Gayle Young in REDBIRDS, ROSES, AND GHOSTS has created a fictionalized memoir that focuses on problems newly retired women face in trying to find a place for themselves. Insecurities, society’s expectations, and changing lifestyles echo, one off the other, until the narrator is able to face who she is without regret. Eating too much and writing too little work together to place her on stable ground.
Young’s re-telling of childhood events, her authentic voice and use of light-hearted humor keep what might otherwise become an overwhelmingly sad tale palatable. The conversational tone keeps the reader awaiting the next catastrophe. At times, the reader, like the narrator, has difficulty deciding if the speaker is real or imagined. Young’s ability to move from reality to fiction shows her to be a sure-footed storyteller. She has the power to grip our attention and let us know that the narrator’s experiences are becoming more universal in the lives of today’s women. — Laura Hunter, author of Beloved Mother
REDBIRDS, ROSES, AND GHOSTS celebrate the writer in all of us. With grace, humor, and compassion, Gayle Young captures a lost time for women and their “set-aside” dreams. Part memoir, part dream, the book travels to the past and what might have been, never losing sight of the power of a mother-daughter bond.
—Carolyn Haines, USA Today bestselling author
This is a charmer of a book, a memoir interspersed with short stories and poems, all inspired by Gayle Young's efforts in her first year of retirement to begin her life as a writer, come to terms with her past, and find humor in her daily life and family. She talks to ghosts, writes a novel, hears tempting desserts calling her name, and takes us along with her as she comes to realize that living in the past and worrying about the present are actually much less fun than appreciating and enjoying the life she has and the future she is beginning to imagine. — Jennifer Horne, Poet Laureate of Alabama
Gayle Young has written an extraordinary book, a combination of memoir and fiction. Her story is a charming collection of poignant family and childhood recollections, amusing revelations from her later life, and glimpses into the worlds of those who are gone. The humor and pathos blend to create a work of laughter and sorrow that takes the reader on a journey fraught with entertaining anecdotes and problems of the heart.
—Randy Cross, English Professor Calhoun Community College
Short Bio: Gayle Young worked as a legal administrative assistant and raised four children while writing short stories, a couple of novels, and dozens of journals. Some of her short stories have been published in magazines-one nostalgic piece in The Birmingham News and one in the anthology, From Eulogy to Joy. She lives in Birmingham, Alabama with her husband and two dogs.
Sierra Tabor has been an editor at Bluewater Publications since spring of 2017, but she has been fascinated by the art of storytelling for much longer. She has been an avid reader and book lover since childhood and first began volunteering her services as a beta reader and editor in high school. She has a degree in Psychology and experience teaching English as a foreign language. She first began college with plans to major in English; however, in her first psychology class, she fell in love with the story of human nature and the concepts used to analyze it. When it comes to improving stories, Sierra likes to look at both the big picture and the details to assist writers in creating the vision they wish to express to their readers. At Bluewater Publications, Sierra focuses on developmental editing, which involves fine-tuning story structure, character development, and the context that helps all the elements blend together.
Maria is one of the designers at Bluewater Publications, who focuses on the interior of books. She graduated with a degree in art and digital media. She has had a love for both art and books from a young age, and she combines them in her work at Bluewater. Her goal is to create a pleasant reading experience that immerses the reader in the story. She does this through careful design choices and meticulous attention to detail, all while keeping it subtle, so the elements on the page do not overpower the story but enhance it.
