Thursday, April 10, 2014

LEANN'S REVIEW: Rest in Places: My Father's Post-Life Journey around the World (Marlayna Glynn Brown)


  Author: Marlayna Glynn Brown
  Genre: Memoir/Travel 
  Publish Date: 01/12/2014 
  Publisher: Self Published Event organized by: Literati Author Services, Inc.  


~ Book Synopsis ~
Join award-winning memoirist Marlayna Glynn Brown on a tender journey to understand the father she never knew in life by spreading his ashes around the world after his death. A relatable must-read for anyone who has lost a loved one, this memoir lights the way to afterlife and afterdeath where forgiveness supersedes pain, blame, remorse and regret. In her effort to understand the generational effects of alcoholism and subsequent dysfunctional adult relationships, Marlayna takes her youngest son and her father's ashes on a personal journey, embarking on an emotional voyage to both physical and mental states of being. She confronts her own existence as a mother and a daughter, seeking and ultimately finding peace with her disappointment, anger, failed marriage, and complex relationships with her own four children.

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About the Author

Marlayna Glynn Brown is a best selling American memoirist, award winning photographer, screenwriter and yogi. Immediately upon publication Marlayna's first book became and still remains one of the most highly rated author memoirs on Amazon, and placed as a finalist in the 2013 Next Generation Indie Book Awards. Marlayna's extensive travels, BA in Literature and MS in Human Services have honed her remarkable gifts in observing and recording the ways of humanity. Her works include: Overlay: A Tale of One Girl's Life in 1970s Las Vegas City of Angeles Big As All Hell And Half Of Texas The Trilogy: Memoirs of Marlayna Glynn Brown One Day The Invitations Will Stop Arriving: A Travel Memoir Lovers, Liars and Lotharios: Lessons Learned and Self Esteem Earned Rest In Places: My Father's Post-Life Journey Around The World The Nomadic Memoirist: Memoir Writing Tips For Authors The Nomadic Memoirist: Award-Winning and Best-Selling Promotion and Marketing Tips for Authors   Find Marlayna on Facebook, Twitter, and visit her at www.marlaynaglynnbrown.com.

Excerpt:


Rest In Places: My Father's Post-Life Journey Around The World
Excerpt
by Marlayna Glynn Brown

At last I have a few moments of silence to observe my father. I take his hand in mine and think about the strange fact that I am sitting at my father's death bed. It is an odd term. I turn it around in my head like I would marbles in my mouth; rolling and grinding and scraping the words against each other:

my
father's
death
bed

My father always had a rest spot in his homes, usually an easy chair with a nearby table on which he would rest his cigarettes, ash tray and glass of amber-colored VO whiskey. But this bed (this death bed) is one from which he will not rise. He will not put on his tennis shoes and go for a run around the park as he often did in his younger years during periods of sobriety. He will not go to the kitchen to broil steaks, bake potatoes and craft a salad for dinner all the while explaining to me how important it is that a salad contain many different colors.
He will however go gently into that good night, and of this there is no doubt.
His cigarettes, ash tray and whiskey have been replaced by an oxygen tube and small plastic cup of water with a straw. He will think his last thought, take his last breath in this bed. This will be the last view he will ever have.

I recall all the times he worshipped and praised the beauty of a day - the sunrise, the ocean, the sunset, the mountains - yet these four unremarkable drab walls will be the last things he will see before he closes his eyes for good. His bed is placed under the window so he is only able to see out of the window if he looks at the reflection in the mirrored closet doors before his bed. But even if he did so there is nothing to see: the window faces a gray block wall impassively separating this property from the next.

Review:

I was a little nervous about reading this book. Not a huge fan of tear jerkers. I was really glad I did read it though. It is hard to write a review on a book that makes you reflect on your life as much as the book. In the end it was a beautiful read. I even found myself smiling at moments, when I just thought this book would be tears. A really great read that had me unable to put the book down. This is the perfect read for anyone who is struggling with the loss of a loved one. It definitely makes you stop and think about those relationships and connections you have with those you love. This is one of those reads that stays with you long after you put down the book. A great journey and growing moment. 



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