Bøker av Cynthia Claus

In a series of candid vignettes and one poem, Cynthia takes us into her family of origin to revisit her physician parents, whose lives were impacted in unexpected, far-reaching ways by her father's service in World War II, and into her life with them and her two younger sisters, covering several decades. We meet grandparents, lifelong friends, and mother substitutes. Dark family secrets are revealed. Questions are raised. Other tales explore Cynthia's work history in such divergent places as her father's medical office and a seminary. We are with her during the dissolution of two marriages and a nostalgic look back at a high school romance. Always honest, Cynthia tells it like it was-the good, the bad, and the very bad-with feeling and understanding, and eventually forgiveness.

A Lifetime to Get Here: San Miguel de Allende, the first in a series of two, was created from the author's almost-daily blogs about visiting San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, for increasing amounts of time and in different seasons, spanning winter 2009 to the conclusion of 2012. The culmination of those years was the sale of her house in her fourth-generation hometown of Philadelphia and her permanent settlement in Mexico. It is a unique combination of travel memoir, how-to guide for the first-time visitor, the occasional lesson in Mexican history or culture, a Spanish grammar lesson or two, an answer to Stateside friends' questions of "What do you do in Mexico?", as well as honest, introspective reactions to what the older American author experiences as she navigates this unknown territory on her own. Lovingly-maintained vintage family photos of trips to Mexico decades ago and the author's own carefully-curated photos from more recent years punctuate and add richness to the text.

In her earlier title in this two-book series, "A Lifetime to Get Here: San Miguel de Allende," Cynthia mined her blog posts about being a visitor in San Miguel for longer and longer periods of time and in all of the seasons over a four-year period, 2009-2012, to offer the honest views of an older, single woman navigating on her own a country new to her. Now, in this second book, "Is This My Life? San Miguel and Beyond," Cynthia tells of her life as an almost full-time residente permanente, having sold her home in Philadelphia, presenting anecdotes about experiences and situations--both wildly humorous and deeply emotional--that happened to her, told in her relaxed, intimate, conversational style, brimming with luscious details. The "Beyond" part encompasses short, small-group adventures to such diverse places as the southern state of Chiapas, which borders Guatemala; Uruapan, the second-largest city in the state of Michoacán; and an eco-journey to the state of Hidalgo in central Mexico, north of Mexico City. Cynthia's love for Mexico and all things Mexican, and San Miguel especially, shines through all of her stories, whether she is complaining about minor difficulties, breathlessly telling a gripping story, or laughing at herself over the linguistic or cultural errors that she makes. You, too, will come to love San Miguel and Mexico when you read this delightful book.