About this item
A controversy that has divided America for decades. A decision more women must confront every day. In the long-standing and heated debate between gun-control advocates and supporters of the Second Amendment, the perspective of women has often been overlooked in what most perceive to be the "masculine" world of firearms. This is the subject journalist Caitlin Kelly was motivated to explore after she was threatened by a stalker and contemplated acquiring a gun for her own protection. Through interviews and firsthand accounts, Kelly probes the many issues affecting women who own guns and influence gun policies, to those whose lives are most affected by gun violence, and our societys conflicted views on women who acquire guns for sport and self-defense. Voices include activists and legislators such as Representative Carolyn McCarthy, whose husband and son were the victims of a shooting rampage; Patty Varone, who served Rudy Giuliani as a bodyguard for nine years; Mary Leigh Blek, founder of the Million Mom March; and Paxton Quigley, a modern-day Annie Oakley who teaches women how to shoot in the name of empowerment -- as well as insights on guns and violence from such high-profile women as Halle Berry, Madonna, and the late Katharine Graham. Brutally frank in its description, yet balanced in its analysis, Blown Away is an up-close and unflinching look at guns in America -- and the women who live with them.
About the Author
Welcome!My books both explore national issues of ongoing importance -- women and gun use, and the retail industry, which employs 15 million Americans and is the largest source of new jobs.I wrote "Blown Away: American Women and Guns" to explore why firearms, from the founding of the United States to today, remain such an essential element of American identity for so many people -- 30 percent of American homes contain a gun. I don't own one, but wanted to understand and explain why so many women do, and why some others would never make that choice. The book is fair and balanced, a first on that topic in this respect."Malled: My Unintentional Career in Retail" examines in detail the enormous retail industry we're all part of -- we all shop! I took a part-time job at a suburban New York mall in September 2007 to add income to my freelance writing work (for The New York Times, More, Marie-Claire and many others.)But, 27 months later, I quit to write "Malled", which discusses this powerful $4 trillion industry in lively, personal detail. There's no book just like it.My goal in "Malled" is to make clear(er) what working in retail means, to employees, shoppers, investors in that industry and to managers whose job it is to hire, manage and motivate workers, even for extremely low wages under difficult conditions.Both books are down to earth and easy to read, full of original interviews with interesting people nationwide and lots of surprising information. (Like: Why don't malls use acoustical ceiling tile?)You'll find terrific reviews -- from People, USA Today and Entertainment Weekly -- and sample chapters at malledthebook.com.
