Featured Interview With Barbara Ann Gareis
Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
I grew up in the little town of Cookstown, NJ, just outside McGuire Air Force Base. I now live in Bordentown, NJ, just 15 minutes from where I grew up. When I was in the 8th grade, my family lived in Florida for a year while my dad worked as a Polk County sheriff’s officer. I’ve always had pets. I’m a cat lover and currently have four cats and three dogs! Life has not always been easy but I have so much to be thankful for.
At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
I’ve loved books since I was old enough to climb the steps that led into the book mobile. I’ve been reading various genres all my life and started writing when I was a teenager. I always knew that one day I would publish my own book and I am thrilled to be writing book number three now. I’m a sucker for memoir. My first book was an inspirational book – 100 BLESSINGS. My second book was memoir – DANCING WITH DADDY. And my third book is also memoir – BROKEN LADDER. I hope to encourage others with my own stories of overcoming adversity.
Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
My favorite authors are Mary Karr, Jeannette Walls, and Haven Kimmel, just to name a few. There are so many! My favorite genre is memoir but I do enjoy mystery and general fiction as well. In fact, Karen Kingsbury is my favorite author in Christian fiction. Her stories have actually brought me to tears.
Tell us a little about your latest book?
DANCING WITH DADDY: A MEMOIR OF LIFE, LOVE, AND HOPE took me four years to write. It was emotionally painful yet therapeutic to recount the tragic losses I endured as a young girl. Instead of these losses making me realize how precious life is, I became rebellious and made many terrible choices as a teenager. When love and forgiveness began to wash away the pain, tragedy would strike yet again. My secrets are now out there for the world to read. My mom has recovered from the shock of learning things about me she never knew. But in the end, if my story helps give someone else hope, then it was all worth it.
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