WESTFIELD-Linda Campanella, author of When All That’s Left of Me Is Love: A Daughter’s Story of Letting Go, will be visiting Blue Umbrella Books on Nov. 3 for a book talk and signing.
The public is invited, and copies of the award-winning, life-affirming story of a daughter’s undying love for her dying mother will be available for purchase at the 6 p.m. event.
Linda Campanella will visit Blue Umbrella Books Nov. 3.
In a book she says wrote itself in the weeks following her mother’s death, Campanella provides intimate testimony affirming the enormous joy and unexpected gifts one can experience by choosing to embrace life in the face of terminal illness. The book is a heartwarming account of the author’s last year with her mother, Nancy Sachsse, who passed away one year and one day after she was diagnosed with terminal cancer. Her father, Dr. Eckart Sachsse, still serves as a radiologist in Springfield.
Written as a tribute to the mother she says epitomized courage and grace, Campanella’s story is a touching celebration of the mother-daughter relationship and so much more. It provides insights and inspirations that will help anyone jolted into confronting the inevitability or sudden imminence of death, and it offers a comforting balm for the aching hearts of those who are grieving loss.
“At the same time it reminds all of us, at any age or stage, to cherish each new day and every close relationship in our lives,” said Campanella.
“Ultimately the book is much more about living – fully and joyfully – than it is about dying,” added Campanella. “My family approached terminal illness in a way that provides a roadmap for people trying to navigate that difficult terrain themselves, but I believe our story is at least equally helpful for folks navigating the journey of life itself. When you think of it, each one of us is ‘terminal,’ so shouldn’t we live each day as though it might be our last?”
When All That’s Left of Me Is Love was an Indie Excellence Book Awards finalist in 2013 and won a Nautilus Silver Award in 2012. The Nautilus Awards recognize books “that promote spiritual growth, conscious living and positive social change, while at the same time they stimulate the ‘imagination’ and offer the reader ‘new possibilities’ for a better life and a better world.” Previous Nautilus honorees include the Dalai Lama, Dr. Deepak Chopra, Eckhart Tolle, and Mariel Hemingway.
Described by readers as “unforgettable,” When All That’s Left of Me Is Love also has been lauded by pastors, spiritual counselors, hospice practitioners, palliative care advocates, oncologists, grief counselors, and others involved in or interested in end-of-life care. The book also has particular relevance and resonance with baby boomers who are caring for aging or ill parents or who anticipate doing so in the future.
Campanella’s talk at Blue Umbrella Books also coincides with the beginning of National Hospice and Palliative Care Month.
For more information about Campanella, visit www.lindacampanella.tateauthor.com.
Blue Umbrella Books is located at 2 Main St. For more details about the event, contact the store at (413) 579-5383.
