Everything You Ever Wanted
Meet author Jillian Lauren.
Jillian and I have known each other for a while now, but until relatively recently, our interaction has been via phone and email. Together with Claire, Jillian hosts Happier Hours at her beautiful home Los Angeles. She is a gorgeous writer, a wife to a rock star, and mom to one very remarkable boy.
I first met Jillian last October when I went on a wonderful adventure to Orcas Island for Write Doe Bay. Jillian was one of the presenters and she led a fantastic workshop about embodied writing. Jillian proved a thoughtful speaker and an all-around fun person and we bonded some that weekend. On the way home to New York, I read her bestselling book Some Girls; My Life in a Harem. It startled me, and inspired me, that this was the same woman I met and hung out with. The book was nothing short of riveting and I had to keep reminding myself that it was true.
Jillian has a new book out today. It's a memoir called Everything You Ever Wantedand it tells the story of her path to parenthood. Jillian and her husband faced fertility struggles and ultimately adopted a boy from Ethiopia. I can vouch from personal experience that Tariku, now 6, is an incredible kid, but the past 6+ years haven't been a cake walk for Jillian and her family. She doesn't candy-coat things, but talks about these years with true rawness and affection. I devoured an early copy of the book on the way home from visiting Jillian and Claire in Los Angeles a few months ago and I loved it.
Even though I have had a very different experience than Jillian, I found myself relating so deeply to the emotional landscape of her narrative. There is something quite universal (or about wanting to start a family, about wanting to do what we can for our kids when they arrive, about the confusion and bottomless love at the core of parenthood. I am so thrilled that I will be hosting Jillian for a Happier Hour Literary Salon at the end of this month!
Please leave a comment telling me about your path to parenthood (or your path to non-parenthood) for a chance to win a copy of Jillian's new book. Was it easy or hard? Smooth or rocky? Predictable or surprising? Do you have any personal experience with adoption?
{GIVEAWAY will be open through 11PM EST Thursday, May 7th.}
Congratulations to Anna for winning a copy of Jason Good's book Rock, Meet Windowwhich is also out today! Happy pub date, Jillian and Jason!