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Dear Reader,
Have you read Restrike by Reba White Williams?
Today you can sample Reba's new book and I've invited her to write today's column. And the gifts don't end there, Reba is giving away five copies of her book to readers.
To start reading Restrike go to: http://www.supportlibrary.com/bc/v.cfm?L=bryantestqqxqN1F939A52AAF&c=SUZ&nocache&future
Please welcome author Reba White Williams (you'll receive a reply) and your name will be entered in her book giveaway. Send your email to: restrikebyreba@gmail.com
"By Invitation" take it away Reba...
A Passion for Flowers
I love flowers. You probably do, too. You may think everyone loves flowers, but not so. My mother disliked flowers and did not want them near her. In the small Southern town where I spent much of my childhood, I learned from my grandmother and my aunt to love flowers. In the spring, daffodils bloomed on the paths that led to their doors, and wistaria veiled my aunt's porch. In summer, the flowers beside the paths were snapdragons, ragged robins, pinks. Crepe myrtles lined the street outside my grandmother's house, and her porch was shaded by a tangle of trumpet vine. My favorite spot in my aunt's yard was a trellised arbor, covered with white roses, where I read for hours.
My grandmother and aunt brought flowers from their gardens into the house--a few roses in a tall vase, a magnolia blossom floated in a glass bowl, and small bunches of old fashioned flowers on every table. At Christmas, narcissi, their heavy scents mingling with that of the Christmas tree, Christmas roses, and camellia blossoms, decorated their houses, along with pine boughs, and beautiful magnolia cones.
My grandmother raised African violets, and often gave a pot to a visitor. My aunt and my grandmother also gave bouquets to friends. Sometimes I was the messenger: I delivered small bunches of lilies of the valley and violets to their neighbors.
Maybe if I' d remained in the South, I'd have had a garden, and kept that vow to fill my house with flowers. But in New York, I had no garden.
In 1975, my husband and I began to collect prints, black and white, scenes of American life. Our collection was fascinating, but I pined for color. In 1984, my husband and I saw and bought Three Red Roses, a dazzling color woodcut, by a little-known American artist, Luigi Rist (1888-1959). Rist florals were hard to find, but we acquired his Magnolia Grandiflora, Dandelions, Rhododendron, Roses 2, and Sunflowers, all in glorious color.
I went on to acquire a large collection of colored flower prints by American artists. Our New York living room, dining room and entry glow with colorful blossoms, where visitors can see and enjoy them. I illustrate my website with flowers (http://www.rebawhitewilliams.com/ ) --a way of sharing--and I tuck flowers into my books. In Restrike, Dinah buys a Rist flower print, and hosts an exhibition of Rist prints. This is my way of sharing the flowers I love with you, dear Reader.
Interesting info about the author: Like my young women protagonists in Restrike, Coleman and Dinah Greene, when I graduated from Duke I left North Carolina for New York, seeking my fortune. Initial steps along the way were low-level jobs at ad agencies, then a very rewarding nine years in research at the management consulting firm, McKinsey. This led me to Harvard Business School and an MBA, and becoming a securities analyst on Wall Street. My husband and I took up fine art print collecting as an avocation, and I went back to school and earned a Ph.D. in Art History. After years of writing non-fiction about finance, business and art, I have finally turned to an early love, fiction. Restrike is my first novel, soon to be followed by Fatal Impressions, and work is underway on number three--all mysteries set in the art and business worlds of New York.
Email Reba White Williams: restrikebyreba@gmail.com
Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.
Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com
AUTHORBUZZ: HOUR OF THE RAT (Mystery) by Lisa Brackmann
Ellie McEnroe's comfortable life in Beijing is turned upside-down when her search for an Army buddy's missing brother entangles her in a conspiracy involving a sinister biotech company, eco-terrorists, and an art-obsessed Chinese billionaire. On top of that, her mother has come along for the ride, and wants to stop at every tourist attraction along the way.
Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader click on HOUR OF THE RAT to read more and to email author Lisa Brackmann, you'll get a reply.
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