April is the most genuine person I have met! I cannot wait for all her future endeavors.

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October 20, 2022

Dear April Kirkwood:

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I’m very pleased to announce that the December 2018 issue of our online book review magazine Midwest Book Review Bookwatch features a review of Working My Way Back to Me.

 

Here is the review:

MBR Bookwatch: December 2018
James A. Cox, Editor-in-Chief
Midwest Book Review
278 Orchard Drive, Oregon, WI 53575

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Working My Way Back to Me
April Kirkwood & Donald G. Evans
Boudoir Press

 

Synopsis: For rural Ohio beauty queen April Kirkwood, her #MeToo moment came way before the term was coined. She lost her virginity to the middle-aged Frankie Valli at 16, after a decade pursuing a childhood fantasy to be the crooner’s wife.

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The affair would go for decades. But Frankie Valli is just a central character in April’s complex story of her struggle to break the generational cycle of abused and dependent women. Indeed, the strong women in Working My Way Back to Me: A Frank Memoir of Self-Discovery are filled with enormous love that offers protection, but also intensifies the hurt.

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Through April’s eyes, we experience joys and heartaches that echo across more than a half-century of old family secrets and ways, and the triumphs and defeats involved in trying to break the mold.

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Critique: It is interesting to note that April Kirkwood has worked over twenty five years in public education and in the mental health field as a social worker, teacher, guidance counselor, mentor for new teachers, and counselor. She presently lives in Florida and Ohio and spends most of her time writing, sharing her story with others, helping women, and is a public speaker.

Her memoir, Working My Way Back to Me: A Frank Memoir of Self-Discovery is more than just an exercise in personal catharsis, it is a representative true life example of the effects of a pervasive cultural patriarchally based misogyny — and how a new movement is helping women break from their invisible bonds and emerge as worthwhile and independent women in a pluralist society. While very highly recommended for community and academic library collections, it should be noted for personal reading lists that Working My Way Back to Me is also available in a digital book format (Kindle, $4.99).

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Mary Cowper,
Reviewer

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This review will also appear in the Cengage Learning, Gale interactive CD-ROM series “Book Review Index” which is published four times yearly for academic, corporate, and public library systems.

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Additionally, this review will be archived on our Midwest Book Review website for the next five years at http://www.midwestbookreview.com

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I look forward to your next title!

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James A. Cox
Editor-in-Chief
Midwest Book Review

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December 14, 2018

Hi Ms. Kirkwood,

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I really enjoyed your first book and look forward to reading the second. There was so much valuable information for young women as well as the insight into Mr. Valli’s character.

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I have three questions:

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Do you do any seminars? In this celebrity driven culture, young women might be well advised to know what they are facing when they get into a relationship with a celebrity. You’ve been there.

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Who is the “Toni” that you refer to as Frankie Valli’s wife? I thought he had only married three times, to Mary, Mary Ann and Randy.

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This maybe a sensitive question, but do you know whatever happened to his second wife Mary Ann Hannigan? She seems to have vanished after divorcing him.

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Thanks again for sharing your fascinating journey.

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December 4, 2018

Hey April!

I just watched you on the Golden Bachelor and was drawn to your energy from your first appearance. After I read a little about your life, experiences, and career I have to say, as a 24-year-old woman, you are inspiring and ahead of your time. Thank you for sharing your story with the world and using what you learned from your past to help people.

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I hope you have opportunities to share more of you and your life as a result of the GB because, as you probably already know, many fans of the show are now fans of you! Thank you for being an inspiring woman and bringing forth the changes of the collective consciousness through your life and work.

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Sincerely,
Zaira

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October 24, 2023

I heard April speak at an event recently about The Three Thoughts That Have Kept Us in the Shadows: I had my confirmation as to my dilemma in the patterns of my life I had currently been working through. April shared a list of points and I checked every category as she spoke to us. I am thankful for hearing April's story and how her suggestions spearheaded me into putting the past in the past and looking towards the future with a fresh perspective and a new sense of self-confidence. I would highly recommend April to speak and share her story so she can continue to uplift lives.

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July 22, 2021

I want to thank you so much for yesterday's session. I really look forward to our sessions on Sundays and [I'm] just grateful that God allowed our paths to connect. Praying you have a blessed week ahead!

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November 24, 2020