Listen To Me: How My Down Syndrome Brother Saved My Life by Lynne Podrat

Publisher: LP Press (August 19, 2021)
Category: Non Fiction, Memoir, Special Needs, Disabilities, Down Syndrome, Siblings
Tour dates: March 14-April 14, 2022
ISBN: 978-1737666806
Available in Print and ebook, 128 pages

Description Listen To Me by Lynne Podrat

This memoir was written to honor my youngest brother’s influence over my life, the good, the bad, and the ugly of living with a Down Syndrome sibling. It tells the story of the children in my family, despite our parents’ frailties, remaining committed to each other through life’s many changes and separations. Who I am today is directly related to the who I needed to become.

Praise Listen To Me by Lynne Podrat

“As the intertwined life stories of the author and her brother Bruce emerge, the story takes on a new tone. Bitterness and rancor are replaced with a gentle kind of mellowness and a roaring-fire-on-a-cold-winter-day kind of warmth. This is underscored when the author writes that her plans for Bruce were “to open and enrich his world.” In the end, however, she realizes how being with Bruce “accomplished so much more.” She realizes how this “sweet small man” and “Bruce’s” capacity to love and to “just go on because there was no other choice” profoundly influenced her life. And how Bruce opened and enriched her world.
Oh, and the title? You’ll have to read the book for yourself to figure that one out.
Flavored with gentle humor and tongue-in-cheek wit, Listen to Me isn’t a long read. At about 30,000 words, you can finish it in an afternoon. But the reflections and insights will reverberate much longer.”- Kristine, Pages and Paws

“This book is a touching story about the unconditional love between an older sister and her brother, Bruce. The prose is uplifting and inspirational, without the traces of ableism that can be found in other such works. The overall message is a plea to see people for who they are, not their diagnosis and aims to increase disability awareness.”- Laura Quinn, Laura Quinn Writes

“This memoir is exactly what I needed. It made me laugh and cry and helped me appreciate the people in my life even more than I already did. Bruce’s love for his family, friends, and favorite rock ‘n’ roll idols lives on through this book. His larger-than-life personality left such an impression on me; I can honestly say that I feel like I know him without ever having met him. I think about him from time to time and his essence inspires hope in me, showing me how precious it is to have an innocent view of life at any age.
This book means so much to me. Lynne Podrat is a true artist with her words and the life she created around the people she loves. Her tenacity and devotion to her family—and herself—is unparalleled. She is a badass. If I could just accomplish half of what she has, I would be happy.”-Sandi, Proof Reader Sandi

Interview with Lynne Podrat

Teddy: Please tell us something about ‘Listen To Me’ that is not in the summary.  (About the book, person you particularly enjoyed writing etc.)

Lynne: Although you learn about my middle brother, David from references within the stories and come to appreciate his devotion to Bruce, I tried very hard not to tell his story within our story. I could guess the effect Bruce’s life had on his, making David the big brother and the middle sibling, having attention taken away, watching parents struggle while a young child himself, but the writing of this was so much more than a sibling story. This was written to honor Bruce’s life and how love and advocacy can turn anyone into SOMEONE.

Teddy: How did growing up with your brother, Bruce impact being a mother?

Lynne: What a good question. Initially, I had no desire to have children as I had already been a caregiver. However, once pregnant there was no turning back. Downs can be hereditary so I did have an amniocentesis with my son and a CVS with my daughter, as I was 37, the same age as my mother when she had Bruce. I didn’t think I could bring another special- needs child into the family having witnessed the heartbreaking reactions of my parents and grandparents.

Also, my unwavering belief in parents being the safety net for children became apparent when my father passed, and even stronger when my mother passed and my son’s family was with us in Colorado when we received the news. While my son was discussing funeral arrangements with his Rabbi in Florida (we belong to the synagogue in Vail) the Rabbi asked how we were handing the news, travel back and Shiva. His reply, “My mom is OK so everyone else is OK. She laughs, we laugh, she’s quiet, my daughters rally around her. She is a force to be reckoned with.”  Bruce passed while I held his hand in the hospital. My nieces discussed with my children, how best to support me while I  “fell apart” at the loss of my baby brother. While my daughter has always ensured me I could fall apart, lose control, or be inconsolable, and the children would be OK, that will never happen no matter their age. Why? My son said it best. My mom is OK so everyone else is OK no matter who is falling apart around them., I have always been and will continue to be the strength on which they can draw.

Teddy: Can you tell us 3-5 positive things that came out of your relationship with Bruce?

Lynne: This is easy; The pure joy of being loved unconditionally; My patience for how others learn; overcoming my shyness to ask for things for myself as I gained confidence asking for others; my extended family, sister Janice, and others working at KenCrest; My moral compass of justice and fairness.

Teddy: How long did it take you to write ‘Listen To Me’ from concept to fruition?

Lynne: From actually sitting down to create the manuscript from my written notes to the launch date, 11 months.

Teddy: Where did you get the inspiration for your cover?

Lynne: Prior to any serious thought to cover design, I knew the flower would be included on the cover as it was what my brother had chosen for his funeral. My team at Social Books Agency had me research colors, pictures lettering and fonts of other memoirs and autobiographies so my top 3 choices of color scheme, matching the flower, font and lettering were solid prior to even formatting the book.  I wanted a picture of children on my cover, none resonating for me. Pure luck had me finding old pictures when we were young that had been stuck in photo albums I had taken from my mother’s apartment after her passing. I hadn’t looked at these albums and thought, perhaps, something would catch my fancy. There we were, in black and white, at the beginning of our journey together. Shading was added to blend with the flower, white instead of beige to accent the blues and blue lettering instead of black for softer blend of color.

Teddy: Which actor/actress would you like to see playing yourself and Bruce, if ‘Listen To Me’ were to be made into a movie or TV show?

Lynne: Thank you for asking this as quite a few people have mentioned they would love to see this as a TV movie so they can “hear” Bruce’s and my conversations.

As the adult me, Sandra Bullock is my size and can be funny, which we learned from Ms. Congeniality. Teen age/college and young adult, perhaps Maddie Ziegler (dancer and athletic) or Millie Bobbie Brown, has my coloring. Not a clue about my 13 -year -old self.

As for Bruce, quite a few down syndrome actors could play him as an older teenager and adult. I am not familiar with younger down syndrome actors.

Teddy: What are you currently working on? Is there another book in your future?

Lynne: I am back to focusing on my first completed manuscript, a children’s book, My Sister Wants An Elephant, looking for an illustrator with whom to partner.

About Lynne Podrat

Lynne Podrat graduated from the Pennsylvania State University and then spent fifteen years in the Fashion Industry as an Assistant Buyer and Department Manager with Bloomingdales Department Store before returning to school to receive her educational degrees from Arcadia University and Gynedd Mercy.

A retired educator and Administrator from the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania School District, she taught English, literature, composition and history in elementary and secondary schools.

She has secretly been a writer and poet her whole life, but has only recently chosen to share those talents with the world. Lynne now lives with her husband in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, spending winters dragon boating where her heart races and summers hiking the Rockies in Vail, Colorado where her heart sings.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lynne.podrat
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lynnepodratwrites/
Twitter: http://twitter.com/lynne_podrat

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