The Pearlsong Letter

Take a peek at FatLand, the novel by Frannie Zellman

In the near future the Pro-Health Laws of the United States of America have become so oppressive that people seeking freedom over their bodies have established a new country: FatLand. In FatLand, life is good and scales are forbidden. Free from the hatred and discrimination of the Other Side, FatLanders have built happy, productive lives. But not everyone is flourishing.

Ava came to FatLand after her lover died from bariatric surgery. She threw herself into work, believing she was immune from love. Then she saw a beautiful dancer and lost her heart again.

Alvin and Reevie thought that by living in FatLand they could give their children and each other a chance for a life free of sizeim and racism. They didn't count on their lovely twin daughters' curiosity and yearning for excitement and danger.

Joann and Ed carved out what they thought was a peaceful existence. But their bright children are anything but happy in the well-appointed home and tranquil life their parents had created in FatLand.

Well-to-do, attractive and sophisticated, Dara and Sandor thought they could make the FatLand Board dance to whatever tune they wished. But their way of life and beliefs are about to be tested more severely than either of them could have imagined.

Dreaming and determined, luscious Margaret fled to FatLand after her rich, powerful paramour married a thin woman he didn't care for. She made a deal with her devil so she could publish the top flight newspaper FatLand badly needed. But then the devil called in the cards.

Soon these FatLanders and the freedom fighters on the Other Side will face forces threatening the health and happiness of all.

Read an excerpt of the novel here.

FatLand is being published by Pearlsong Press in January 2009. Purchase an early copy of the original trade paperback now from the Pearlsong Press online store -- we're offering free shipping within the U.S. for copies purchased before Jan. 15, 2008. (Buy extra copies for holiday gifting!)

Front Street Reviews on Off Kilter & Linda C. Wisniewski

Front Street Reviews calls  Off Kilter: A Woman's Journey to Peace with Scoliosis, Her Mother, & Her Polish Heritage "a wonderful story of how we can change our own destinies."

Betty Gelean reviews the book and interviews author Linda C. Wisniewski on the Front Street Reviews website. Read the entire review here, and Wisniewski's interview here.

Off Kilter will be published by Pearlsong Press in April 2008. Take advantage of the special offer of free shipping within the U.S. for advance sales and order your copy now at the Pearlsong Press website. Or order from Amazon.com

Library Journal highly recommends The Program by Charlie Lovett

The March 1, 2008 issue of Library Journal contains a brief review of Charlie Lovett's first novel, The Program, which will be published by Pearlsong Press in May 2008.

The Program, a New York City weight-loss clinic, guarantees an immediately svelte body for anyone with $5000 and a few hours of time. Karen Sumner, a young and overweight reporter, gets a chance to prove her journalistic worth by going undercover when it becomes apparent that there's something seriously wrong with The Program. A lively first novel. Highly recommended.

Read an excerpt from the first chapter here.

Take advantage of the special offer of free shipping within the U.S. on advance sales of The Program, and order your copy now!

More praise for The Program by Charlie Lovett

"The size-positive characters are heartfelt and quirky, the suspense keeps building and the bombshell on page 25 is not to be missed. Enjoy!"

Lynne Murray
author of Larger Than Death

The Program, Charlie Lovett's first novel. will be published by Pearlsong Press in May 2008.

Advance praise for The Program by Charlie Lovett

Pat Ballard, Queen of Rubenesque Romances, calls The Program, the new novel by Charlie Lovett, "brilliant."

"I recommend The Program to every woman who feels insecure about her body because she thinks she weighs too much. In fact, I recommend The Program to every woman!

"Charlie Lovett has managed to weave romance, intrigue, suspense and mystery into this story while clearly depicting the insecurities of women who don't like their bodies and how far they will go to become what they think (or society tells them) is the 'perfect woman.'"

The Program will be published by Pearlsong Press in May 2008.

More praise for Off Kilter by Linda C. Wisniewski

From Elise Browning Miller , author of Yoga: Anytime, Anywhere & Yoga for Scoliosis (DVD):

"Off Kilter" is a perfect title for this book. All of us can relate! Linda Wisniewski is diagnosed with scoliosis, a lateral curve of the spine, at age fourteen, and is also troubled by her childhood with an abusive father and a depressed mother in a Polish Catholic community. Always trying to please, Linda finds herself contorted and off balance from childhood to adulthood. Off Kilter is an eye opener into the life of a woman who learns to deal with the challenges of life and as an adult finds peace in honoring herself. Learning to live with her less than perfect body and childhood, yoga helps Linda find alignment, flexibility and strength to discover her own inner balance.

Off Kilter: A Woman's Journey to Peace with Scoliosis, Her Mother, & Her Polish Heritage by Linda C. Wisniewski will be published by Pearlsong Press in April 2008.

Free shipping on advance sales of Off Kilter by Linda C. Wisniewski

Pearlsong Press is offering free shipping within the U.S. on advance sales of Off Kilter: A Woman's Journey to Peace with Scoliosis, Her Mother, & Her Polish Heritage by Linda C. Wisniewski.

The books will be shipped upon publication in April 2008. Click here for the Pearlsong Press website page with purchase information.

For blog posts about Off Kilter, including advance praise, click here.

Susan Tiberghien praises Off Kilter, a memoir by Linda C. Wisniewski

Off Kilter opens a window into a woman's life as she comes to peace with her Polish       ancestry, her mother's depressive behavior, and her own scoliosis, a side-to-side curvature of the spine, discovered when she was thirteen. Linda Wisniewski weaves the threads beautifully together, sometimes on a slant, as she leads the reader into the compelling story of a survivor. After a few pages, the reader is captured by the author's voice―both heartfelt and perceptive, that of a friend―and by the narrative itself.

Wisniewski's memoir is a tapestry, each thread connecting back to memories of her Polish Catholic childhood in a postwar mill town in upstate New York―the two-story clapboard houses, the polka weddings, the house full of talking relatives, the best kielbasa from the Polish butcher―struggling to find herself in the midst of her father's torments, her mother's tears, and the discipline of the Sisters at school, their voices cold as ice.

As the author writes her way through the remembered moments of her life, she finds herself no longer at loose ends with her childhood, but instead fitting the ends into the pattern of her life. Even her mother finds her place. When Linda sews, each sound, each touch becomes a thread to her mother. "The feel of the tissue paper pattern, the placement of the pins attaching it to the fabric just the way I watched her do it. The chop, chop of the scissors taking me back to the kitchen table that was her cutting board."

The broken yardstick from  her mother's sewing becomes the talisman of her life. "The yardstick resembles my life; it has broken parts. Nothing has been a straight line from here to there." Her back has been twisted by scoliosis. Her body and life have been off kilter. But the yardstick, mended and carefully glued back together, is now hers. It measures her struggle to stretch not only her spine but also her Self.

Bravo for this well-written, well-conceived memoir.The many different scenes of Wisniewski's life are beautifully described―specific details that the reader sees, touches, and feels. And always with honesty and integrity.

Susan Tiberghien
author of
One Year to a Writing Life
Footsteps: A European Album
& Looking for Gold: A Year in Jungian Analysis
founder of the Geneva Writers Group

Off Kilter: A Woman's Journey to Peace with Scoliosis, Her Mother, & Her Polish Heritage by Linda C. Wisniewski will be published by Pearlsong Press in April 2008. Free shipping within the U.S. for advance sales at the Pearlsong Press retail store online; see the details here.

More praise for Off Kilter by Linda C. Wisniewski

Off Kilter is one woman's testimony to the effects of childhood abuse, which left her "off kilter" in more than way. Her spine was not straight, but her heart and mind were always on a sight-line to what is right, what is good, and what is redeeming in the human heart. Linda writes with candor and honesty about her healing journey to forgiveness and wholeness, and the blessings of a life that is heart-centered. Everyone should read this lovely book!

Linda Joy Myers
author of Becoming Whole: Writing Your Healing Story
& Don't Call Me Mother

Off Kilter: A Woman's Journey to Peace With Scoliosis, Her Mother, & Her Polish Heritage by Linda C. Wisniewski will be published by Pearlsong Press in April 2007.

Susan Wittig Albert praises Off Kilter as "funny, honest, deeply moving"

This splendid first memoir is about the difficult business of finding balance in our lives. Funny, honest, deeply moving, Off Kilter reminds us just how hard it is to adjust to the physical pain, the emotional loss, and even the surprising beauty of being fully who we are. Kudos to Linda Wisniewski!

Susan Wittig Albert
author of Spanish Dagger and Bleeding Hearts

Off Kilter: A Woman's Journey to Peace With Scoliosis, Her Mother, & Her Polish Heritage by Linda C. Wisniewski will be published by Pearlsong Press in April 2008.