Tera's Tale: Rebel on the River -- A life story of love, rats, cancer, hoarding, and, did I mention love? - Softcover

Judith Gwinn Adrian

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1595986758 ISBN 13: 9781595986757

Publisher: Henschel Haus Publishing, Inc., 2019

Synopsis

2019 Eric Hoffer Montaigne Medal Finalist

Through her fiercely independent, yet childlike eyes, Tera allows us to enter the recesses of her guarded world. Her Aussie sister, Beth, walks with us, compassionately guiding and explaining.

Tera’s life? A world of secrets. A place of shame. A lifetime of expanding mental illness. Tera moves from collector to hoarder, progressively tipped by the compulsion into a perilous world of rats and disease. As Tera repeatedly expressed through words, actions and even rage, she did not live like other people. And yet, living an ordinary life of home and family was her greatest desire.

It would never be. (Includes discussion questions.)

About this title

About the Author:

Judy Adrian's work experiences prove the adage that a career is something we look back on and only then understand. Judy's first job was in adult education with a northeastern Iowa community college. From there she moved to Madison College and then completed her Ph.D. in adult education at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Judy retired from teaching at Edgewood College in the fall of 2018 and is proud to have published three books: Because I Am Jackie Millar, In Warm Blood: Prison & Privilege, Hurt & Heart , and now Tera's Tale: Rebel on the River. She lives next to Tera s river, Madison, with her husband and big-boned cat, Rufus.

Review:

All of us have encountered characters in our lives, unusual, quirky people who cast a spell on us. The Tera of Judith Gwinn Adrian's Tera s Tale is one of those eccentrics. But rarely have they been treated so warmly and lovingly which is the genius of what Ms. Adrian has done. Warts and all and lord knows there are plenty of them - Tera is treated with love and respect by the author. And now, thanks to Ms. Adrian, we can love and respect Tera too. --Doug Bradley

There are stories so powerful that they launch us into compelling new worlds. Judith Adrian has once again found such a story, writing it with caring and deep insight. Tera's complexity gives us much to think about. She is so real. --Carol Lobes

Judy Adrian has written another brilliant book! She wades into situations most people turn away from, then reverently excavates the human story. Tera's Tale is a penetrating look into a person on the fringe. Through Adrian's compassionate lens we are all offered the opportunity to look at others and to rethink our assumptions about the human condition. --Sue Sadowske, Ph.D.

About this edition

• Publisher: Henschel Haus Publishing, Inc.
• Publication date: 2019
• ISBN 10: 1595986758
• ISBN 13: 9781595986757
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 120