Following the death of her son Ryan in 2013, author Toni O'Keeffe was left seeking a way through the darkness of her grief and seeking answers to life's greatest questions; "Why are we here?" And "What is our purpose?" Rather than look outside of herself she went inward and found the light and the answers she was seeking. As a young child O'Keeffe remembers having a sense of knowing. She says she knew we were here to love, to be kind, to be compassionate, to heal and to learn. However, in her desire to fit in, she stopped listening to the voice that guided her; pushing it back and allowing the opinions and beliefs of others to creep in. But, she always retained the knowing that this voice was there waiting to be heard. And so, she began to listen. Based on this insight, O'Keeffe has created a beautiful collection of inspirational and thought-provoking writings that will comfort anyone dealing with loss, heartache, seeking emotional or spiritual healing or those seeking purpose and light in their own life. O'Keeffe's writing is relatable candid, and colourful. "Seeking Light" is a book readers will go back to time and time again as they seek healing and light in their own lives.
Following the death of her son Ryan in 2013, author Toni O'Keeffe was left seeking a way through the darkness of her grief and seeking answers to life's greatest questions; "Why are we here?" And "What is our purpose?" Rather than look outside of herself she went inward and found the light and the answers she was seeking. As a young child O'Keeffe remembers having a sense of knowing. She says she knew we were here to love, to be kind, to be compassionate, to heal and to learn. However, in her desire to fit in, she stopped listening to the voice that guided her; pushing it back and allowing the opinions and beliefs of others to creep in. But, she always retained the knowing that this voice was there waiting to be heard. And so, she began to listen. Based on this insight, O'Keeffe has created a beautiful collection of inspirational and thought-provoking writings that will comfort anyone dealing with loss, heartache, seeking emotional or spiritual healing or those seeking purpose and light in their own life. O'Keeffe's writing is relatable candid, and colourful. "Seeking Light" is a book readers will go back to time and time again as they seek healing and light in their own lives.
Traces Morrison's theory of African American mothering as it is articulated in her novels, essays, speeches, and interviews.Traces Morrison's theory of African American mothering as it is articulated in her novels, essays, speeches, and interviews.Mothering is a central issue for feminist theory, and motherhood is also a persistent presence in the work of Toni Morrison. Examining Morrison's novels, essays, speeches, and interviews, Andrea O'Reilly illustrates how Morrison builds upon black women's experiences of and perspectives on motherhood to develop a view of black motherhood that is, in terms of both maternal identity and role, radically different from motherhood as practiced and prescribed in the dominant culture. Motherhood, in Morrison's view, is fundamentally and profoundly an act of resistance, essential and integral to black women's fight against racism (and sexism) and their ability to achieve well-being for themselves and their culture. The power of motherhood and the empowerment of mothering are what make possible the better world we seek for ourselves and for our children. This, argues O'Reilly, is Morrison's maternal theory-a politics of the heart."As an advocate of 'a politics of the heart,' O'Reilly has an acute insight into discerning any threat to the preservation and continuation of traditional African American womanhood and values … Above all, Toni Morrison and Motherhood, based on Andrea O'Reilly's methodical research on Morrison's works as well as feminist critical resources, proffers a useful basis for understanding Toni Morrison's works. It certainly contributes to exploring in detail Morrison's rich and complex works notable from the perspectives of nurturing and sustaining African American maternal tradition." - African American Review"O'Reilly boldly reconfigures hegemonic western notions of motherhood while maintaining dialogues across cultural differences." - Journal of the Association for Research on Mothering"Andrea O'Reilly examines Morrison's complex presentations of, and theories about, motherhood with admirable rigor and a refusal to simplify, and the result is one of the most penetrating and insightful studies of Morrison yet to appear, a book that will prove invaluable to any scholar, teacher, or reader of Morrison." - South Atlantic Review "…it serves as a sort of annotated bibliography of nearly all the major theoretical work on motherhood and on Morrison as an author … anyone conducting serious study of either Toni Morrison or motherhood, not to mention the combination, should read [this book]... O'Reilly's exhaustive research, her facility with theories of Anglo-American and Black feminism, and her penetrating analyses of Morrison's works result in a highly useful scholarly read." - Literary Mama"By tracing both the metaphor and literal practice of mothering in Morrison's literary world, O'Reilly conveys Morrison's vision of motherhood as an act of resistance." - American Literature "Motherhood is critically important as a recurring theme in Toni Morrison's oeuvre and within black feminist and feminist scholarship. An in-depth analysis of this central concern is necessary in order to explore the complex disjunction between Morrison's interviews, which praise black mothering, and the fiction, which presents mothers in various destructive and self-destructive modes. Kudos to Andrea O'Reilly for illuminating Morrison's 'maternal standpoint' and helping readers and critics understand this difficult terrain. Toni Morrison and Motherhood is also valuable as a resource that addresses and synthesizes a huge body of secondary literature." - Nancy Gerber, author of Portrait of the Mother-Artist: Class and Creativity in Contemporary American Fiction"In addition to presenting a penetrating and original reading of Toni Morrison, O'Reilly integrates the evolving scholarship on motherhood in dominant and minority cultures in a review that is both a composite of commonalities and a clear representation of differences." - Elizabeth Bourque Johnson, University of MinnesotaAndrea O'Reilly is Associate Professor in the School of Women's Studies at York University and President of the Association for Research on Mothering. She is the author and editor of several books on mothering, including (with Sharon Abbey) Mothers and Daughters: Connection, Empowerment, and Transformation and Mothers and Sons: Feminism, Masculinity, and the Struggle to Raise Our Sons.
It's Cinco de Mayo on San Antonio's famed River Walk, a time of mariachis and margaritas, but when muertos are thrown into the mix, there's a mystery to be solved-and quick When newly assigned SAPD Officer Paige Turner (the daughter of a librarian with a bookish sense of humor) shows up looking for answers, it's bar owner Bobbi Garza she finds, and there is an immediate and irresistible sizzle between the two women causing much more than the comal in the little cantina's cocina to heat up. But when a second body appears, and then a third, they begin to wonder WHAT's happening and WHERE all the people are coming from - and find themselves forced to put their attraction to one another on a low-flamed back burner and team up with a duo of neighboring merchants in an attempt to solve the WHOdunit.
