Tag: Erin McCole-Cupp

50+ Better Things to Read #ShowUsYourList

franciscanmom3 Comments

In the name of accentuating the positive and coming up with solutions instead of just complaining about problems, Catholic author ErinMcCole-Cupp has proposed that people who love to read good books share their lists of works of quality fiction that celebrate truth, beauty and goodness rather than tearing down the dignity of the human person.

showusyourlistlogo

Here are 50+ WAY Better Novels:

  1. A Tree Grows In Brooklyn by Betty Smith. My all-time favorite book EVER.
  2. Rachel’s Contrition by Michelle Buckman
  3. Death Panels by Michelle Buckman
  4. Angela’s Song by AnnMarie Creedon
  5. Cracks in the Sidewalk by Bette Lee Crosby
  6. The Twelfth Child by Bette Lee Crosby
  7. Spare Change by Bette Lee Crosby
  8. Jubilee’s Journey by Bette Lee Crosby
  9. Previously Loved Treasures by Bette Lee Crosby
  10. What Matters Most by Bette Lee Crosby
  11. Passing Through Perfect by Bette Lee Crosby
  12. Wishing for Wonderful by Bette Lee Crosby
  13. Don’t You Forget About Me by Erin McCole-Cupp
  14. Jane_E., Friendless Orphan by Erin McCole-Cupp
  15. Nest by Esther Ehrlich. YA.
  16. Greater Treasures:  A DragonEye Novella by Karina Fabian
  17. Georgios by A.K. Frailey
  18. The Scent of Lilacs by Ann Gabhart
  19. In Name Only by Ellen Gable
  20. A Subtle Grace by Ellen Gable
  21. Emily’s Hope by Ellen Gable
  22. Stealing Jenny by Ellen Gable
  23. The Truth About the Sky by Katharine Grubb
  24. Falling for Your Madness by Katharine Grubb
  25. Genius Under Construction by Marilee Haynes. YA.
  26. Past Suspicion by Therese Heckencamp
  27. Casting the First Stone by Lisa Hess
  28. A Hunger in the Heart by Kaye Park Hinckley
  29. The Lion’s Heart by Dena Hunt
  30. The Opposite of Hallelujah by Anna Jarzab. YA.
  31. Julia’s Hope by Leisha Kelly
  32. Cracks in the Ice by Deanna Klingel
  33. A World Such as Heaven Intended by Amanda Purcell Lauer
  34. The Paper Cowboy by Kristin Levine. YA.
  35. Hijacked by Leslie Lynch
  36. Unholy Bonds by Leslie Lynch
  37. Opal’s Jubilee by Leslie Lynch
  38. A Christmas Hope by Leslie Lynch
  39. When Mike Kissed Emma by Christine Marciniak, YA.
  40. Reality Ali by Christine Marciniak, YA.
  41. Lights, Camera, Ali by Christine Marciniak, YA.
  42. Honestly, Ali! by Christine Marciniak. YA.
  43. Me Before You by Jojo Moyes
  44. Fatal Rhythm by R. B. O’Gorman
  45. Finding Grace by Laura Pearl
  46. Erin’s Ring by Laura Pearl. YA.
  47. Hush Hush by Michelle Quigley
  48. O Little Town by Don Reid
  49. The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion
  50. Best Wishes, Sister B by Fran Smith
  51. Bird Face by Cynthia T. Toney. YA.
  52. Digital Me by J.M. Varner. YA.
  53. Mister Teacher Person by J.M. Varner. YA.
  54. Breathing On Her Own by Rebecca Williams Waters

I’ve read all of these books and consider them all Really GOOD Fiction. Quality fiction. Well-written fiction. Fiction you wouldn’t be ashamed to leave around your living room, read in a public place, or have your teenager pick up and read.

I’ve met the authors of some of these books. I’ve been a beta reader for some of them. I know the care they take in crafting novels that are well-written, with interesting characters and fascinating plots–novels that show respect for both the character AND the reader. Some of these are YA, but I’ve got nothing against reading good YA stuff. This list does reflect my taste (almost no no time travel, sci-fi or dystopian stuff, although I’m sure there’s plenty of those novels out there that are of good quality.)

Not all of these authors are Catholic authors. Not all of them are indie authors. But many of them are. I have read ALL of these books and am happy to recommend them far and wide. Also, this list is limited to novels. Because it’s my list, so I’m setting the parameters.

Learn more about Erin’s Show Us Your List movement! Share your list of good-quality entertainment, tag the Big Cheeses of Catholic Media, and support your positive, not-scandalous, writers.

© 2015 Barb Szyszkiewicz. All rights reserved.
Image credit:  Erin McCole-Cupp. Used with permission.

Read This Instead: 50 WAY Better Novels

franciscanmom10 Comments

I’m building on Erin McCole-Cupp’s challenge to Catholic media types to spend at least half the time they spend telling people why they shouldn’t go see That Movie (or read That Book) recommending positive, worthwhile entertainment in its place.

(Not that I fancy myself a Catholic media type. But I know how to tag people on Twitter, and tag I shall.)

It’s like that bit at the end of Alice’s Restaurant.

Or you may be in a similar situation, and if you’re in a situation like that, there’s only one thing you can do:

Walk into the shrink wherever you are, just walk in, say, “Shrink, . . . you can get anything you want at Alice’s Restaurant”, and walk out.

You know, if one person, just one person, does it, they may think he’s really sick and they won’t take him.

And if two people do it, in harmony, they may think they’re both ******* and they won’t take either of them.

And if three people do it! Can you imagine three people walkin’ in, singin’ a bar of “Alice’s Restaurant” and walkin’ out? They may think it’s an Organization!

And can you imagine fifty people a day? I said FIFTY people a day . . .
Walkin’ in, singin’ a bar of “Alice’s Restaurant” and walkin’ out? Friends, they may think it’s a MOVEMENT, and that’s what it is: THE ALICE’S RESTAURANT ANTI-MASSACREE MOVEMENT! . . . and all you gotta do to join is to sing it the next time it comes around on the guitar.

With feelin’.

In the hopes that this becomes a Movement, I’ve gone through my Goodreads list and found you a whole bunch of Really GOOD Fiction. Quality fiction. Well-written fiction. Fiction you wouldn’t be ashamed to leave around your living room, read in a public place, or have your teenager pick up and read.

I’ve met the authors of some of these books. I’ve been a beta reader for some of them. I know the care they take in crafting novels that are well-written, with interesting characters and fascinating plots–and novels that show respect for both the character AND the reader. Some of these are YA, but I’ve got nothing against reading good YA stuff. This list does reflect my taste (almost no no time travel, sci-fi or dystopian stuff, although I’m sure there’s plenty of those novels out there that are of good quality.)

Not all of these authors are Catholic authors. Not all of them are indie authors. But many of them are. I have read ALL of these books and am happy to recommend them far and wide. Also, this list is limited to novels. Because it’s my list, so I’m setting the parameters.

tree grows in brooklyn
My very favorite book EVER. I’m on my third copy.

In no particular order of preference, except for #1. I sorted my Goodreads list by author. If you want to see what I liked about these books, you can read my reviews at Goodreads.

Here are 50 WAY Better Novels:

  1. A Tree Grows In Brooklyn by Betty Smith. My all-time favorite book EVER.
  2. Cracks in the Sidewalk by Bette Lee Crosby
  3. The Twelfth Child by Bette Lee Crosby
  4. Spare Change by Bette Lee Crosby
  5. Jubilee’s Journey by Bette Lee Crosby
  6. Previously Loved Treasures by Bette Lee Crosby
  7. What Matters Most by Bette Lee Crosby
  8. Passing Through Perfect by Bette Lee Crosby
  9. Wishing for Wonderful by Bette Lee Crosby
  10. Don’t You Forget About Me by Erin McCole-Cupp
  11. Jane_E., Friendless Orphan by Erin McCole-Cupp
  12. Nest by Esther Ehrlich. YA.
  13. Greater Treasures:  A DragonEye Novella by Karina Fabian
  14. Georgios by A.K. Frailey
  15. The Scent of Lilacs by Ann Gabhart
  16. In Name Only by Ellen Gable
  17. A Subtle Grace by Ellen Gable
  18. Emily’s Hope by Ellen Gable
  19. Stealing Jenny by Ellen Gable
  20. The Truth About the Sky by Katharine Grubb
  21. Falling for Your Madness by Katharine Grubb
  22. Genius Under Construction by Marilee Haynes. YA.
  23. Past Suspicion by Therese Heckencamp
  24. Casting the First Stone by Lisa Hess
  25. A Hunger in the Heart by Kaye Park Hinckley
  26. The Lion’s Heart by Dena Hunt
  27. The Opposite of Hallelujah by Anna Jarzab. YA.
  28. Julia’s Hope by Leisha Kelly
  29. Cracks in the Ice by Deanna Klingel
  30. The Paper Cowboy by Kristin Levine. YA.
  31. Hijacked by Leslie Lynch
  32. Unholy Bonds by Leslie Lynch
  33. Opal’s Jubilee by Leslie Lynch
  34. A Christmas Hope by Leslie Lynch
  35. When Mike Kissed Emma by Christine Marciniak, YA.
  36. Reality Ali by Christine Marciniak, YA.
  37. Lights, Camera, Ali by Christine Marciniak, YA.
  38. Honestly, Ali! by Christine Marciniak. YA.
  39. Me Before You by Jojo Moyes
  40. Fatal Rhythm by R. B. O’Gorman
  41. Finding Grace by Laura Pearl
  42. Erin’s Ring by Laura Pearl. YA.
  43. Hush Hush by Michelle Quigley
  44. O Little Town by Don Reid
  45. The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion
  46. Best Wishes, Sister B by Fran Smith
  47. Bird Face by Cynthia T. Toney. YA.
  48. Digital Me by J.M. Varner. YA.
  49. Mister Teacher Person by J.M. Varner. YA.
  50. Breathing On Her Own by Rebecca Williams Waters

Turning the Tables: Working Mother

franciscanmom1 Comment

When an author releases a new book, she often schedules a virtual book tour on various blogs. These tours feature interviews, promotions and book reviews. I’ve hosted several stops on virtual blog book tours as a way to help authors promote their new books.

erin mccole cupp author photoMy friend Erin McCole-Cupp has taken a different route upon the December 28 release of her novella, Working Mother. She’s interviewing a bunch of moms at her own blog, and today is my turn!

It was an honor to be interviewed as part of Erin’s promotion of her newest piece of short fiction. I’d like to tell you a bit about the story:

Working Mother is a well-researched piece of short fiction in which the Holy Family, in exile in Egypt after King Herod’s slaughter of the innocents, faces a crisis after Joseph is injured at work. Living hand-to-mouth in a refugee camp, Mary seizes an opportunity to help support her family while Joseph recovers from his injury.

working motherThis short story proves that Erin McCole-Cupp’s writing chops aren’t limited to the 80s (see Don’t You Forget About Me), the future (see Jane E., Friendless Orphan) or the 90s (see her highly-anticipated sequel to DYFAM, currently in progress).

I love the cover image on this book, which was published by Full Quiver Publishing.

And I loved the story. I hope that Erin’s imagination will lead her to continue the tale. After all, we’ve only got that one story of Jesus’ youth–the Finding in the Temple at the age of 12. And then there’s nothing until his public ministry when he was about 30. That should give Erin plenty to work with.

Enjoy Working Mother. The short story is only 99 cents and it speaks to the devotion of the Blessed Mother for her son and for her husband. I give it 5 stars, and I want to read more!

 

A Murder Mystery and a Medical Mystery

franciscanmom12 Comments

erin mccole cupp author photoToday I welcome my friend and Catholic Writers’ Guild Conference roommate, Erin McCole-Cupp, as she continues her Don’t You Forget About Me book tour. Erin and I discovered that we have plenty in common:

  • we both have 3 children
  • we’re both members of Third Orders (she’s a Dominican)
  • we both love reading and writing
  • we both have endometriosis.

dyfam cover artErin found inspiration for a novel in this “silent” disease. Here’s her story.

“There’s Nothing We Can Do For You”:  Endometriosis and the Catholic Girl

by Erin McCole-Cupp

I sat next to my husband in yet another pleather office chair.  Yet another reproductive endocrinologist sat across from us.  A supposedly clever cartoon was framed on the wall behind her.  The bubble-letter caption read “Test Tube Babies!”  The illustration was of a giant test tube overflowing with chubby, giggling, diaper-clad (note:  100% Caucasian) babies, climbing out of some kind of bubbly fluid sloshing around at the bottom of the tube.

The results of a few blood tests were sprawled on the desk between us. The doctor had just offered three separate “treatment options.”

I sighed.  “I don’t want to do anything that won’t actually heal whatever problem I have—and you don’t even know what that is.  I want to heal my body more than I want to get pregnant.”

“Well, the Pill will force your hormones—“

“We’ve already been through this, haven’t we?  Will the Pill actually heal anything?”

She gave me a patronizing grimace.  “But I can’t prescribe the testosterone blockers unless you’re on—“

I shook my head.  “I said I’m not comfortable with that.”

It was now her turn to pause, then sigh.  “Then I’m sorry.  There’s nothing we can do for you.”

She wasn’t the first one to say that to us.  She wouldn’t be the last.  We’d been trying to get pregnant for about three years.  It was like every doctor we met had no idea how to heal a body, just to force pregnancy on or away from it.  “Nothing we can do for you,” was something we were quite tired of hearing.

I often say that my novel Don’t You Forget About Me was born from a collision of scars.  If you have or have had endometriosis, you have a deeper (pun intended) understanding of what the word “scars” can mean.

I’d had years of gynecological pain and infertility.  I’d had a few ultrasounds here, some bloodwork there, but not a single doctor could offer me healing.  They offered me hormonal birth control pills.  I refused because I wanted to have children, not side effects, and if I had a problem, I wanted to find it, not cover it up.  They offered me IVF.  “Don’t you want to have a child of your own?”  I refused because humans deserve to begin their lives in a warm embrace that was designed for love, not in a petri dish.  They offered me a hysterectomy.  I refused because that would just create more problems.  Besides, see the part where I wanted to have children?

Why couldn’t they find out what was going on with my body?  Why wouldn’t they?

About a year after giving up the first time, against all odds, my husband and I found ourselves expecting twins.  When an article of mine about our miracle pregnancy ran in our local Catholic paper, I received an email from a nurse who said there was this new approach to women’s health called NaPro Technology.  She suggested I get in touch with her to see if we could find treatment.  I’d already been told so many times that, “There’s nothing we can do for you,” that I couldn’t imagine NaPro Technology would have any way to help my husband and me.  I replied, “Thanks, but no thanks.”  I was lucky to have the babies I did.  What was the point of ever trying for more—much less just trying to feel better—when there’s “nothing we can do for you?”

When we despair, however, God often pokes us with a stick.  The stick He used to poke me was the day I found myself in the emergency room, shocked that I was having an ovarian cyst rupture when the pain level really felt for all the world like a kidney stone.  The closest thing to a “pro-life” GYN in our county recommended either high-level birth control… or a total hysterectomy.

I was 35.  I suddenly found myself unwilling to give up.  I remembered that term, “NaPro.”

I soon found a wonderful NaPro doctor two hours away:  that’s practically our backyard, given how few and far between NaPro trained surgeons are.  As I went for my pre-op testing, the various techs would see my doctor’s name and say, “Isn’t he wonderful?  He has patients coming to him from Ohio, New England, even Canada.”

Two months after my surgery to remove endometriosis lesions, I saw this:

testBefore, during, and after pregnancy, that NaPro practice has been able to help me—actually help me.  I carried to term, did not experience a whiff of postpartum depression, have even seen my Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder simply disappear.  Best of all, I now get to capture moments like this:

erins familyThree now.  Count ‘em.  Three.  And a little dog, too.

Maybe you’ve heard it too, over and over, time after heartbreaking time from secular medical practice after secular medical practice:  “There’s nothing we can do for you.”  If those practitioners neglect the root issues involved in gynecological problems and throw the Pill or IVF or a hysterectomy at everything they see, then no, there’s probably nothing they can do for you.

However, if there was hope for me, I pray that there is hope for you.  I hope you find healing, and I hope your current pain bears much fruit.  Mine bore a baby and a now even a novel.  I pray it bears the fruit of healing for you as well, dear reader, and so much more.

Barb’s note:  My own journey with endometriosis has not ended this well; it involved a hysterectomy and a second surgery two years later to remove my ovaries and a ton of scar tissue. I do know that my experience in using Natural Family Planning helped me gather and analyze data about what was happening that ultimately–after I found a doctor who listened–got me some relief from the pain and other uncomfortable symptoms I was experiencing.

It was fascinating to me to read Erin’s novel and see the role endometriosis played in the characters’ lives. But you don’t have to be an endometriosis survivor to enjoy this book. You’ll love it if you like a suspenseful story with a dash of snark, spiced up with some ’80s music and Italian food. (It even made me cry!)