Celebrating My Book’s Release on Our Lady’s Birthday

Today, September 8, is the Solemnity of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Today is also the “book birthday” of a new edition of my young-adult novel, Playing by Heart, set in 18^th-century Milan. I chose this release date, in part, because of the many references to the Blessed Mother in the story. God recently affirmed my choice by leading me to discover a fact related to the novel’s setting. I’ll share that tidbit at the end of this post.

In case you’re not familiar with Playing by Heart, it was inspired by two amazing sisters: Maria Teresa Agnesi, who was one of the first women to compose a serious opera, and Maria Gaetana Agnesi, a linguist, mathematician, and humanitarian. Their accomplishments are especially remarkable given the limited opportunities open to 18^th-century women.

I did extensive research to ensure that my characters behaved in ways true to the devout Catholic sisters who inspired the story. Playing by Heart is told from the point of view of Emilia Salvini. Like Maria Teresa Agnesi, Emilia is a singer, musician, and composer. Emilia has a strong devotion to the Blessed Mother, and she prays to Our Lady at a pivotal point early in the novel. Several paintings of Our Lady play prominent roles in the story, too. But perhaps the most telling aspects of Emilia’s devotion are the scenes of her singing The Magnificat.

Playing by Heart was originally published by Vinspire Publishing and received a number of awards, including the 2018 Catholic Arts and Letters Award (CALA) for Children’s/YA Fiction. Unfortunately, Vinspire Publishing closed its doors in late 2024. So I decided to bring a new edition of the novel into print that includes Book Discussion questions for use by book clubs, classroom teachers, and homeschooling groups.

I believe God is calling me to reach, and hopefully inspire, a whole new set of readers with this revised edition. One way I’d like to do that is by virtually visiting readers all over the country to discuss the real people, places, and events behind the novel. The visits would allow me to answer reader questions, discuss my research process, and more. So I’ve created a “25 Book Clubs Challenge” with the goal of speaking (free of charge) to at least 25 book clubs, classrooms, or homeschooling groups.

I’m hoping Catholic Teen Books readers will help me reach that goal. If you’re a member of a reading group, I encourage you to consider reading Playing by Heart—you can learn more about the novel on my website here. If you do read the book, I invite you to check out the Book Clubs page of my website to arrange for me to visit your group. And if you’re an adult working with young readers, you can also download a Teacher’s Guide containing novel-related educational activities on that page.

I mentioned at the beginning of this post that God affirmed September 8 as the release date for this new edition by leading me to a fact I hadn’t discovered before—a fact about the Cathedral of Milan, which has an important role in the novel. (If you’ve read Playing by Heart, you may recall the scene depicting the Ritual of the Holy Nail.) Just last week, I learned that the Cathedral is dedicated to the Nativity of Our Lady and annually hosts special celebrations in honor of the Solemnity of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary. I pray it will be a blessed feast day for all!