Bookstore Hosts Meet & Greet for Author Lauren Barnett

Author Lauren Barnett will be discussing her latest book, Don't Tell My Mom That I Love Her, at 12 p.m. on Saturday, May 2, at the Fairfield University Store, 1499 Post Road, downtown Fairfield. 

Enter Maggie—adorably, exhaustingly, and sarcastically twelve—a modern-day Margaret (a là Judy Blume) whose private diary is her daily outlet for (over)analyzing her "miserable" and "confusing" life. In entries that vary as wildly as her mood swings, Maggie beautifully articulates (and screams from the rooftops) the bitter day-to-day battles of (pre-) adolescence and all the things her parents, teachers, and peers shockingly do not understand. With an introspective and sometimes ingenious mind, she vents about the endless misunderstandings and mishaps she experiences daily at school-and at home with her overwhelmed parents-and the generally terrible unfairness of being twelve.

Obsessively self-reflective and painfully inquisitive, Maggie resembles a young Carrie Bradshaw—without the sophistication and designer shoe collection—as she tries to find the answers in her angst and immerses herself in her own "tweenage" world, convincing herself she doesn't care what her mother thinks, while ultimately realizing just how intrinsically connected and deeply intertwined they are. Through discovering their profound bond, mother and daughter heal and grow up together. With a backdrop of the movies, musicals, beloved characters, and sounds of the author's own adolescence, this heartwarming story will entertain and educate daughters and moms alike.

Lauren is the founder of Family Consultants of Westport (FCW). She is a licensed, nationally board-certified mental health professional with over thirty years of experience working with middle school girls and their parents. She has guided thousands of pre-teen and teenage girls through the challenges of growing up, focusing on the drama, dilemmas, and emotions that often leave them feeling isolated, overwhelmed, and misunderstood. Lauren remembers all too well what it was like to be a daughter—and now, as the mom of two young adult daughters, she gets plenty of reminders (whether she asks for them or not). She lives in Westport, Connecticut, with her family and her lazy dog.

For more information, visit laurenmbarnett.com.