written your book?
A. Whenever I'm asked this question, I pause long enough for silence to set in, long enough for the audience to wonder whether I'm going to reply, and I say, "Are you kidding me?"
Then I take a more serious shot at the question. It's not a tough one to answer: I'm pretty certain I wouldn't have written this book, the one called Annie's Ghosts. Why? Because my mom's death trigger...
June 6, 2010
FAQs on Annie's Ghosts (#2)
Another of the FAQs asked at my talks on Annie's Ghosts:
Q. Looking back, with all that you have learned about your mom's secret, can you now see certain moments as evidence that she was hiding her sister Annie's existence? Was the secret right there in front of you? Did you have a sense growing up that something wasn't being discussed?
A. I've been tempted, really tempted, to say, "I always felt an air of mystery in my family. Even as a kid, I already knew that my parents were hiding something...
Q. Looking back, with all that you have learned about your mom's secret, can you now see certain moments as evidence that she was hiding her sister Annie's existence? Was the secret right there in front of you? Did you have a sense growing up that something wasn't being discussed?
A. I've been tempted, really tempted, to say, "I always felt an air of mystery in my family. Even as a kid, I already knew that my parents were hiding something...
May 30, 2010
FAQs on Annie's Ghosts (Part #1)
A few weeks ago, at one of my book talks, I handed the microphone to a woman in the audience, who began by saying, "You've probably been asked this before, but…"
She was right – and I didn't mind a bit. (Authors who do mind shouldn't engage in Q&A with the audience.) She hadn't attended any of my other events, and she hadn't heard my answer.
"Has a photo of Annie turned up yet?" she wanted to know.
It's one of the most frequently asked questions that come my way. "Not yet," I said. "But I hope ...
She was right – and I didn't mind a bit. (Authors who do mind shouldn't engage in Q&A with the audience.) She hadn't attended any of my other events, and she hadn't heard my answer.
"Has a photo of Annie turned up yet?" she wanted to know.
It's one of the most frequently asked questions that come my way. "Not yet," I said. "But I hope ...
