Publisher's Synopsis
Just add coffee...and sigh! This "Indie Excellence Award" winning book is the second collection of inspiring and empowering essays by author Mary T. Wagner, and adds accents of lovely nature photos to a tour of ordinary moments viewed with extraordinary grace. Whether reflecting on the view from the side of a dormant volcano or enjoying the cleansing effect of a good bonfire after a post-divorce garage cleaning, these essays again conjure what one reviewer called "life writing at its best." Following in the spike-heeled footsteps of Wagner's critically acclaimed debut essay collection, "Running with Stilettos," this amusing, touching and remarkable collection weaves tales of humor and heartbreak, triumph and tragedy. Wagner brings her readers along as she savors the view from the back seat of a Harley, reflects on the maternal importance of "theme" cupcakes, finally gets back on a horse after a life-changing riding accident, and keeps a vigil by her father's deathbed. Among the award-winning essays contained in this collection are "Love in the Time of Cupcakes" and "May It Please the Court," both of which were finalists in Florida's Royal Palm Literary Awards competition. "May It Please the Court" tells of the author's inspiring journey from stay-at-home soccer mom to arguing cases before the state supreme court...after an accident that put her in a body cast for three months. "Home Fires Burning" is a reflection on the spiritually cleansing effect of a good bonfire after a post-divorce garage cleaning, while "Magic Words" describes the transforming effect of the author uttering the words "I'm the mother of the bride!" to department store clerks. WHAT OTHER AUTHORS HAVE TO SAY... "Whether coping with aging parents or a new-found love, Mary Wagner brings wit and candor to stories that are universal in their appeal and revealing in their honesty." -Paul Salsini, author, THE CIELO and SPARROW'S REVENGE "Watch out...Mary T. Wagner will pin you right where you sit with her stilettos until you read all of her wonderful essays-and you won't even mind the heel marks!" -Kris Radish, author, THE SHORTEST DISTANCE BETWEEN TWO WOMEN, DANCING NAKED AT THE EDGE OF DAWN, and others "Mary Wagner writes beautifully about all the large and small things that make our lives memorable. From the mundane to the major, her meticulously worded prose places the reader at her side and into her thoughts on her journey as a mother, attorney, journalist and all those other roles that she and each of us assume as we wend our way though life. A great read!" -William Rawlings, author, CROSSWORD, THE TATE REVENGE and others "Mary's stories are thought provoking and entertaining. You feel the life in her words as you're reading them. -Gracie Hill, author, WHERE THE BROTHERS AT? and SORROWS OF THE HEART "Both funny and touching, "Heck on Heels" is a wonderful slice of Midwestern life." -Maureen Lipinski, author, A BUMP IN THE ROAD: From Happy Hour to Baby Shower
