Jenn Bergquist, Minneapolis major medical center spokesperson (who doesn’t think she is extraordinaire), expected another ordinary day, as she hurried to what was sure to be another dressing down by another angry nurse and some egomaniac reporter with permanently lacquered hair. In Life Erupted, Jenn still gets yelled at, but she also encounters psychic Bianca Fiona (who is certain she is extraordinaire), a liver transplant candidate on a mission. Jenn thinks Bianca is just barely on the side of sanity, and is sure her rigid Norwegian-American architect father Olaf would think even less. Jenn warily agrees to Bianca's illogical request that she go to Iceland to work on a documentary with Bianca's famous volcanologist brother, Dr. Tony Fionarello and the intense Icelandic volcanologist Dr. Erik Bjarnason. Once in Iceland, Jenn finds something she never thought she would possess, something she’ll need when she is confronted with some decades-old secrets. She can let the revelations plunge her into despair. Or she can take a path far from angry nurses, tense dinners with her father, and worrying about almost anything, at almost any time. "This book is magnificently written and is an impressive work for a first-time author. As I read Life Erupted , I fell in love with the story, illustrations, and especially the characters. I recommend you all read it, as it truly is a wonderful work of art." - On the Danforth magazine (Toronto) "Stanik evidently draws on her own life experience in creating the well-developed Jenn." - Publishers Weekly The main character, Jenn, is immediately likable and very vividly drawn; I was able to discern her character very quickly, and I enjoyed the interactions she has with the various other characters. The other characters are drawn well and everyone seems to grow throughout the narrative. One of the strongest parts of this book is the authorial tone. The descriptions of various people and settings, told through the lens of the POV character, are masterful and set the tone for the book. Judge, 21st Annual Writer's Digest Self-Published Book Awards Praise for Life Erupted "Want to get a snapshot of what life is really like in a major academic medical center from someone who really knows? Mary Stanik is just the guide you need. Funny, racy and honest, she gives you a read that will engage you while showing you that medicine is done by real people in the real world." ARTHUR CAPLAN, Ph.D. Head of the Division of Bioethics and Drs. William F. and Virginia Connolly Mitty Professor at New York University Langone Medical Center (and frequent MSNBC contributor) "Public relations professionals who wonder why they stay in their jobs will want to read Life Erupted , especially those who work in health care. In this fast-turning, wryly hilarious and clever book about a spokesperson who found a new and much more eventful life thanks to a psychic patient, an understanding surgery chief, and an erupting volcano, you may find all sorts of reasons as to why you stay. Highly recommended even to those who have never dealt with a reporter with hair resembling a missile silo and a mouth like a mackerel." COLLEEN KILLINGSWORTH, Former national president of the Canadian Public Relations Society MARY STANIK, a Milwaukee, Wisconsin native who has now spent most of her life among those of Scandinavian descent in Minneapolis, Minnesota, is a former spokesperson for the University of Minnesota Academic Health Center, Northwest Airlines and the University of Oregon. She also was a speechwriter in Washington, D.C. for former U.S. Secretary of Education Richard W. Riley during the second Clinton administration. Life Erupted is her first novel and book. She lives in Minneapolis. Used Book in Good Condition