"I Like You Just Fine When You’re Not Around" by @AnnGarvin_ {Guest Post + #Giveaway}

Ann with her mother

Humour in the face of tribulation is a gift. This is what drew me to the premise of Ann Garvin's new novel. In her own words, Ann says, “I Like You … is for any woman who has ever pondered the unfairness of life, who has wished for someone to call and weigh-in on an imbalanced marriage, relationship or to-do list. For any person who does more than their fair share. I was a gerontology nurse for many years while putting myself through graduate school, and my mother (who later contracted Alzheimer’s) was a gerontology nurse professor for 25 years. I wrote this book to try and make sense of it all in the context of fairness, caregiving, and family.”

Does this resonate? Read on. Also, don't forget to join the giveaway for 2 copies of this book (paperback - US, ebook - open international).

Welcome, Ann!

Ann Garvin answers "What is your book about?"

Here’s how it goes with my new book I Like You Just Fine When You’re Not Around.

I’m holding the book and a person next to me reads the title and laughs. Then as if I’ve caught them doing something embarrassing like thinking something not so nice about someone in their life they look at me and say, “What is this about?”

I say, “It’s about a radio therapist whose mother has Alzheimer’s and she is alone in caring for her and her sister’s colicky newborn. Her life just unravels underneath her while she tries to solve a mystery hidden in her families past. They nod interested.

Then they squint their eyes and say, “But, who is this about?”

I say, “The character Tig Monohan who was also in my last book The Dog year. She’s sassy and sure of herself until she’s not.”

They nod again, like I’m just not hearing them. They try a new tact. “What gave you the idea for this book?”

“Sometimes, I just want to be able to call someone and get some help with the unfairness of life. Like, I just want to call the universe and have them weigh in and give me a hand. So I wrote a radio therapist who does just that. People call in and tell their story and she decides if what is happening is fair or not. Like Judge Judy without the yelling or law involved “Ahhhh they say,” as if now we’re getting somewhere. “So, what do you think is unfair? Who do you want to tattle on and get help with.”

I know what they want.

They want me to tell them who the title is about. Like when Carly Simon sang, You’re so vain. People still want to know, who is so vain. Who??

The truth is, it’s not about any one person in particular. It’s about everyone in general.

It’s about this woman who is trying to figure out her relationships. Yes that’s me, but it’s also everyone I know. It’s about a woman who is a caregiver and can’t always decide when enough is enough. Me again, and I’m thinking you too. It’s about a woman with Alzheimer’s who kept secrets, her daughter who also had a lock and key on her life, and a therapist who has to untangle everything to figure out why she thinks everything is funny and a little bit sad.

I Like You Just Fine When You’re Not Around is about all of us trying to figure out the people we love. I hope you like it and if you do, let me know. If not, well, maybe you can sit over there and wait to tell me when I’m not around. ☺

About Ann Garvin 

Dr. Ann Garvin, is an internationally published author, speaker and professor of exercise physiology, psychology, nutrition, and health. Her novels I Like You Just Fine When You’re Not Around, The Dog Year and On Maggie’s Watch are each about women who struggle to find their way in a world that asks too much from them, too often. Garvin balances her literary pursuits with teaching in WI And NH while supporting other women writers and raising a family.

She is the founder of the Tall Poppies: www.tallpoppies.org and The Fifth Semester www.thefifthsemester.com.

Visit Ann at her website: www.anngarvin.net. Connect with her on Twitter and Facebook.

Giveaway

Ann Garvin is giving away 2 copies to my readers!

1 paperback (open US)

1 ebook (open worldwide)

Entry-Form

About I Like You Just Fine When You’re Not Around: It's not enough that Ann Garvin is hilarious. Then she has to go ahead and be compassionate and wise about the hopeful car-wreck that is most of humanity..." - Michelle Wildgen, author of "You're Not You" and "Bread and Butter"

Everything is falling apart in psychologist Tig Monahan's life. Her mother's dementia is wearing her out; her boyfriend takes off for Hawaii without her; and her sister inexplicably disappears, leaving her newborn behind. When a therapy session goes horribly wrong, Tig finds herself unemployed and part of the sandwich generation trying to take care of everyone and failing miserably. Just when she thinks she can redefine herself on the radio as an arbiter of fairness, she discovers a family secret that nobody saw coming. It will take everything plus a sense of humor to see her way clear to a better life, but none of that will happen if she can't let go of her past.