A Book and a Chat with Andre Phillip-Hautecoeur

Andre Phillip-Hautecoeur is not a writer, or that is how he defines himself, he is simply a person who had an urge to share something with an audience and write something about Paris. This he explains during today’s “A Book and a Chat”.

Paris is a city where romance, history, fantasy and enchantment meet, Andre’s novel “One Exquisite Night in Paris” is that and so much more.

Andre came to know and love Paris hanging onto the hem of his wife’s skirt. She’s Parisian, she’s everything French without constraint; she makes understanding all of Parisness a pleasure. An understanding which made him want to write this novel.

About “One Exquisite Night in Paris”: (taken from The Broken Bookshelf blog)

It’s a real story. A boy-meets-girl version of a girl-meets-boy story where she’s from Paris and doesn’t speak any English, while he’s from New York and speaks no French, and they only have one amazing thing in common. It’s a story for all who have yet to experience the most amazing night of their lives; a night impossible to live anywhere else but Paris…purposefully the most wonderfully enchanting city in the entire world. Enchantment, fantasy, luxury and fairytale all converge in only two places; once in our dreams and once when our dreams meet Paris. Everyone should live the perfect fantasy of “One Exquisite Night in Paris.”

It’s hard to give a genre to One Exquisite Night in Paris. The novel is an autobiography, telling the story of how Andre and his wife Eff meet. However, it is also a tour guide to the most amazing places in France and a lesson on France’s history and culture.

The novel alternates between Andre telling the story of him and his wife trying to start a life together, and his attempts to plan their ‘One Exquisite Night in Paris’. There are a few points in time where it may take a moment to realise that the story has switched from one tale to the other but it is generally a smooth read.

An unusual writing style is used in the novel, one which reminds me of something that was written in the late 1800s. Something about the style draws the reader in, especially since the writing matches the magical tone set in the novel when talking about Paris and romance.

“One Exquisite Night in Paris” is a novel is full of enchantment, fantasy, luxury and fairytale that converge in only two places; once in our dreams and once when our dreams meet Paris. The story distills into a perfect night; creating a memory which lasts forever.

So listen now and share an interesting, and entertaining show as I chat with my special guest today on A Book and a Chat with Dr Jay Roberts

Barry

Direct link to the show

A Book and a Chat with Andre Phillip-Hautecoeur

or you can download the mp3 file of the show from

“Andre Phillip-Hautecoeur”

You can find out more about my guest and their books at:

“Andre Phillip-Hautecoeur – One Exquisite Paris Night in Paris”

Barry Eva (Storyheart)

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A Book and a Chat with Dr. Jay Roberts

My guest on today’s “A Book and a Chat” is Dr Jay Roberts, a board-certified physiatrist, specializing in the treatment of physical disabilities with a focus of adding quality to life.

In 1999 Dr. Roberts was in at-home hospice care preparing for his own death from a neurological disease. At the point where he finally gave up, he experienced a spontaneous, overnight healing. It was not the first time he had ‘cheated’ death. He had survived a fifty-foot fall from a cliff, a plane crash, and attempts on his life by rebel insurgents in remote areas in the Philippines in the 1970s.

Even after his complete recovery from disease, it would take a maximum security prison environment to reveal to him the mysterious power of forgiveness and finally push Dr. Roberts to write his own story a memoir that lead him back to many dark places that not only brought back moments he has tried hard to forget but also issues that caused waves within his own family.

So hard was it for Dr. Roberts to write “Break the Chains” that several times he gave up along the way, but deep inside he knew the words had to be shared, not only for his own healing but to aid others who might be going through some of the same issues.

About “Break the Chains” (Review from Seatlepi.com)

Break the Chains is an inspirational, compelling memoir about forgiveness.
Dr. Jay D Roberts takes the reader on an interesting and enlightening journey, from the time he was a little boy raised by a military father who abused him, to the time he studied medicine in the Philippines in the midst of communist insurrection, to the time he fell victim to a deadly disease and eventually was miraculously healed in Lourdes, France. Above all, the author takes the reader on an internal spiritual journey of the heart and soul, from darkness to light, from slavery to freedom.

This memoir. In a simple, straight-forward manner devoid of superfluous words or descriptions, Dr. Roberts states the facts and allows the reader to make his own conclusions about the meaning of life, faith, persistence, love and, of course, forgiveness, which is the central theme of this book.

The story moves back and forth in time, showing glimpses of the author at different pivotal points of his life. I found the flashes to his childhood quite disturbing, especially the way Dr. Roberts’ mother rationalized her husband’s abuse of their son. I also found inspirational the way the author persevered to become a doctor and help patients in spite of all the barriers he had to overcome. In addition, the segments about the political upheavals in the Philippines were like a little history lesson.

This book is the poignant story of one man’s struggles to break the chains and find peace. Fans of inspirational and Christian memoirs should pick this one up.

So listen now and share an interesting, and entertaining show as I chat with my special guest today on A Book and a Chat with Dr Jay Roberts

Barry

Direct link to the show

A Book and a Chat with Dr Jay Roberts

or you can download the mp3 file of the show from

“Dr Jay Roberts”

You can find out more about my guest and their books at:

“Dr Jay Roberts – Break The Chains”

Barry Eva (Storyheart)

Check out my song parodies

Across The Pond LLC- Links to everything including song parodies

Author of “Across the Pond” and “The Bathroom Book of Romance”

A Book and a Chat Blog

A Book and a Chat Radio Show

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A Book and a Chat with Joan Heartwell

Today’s guest on a Book and a Chat is Joan Heartwell who under another name is the award winning author of several novels; she is also a freelance writer and editor.

She has now produced a “Hamster Island” a memoir in which she chronicles, her unremarkable life as a member of a very poor, super-dysfunctional family that includes a mostly absent father, a religious fanatic mother, a kleptomaniac grandmother, and two special needs siblings, all residing more or less in the middle of a parking lot. The story moves from Joan’s lively coming of age in the sixties to her role as caretaker for both siblings after her parents’ deaths, at which time she must resort to extraordinary measures to locate the midpoint between their needs and her own.

Readers will move from laughing to crying as Joan shares with us her life in the pages of “Hamster Island”.

When asked what she hoped people would get from reading this book she replied…

“I hope readers will laugh and cry as they read Hamster Island and find it really entertaining. I hope those who happen to be siblings of persons with special needs will come to feel that their conflicted feelings, especially those they had as children, are totally understandable and acceptable. I hope readers who have never given much thought to individuals with special needs will start thinking about them and feel more compassion for them. I hope I start a conversation. I have so many questions, philosophical questions that arise from the mysteries that I came across in my life; I hope readers will help me to answer them. I hope some high-profile politician—one of those guys/gals who on the one hand preaches that everyone must be pro-life, and on the other would love to see food stamps and Medicaid and other social services drastically cut or eradicated from state and fed budgets—will somehow come across my book and read it and have an epiphany and publicly renounce his/her previous convictions and begin to fight for social justice for one and all. That’s a lot to hope for, but then hope wouldn’t be hope if it wasn’t sweeping.”

The book is one that I believe all will enjoy with dark moments mixed with humor.

So listen now and share an interesting, and entertaining show as I chat with my special guest today on A Book and a Chat with Joan Heartwell

Barry

Direct link to the show

A Book and a Chat with Joan Heartwell

or you can download the mp3 file of the show from

“Joan Heartwell”

You can find out more about my guest and their books at:

“Joan Heartwell – Hampster Island”

Barry Eva (Storyheart)

Check out my song parodies

Across The Pond LLC- Links to everything including song parodies

Author of “Across the Pond” and “The Bathroom Book of Romance”

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A Book and a Chat with Harriet Rossetto

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Harriet Rossetto is the author of the fascinating memoir/autobiography
“Sacred Housekeeping – A Spiritual Memoir”. The book tells of Harriet’s
life which had its own devils and lack of direction was , by a chance answering
of an “ad” put on the path that would not only lead to the saving and redemption
of many Jewish people, but also help her face and conquer her own issues.

Trained as a social worker with a strong Jewish identity,
Harriet answered a classified ad in the Los Angeles times which for her would
change her life forever. The ad read… “Looking for a person of a Jewish
background to help incarcerated Jewish offenders.”

Soon realizing that most of the Jew in jail had committed their
crimes owing to “addiction” or as Harriet puts it “the dis-ease” of
addiction”.

Frustrated by the lack of resources, she embraced the
unpopular cause, fighting the widespread denial that “nice Jewish men and
women” could be addicts and criminals in need of rehabilitation. A woman
of passion, vision, and action, this fight took on the form of “Beit T’Shuvah:
The House of Return.”

During the next 25 years not only has this lead to the
saving of many people of the Jewish faith but also lead to Harriet’s marriage
to the now “Rabbi Mark Borovitz”.

As one reviewer said of the book…

Ms. Rossetto has once again accomplished the impossible:
written a profoundly naked autobiography of searing truth and honesty which is simultaneously
on every page also a very clear no-punches-pulled road-map as to how to lead a
life worth living.

About Sacred Housekeeping – A Spiritual Memoir (taken from Harriets web site)

An honest autobiography of a courageous woman and social worker, who took an interest in the unpopular cause of helping incarcerated Jewish men re-enter society and made it her life’s passion. From that passion was born Beit T’Shuvah, a once tiny halfway house that has grown exponentially into a renowned treatment organization.    Her voyage is remarkable and an inspiration to all people. This is the personal story of the obstacles she surmounted and the successes she encountered. This book also tells the unconventional love story of Harriet Rossetto and her husband, Rabbi Mark Borovitz.

So listen now and share an interesting, and entertaining show as I chat with my special guest today on A Book and a Chat with Harriet Rossetto

Barry

Direct link to the show

“A Book and a Chat with Harriet Rossetto”

or you can download the mp3 file of the show from

“Harriet Rossetto”

You can find out more about my guest and their books at:

“Harriet Rossetto – Sacred Housekeeping”

Barry Eva (Storyheart)

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A Book and a Chat with Barbara Everett Heintz

Every so often I come across a book on my show that I think
people should read, not just for enjoyment but in many ways for education as
well. While I have only been in America for twelve years thanks to a lot of
knowledge picked up doing “A Book and a Chat” one could say I know more about
the country and in many cases the people than many born and bred people in the
USA.

Today’s guest award winning author Barbara Everett Heintz
and her book “Pinkhoneysuckle” are cases in point. The book has already one several
wards and shows life, being mostly a memoir in an area that many American’s
just do not know about.

Barbara takes her  life story to
describe the “Hidden People” of Appalachia, basically 3^rd
world existence,

Where the poor whites and blacks discriminated against and
segregated to the poorest mountainous regions of the Bible Belt, their strength
and identity shaped by religious values and the virtue of living off the land.

Through her own upbringing she is able to provide a unique insight to the Appalachia
in the mid-20th century, the class struggles and poverty, the family dynamics
and rich cultural traditions.

The book takes the reader through the harshness of the Appalachian way of
life that included abuse and incest, Barbara is able to portray the misery that
she lived through.

As one reviewer put it…

The author brings us into her life in Appalachia in a time when most of
America barely even knew they existed. She does not spare the painful details,
yet comes to an understanding of the people she grew up with, family, friends
and neighbors alike. She selflessly loves all as she matures, and her
understanding of the human condition grows.

To my mind it is a must read book, perhaps a true masterpiece. It shares about
how a poor family that lives in the hill country of the rural South. Written in
unique style that it is a pleasure to read, and has the reader constantly what will
be revealed next.
So listen now and share an interesting, and entertaining show as I chat with my special guest today on A Book and a Chat with Barbara Everett Heintz

Barry

Direct link to the show

A Book and a Chat with Barbara Everett Heintz

or you can download the mp3 file of the show from

“Barbara Everett Heintz”

You can find out more about my guest and their books at:

“Barbara Everett Heintz – Pinkhoneysuckle”

Barry Eva (Storyheart)

My Blogs:

Book Information and Things UK – Across the Pond

Book and a Chat Radio Show Guests – A Book and a Chat

Funny, Weird Or Just Interesting News From Around the World – Laugh I Thought My Trousers Would Never dry

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A Book and a Chat with Linda Kovic-Skow

Linda Kovic-Skow, French Illusions, Memoir, France, aupair,
learning French, romance, beautiful, captivating, Book and a Chat.

When Linda Kovic-Skow reached a form of mid-life crisis
after her youngest daughter went off to college she wrote out a form of bucket
list consisting of items like “learn to play the piano” and “travel to Africa
to see elephants” . While some of the items on her list were not available for
her to do one item on the list was something she was able to complete and that
was “write a book”.

Eventually she found an old diary she kept back in 1979,
which she used as the basis for her beautiful debut novel,   or rather memoir “French Illusions”.

About “French Illusions”: (Taken from “I am a Reader” blog):

In the summer of 1979, twenty-one-year-old Linda Kovic
contracts to become an au pair for a wealthy French family in the Loire Valley. 

To secure the position, she pretends to speak the language,
fully aware her deception will be discovered once she arrives at her
destination. 

Based on the author’s diary, French Illusions captures
Linda’s fascinating and often challenging real-life story inside and outside
the Château de Montclair. 

The over-bearing, Madame Dubois, her accommodating husband,
Monsieur Dubois, and their two children are highlighted as Linda struggles to
adapt to her new environment. Continually battling the language barrier, she
signs up and attends classes at the local university in the nearby town of
Tours, broadening her range of experiences. When she encounters, Adam, a
handsome young student, her life with the Dubois family becomes more
complicated, adding fuel to her internal battle for independence.

The book introduces you to the life in the  Loire
Valley, and reminded the reader what it was like to be young and adventurous. It
is beautifully written painting the picture for the reader in a story that will
stay with you long after you have finished reading the book.

 “French Illusions”
will leave the reader wanting more, something that Linda is already working on
with a follow up novel.

So listen now and share an interesting, and entertaining show as I chat with my special guest today on A Book and a Chat with Linda Kovic-Skow

Barry

Direct link to the show

A Book and a Chat with Linda Kovic-Skow

or you can download the mp3 file of the show from

“Linda Kovic-Skow”

You can find out more about my guest and their books at:

“Linda Kovic-Skow – French Illusions”

Barry Eva (Storyheart)

My Blogs:

Book Information and Things UK – Across the Pond

Book and a Chat Radio Show Guests – A Book and a Chat

Funny, Weird Or Just Interesting News From Around the World – Laugh I Thought My Trousers Would Never dry

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