It’s Saturday night! I’m excited to have Kathie Giorgio, author of Hope Always Rises on my blog today. She’ll be sharing her recommendations for your Saturday night. At the end of the post, I’ll share a bit more about her book that’s currently on tour with WOW! Women on Writing. It’s a unique book of faith, hope, humor, and drama, that you don’t want to miss.
But first, here’s Kathie’s recommendations. Take it away Kathie!
A Book Recommendation: John Irving’s The Hotel New Hampshire. This is the one book I would have with me if I was ever stuck on a desert island. It has something for every mood – serious issues, quirky characters, unbelievable situations (a woman who lives constantly in a bear suit?), and humor that will make you set aside the book so that when you laugh, you don’t bounce it off your lap. And it’s a BIG book, so it will take up your entire evening, so that you’re not sitting around, fretting that all you have to do on a Saturday night is read.
A Movie Recommendation: Mr. Holland’s Opus. This movie strikes a particular chord with me. I saw it for the first time when I was teaching writing classes more than actually writing. The movie is about a man who wants to write a symphony, but because he is now married and expecting his first child, he has to take a job teaching high school band. At the time, I was so afraid I was going to be a “Those who can’t, teach,” person, and the movie made me weep. Now I see his triumph, My 14th book just got published, so I’m triumphant too.
A Wild Recommendation: My entire family of husband, 4 kids, 1 grandkid, and 1 family friend who might as well be my kid plays Animal Crossing New Horizons on the Nintendo Switch. We began playing during the pandemic. Now, one of my favorite Saturday nights is when my 37-year old son, 22-year old daughter, my husband and I order the best take-out pizza and frosted brownies and spend the night playing the improbable Animal Crossing Monopoly, which isn’t like Monopoly at all. Sometimes my “should-be kid” joins in on Zoom. The Monopoly game was a present from my son. So fun!
Now that’s a fun Saturday night! Great recommendations, Kathie. Before you all leave to take her up on her suggestions, here’s more about her book Hope Always Rises:
In Heaven, there is a gated community for those who end their lives by choice. This is a complete surprise to Hope, who ends her life one morning on the banks of the Fox River in Waukesha, Wisconsin.
Hope has always dealt with deep sadness. From childhood on, she visited therapists, doctors, alternative medicine practitioners, Reiki artists, etc., to no avail. In Heaven, God reassures her that he knows what caused the sadness, but he won’t reveal it yet.
All community residents are required to attend weekly group therapy. Hope’s first group is led by Virginia Woolf. Several of the book’s chapters tell the stories of other members of this group.
Filled with many moments of striking humor, uplifting realizations, and difficult challenges, Hope finds her way in Heaven. She meets many people like herself, who help her restore her forgotten artistic talent and passion, and God himself, who is amazingly human in the most inhuman of ways. Hope finds understanding and forgiveness, and most importantly, friends.
Purchase a copy of Hope Always Rises by visiting Amazon, Barnes and Noble, or Bookshop.org. Make sure you also add Hope Always Rises to your Goodreads reading list.
About Author Kathie Giorgio
Kathie Giorgio is the author of seven novels, two story collections, an essay collection, and four poetry collections. Her latest novel, Hope Always Rises, released on February 28, 2023. She’s been nominated for the Pushcart Prize in fiction and poetry and awarded the Outstanding Achievement Award from the Wisconsin Library Association, the Silver Pen Award for Literary Excellence, the Pencraft Award for Literary Excellence, and the Eric Hoffer Award In Fiction. Her poem “Light” won runner-up in the 2021 Rosebud Magazine Poetry Prize. In a recent column, Jim Higgins, the books editor of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, listed Giorgio as one of the top 21 Wisconsin writers of the 21st century. Kathie is also the director and founder of AllWriters’ Workplace & Workshop LLC, an international creative writing studio. Visit her website at www.kathiegiorgio.org.
Good answers.