Genealogy Gems Book Club

NOTE from DearMYRTLE: Oprah's got one, now Lisa has a book club, too!

Dallas, Texas, USA, October 21, 2014

Lisa Louise Cooke’s Genealogy Gems is pleased to announce the launch of the FREE Genealogy Gems Book Club, which features great reads for genealogy lovers.

“This is an idea we’ve been percolating on for quite a while,” says Gems owner/producer Lisa Louise Cooke. “People are always sending me the names of books they love. I also hear from publishers and the authors themselves. We thought it would be great to share these books more widely.”

The Genealogy Gems Book Club is a virtual, no-commitment option that features a different book every three months. “We focus on mainstream nonfiction and fiction titles that explore themes we care about, like family ties, heritage and history,” explains Lisa. “These are books we want to read for pleasure and recommend to anyone, not just other genealogy lovers.”

Lisa’s favorite part of the Genealogy Gems Book Club is the exclusive author interviews that will appear on the Genealogy Gems free and Premium podcasts in the third month of the featured book (after people have had time to read it). “The podcast format is all about conversation,” she says. “I’ve learned in the past that my listeners love interviews with authors, whether they’ve read the book or not.”

 The FIRST FEATURED BOOK is She Left Me the Gun: My Mother's Life Before Me by award-winning U.K. journalist Emma Brockes. It recounts the author’s discovery of her mother’s traumatic childhood in South Africa.

“This is a genealogical journey, complete with trips to archives, poring over old court cases and dramatic reveals,” says Genealogy Gems Contributing Editor and Book Club Guru Sunny Morton. “It's also about learning the past from living relatives. This is the ultimate how-to book for exploring and sharing sensitive family stories because she shows you how it’s done.”

To follow the Genealogy Gems Book Club, go to the Genealogy Gems website (http://lisalouisecooke.com) and sign up to receive Lisa’s FREE monthly newsletter, which announces new podcast episodes and highlights of the Gems blog. OR Check in periodically at the Genealogy Gems Book Club webpage (http://lisalouisecooke.com/genealogy-book-club/), which summarizes all books covered to date and includes additional recommendations. Here’s how the three-month cycle works: 

• In the first month, Sunny will introduce a new title on the Genealogy Gems free podcast, the Premium Podcast and on the Genealogy Gems blog. She will share a quick run-down on the book and why she recommends it.
• In the second month, Sunny will share a gem from the book and recommend other titles for those looking for something else to read.
• In the third month, the author will join the Genealogy Gems podcast for an exclusive interview. Excerpts from the interview will run on the free podcast and the entire interview will air on the Genealogy Gems Premium Podcast.

About Lisa Louise Cooke’s Genealogy Gems:

Lisa Louise Cooke’s Genealogy Gems teaches genealogists to discover, organize and share their family stories. The Genealogy Gems Podcast is a popular online genealogy audio show that brings genealogy news, research strategies, expert interviews and inspiration to genealogists in 75 countries around the world and recently surpassed 1.5 million downloads (available at www.GenealogyGems.com, in iTunes, and through the Genealogy Gems app). Lisa has authored a variety of multi-media materials including the Genealogy Gems Premium website/podcast subscription, the popular video series Google Earth for Genealogy and four books: Turn Your iPad into a Genealogy Powerhouse, How to Find Your Family History in Newspapers, The Genealogist’s Google Toolbox and Genealogy Gems: Ultimate Research Strategies. She is a sought-after speaker internationally and has partnered with industry leaders like Family Tree Magazine and RootsTech to bring more technologies to more family historians worldwide.

Authors interviewed on past podcasts include Steve Luxenberg (Annie’s Ghosts: A Journey into a Family Secret), Leslie Albrecht Huber (The Journey Takers), and Jennifer Wilson (Running Away to Home: Our Family’s Journey to Croatia in Search of Who We Are, Where We Came From and What Really Matters).