Book Review: Wish You Were Here (Memior)

Wish You Were Here

by 

Sheridan Jobbins

Publisher: Affirm Press
Publication date: 1st September 2017
Pages: 345
Format Read: eBook
Source: Courtesy of the publisher via Netgalley

Reeling from the devastating collapse of her marriage to the man she thought was the love of her life, after a late night enjoying smashing all her china a little too much, Sheridan Jobbins decides she needs to do something drastic to save her sanity.

Her solution is to buy a hot red car and drive across America. Hopelessly unprepared and heartbroken, she sets out on the road trip of a lifetime determined to find herself – and ironically finds love instead. But not before she has a whole bunch of crazy adventures and wrong turns along the way.

Every woman with a heart and a sense of humour will want jump on board this unforgettable ride – and it’s the best antidote for anyone who’s ever had her heart broken and thought she might not survive.'

‘In this moment I am perfect. I am free to be whoever I want, and all I want to be is a woman in a red spotty dress, speeding into her future in a shiny red car.’

Wish You Were Here is a heart-felt memoir filled with pathos and wry humour.

Feeling utter despair when her husband announces he doesn’t want to be married anymore Jobbins concocts a crazy plan to drive across America Thelma & Louise style.

I’ve never been much of a memoir reader. I tend to find them slow going and I find the first person past tense narration hard to get into.

What I did love about the story is Jobbins’ candour. She opens up to her readers and pours out all her dashed hopes and her fears. The story tells like a travelogue across America with humorous and sometimes life affirming situations occurring across the country as Jobbins travels from LA to Colorado, Nebraska and Pennsylvania via numerous wrong turns dropping in on an eclectic group friends and relatives along the way.

If you’ve ever felt like life has let you down and you just need to break free and find yourself again Wish You Were Here is the read for you.

My Rating  6/10

*this review is part of the Book Lover Book Review Aussie author challenge

and book #12 in the Australian Women Writers challenge

Photo credit: Affirm Press

Born in Melbourne, Sheridan Jobbins is a third generation Australian film maker. She kickstarted her career as one of the original celebrity chefs on Cooking with Sheri, earning a Guinness World Record as the youngest host of her own show at the age of nine.

She was presenter on numerous TV programs, including Simon Townsend’s Wonder World! and Good Morning Australia. She was a director of the film company Latent Image Productions which produced the award-winning film The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert. Since 2000 she has co-written screenplays with director Stephan Elliott for Disney, Warner Bros, Working Title, Hopscotch and Ealing Studios.
She has published numerous short stories and articles, and mentors other screenwriters on her website www.scriptwhisperer.com.

 

Book Review: Those Three Words (Memoir) by Christine Bauer

Title: Those Three Words
Author: Christine Bauer
Publisher: Wise Ink Creative Publishing
Publication date: 15th May 2018
Pages: 256
Format Read: Kindle Edition
Source: Courtesy of Book Publicity Services

There are three words that, when uttered together, make dreams come true for millions of women. For millions more, those same words can shatter their dreams.  "You are pregnant."

Almost half of all pregnancies in the United States — some 3.1 million each year —are unintended. Among unmarried women in their 20s, seven out of 10 pregnancies are unplanned.

Author Christine Bauer’s memoir Those Three Words: A birthmother’s story of choice, chance and motherhood takes a deep dive into the emotions of facing an unplanned pregnancy at the tender age of 18.

Those Three Words takes readers along on the journey of weighing options, agonizing over a decision, and ultimately deciding to let another family adopt and raise her baby.  This story also looks at how placing a child for adoption affected the rest of her life, especially when she became the mother of two boys.  Those Three Words touches on the controversial topics of abortion and adoption, birth control, and women’s rights.

This story will resonate with millions of readers because women know and understand the joy and pain of pregnancy and motherhood, love and loss, and the power of family and parental love.

Christine Bauer’s story starts at the age of nineteen. She has her life together after a tumultuous few years of rebellion and has left home to attend college. Life is good; until she finds out she is pregnant.

Christine spirals into depression and suicide looks like the only way out for her. Thoughts of her close-knit family pull her out of this dark cloud and thankfully her suicidal thoughts are pushed to the background.

I felt sad that Christine had no-one to sit down with, a professional, to discuss options calmly without all the scaremongering. The whole process from the pregnancy confirmation was so badly handled.

I can imagine it would be difficult to write a memoir, to bare your soul to all. Christine’s writing is candid and emotional without being dramatic.

The story is not only about Christine’s decision concerning her unplanned pregnancy but also her life going forward and how that decision impacted on everything she did.

I was aghast at her drinking and smoking but Christine writes with honesty about many of her thoughts and actions which highlight her immaturity at the time.

Family is the underlying strength behind Christine’s memoir and she shows the reader that family comes in all shapes and sizes.

Content: talk of suicide, abortion, minimal coarse language.

If you are experiencing bouts of depression or suicidal thoughts there are many organisations that are there to listen and help.

Australia:

https://www.lifeline.org.au/

https://www.suicidecallbackservice.org.au/

www.beyondblue.org.au/get+support

UK:

https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/suicide/

www.supportline.org.uk/problems/suicide.php

USA:

https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org/

http://suicidehotlines.com/national.html

 My Rating 4/5           📘📘📘📘

Christine (Chris) Bauer was born and raised in the big small town of Mitchell, South Dakota. She feels blessed to have grown up in a place and time when childhood was carefree, when kids left the house in morning and returned in the evening, and in between rode bikes, built forts, and played baseball and Barbies. While she loved her hometown, Chris was eager to move on to new adventures after graduating high school.

Chris attended Mankato State University in Minnesota, majoring in Mass Communications. Her dream was to one day be part of a Woodward and Bernstein-type team who saved the world through ground-breaking journalism.  Soul searching and need for employment led her to a gratifying career in corporate communications, public relations and marketing. Chris has loved reading and writing for as long as she can remember.

Her greatest achievement and most profound joy is being the mother of three kind-hearted children and one beautiful and spirited grandchild. In addition to being a mom and grandma of humans, Chris is also the proud mom to one very spoiled dog and two equally spoiled granddogs. She admits there were moments in the motherhood journey where she preferred the canines.

She resides in the Minneapolis area. While her nest is nearly empty now, she loves that the flock returns regularly for food and shelter. Those Three Words is her first book. It is currently available for sale. To learn more, go to https://www.authorcbauer.com/