"A Different Journey" takes us from the birth of the author's daughter, an exceptional child with Down Syndrome, to her child's adulthood, and all of the significant events occurring to mother and daughter in between. Ms. Brusic's life combines elements of quiet heroism as she fights to raise her daughter as a single mother and lives out her own life as a Telenovela along the way. This is definitely "a woman's book", and that is its intended audience.

The good things in this book include the consistently loving relationship between mother and child, through good times and bad, and the evolution of the central character from completely dependent wife to strong and capable single mother. Ms. Brusic writes with passion and honesty about herself and her family, and draws the reader into her struggles to survive and attain a better life. Her origins in Bolivia and her assimilation into the U.S. life style add depth and interest to her journey.

The bad things in the book are the unresolved anger that permeates the story, hopefully serving as a form of catharsis for the author but sometimes overwhelming for the reader, and the sheer length of the book, which was too long for this reader to sustain his empathy with the characters.

Overall, for a selected audience (mostly women) this will be a book they really enjoy and relate to. I recommend it on that basis.

Ms. Scott:

I wanted to write to you and thank you for having allowed me the pleasure of reading your book. My husband and I are former military ourselves (USAF) although we served a little before your time. We were stationed at Rhein Main AB in a Mobile Aerial Port Squadron. Our squadron was quite small, only 60-65 people. Of that number only 6 of us were women, and two of those only came a couple of months before I left. I experienced first hand the trials and challenges of being a woman in a primarily male environment. We proved ourselves. Some of us were umm, as you put it, "queen for a year" and spread it around, I myself had a squadron full of big brothers and one man that became my husand and the father of my children. Twenty three years later we are still going strong.
While it may seem cliched to say "I laughed, I cried" it is certainly true of my emotional reaction to your book. I don't read a lot of non-fiction. To be honest other than my Guideposts or Reader's Digest magazines I don't ever read non-fiction. For that reason, I didn't start on your book right away. I read a couple of other books today (I read fast) and then started on yours after dinner tonight. I truly cried while reading this. I don't mean one solitary tear; I mean actualy sniffling, bawling, family looking at me like I had lost my mind, crying. When I read about the feeling you get when listening to Taps, it gave me the chills. Not just because of the emotions that you described, but because I feel the same way. I don't guess that I grew up particularly patriotic. I always took my freedoms for granted. The first time that I stood for Parade and then Retreat during basic training I truly began to feel what it was to be an American. Suffice to say that it was difficult to keep my Military Bearing. To this day I get chills and tear up when I hear the National Anthem or Taps playing. I felt somehow linked to you by this deep sentiment.

I absolutely loved reading this and am just so thankful to have been given the opportunity to have done so. In printing this you have provided a brief glimpse of what our (all volunteer) military experiences. To make the choice to serve and leave your family, your home and everything that you know is something so few understand. It is my hope that with the insight given by your book perhaps people will be able to understand that military members do not make these choices lightly. Every person in the military, whether they are on the front lines, in a fighter jet, or working in the base exchange, has made the choice to serve. They make sacrifices every day that most people would never even consider or begin to understand.

I absolutely love that you don't hold yourself up as some shining example of perfection in your description of you military self. Not one among us is perfect and you not only acknowledge that, you embrace that. You are completely up front with your shortcomings, but are clearly willing to learn from them.

Towards the end of your story you talk about how women are not as acknowledged for their service. I have often wondered if I was the only one that felt this way. There have been so many instances that I have had to clarify that BOTH my husband and I served. When I say "my husband and I were in the Air Force" people assume that I mean that he was in and I was a dependent. As I read, I found myself wishing that I could meet you in person, shake your hand and thank you for your service. We did not have children when we were in and I am in awe of you and your husband for sacrificing so much for love of country. It was somewhat ironic to me that you expressed your feeling of invisibility being in a military town, and how much you would appreciate someone thanking you for your service. So, from the bottom of my heart: Thank you for your service. Thank you for the birthdays, first days of school, inches grown, lost teeth, skyped conversations, snuggles missed and so much more.

With respect

MamieJ

I still find myself thinking of certain parts of this book and how they are relevant to something that has happenned to me or to a friend of mine.
I found myself feeling so many things again and empathizing with and envying her for her experiences as well. I also laughed out loud in several parts which for any book is a real measure of success in my opinion.
If I hadn't read this I would never have understood why women continue to choose to birth at home even when faced with so much pressure by the medical experts around them.
I will have others read this who went through trauma as teenagers who find themselves unable to figure out why they are "just now" finding the need to cope with it.
Thanks to Ms. Lewars for writing this book.

This journal is the BEST. I reviewed so many pregnancy journals before purchasing this one and definitely made the right decision. It certainly covers everything, from your own birth and family to that of your baby's. There are plenty of prompts for those who need them, as well as lots of blank (lined) pages for your own independent journaling. There are sections that discuss your physical/emotional health for each trimester, every doctor's appointment, places to put ultrasound photos and pregnancy/belly photos, nursery ideas/photos, baby shower photos and invites...and more! This journal is beautiful, tasteful, and well made. Any sections you may not be interested in (or don't fill up) may be torn out of the journal so as not to leave a bunch of blank, unfinished pages. While some reviewers did not like how this journal is not father-friendly, such did not bother me. It is my personal journal and to be quite honest, my husband is not the journaling type and not interested in recording his feelings!! I highly recommend this journal. I thoroughly enjoy all the quiet time I have spent with it!!! It is very special to me and will one day be passed on to my baby.

Heather Grace Stewart shares a lovely journey with us in her premier poetry collection. Butterflies deals with meaty issues, the modern family, the state of the world...and while the depth of subject for most writers has a tendency to lend towards darker writes, the hope for better resonates throughout all the pieces. A fantastic addition for any collector of modern poetry.