The grieving process in fact and fiction  [2 books arranged next to each other: left - Black Widow: A Sad-Funny Journey Through Grief for People Who Normally Avoid Books with Words Like "Journey" in the Title by Leslie Gray Streeter; right - The Martian Contingency (Lady Astronaut #4) by Mary Robinette Kowal]    Black Widow: A Sad-Funny Journey Through Grief for People Who Normally Avoid Books with Words Like "Journey" in the Title by Leslie Gray Streeter  non-fiction memoir  Little, Brown and Company, May 2020  In eighteen chapters with titles from lyrics of popular television show theme songs and other cultural references, this author offers readers candid emotional details about her experiences in coping with the sudden death of her spouse. Grief as a form of emotional schizophrenia.  Her insightful revelations are poignant and funny in unexpected ways. Connections between family by blood, by choice, neighbors and extended community create an engagi...

Recent obvious failures and spectacular successes in book fests combined with an actual near collision (my fault) in the grocery store with the incomparable founder of the successful-for-decades BARR - Black Authors & Readers Rock - Conference* who's also the author of Plan It! The Complete Resource Guide for Authors, Book Clubs & Literary Event Planners inspired me to write this FlashbackFriday post.  [photo of two Black women standing next to each other with their arms around each other's shoulders: Cardyn Brooks on the right; Sharon Lucas on the left]  [title page for workbook "How to Plan an Event That "Wows" Workbook By Sharon Lucas" with a photo of the author then "An Addendum to Plan It! The Complete Resource Guide for Authors, Book Clubs & Literary Event Planners"]  In 2017 P.G. Parks & Recreation hosted a community event (overall theme has escaped my Swiss cheese memory) at the Wayne K. Curry Sports and Learning Complex. Sh...