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BOOK OF THE MONTH FOR APRIL BY ALLBOOK REVIEWS
http://allbookreviews.com/Default.aspx?tabid=560
Genre: Spiritual/Inspirational
 Title: A Healing Heart
Author: Alberta H. Sequeira
Embrace
life and believe again in the power of faith. Written with intense
emotions, the author brings to us a personal and spiritual journey.
Alberta
Sequeira faces the last facet of life- death. She deals with the death
of her father by learning about his life as a man, a husband, a father
and a believer in miracles. She learns that as a Commanding Officer in
W.W.II, he was loved, and respected by all men whose lives he touched
and protected. She has to accept her mother’s way of coping with the
inevitable and is grateful for the valuable help and heartfelt empathy
from ‘Cathy’ of the Hospice Association. Throughout this tragedy,
Alberta regains her faith in God. Remembering her father saying
“Family
is one of the most important things in life” and “Love one another as I
have loved you” (St. John 15.12) We need to all remember to tell our
loved ones while they are with us how we feel, how grateful we are to
have them in our lives. All too soon it will be too late!
Not
long after her father’s passing, Alberta’s mother falls ill. Once
recuperated enough to travel, Alberta and her sister take her to pray
at the Shrine of The Blessed Mother in Medway, MA where they experience
a mystical moment heightening all of their faiths.
After
her own health issues are sorted out and overcoming many fears, Alberta
travels to Medjogorje in Bosnia. This is a spiritual journey to a
place where many claim to have received visits from the Blessed Mother
Mary. Not only does she make numerous life long friends, find her own
confidence, deepen her renewed faith, she also finally understands that
the love and happiness we all crave comes from within.
There
are many excuses in life that we use to leave our faith behind or
questions God’s very existence; disillusionment with our political and
religious leaders, personal tragedies we cannot comprehend, war itself,
let alone the horrendous war crimes committed against our fellow man.
All too often we turn to Him only when we are desperate, when we should
talk to Him with gratitude, as well. We need to be teaching the next
generations the importance of faith.
Alberta
H. Sequeira is married and lives with her husband in Rochester, MA.
She relaxes by reading, gardening and in the portrayal of this powerful
story, we know she enjoys her writing. This is her first published
novel.
There are so many life lessons to be found in this
book. Alberta has also enlightened many families about the benefits
provided by accepting help from the Hospice Association.
I would Highly Recommend this novel to readers of all faith and spiritual viewpoints. Reviewer: Cheryl Ellis, Allbooks Reviews
Available at: www.publishAmerica.com or www.ahealingheart.net and Amazon.com
See complete review in Review Showcase
Most books available on Amazon.com or from the Publisher.
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BOOK OF THE WEEK: A HEALING HEART
MONDAY OCTOBER 2ND - FRIDAY OCTOBER 6TH
PUBLISH AMERICA'S WEBSITE: www.publishamerica.com
SEPTEMBER 29, 2006
Good morning Ms. Sequeira,
Congratulations! We have selected your book, A Healing Heart, to be our next Book of the Week. We base our decision for book of the week on a number of factors: sales, reviews, recommendations, and reader interest. All of our books are considered each week when choosing the title. It is indeed an honor to have your book selected, and I am proud that you are one of our authors. Look for your book to be featured next week on the home page.
Best regards,
M.N. Prather
Executive Director
PublishAmerica
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November 8, 2006
Dear Ms. Sequeira:
Congratulations! Upon completing their review process,
Spring Arbor has
elected to list your title in their database. Spring Arbor
is Ingram's
Christian book wing. It is a great honor that your book has been
selected.
Thank you,
Paige
PublishAmerica Support
Spring Arbor has been honored with three major awards at the Christian Bookseller Association’s 2005 International Christian Retail Show
7/18/2005
La VERGNE, TN – Spring Arbor Distributors has received the Christian
Booksellers Association’s Impact Award for excellence in distribution
and service, as well as “Vendor of the Year” honors from both Lemstone
and The Association of Logos Bookstores.
ABOUT SPRING ARBOR
Spring Arbor Distributors is a unit of Ingram Book Group, a leading
wholesaler of trade books, spoken audio, and magazines. Ingram and its
OneSourceSM partners provide immediate access to the largest selection
of books and book-related products in the industry. In addition to
Spring Arbor, Ingram's operating units include Ingram Book Company,
Ingram Periodicals Inc., Ingram International, Ingram Library Services
Inc., Ingram Publisher Services Inc., and Tennessee Book Company LLC.
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The freedom of getting published
By TONY LEWIS, Standard-Times correspondent
Alberta Sequeira of Rochester penned a memoir about her father and her rekindling of faith
in “A Healing Heart.”
Perhaps the most helpful
motto in life is "If at first you don't succeed, try, try again." And when it comes to
"trying again," few can beat the joy of seeing their name on their
book and knowing that it's available online at places like Amazon and Barnes
& Noble, and often in local neighborhood bookstores as well.
For Rochester's Alberta
Sequeria, the attachment was obvious from the first. Her memoir, "A
Healing Heart," began as a way of letting family members learn about her
father's military life. Brigadier Gen. Albert L. Gramm Sr., who died in 1990,
had served in World War II and fought at the Battle of the
Bulge.
When he passed away, Ms.
Sequeira explains, she realized how little she really knew about him. She also
realized, however, how little of her father's commitment to religion she still
retained.
And so what began as a
project to inform her family became a memoir about her own journey back to the
Catholic Church.
"A Healing Heart"
moves chronologically from her father's cancer surgery in 1988, through his
treatments, death, wake and funeral, to her own increasingly strong signs of
spiritual growth.
"When I took care of my
father, I could feel God all around me, and felt so close to Him,"
she said.
Memoirs are among the more
popular genres, but Ms. Sequeira's is in some ways unique. After all, her
spiritual renewal soon finds her on a flight to the village of Medjugorje in Bosnia,
where people claim to have been receiving messages from the Virgin Mary since
1981.
Mrs. Sequeira writes about
her experiences in Bosnia, and then makes clear how that week overseas affected her. She
writes feelingly about her deepening spirituality and about how her family and
friends responded, and writes touchingly too about St. John Neumann Church in East Freetown, where she and
her husband Al worship.
"A Healing Heart"
recounts her own rebirth as a Catholic, but her story will resonate, she
thinks, with people of all faiths. "I hope that I reach the hearts of all
readers," she said.
She will be signing copies
of her book at Bev Loves Books in Rochester, 10 a.m. to
2 p.m. Nov. 25.
Ms. Sequeria has nothing but
good things to say about publishers. "I got 50 rejections" from
mainstream publishers," she laughs, but then added that it was
PublishAmerica that "gave her and so many other authors a chance."
The book is available online
at Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Borders. In addition, "A Healing
Heart" can be purchased at Bev Loves Books and Lloyd's Market in Rochester.
Date of
Publication: November 10, 2006 on Page
B02
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