Jill Arlene Culiner is here to tell us about Words for Patty Jo, romance, women's fiction, literary fiction.
Read on for details about this unlikely love story and first love.
_________________________
New Release
Words for Patty Jo
A
Small Town in Ontario: An Unlikely Love Story
The
romance between Patty Jo Lovelace and David Buckley Jr. is an unlikely one. He’s
a star student; she’s the class dud. He’s programmed for success; she plans to
drop out of school, work at the local greasy spoon. But recognizing her natural
intelligence and love of books, David begs her to aim higher—education can take
her out of her milieu.
Patty Jo listens to no one. With
another way of seeing the world, she has to find her own way,
even if that means making terrible mistakes. Besides, she has a secret: she can
read plays, memorize the lines, become someone else in a different life.
In this story that spans fifty years, the themes are social class, the search for identity, and
finding personal courage.
Blurb:
A passion for books creates a lasting bond between
teenage Patty Jo and David, but small-town prejudice and social differences
doom their romance.
After a summer of reading and falling in love,
David heads for university, foreign adventure, and a dazzling career; Patty Jo marries slick, over-confident Don Ried.
Yet plans can go horribly wrong. The victim of her
violent husband, Patty Jo abandons her home and children to live on the streets
of Toronto. David, a high-ranking executive in Paris, is dismayed by the superficiality of
corporate success.
Forty years later, Patty Jo and David meet again.
Both have defied society; both have fulfilled their dreams. And what if first
love was the right one after all, and destiny has the last word?
Excerpt
from Words for Patty Jo
She can be any
sort of person, copy the confident young women who are coffeehouse customers,
mimic the audacious ones she sees on the streets. She sometimes follows unusual
people for whole blocks, learns their gestures, conjures up the snappy repartee
she wants them to have.
Why, she hasn’t
had this much fun in her whole life. Men? They don’t know what’s real. They
have no idea that deep inside there’s the stupid Patty Jo. The stupid failure
who has run away from home, abandoned her kids, left her husband. What would
they think if they knew?
She teaches
herself not to care. If she’s sometimes frightened, wonders what the future
will bring, she pushes down the thoughts, walks on in the sexy way she has
perfected, the way that makes men look with lust and turns their women sour.
PRAISE FOR WORDS FOR PATTY JO:
In this compelling and wonderfully written story, Jill Arlene Culiner
fearlessly challenges romantic illusions to reveal the true components of
lasting love as mutual honesty, respect, compassion and steadfastness. It's a
must read. Penny Lynn Cookson, Arts and
culture writer
The
characters are authentic, and portrayed with remarkable sensitivity. The
writing is beautiful, highly effective, yet remarkably subtle. Roso Creation
This is a love story spanning decades but it is also about the
paths we take in life, the people who influence our growth, the highs and lows,
and the strength of the human spirit. It is also a reminder that we should
never stop dreaming, loving or striving to find our right place in the world. I have no hesitation in
recommending this beautifully written story. Sally Cronin, Smorgasbord Magazine
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Writer, artist, and teller of tall tales, Jill (J.) Arlene
Culiner, was born in New York and raised in Toronto. She has crossed much of
Europe on foot, has lived on the Great Hungarian Plain, in a Bavarian castle, a
Turkish cave dwelling, and a haunted house on the English moors. She now
resides in a 400-year-old former inn in a French village where she protects
spiders, snakes, and weeds. She delights in hearing any nasty, funny,
ridiculous, or romantic story, and when she can’t uncover gossip, she makes it
up.
She has won the Tanenbaum Prize in Canadian Jewish History, the 2024 Canadian Jewish Literary Award for Memoir, was shortlisted for the Foreword Magazine Prize, and twice for the Page Turner Awards.
http://www.j-arleneculiner.com
All Links: https://linktr.ee/j.arleneculiner
Storytelling: https://soundcloud.com/j-arlene-culiner
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