A good read can go beyond words. ‘HeartStrings’ author Marjorie Lin Kyriopoulos is in the house for First Thursday. Hear about her epigenetic journey and enjoy a discussion about trauma, healing, and the arts.
Shop open studios and galleries on the 2nd floor from 5-9pm and refresh reminder (as if you needed one) that Indeed Brewing Company is located on the first floor. Date night be like —> Shop Art. Grab a beer. Stop at the Food Truck. Listen in on the Book Reading. Go for a Walk in the recently acclaimed by USA TODAY Best Arts District in America. (Enjoy in any order with whomever you choose)
COST: Free
DETAILS: Marjorie Lin Kyriopoulos, the author of HeartStrings, will read excerpts from her memoir and share how the trauma of her aunt’s untimely death worked its way into her heart, traveling through three generations of her family. She will also share how writing HeartStrings helped her heal, epigenetically, two generations later. Marjorie will share how she was guided by the past to discover events in her family’s history, hoping to inspire a conversation about the healing power of creativity.
MORE Details: Kris Lange’s paintings will also be featured at the venue. Kris is an accomplished Solar Arts Studio artist who created the painting, “Flowers on Turquoise,” which is featured on the cover of HeartStrings.
From the Author: “It all began when I opened up a box of my mother’s treasures and found photographs of my Aunt Wanda, along with a newspaper clipping from October 17, 1948. “Young S.L. Matron, 23, Killed in Rifle Mishap.” I wanted to know more about my aunt. My search took me down a winding road that led to my grandmother, my mother, and myself.”
BOOK Description: Heartstrings is a deeply personal and compassionate memoir that chronicles the history and lives of the author’s Greek-American family in her own creative way. The stories in HeartStrings are based upon actual events and interviews with family members that illustrate how tragic events can have a ripple effect on past, present, and future generations in surprising and unexpected ways. Stories from her grandparents’ immigrant experiences in the early 1900s to her own personal journey through the tumultuous and radical changes during the 1960s to now, this book is a reminder that a person’s present is deeply rooted in their past. Characters, poetry, and photographs come together in HeartStrings to send readers on a path to find meaning in their own family’s stories.
From the Book: “Bill and I met up with his friend Wes at the foot of Spanish Fork Canyon where the men prepared their guns and hunting gear. I was wearing the red sweater my mother had given me. She was determined to protect me. No way could I be mistaken for a deer!”
HeartStrings is available from Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble, and IndieBound.
AUTHOR: Marjorie Lin lives in Minneapolis with Maya Licorice, her Mini-Aussie rescue dog. She has two children and three grandchildren. Throughout her long career as a teacher, writer, and manager, she has had a passion for photography and creative writing, including poetry.
COVER ARTIST: Kris Lange’s artistic passion was ignited during an art therapy class in 2017 as she was undergoing chemotherapy for breast cancer. Art became her medicine, where love and healing poured through her hands and onto the canvas. Kris often paints landscapes and scenes of her native Minnesota.
RECOGNITION for HeartStrings:
The INDEPENDENT PRESS AWARDS recognized HeartStrings as a Distinguished Favorite in the category of Biography (March 2022).
SHELF UNBOUND recognized HeartStrings as a Top 100 Notable Award (January/February 2021).
MIDWEST BOOK REVIEW selected HeartStrings as a Reviewer’s Choice.
“An inherently fascinating read from first page to last, HeartStrings is a deftly crafted and deeply personal life story and one that is compelling, thoughtful and thought-provoking…” HeartStrings” is an especially and unreservedly recommended addition to community, college, and university library Contemporary American Memoir/Biography collections.” —Reviewer’s Choice, “Wisconsin Bookwatch,” November 2021
READER Reviews:
“I am reading your book, Heartstrings, and love so many things about it, especially the poetry and dialogue typed in gray boxes. Your family experienced too many tragedies as young lives were cut short when they were on the cusp of something wonderful, such as a graduation, marriage, or unborn baby. It was almost as if the bullet that hit Wanda just below her heart traveled on to make defective hearts in Frank and Susan and took the strength to live another day from Steve and Afton. Thank you for sharing your personal journey to heal.”
“Just finished your book. It was wonderful! I loved every word and wanted you to know how much it touched me, made me reach deeper into my childhood and my relationship with my mother.”
“Heartstrings brought so many thoughts about my family and grief passing down from both sides. I now see I can work on that within my life. Your words did that!! Thanks so much.”
SPONSOR:
Solar Arts Building
Sept 1st, 5:00pm-9:00pm
Free and open to the public. Free parking.
CONTACTS:
(763) 234-5069
(612) 673-8822
