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The Other Side of Addiction

August 1st, 2011 by CMandel

The recent passing of bluesy British musician Amy Winehouse has us feeling sad and listening to her classic “Rehab” on repeat.  Everyone seems to have an opinion on Winehouse’s death and we’re choosing to abstain from commenting. Whether Winehouse’s death was related to her addictions or not, it encourages us to re-examine the effects of addiction. W’e're not here to bring the doom and gloom; instead, we want to highlight those who have battled with addiction and made it out on the other side.

Mary Karr is the best-selling author of Lit, The Liars’ Club and Cherry. Karr’s battles with alcoholism is chronicled in Lit. With the use of humor, Karr shares her brazen battle into adulthood with readers. From marriage and a new child to a search for religion, Karr attempts to figure it out. In the end, Karr does find answers and makes it out sober and stronger. Currently, Karr is a college professor and performs many speaking engagements about her history with alcoholism and recovery.

As someone who won an Academy award when she was 10, Tatum O’Neal’s drug and alcohol addiction has never been kept out of the spotlight. After getting married, O’Neal left Hollywood to be a full-time mother. Following the birth of three children, O’Neal experienced depression, drug addiction and a divorce, which is described in her first memoir A Paper Life. In her newest book, Found, O’Neal tells the story of her journey to being sober and clean, and reconciling her relationship with her dad. 

Critically aclaimed author, TV and film writer, Jerry Stahl discussed his troubles with drugs in the bestselling junkie confessional memoir Permanent Midnight, which went on to become a movie starring Ben Stiller and Maria Bello.  Since then, he has published several successful fiction novels such as Perv: A Love Story, Plainclothes Naked and his latest novel Pain Killers. Stahl is currently working on several film projects while doing speaking engagements across the country at universities, film schools, libraries, literary arts and lecture series.

Anna David has been sober over a decade and has published four books: Party Girl, Bought, Reality Matters, and Falling for Me. Party Girl is about a hard-partying celebrity journalist and is based off David’s own experiences with addiction and recovery. David speaks regularly on college campuses to revolutionize how students think about drinking. She doesn’t ask students to  practice abstinency but instead shows them that they can make wiser choics than she did.

Son of Jack Canfield (the creator of the best-selling self-helps series Chicken Soup for the Soul),  Oran Canfield tells his story of heroin addiction in  Long Past Stopping.  Like Karr, Canfield uses humor as he details his experiences with hippies, circus clowns, drugs, radical thinkers, a broken family, madcap teachers, experimental music and rehab.  In early in 2001, after seven separate stints in rehab, Canfield got clean when attending an experimental treatment center in the Caribbean. Canfield speaks about his addiction and how he is surviving in recovery.

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The Best Four Years?

July 28th, 2011 by CMandel

It’s almost the beginning of August and almost that time of year again. I’m talking about those few weeks when Bed, Bath and Beyond is crowded with scrambling parents attempting to find the perfect shower caddy, comforter and mattress foam pad as their bored teenagers sulk four feet behind. It’s that time when Facebook profiles are flooded with friend requests from future roommates, classmates and peers. And it is during this time that students feverishly attempt to finish their summer reading homework before freshmen orientation. Yes, it’s that time – time to leave for college.

A student’s first semester away from home can not only be scary and uncertain, but also exciting. As 18 year olds across the country pack their bags, Mom’s hair begins to show a few grays and Dad takes on the persona of Alan Thicke in Growing Pains, ready to disperse a lecture at any minute. In those few weeks before arriving on campus, a sense of nervous anticipation grows. Will classes be difficult? Will it be easy to make friends? How do you share a bathroom with an entire floor of classmates? Though questions abound, answers don’t always readily appear. Luckily, some of HCSB’s top speakers are here to help college-bound teenagers and parents prepare for the challenges of the next four years.

Adam Shepard, author of Scratch Beginnings and The Best Four Years (pictured above), is the expert on college life and what comes next. During his lively speeches, Shepard explores the most pressing concerns of today’s university students and examines the many aspects (and surprises) of college living. From transitioning to a life away from home to managing on a tight budget; from the necessity of scheduling to taking your health seriously; from the subtleties of campus social life to the dos and don’ts of networking, Shepard offers hope, motivation, and direction to help students sail smoothly through the best four years of their lives and beyond.

Alexandra Robbins is a New York Times best-selling author and award-winning speaker on the lives of teenagers, college students and young adults. While many individuals see college as a chance to be someone different and new, Robbins encourages everyone to embrace what makes them unique. In her speeches, she explains the fascinating psychology and science behind popularity and outcasthood, as well as how the things that set students apart in high school are the very things that help them stand out at college and later in life.

For issues parents face, Madeline Levine presents a wealth of helpful information. Levine is a psychologist with over 30 years of experience as a clinician, consultant and educator. In a world where the idea of success is measured narrowly by test scores and acceptance letters, she offers parents tools to encourage real success. Levine defines real success, an overall sense of competence, well-being, engagement and meaning, which rests on healthy child development.

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Tom Jones: One of the Select Few

July 25th, 2011 by CMandel

Last Thursday at 5:56 AM the Atlantis Space Shuttle made its final landing, marking the end of the 30-year NASA shuttle program. The Atlantis landing signals the end of an era, and we can’t help but feel nostalgic.

When we were kids and the teacher would ask “What do you want to be when you grow up,” eight out of ten classmates screamed, “An astronaut!” We knew only a select few got the opportunity to go to space, but we still thought endlessly about how cool it would be if that select few included us. Of course, we grew up, realized what a “select few” actually meant. We settled happily on watching those who did make it live one of our childhood dreams.

In light of this momentous occasion, we’d like to spotlight one of our speakers —veteran astronaut, space scientist, and author, Tom Jones.

 In eleven years with NASA, Jones flew on four (yes four!) space shuttle missions to Earth Orbit. He has spent 53 (yes 53!) days working and living in space. If that wasn’t exciting enough, as a distinguished graduate of the U.S. Air Force Academy, Jones piloted B-52D strategic bombers, studied asteroids for NASA, engineered an intelligence-gathering system of the CIA, and helped develop advanced mission concepts to explore the solar system.

He has published three books, the latest is Sky Walking, and is available for speaking engagements to discuss the following topics:

  • Reaching the Heavens: Inside-the-Cockpit Tales From an Astronaut’s Four Space Voyages
  • Adversity, Challenge, and Success: A Personal Path to the Stars
  • The Right and Wrong Stuff: Leadership and Teamwork Examples from the Astronauts Corps

To see the historic Atlantis Shuttle Landing, go here.

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Podium 53 Is Back!

July 22nd, 2011 by Wade

If you’re a regular visitor to Podium 53 (hello, and thank you!), you have probably grown tired of seeing that Jan. 4th post about the lovely Ellen Sarver Dolgen whenever you search for the latest HCSB updates. We feel you. This blog hasn’t exactly featured a wealth of new material lately. That’s about to change.

With the sad news of Borders’ closing fresh in our minds, we’ve been thinking about ways in which authors and their audiences interact. Traditionally, stores like Borders have provided space for readers to meet their literary heroes, and for authors to meet their fans. We love bookstores, but here at HCSB we’re also constantly thinking of new ways to connect authors to their audience.

Speaking engagements serve as a great way to get a personalized experience with your favorite author/speaker. Our speakers discuss everything from their celebrated works and areas of expertise to ruminations on the writing process. Many join attendees at meet-and-greets and book signings.

Some of the authors we’re excited about this summer include:

  • Award winning journalist, Mitchell Zuckoff, author of the New York Times best-seller Lost in Shangri-La (he also discusses Ponzi Schemes, journalism, and the career of celebrated director Robert Altman)
  • Talia Carner, author of Jerusalem Maiden (she also speaks about women’s issues and women in the Jewish faith)
  • Conor Grennan, author of the New York Times best-seller Little Princes (he also discusses volunteerism, international adoption, and Christianity)

Going forward, we hope Podium 53 will also serve as a space for speakers and audiences to interact. This blog is off to a fresh start. Soon, we’ll be featuring author Q&As, posts about current issues in publishing and trends in the speaking world, tips and advice on public speaking, and more. Get excited. Let us know what you want to read, and who you want to meet. We hope this is the beautiful beginning of a renewed author-reader-speakers bureau relationship.

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Ellen Sarver Dolgen’s SHMIRSKY is a Refreshing Take on “The Pursuit of Hormone Happiness”

January 4th, 2011 by Caitlin

Ellen Sarver Dolgen, author of Shmirsky: The Pursuit of Hormone Happiness, offers a fun yet important perspective on that dreaded thing every woman has to go through eventually: menopause. In her book, as in her presentations, Dolgen talks about everything from the mental, physical, and emotional truths about menopause to finding the fun in aging and mid-life to nuture relationships and and lead fulfilling sex lives. Watch Dolgen’s entertaining and provocative video about Shmirsky here.



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