Last spring, I met debut writer, story-gatherer, and Life-Cycle Celebrant Patricia Eagle at the wonderful Independent Book Publishers Association Conference. I immediately recognized — in the directness of her gaze, the wisdom and humor that shines from her eyes, and the groundedness, warmth, and self-assurance with which she walks through the world — that Patricia was a kindred spirit, a woman I not only wanted to get to know better, but recognized I was already deeply connected to in some inexplicable, but undeniable, way.
A little more than a year later, Patricia has become a client and collaborator, a friend, and an inspiration. For the last couple months, we have worked together to bring to listening audiences her searing, courageous, unflinching memoir about sexual abuse and family dysfunction, and her lifelong, fiercely committed quest for health and wholeness. She’s been on an author tour since early June, and her book is selling out and garnering great reviews.
And now, her story, BEING MEAN, is available in audio. Patricia details the trajectory of her 60-some years of life, in all its messiness, power, pain, and exploration. Her memoir is one of the bravest, most transparent, and most unabashedly feminist books I’ve ever voiced. I encourage you to listen to, review, and recommend this book, whether in your own past you’ve experienced anything on the spectrum of Patricia’s life experience or not, whether you’re a woman or not. I’m confident that Patricia’s resilience, compassion for herself and her family, and ability to flourish in a thriving career, community, and marriage will open your heart and leave you the better for having spent time with her and her work.
