A Book Angel Project (with Lisa Schroeder)

A few weeks ago lovely author Lisa Schroeder asked for volunteers to participate in a Book Angel project. Lucky me, I got chosen. Lisa sent me a signed hardback copy of her latest book, Far From You, and I was to pass it on to someone or a group who could use an inspirational book.

Lisa's inscription on the inside of the book: "Angels are everywhere if we believe."

Needless to say, I was terrified. When I commented on her blog post, I never realized that I could actually be chosen. I mean, I sort of like talking to strangers--I wouldn't be a tour guide if I didn't--but only if there were established dynamics involved: I talk, they listen, they ask me questions. What were people going to say when a total stranger plops a book down in front of them and insists that they take it for very abstract reasons?

I had trouble finding a nice place to give the book to. Originally I had wanted to donate it to this Girl Street program that a local hospital ran, which runs discussion groups for adolescent girls, but my free time could never coincide with their office hours. Alas.

Finally, I decided to donate Far From You to St. Clare's, a hospital that is a five-minute drive from my house. They have a pretty famous cancer treatment center there, and I thought that a person with a sick family member might feel comforted if they, say, picked the book up in the waiting area or something. When I entered the reception lobby, there was a man sitting on a bench island in the middle of the room, sullenly reading a newsletter. Perhaps he can be reading something much more uplifting. Who knows? I hope that the hospital patients who now have access to Lisa's book will appreciate it and find solace in the book's characters. :)