A DELIGHTFUL LITTLE BOOK ON AGING
by
Stephanie Raffelock
Genre: Inspirational / Spiritual / Essays / Self-Help
Publisher: She Writes Press
Publication Date: April 28, 2020
Number of Pages: 119 pages
Scroll down for the giveaway!
Publisher: She Writes Press
Publication Date: April 28, 2020
Number of Pages: 119 pages
Scroll down for the giveaway!
All around us, older women flourish in industry, entertainment, and politics. Do they know something that we don’t, or are we all just trying to figure it out? For so many of us, our hearts and minds still feel that we are twenty-something young women who can take on the world. But in our bodies, the flexibility and strength that were once taken for granted are far from how we remember them. Every day we have to rise above the creaky joints and achy knees to earn the opportunity of moving through the world with a modicum of grace.
Yet we do rise, because it’s a privilege to grow old, and every single day is a gift. Peter Pan’s mantra was, “Never grow up”; our collective mantra should be, “Never stop growing.” This collection of user-friendly stories, essays, and philosophies invites readers to celebrate whatever age they are with a sense of joy and purpose and with a spirit of gratitude.
PRAISE for A Delightful Little Book on Aging:
“Where are the elders? The wise women, the crones, the guardians of truth here to gently, lovingly, and playfully guide us towards the fulfillment of our collective destiny? It turns out that they are right here, in our midst, and Stephanie Raffelock is showcasing the reclamation of aging as a moment of becoming, no longer a dreaded withering into insignificance. A Delightful Little Book on Aging lays down new and beautiful tracks for the journey into our richest, deepest, and wildest years.”
– Kelly Brogan, MD, author of the New York Times bestseller A Mind of Your Own
– Kelly Brogan, MD, author of the New York Times bestseller A Mind of Your Own
“A helpful, uplifting work for readers handling the challenges of growing older.”
– Kirkus Reviews
– Kirkus Reviews
CLICK TO PURCHASE:
Amazon ┃ IndieBound
This little book feels so good in the reader’s hands. It has
a tangibility of quality and collectability (me likes alliteration) that book nerds love. It also came
with a darling little ethereal bag tied with a white satin ribbon that contains
a neat stack of pocket cards of “inspiration and light,” according to the card
on top.
Amazon ┃ IndieBound
Well, howdy, y’all!
How’s everyone progressing through this weird Covid-19 pandemic thing? All I can say is that I’ve just given myself
my second quarantine haircut. I won’t say any more about it, except that there
was hair all over the bathroom when I was done. And seeing as how my hair is
pret-near (East Texas slang for “pretty near”) blood-red, the aftermath looked
like a murder scene, which it kinda was in relation to what I did to my Pompidou.
My hairdresser will likely loathe me with the flames of a thousand suns when
she finally gets to see me again.
All of this Covid-19 stuff makes me feel shut off from the
world with my memories of freer days. It’s as if we, as a society, have had our
childlike innocence stripped from us, and now we see the world through raw
eyes. It’s as if carefree days are gone forever – no more last-minute trips to
the coffeeshop with friends or lingering visits to my favorite museum for fear
of contracting the plague.
I am reminded of a quote in one of the Harry Potter movies
regarding Dementors:
“It’s as if all happiness has gone out from the world.”
“It’s as if all happiness has gone out from the world.”
And this makes me feel old.
How timely is it that Kristine-the-Book-Siren messaged me
about an upcoming review op of a book about aging? Okay, I confess that my
nostrils flared, my eyes grew wide, and I huffed.
“She’s calling me old!” I said to myself. “How dare she insinuate
such a thing!” I huffed as I typed my deets into the blogger tour sign up form.
“Well, I never! The very audacity of the thing!” I blustered as I clicked the “submit”
button.
And then I remembered that I’m a GenXer, and I am kinda -
sorta … in a roundabout way … aging…
Heck fire and save the matches! This is the oldest I’ve
ever been!
HELP!!!!!!!!!!!
Help arrived on a scalding hawt summer afternoon. It was hawt
as a firecracker when I peered into my mailbox and withdrew the envelope, which
contained the most adorable little hardback book I’ve seen in a long while. It’s
even got a prim little dust cover! I confess that I squeed out loud in the
blistering heat, just before wilting like an old flower out of water. Thank
goodness my truck has a powerful AC. Hallelujah and amen!
By now, y’all know that the first thang (yes, I meant to
include that “a”) I did was carefully turn back the adorbs cover to look for
that all encompassing and most desired autograph. Alas, there was none. I daintily
checked the next two pages. Nope. Nada.
“Well, son of a biscuit!” my internal voice echoed in my
head. “Le sigh. At least she sent a note with the book.” My bottom lip pooched
out, and I headed back to the house to begin my journey through the pages of A
DELIGHTFUL LITTLE BOOK ON AGING by Stephanie Raffelock.
This little book feels so good in the reader’s hands. It has
a tangibility of quality and collectability (me likes alliteration) that book nerds love. It also came
with a darling little ethereal bag tied with a white satin ribbon that contains
a neat stack of pocket cards of “inspiration and light,” according to the card
on top.
Those three words are a perfect description of these lovely
pocket cards. Each one is inscribed with a bit of wisdom, of, well, inspiration
and light!
Except for the last one in the stack:
Sorry, Stephanie, I plan on becoming a vampire and living
forever.
But I digress…
I thought this little book would be an easy, quick read. At
just over 100 pages, it shouldn’t take long to plow through, right?
Test results determined that was a lie.
Test results determined that was a lie.
A DELIGHTFUL LITTLE BOOK ON AGING is packed with thoughtful essays,
though short, are richly filled with a lifetime of wisdom mixed with a dash of
Stephanie’s personal stories, and topped with an indescribable spice that rests
on the mental palate and makes the reader want to slow down and savor each one.
And learn from them.
Each year, I try to have a theme for myself. This year has
been a theme dealing with anxiety by learning to mediate. It’s a
journey of learning deep, life-changing wisdom that I’d never known was possible
through the practice of sitting in mediation. I’ve learned this through the
Calm App on my phone. It’s extraordinary how it changes the way one looks at
everything.
At how one learns to be present and in the moment with
gratitude.
This great big little book is in tandem with what I’ve
been learning through meditation. And it’s exceptional. It’s beyond meaningful.
Reading Stephanie’s essays, stopping to relish a sentence or paragraph once
more, is like having that longed-for, last-minute trip to the coffee shop with a
friend during which one lingers over a steaming mug of coffee and crumbly bites
of cake while engaging in rich conversation and connection with a close friend.
I feel less alone. I feel understood.
I feel less old and more wise. (I know it should say "wiser," but just roll with me here.)
I feel as though I’ve made a new bestie. That's why I decided that only a certain bookmark would do for this book. Yes, Stephanie
Raffelock is my new best friend!
(I promise not to stalk you, Steph! It's okay if I call you "Steph," right?)
(I promise not to stalk you, Steph! It's okay if I call you "Steph," right?)
There’s a richness in Stephanie’s prose … a certain (almost)
poetic quality that draws the reader into the innermost part of each essay, as
if the reader is a little bee and each essay is a blossoming, fragrant flower. Just
as it is impossible for the bee to leave a flower without becoming covered in
pollen, so it is impossible for the reader to come to the last sentence without
having gleaned some deep magic.
Am I proposing that Stephanie is some mystical siren or
magical being? Mayhap she is!
A DELIGHTFUL LITTLE BOOK ON AGING by Stephanie Raffelock is
anything but little. Once the reader turns back the cover and steps in, she
discovers just how deep this book is. It is a veritable library of life wisdom.
Richly and warmly written, A DELIGHTFUL BOOK ON AGING by Stephanie Raffelock is
a priceless jewel worthy of reading again and again.
And that’s why I grant
A DELIGHTFUL LITTLE BOOK ON AGING
By Stephanie Raffelock
5 wise brooms of gratitude!
GIVEAWAY! GIVEAWAY! GIVEAWAY!
TWO WINNERS:
Signed hardcover copy of A Delightful Little Book on Aging + a set of 50 pocket inspirations
ONE WINNER: A set of 50 pocket inspirations JULY 7-19, 2020
Signed hardcover copy of A Delightful Little Book on Aging + a set of 50 pocket inspirations
ONE WINNER: A set of 50 pocket inspirations JULY 7-19, 2020
(US ONLY)
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Dear fellow Texas writer: The wit and words that you strung together for this creative review honestly brought a tear to my eye. This has been so much more than a book blog tour -- for me it's been the sweetest initiation into the Texas literary community. Every day for ten days I have woken up to reviews of my book, a new blog, a new writer and so much talent and creativity that it just makes me want to sing and dance. My dancing sure isn't what it used to be. Neither is my singing, but I keep my joy close by and do those things anyway! Thank you BOOKS AND BROOMSTICKS for such a thoughtful review and such a warm welcome. Honestly, if you lived next door, I'd give you a shout and tell you to come drink tea with me on my back porch before the day gets too hot. I've made new friends in these past ten days. There are blogs and people that I will never forget, most especially a certain Gen Exer who touched my heart and made me wish for a long conversations where surely we could solve the mysteries of the universe or at the very least, our own heart's longing.
ReplyDeleteWhat a terrific review. I love the Texas twang. Don't hear it as much here in North Texas, and I miss the deep East Texas folks and their way of talking. Thanks for making me smile this morning. And I, too, love the book.
ReplyDeleteLOVE this review and that you loved the book so much. Nothing like that connection, and glad we are together in embracing our aging! Only getting better, right?
ReplyDelete