Lauren Kessler Books

One journalist's riveting--and surprisingly hopeful--in-the-trenches look at Alzheimer's, the disease that claimed her mother's life.Like many loved ones of Alzheimer's sufferers, Lauren Kessler was devastated by the ravaging disease that seemed to turn her mother into another person before claiming her life altogether. To deal with the pain of her loss, and to better understand the confounding aspects of living with a disease that afflicts four and a half million people every year, Kessler enlisted as a caregiver at a facility she calls Maplewood. Life inside the facility is exhausting and humbling, a microenvironment built upon the intense relationships between two groups of marginalized people: the victims of Alzheimer's and the underpaid, overworked employees who care for them. But what surprises Kessler more than the disability and backbreaking work is the grace, humor, and unexpected humanity that are alive and well at Maplewood.Dancing with Rose is forceful and funny, clear-eyed and compelling. An intriguing narrative about the relationships and realities of end-of-life care, it stars an endearing cast of characters who give a human face to what has always been considered a dehumanizing condition. Illuminating and beautifully written, Kessler's immersion offers a new, optimistic view on what Alzheimer's has to teach us.

WHEN WORDS COLLIDE is the most versatile grammar and usage handbook for beginning and continuing media writers. As a main text, the book is praised for its straightforward, clear treatment of grammar, offered in a lighthearted, almost conversational tone. As a handbook, the text serves as a reference tool for students throughout their writing careers. It provides concise and clear explanations and examples, and is a great source for a quick and accurate answer to a grammar or usage question.

Like generations of little girls, Lauren Kessler fell in love with ballet the first time she saw The Nutcracker, and from that day, at age five, she dreamed of becoming a ballerina. But when she was twelve, her very famous ballet instructor crushed those dreams—along with her youthful self-assurance—and she stepped away from the barre. Fast forward four decades. Lauren—suddenly, powerfully, itchingly restless at midlife—embarks on a “Transcontinental Nutcracker Binge Tour,” where attending a string of performances in Chicago, New York, Boston, and San Francisco reignites her love affair with the ballet—and fuels her girlhood dream. What ensues is not only a story about The Nutcracker itself, but also an inside look at the seemingly romantic—but oh-so-gritty—world of ballet, about all that happens away from the audience's eye that precedes the magic on stage. It is a tale told from the perspective of someone who not only loves it, but is also seeking to live it. Lauren's quest to dance The Nutcracker with the Eugene Ballet Company tackles the big issues: fear, angst, risk, resilience, the refusal to “settle in” to midlife, the refusal to become yet another Invisible Woman. It is also a very funny, very real look at what it's like to push yourself further than you ever thought you could go—and what happens when you get there.

Die Bestseller-Autorin Lauren Kessler gibt Einblicke in die Kunst des Schreibens und die Freude am Lesen. Ihre Analyse ist zugleich provozierend und aufbauend, nachdenklich und witzig, effizient und ehrlich. Kessler packt die Erfahrungen einer 25-jährigen Karriere in unterhaltsame und lehrreiche Essays und ermuntert Autorinnen und Autoren die Herausforderungen und Freuden des literarischen Lebens zu genießen. Gute Texte ist das perfekte Buch sowohl für aufstrebende als auch für erfahrene Autorinnen und Autoren. In einfühlsamer, kluger und ermutigender Weise liefert es Rat für all jene, die mit Sprache arbeiten, weil sie die Welt der Wörter lieben.