| PRAISE FOR BERNADETTE'S WORK!! If you have a comment you would like to share, about one of my books, or a story you have read on this website, or a post you have read on one of my blogs, or a reading you have heard... Or even, an accordion video you have loved... Please share your comment on my Guestbook!! Especially lovely comments, I may also post here. Below are some special comments I have received on my work so far! (Some recent, some, sweet memories from the past.) I hope to hear from you soon!! My best to you in this New Year. Yours. ~b, 6 january 2012... FROM A DISTINGUISHED PROFESSOR... In 2003, my story, Seven Sketches for Papa, won the Charles B. Wood Award for Distinguished Writing from The Carolina Quarterly in Chapel Hill. Here, from the final judge of that award--Jerry Leath Mills, Professor of English, Emeritus, UNC-Chapel Hill. I was truly honored by his thoughtful reflective words. This story, now a central part of my novel, On Brigden Road. "This entry tells three stories at once--the daughter's, the father's, and the story that they share--with both differentiation and unity, with sensitivity and tact, and in a style that releases its narrative at once economically and with a richness of implication. It is a truly masterful story." FROM A LONG LOST FRIEND... Here, the word from a long-ago friend, some more than ten years ago, on that same story, Seven Sketches for Papa, before it was even published yet. (We had agreed to share some work, though ultimately, he never shared his.) He called me a couple of weeks later... He was quiet. You’re a real writer, he said. Some people just say they are. Some people just pretend. But you’re the real thing, he said. Well. Support like that doesn’t come cheap. A thank you, backwards, to my friend. He was prescient, it seems. A year or two later, I got my award. And now, those sketches are a central story in my novel, On Brigden Road. FROM A COLLEAGUE AT AN OLD JOB... My first published story ever, in 1988, was a story called Downtime, published in the Clinton Street Quarterly out of Oregon. A man from work who I did not know well (I had long since left my job), called me, deeply moved. (It was a story about someone dying of AIDs.) Who was that? he said somewhat urgently. Was it real? It seemed so real... But that was the only true fiction I have ever written. I had, though, used my love for a gay friend to inform the characters. But that is another thing that doesn't come cheap. People calling you on the phone! (Dream on.) Another friend from around town, who I had lost contact with, sent me a hastily scrawled note... Wow, he wrote. I couldn't believe it, he wrote. You have IT!!! I am grateful for the rare generosity of friends. MY MIDDLE BROTHER... This brother, however, does post things on the internet! Here is his word on On Brigden Road. He gave me a 5-star Lulu review! It is my distinct pleasure, he wrote... "To assume that I am the character Martin in the book On Brigden Road. I think I can make this claim because my sister is Bernadette, the author, who portrays the internal struggles of an immigrant family trying to fit into the fabric of American life." "She captures well the intentions of a father who comes to America to make his big dreams available to his children. In his mind he has provided an opportunity for his kids to one day become brilliant scientists and virtuoso classical musicians. But he struggles immensely, and never really succeeds, in fitting into the American way of life. Even his aspirations for his children seem a bit out of sync in a country that seems driven by elements of pop culture. He is European through and through. In the end it is up his six children, caught between two cultures, to navigate through the tricky maze of living a dream American style." He read The Boy from Boomstraat midair last week, en route from Maryland to California... He loved it and said he was very moved, and promises to post another review soon! (See below, in the post, Brudder from Anudder Planet!) He is my smart brother, my arty brother... (Well, they all are.) And so, a good test for me. And yes, he was the sibling character, Martin. The father is named Maarten too.=) FROM AN OLD HIGHSCHOOL FRIEND... One year, many years ago, when I was first on Myspace, to learn what world my teenaged son would soon travel in, I was chasing down a trail of the past, and posted a brief hello to the Myspace page of an old highschool friend, or, more of an acquaintance really. But I loved highschool, knew who everybody was... Still felt connected to it all, somehow. Well, it turns out, he had no computer, (his manager/agent kept the page for him), but he answered my post with a lovely handwritten note. We have been exchanging art every since! His CDs of original music, for my stories and books. Here, some comments from this friend, who has been a lovely sweet sensitive reader of my words... See more of his words below. OLD FRIENDS, ON BRIGDEN ROAD... "Geez, I was so blown away by On Brigden Road.... (It) was incredibly moving and incredibly painful to read..." He discussed the book at some length in his letter, and subsequently, passed it on to his wife. "I’ve got you another fan!" he said. (From Jeff Stetson, singer/songerwriter, Pasadena, California.) Well, his wife was moved by my book too, requested a copy for a friend. (It was a sad personal story that I will not share here.) Selling books is one thing, but what you really want, when you write, is to reach someone. I am heartened that I did. Below, a bit more from my friend. OLD FRIENDS, THE BOY FROM BOOMSTRAAT... "I was totally bawling, like a baby, when I got to the ending of The Boy from Boomstraat... Did that actually happen, or was that added for dramatic effect? If it was thrown in for dramatic effect it sure as hell worked! I liked the little boy as the positive uplifting side of his can-do brain and the hoodlum as the keeper of his deep self-doubts and demons. That whole last section had a kind of triumphant March of Bilbo Baggins kind of vibe to it and I’m really not exaggerating the feeling of triumph I had at the end of it." (From Jeff Stetson, singer/songwriter, Pasadena, California) . My friend is very sweet. Keep sending it! he said. If you send it, I will read it!! His comments remain the loveliest I've ever had. TEACHERS!! A BLAST FROM THE PAST... As an independent author, not as many venues are open to you... For book sales, for library interest, for book reviews... Many websites say it outright: If you are an independent author, do not trouble to send us your books. So, I could pay 200 to 500 dollars for a book review from a professional company that would offer me a book review just the like big guys get, so to speak. I have read some of those, where sometimes, they just recite the synopsis of your book, in a slightly different way than you already have, and then, say little more. I guess I would rather just share the reviews that mean the most to me! (All that said, if you are a teacher, librarian, or book reviewer, and you would like to review my book, I would love to talk to you!!) Read more below... EIGHTH-GRADE ENGLISH, PASADENA, LATE SIXITES... We were to write a story... About a guy who fell asleep by a tree and woke up some several hundred years later... Kind of a Rip van Winkle story. How would he feel, what would he find? Oh, my sister had to do that last year! I boasted to my friend. I'll just steal hers! Even though I never cheated in school, and even though I knew I liked to write, she didn't. (What makes us do that, I wonder?!) Teenagehood, I guess. I hardly ever even did that! (That weird blustering bragging thing.) My friend widened her eyes. That night, I wrote my story, the next week, the teacher read it aloud in class. I just want to read one really excellent story! she said seriously, casting her eyes towards me. I froze, and as she read, remembered each word. I had worked hard on that story! Then, she identified me and brought my story back to me. Did you steal it?! my friend hissed. No. My friend looked dubiously at me. Later the teacher knelt by my desk... Do you like to write? she gently asked. I was shy. Oh, dearie me, I was shy! I dunno, it's okay, I said. All I know is, I'd sweated bullets over that story... By the end, wanted to cry.=) FRESHMAN COMP, CALSTATE LONGBEACH, 1974... We had two sessions per week. One in-class session where we would write. He, or more often, a TA, would come write the topic on the board... Then leave. While we sat for an hour-and-a-half, to write. It was one of my favorite college classes ever. I took the greatest delight, in twisting everything my way, twisting every topic to suit me, to completely totally suit... Well, me! I bent over my desk in a great fury and barely ever looked up again, only every once in awhile, to see that I was the only one, well... Actually writing!! Two days past, we'd have private sessions with him. One by one, he'd critique our work. Your sessions are my favorite, he'd say; rarely had any critique at all, but only to delight in my work. You should write for the paper! he said to me. (He was an advisor for that.) You can write music reviews! he said. Any time you want to! (One of our rare out-of-class gigs was to do just that. I reviewed a piano recital; a girl played a lefthand piano concerto by Ravel.) Well, they were my favorite sessions too; all of it was! Why is it though... Why, why?! That we always listen to the wrong people?! He, perhaps, would have been good for me. But I was an immigrant girl. Afraid, perhaps, to chose the path right for me. I made a somewhat more circuitous route... Back to the thing I'd always loved. But I did.... Luckily, I made it home. FROM A GENEROUS WRITING GROUP FRIEND... My friend who wrote these kind words, is an accomplished novelist in her own right. Everyone should be so lucky as to have that kind of friend. Here are her comments on my book, On Brigden Road. Shirley, In-Progress... "Hi Bernadette, I'm more than half way through your book...can't seem to put it down. Your writing is seductive in a very gentle, thoughtful way. Clearly you love the written word, descriptions and honesty of how you felt and what you witnessed ripples deep and resonates truth. You put the reader right there on the spot! Thank you! I have a lot of questions for you...plan on finishing reading today. Fantastic work Bernadette!" Shirley, Done... "I wish I had a way to describe how I enjoyed your book. Your writing is like poetic music. It has a rhythm that sort of washes over the reader, I'm not surprised that you are a musician...your writing is like music, minuends, crescendo's and refrains. My, what an impact your father had on you...you described him and your relationship as a girl/woman with him with so much forgiveness, tenderness along with the pain and disappointments. So much wisdom in those pages! Made me think, all along the way, about so many things, especially how life starts and stops and somewhere along the way we're supposed to, in-spite of everything, grow into complete people. Loved the "Watergate". I look forward to discussing it with you. Thank you Bernadette, you've written a true gift!" BRUDDER FROM ANUDDER PLANET... Meaning, he always comes through. Here is the good word, from my middle brother, on my second novel, The Boy from Boomstraat... (Also read his review of On Brigden Road above, in Family Talk!!) "The Boy from Boomstraat is a parable that might be universally applied to any man or woman anywhere on the globe. It is the story of a young man with big dreams, but life's detours alter his course, and by the end, life has not turned out as he imagined. In the case of Martin, the speed bumps are enormous as he navigates the loss of his father, a mother of questionable reputation, deep poverty, the ravages of World War Two, just to name a few." "Haunted by a dream not necessarily fulfilled, he none-the-less believes that perhaps he has accomplished something admirable. The novel is very well written and in many ways reads like Pulp Fiction, i.e. the events of Martin's life are not chronological. The pattern of his life emerges as the dots are connected. As a guy reading the book, I got the same feelings that I got when I saw the movie Field of Dreams, one of the few movies where it was OK for a man to cry. Bernadette Joolen has crafted on outstanding novel, that after reading, just about anyone can relate to the story in their own personal way. A great read." ANUDDER BRUDDER ON BOARD...=) When my middle brother recently travelled to our old home turf to see family, he left one of my books with my older brother. Well, I hadn't sent my books to him! Had feared perhaps the stories might hurt him, more than the rest of us, I mean. He was the oldest, after all. But he was just as pleased and proud as could be, and especially, loved the pictures too. (I made my books especially that way. Wanted them to be nice to look at too!) He promptly ordered a copy for his friend. (Well, that's a book review I'd not quibble with!) I hope they'll send me some comments too!!!! ANOTHER FROM MY WRITING GROUP FRIEND... My friend who wrote these words, is an accomplished novelist in her own right. Everyone should be so lucky as to have that kind of friend. Here are her words on The Boy from Boomstraat. (Read her review of On Brigden Road above!) "I finished your book this morning...again, your voice is mesmerizing, gentle, thoughtful and complete. For me it was like moving through-in-and-out of the mind of a loving, thoroughly questioning, sometimes troubled mind. You really grasped the multitude of emotions that your father must have experienced...the loss of his father, the orphanage, his beloved Sister Elsa (loved his dream) and his attempts to get back into his new world while trying to leave the old behind...your story rang true with loss, gains, tragedies, love, friendship, sorrow, defeat, and through it all, optimism. By the way, I want to be Madame Krystyna. Your writing showed brilliantly how the questions of why are never truly answerable. The theme of the written word, was powerful throughout...no wonder that you are a writer! The way you designed the ending was touching and for me...took the story full circle. BRAVO!" Write Me With Your Comment Soon!! |
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Backdrop. Stairwell at
the the Good Shepherd
Center in Wallingford,
Seattle. Stairwells are
magical for me!!
the the Good Shepherd
Center in Wallingford,
Seattle. Stairwells are
magical for me!!