Dancing in the Narrows

A mother’s love and persistence are put to the test when her teen daughter is stricken with a mysterious, debilitating illness. As time goes on, Dana’s condition drives everyone away; everyone, that is, except for her mother. Finally, desperate to improve Dana’s health, the two hit the road in search of a cure.

Dana’s chronic symptoms require endless supplements, pharmaceuticals, and dietary restrictions, evoking a heroine’s journey. Full of humor, blind hope and alternative medicine, Dancing in the Narrows is a poignant chronicle of Anna and Dana’s multiyear odyssey toward healing from trauma.

Author: Anna Penenberg

Publication Date: July 7, 2020

 

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2022 Page Turner Screenplay Award Finalist
2022 Page Turner Book Adaptation Needed Finalist
2021 Best Book Awards Winner in Autobiography/Memoir
2021 International Book Awards Finalist in Narrative Non-Fiction

“Penenberg writes with a mother’s passion, humor, and love about her determination to cure her daughter. Perhaps more important is that she shares her doubts and frailties, taking on the medical establishment, her own state of mind, and even her daughter. Dancing in the Narrows is as beautifully written as it is profound.”
—BRETT PAESEL, LA Times best-selling author of Mommies Who Drink and Everything is Just Fine

“In Dancing in the Narrows, Anna’s unceasing determination to save her daughter from death or a painful life of chronic illness becomes a long journey of steadfast intuition. You will undoubtedly be inspired by this story.”
—JJ VIRGIN, New York Times best-selling author of Warrior Mom

“Fueled by a mother’s fierceness, Penenberg takes the lead where Western medicine won’t go. With grace and wisdom, she beautifully grounds the unfathomable in ordinary tasks of daily life. This book is a meditation on courage in the face of the unknowable, and offers solace to others facing the same.”
—CYNTHIA LI, MD, author of Brave New Medicine

Dancing in the Narrows demonstrates the evolutionary relationship between mothers, daughters, and their destinies.”
—GURU SINGH, Kundalini Yoga master teacher and author of Buried Treasures

“In Dancing In The Narrows, Anna takes courageous action to unravel her own emotional imprints that could affect her daughter. A must-read for anyone who suffers from birth trauma or has a child who does. This odyssey will give you hope.”
—ANNIE BROOK, Ph.D., author of Birth’s Hidden Legacy and The Developing Infant

Dancing in the Narrows is a powerful adventure by a mother and her daughter into the landscape of the heart. Life has a way of asserting itself to teach us all its lessons. Anna Penenberg is a gifted writer who captivates the reader with a story of the endurance that hope brings and how love continues to uplift and inspire. Kudos—you spread my heart wide open.”
—ELIZABETH R. KIPP, author of The Way Through Chronic Pain

Dancing in the Narrows provides a close-up look at the fears and hopes of a parent desperate to save her child, who is clinging to life despite its pains. This story will be read with serious intent by anyone who has experienced even a small portion of the pair’s long and strained yet close-knit bonding.”
—BOOKREPORTER.COM

Dancing in the Narrows is a poignant, memorable book about a young woman’s struggle with chronic Lyme disease and her treatment options, as well as the enduring, courageous connection between a mother and daughter in times of grief and crisis. The mother and daughter here come across clearly and vividly, but primarily in relationship to the disease and how it has changed both of their lives. Readers will be moved by the sacrifices both women have had to make in the face of this often misunderstood and frequently devastating disease. This memoir is well-written, gripping, and emotionally resonant.”
—THE BOOKLIFE PRIZE

About the Author

Anna Penenberg, MA, is a healer by nature and training, and the mother of two daughters. She holds a BA in dance and psychology and a master’s degree in Dance Therapy from UCLA and a California license in psychotherapy. After her children were born, she trained as a Kundalini Yoga teacher and a somatic therapist in craniosacral therapy, Body-Mind Centering®, and Infant Developmental Movement Education. She has worked over the last thirty-five years with adults, children, and infants, focusing on facilitating integration—brain and body, psyche and spirit. She continues her healing practice in Topanga, CA and in her free time she enjoys reading, yoga, hiking, and working on her next memoir.

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