Lady and the Tribe, How to Create Empowering Friendship Circles

Wives, mothers and career women – we have all fallen victim to the silent epidemic that is, literally . . . letting ourselves go. Not the weight-gain, makeup-free, yoga-pants routine. Little by little, we have allowed our preferences, interests, and individuality to slip away until we no longer recognize ourselves outside of our role as wives, mothers, or professionals. Who we are has become what we do.

In the process, our friendships have become the casualty of a “busy life” and lack consistency and depth. We have a gaping hole inside us that longs to be filled. How do we reclaim who we really are and fill this empty space that seemed to appear from nowhere?

The answer lies in our Tribe. Our best friends see us more clearly than we see ourselves and are representations and extensions of our individuality. They are our companions, cheerleaders, and counselors—always in our corner. They are the branches of our tree of life that lift and support us, so we can flourish. Our Tribe is the family with whom we choose to live our life . . . with no strings attached.

Lady and the Tribe is a blueprint for building deep connections. As you read, you’ll be swept away on a journey of friendship as the author shares her own personal stories and those of other women. In the process, you’ll discover how to find, nurture, and deepen friendships and create a Tribe culture that is unique to you.

We can become whole again through the power of connection.

When three or more gather, we are Tribe.


Meet Brenda Billings Ridgley

BRENDA RIDGLEY is a midlife women’s life coach, author, speaker, and girlfriend guru who loves helping women connect, find success, and discover joy through friendship. Her mission is to support women who have lost themselves in their roles as wife, mother and professional and help them connect to their passions, purpose and people. Through her coaching, workshops, retreats, and podcast ~ Find Your Lady Tribe, Brenda helps women connect and communicate with respect, love, and trust. She holds an MA in human resources and has spent decades cultivating her own Tribe. A Colorado girl at heart, Brenda lives in the Carbon Valley area with her husband, Parker, two kids, Parker Jr. and Gillian, and pooch, Perry. She enjoys hiking and has conquered Longs Peak and several other 14’ers.

Endzone

What if the fans told pro football to take a hike?Young Billy Watkins has always loved football. When befriended by a pro player, it seems like Billy’s football dreams have come true. But when his friend gets injured, Billy discovers the dark side of the sport. He finds himself at odds with the commissioner of the Professional Football Association when Billy confronts him about his friend along with his lies about the kneeling players protests. Will the commissioner merely dismiss him, or will Billy’s courage win the day and help his friend?

Meet Michael Kelso

Former Corrections Officer turned Author. I’ve published 2 crime/mystery novels based in a prison, a YA novel, and several short horror story collections. Currently working on part 1 of a 2 part mystery/suspense novel. Some of my stories have been narrated by youtubers, garnering nearly 3 million views over the last year.

Squid Season

Come aboard the ship of early adulthood in this offbeat, magical tale.

Meet Maithy Vu

Hi there! I am thrilled to tell you about my debut novel, Squid Season. This story is dedicated to the dreamers and doers—the ones who dare to venture outside of what they’ve known. It’s the quarter-life crisis expressed in rhyme, and I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I did writing it. If Squid Season makes an impact on you, please take a moment to review it on Amazon, Goodreads, B&N, or any other platforms. Thank you for taking an interest in my work. May this book fill your mind with wonder and your heart with hope.

The Munich Girl

Anna Dahlberg grew up eating dinner under her father’s war-trophy portrait of Eva Braun.
Fifty years after the war, she discovers what he never did—that her mother and Hitler’s mistress were friends.

The secret surfaces with a mysterious monogrammed handkerchief, and a man, Hannes Ritter, whose Third Reich family history is entwined with Anna’s.

Plunged into the world of the “ordinary” Munich girl who was her mother’s confidante—and a tyrant’s lover—Anna finds her every belief about right and wrong challenged. With Hannes’s help, she retraces the path of two women who met as teenagers, shared a friendship that spanned the years that Eva Braun was Hitler’s mistress, yet never knew that the men they loved had opposing ambitions.

Eva’s story reveals that she never joined the Nazi party, had Jewish friends, and was credited at the Nuremberg Trials with saving 35,000 Allied lives. As Anna’s journey leads back through the treacherous years in wartime Germany, it uncovers long-buried secrets and unknown reaches of her heart to reveal the enduring power of love in the legacies that always outlast war.


Meet Phyllis Edgerly Ring

Phyllis Edgerly Ring’s novel, The Munich Girl: A Novel of the Legacies
That Outlast War, explores the enduring effects of a woman’s secret
friendship with Hitler’s mistress, Eva Braun. Phyllis is also the author
of the novel, Snow Fence Road, and of the nonfiction works, Life at
First Sight: Finding the Divine in the Details and With Thine Own Eyes:
Why Imitate the Past When We Can Investigate Reality? She studied plant
sciences and ecology, worked as a nurse, taught English to
kindergartners in China, coordinated programs at a Baha’i conference
center, and returns as often as she can to her childhood home of
Germany.

Ellery’s Magic Bicycle

A touching picture book about a remarkable childhood bond between a little girl and her magic bicycle, perfect for children ages 4 to 7 and for fans of The Giving Tree.

Inspired by the author’s own childhood adventures, this heartfelt story will take readers on a whimsical journey through Ellery’s childhood with her magical bicycle in tow. Ellery and her bicycle share many wonderful new experiences together; lonely yet curious Ellery finds adventure, love, and friendship, as well as weathering sorrow and loss.

When she grows up, Ellery starts to forget her special bond with the bicycle. Will Ellery remember what’s important before it’s too late and the magical bike is lost forever?

A story of redemption, Ellery’s struggles, hopes, and triumph serve as an uplifting reminder to parents of their childhood bonds. Young readers will grow to love Ellery’s strong, kind, and compassionate spirit, and will see their own cherished bicycle in a new light.

  • A heartfelt and emotionally powerful read-aloud book
  • Books for kids ages 4 and up
  • Picture books for preschool, kindergarten, and elementary students.

Praise for Ellery’s Magic Bicycle:

★ ” A fantasy grounded in real life with a gentle message about loyal friendship.” –– Kirkus Reviews 
★ “An uplifting picture book in which a girl forms a magical friendship that lasts throughout the years.” –– Foreward Reviews ★
★ “A sweet tale about honoring the best of your past that young readers should enjoy.” –– Blue Ink Reviews ★


Meet Maria Monte

Maria Monte writes beautifully sweet, heart-warming, and fun stories that teach little ones great values, such as kindness and love. Her spare time is divided between family, caring for her young son, and writing children’s books. A native of Melbourne, Australia, Maria enjoys mochas, watching comedies, and losing herself in wiki rabbit holes.

Journeys: the Archers of Saint Sebastian

A barracks full of beautiful boys. A girl in disguise, living among them.

It’s the 14th century, and the longbow is king. But in the northern European principality of Ardennes, archery isn’t just the nation’s defense. It’s the national obsession.

MEET THE JOURNEYS
12 young Journeyman archers, the best in the country
2 years of public competitions, in which looks count almost as much as ability
6 will win a coveted membership in the Archers’ Guild of St. Sebastian
1 will become the prince’s new Guardsman

MEET MARIEKE
15-year-old Marieke is as obsessed with St. Sebastian’s as everyone else in Ardennes. Only it’s the middle ages, and girls just don’t become elite archers. Except Marieke’s prospects as a girl aren’t promising either, after a well-timed kick from a mule has left her with a face that’s badly scarred and ruined for marriage. But when circumstances force her to leave her old life behind and flee to the guild for refuge, there are only two things Marieke really knows about the place. One is that a mysterious accident ended her own father’s time as a Journey. The other?
There are no women allowed inside St. Sebastian’s.
Marieke knows disguising herself as a boy and infiltrating the guild means embarking on a dangerous deception. But it may be her only chance to find out the truth about her father’s past and to stop a murderous plot from coming to fruition. When the dashing young Journeyman Tristan takes her under his wing as his squire, she’s got to stay – at least long enough to help him beat out his brutal arch-rival to win the competitions.
Keeping her identity a secret will be hard. Living in close quarters with a pack of gorgeous boys? That will be harder still. But the hardest thing of all will be keeping the vow she makes for herself: to see Tristan become the next Guardsman, without ever letting him find out she’s a girl – a girl, who loves him.

Part Robin Hood and part Princess Bride, with a pinch of Mulan and a dash of Cyrano de Bergerac in the mix, TheArchers of St. Sebastian I: Journeys is a humorous action and adventure saga inspired by late medieval/early Renaissance Belgium and packed with romance, wit, and longbow archery. Perfect for adults who love young adult themes,Journeys is an escape into the past that reads more like romantic historical fantasy than pure historical fiction.

Unrequited love? Ugly heroines who stay ugly? Friendship, coming of age, romance, adventure, and plenty of archery competitions? A unique setting inspired by the glorious city of Bruges, with a richly imagined, immersive world set within the walls of a male-only archers’ guild?Journeys: The Archers of Saint Sebastianhas it all, so if you’re looking for a great escape, don your disguise and join Marieke as she enters the forbidden world of Saint Sebastian’s, and prepare to fall in love with the Journeys – that is, the twelve best and most beautiful archers in all of Ardennes, the Journeyman archers of St. Sebastian’s.


Meet Jeanne Roland

Roland hails from Davis, California, where she spent most of her youth lounging at the pool, soaking up the sun, and daydreaming. She had a key ring that read ‘I’m running away to join the circus,’ and her favorite moment of the day was when the local movie theater went dark, and the slogan ‘escape to the movies’ appeared on the screen. As an adult, her passions include all things melodramatic and beautiful — everything from classic movies, British romantic poetry, ancient tragedy and epic, to Italian opera. She is now a professor of Classics in a small midwestern town, where she lives with her Greek husband, her fraternal twins, and a Bernese mountain dog named Franco Corelli.

The Community: the best days of our lives

#1 best-seller of the Atlantis Times, Sodom and Gomorrah Today, and Pompei Post

Did you ever look at your parents when they got back from work and thought, “there’s no way I’m going to end up like this?” Did you ever look around you and felt disgusted by the things people look up to? Did you ever ask yourself, “that’s it? That’s life?” Well, so did they! Elton, Donna, Carole, John, Rick, Woody, and Michelle are utterly different young people who asked themselves these very questions? What did they do about it? Left everything behind and formed a community? Did it solve everything? Did it work? Read and find out!

BEST BOOK I’VE EVER READ!” Mom

“I’M NOT REALLY INTO BOOKS, BUT IF OTHER BOOKS ARE HALF AS GOOD AS THIS ONE, THEN I’D BETTER START READING!” Zoey, Sean’s twin sister

“IF I WERE AN ASTRONAUT AND THERE WAS ONLY ONE GIFT I COULD GRANT AN ALIEN, IT’D HAVE BEEN THIS BOOK!” Dad

“THE BEST BOOK TO COME OUT SINCE A TALE OF TWO CITIES! TRUST ME; I WAS A BETA READER FOR BOTH ” Grandpa

“WHEN GUTENBERG CAME UP WITH THE FIRST PRINTER HE TOLD ME, ‘there will come a day when your grand-grand-grand-grandson will publish a book so good it’d make all my hard work worthwhile!’” the only paragraph to survive from Sean’s great-great-great-great grandmother’s diary; circa 1450.


Meet Sean Bloom

Sean Bloom has always been an avid lier, so, naturally, the next step for him was writing books.
His first book, The Community, is out now and has already been praised as the greatest book of all time by his immediate family and friends.
When he’s not writing–which he would’ve loved to do ALL THE TIME–and not reading, Sean likes to root for soccer teams that always disappoint their fans, spy after his dogs to see if they possess super-powers they keep as a secret from him and exercise (in eating ice-cream).

Despite his belief, Sean does NOT live in an attic by the Seine, but several big apparel retailers offer a bounty for his head–they claim he’s constantly stretching clothes then putting them back on the rack–so he won’t disclose where he lives.

Shockingly, Sean is single (offers are most welcome), but he finds comfort in reading about characters with worse fates.

The Stranger’s Secret (Tales of Friendship Bog Book 5)

Who will care for the strange frog who has floated ashore?
What can be done about his missing sister? 
And how can a very small frog outwit a large, furry Thing? 
—But Pibbin has made a promise, and he means to keep it.  

Book 5 in TALES OF FRIENDSHIP BOG
~An easy reading adventure for ages 7 and up.
~Includes colorful illustrations, story map, and frog photographs. 

Trapped

Pibbin the Treefrog hops into his most puzzling adventure! He can’t solve it alone, so he heads up a team to figure out mystifying clues, search a booby-trapped tunnel, and rescue his squirrel-friend’s little brother.
~Full-color illustrations, map, and reference color photos of frogs. 
~An easy-to-read story for ages 7 and up.
~Also available as an audiobook.


Clumsy Nelson: A story of Self-esteem, Bravery, Grit, Friendship with an Environmental message

Nelson, once the clumsiest seal in the sea, is always needing his friends to get him out of trouble. When his friends are trapped, can Nelson find bravery inside himself and save the day? 

Follow his journey in this modern fairytale to find out.

Poor Clumsy Nelson, he’s always stumbling, bumping or crashing in the plastic polluted sea. We all have times where we feel uncomfortable about who we are. Being clumsy isn’t always easy.

Nelson is a master in getting into trouble. But when a terrible danger captures his friends, Nelson discovers he can DO IT.

Clumsy Nelson is a message of positive self-esteem, courage, perseverance, and friendship for any child who has trouble finding the hero inside.

Clumsy Nelson is also a fun and engaging adventure into environmental awareness,published by Save the Planet Books.

“An inspiring and beautifully illustrated picture book that teaches kids about courage and determination.” – Kate Lobs, teacher.

A story that inspires kids of all ages to never give up and empowers them to find the hero inside.

About the Author

Serena Lane Ferrari is a mother and an English teacher. She writes books for children concerning the future of our Planet.

With Clumsy Nelson, The Butterfly Inside and Stinky Super Skunk, Serena introduces young readers to the important lesson of respecting differences.

About the Illustrator

Giorgia Vallicelli was born in Bologna in 1984 and at a very young age, she discovered she had a talent for art.

Drawing was her first passion, since then she became a highly talented and requested artist for children’s images, poetry and picture books.

Giorgia is already a multi award-winning illustrator.


Meet Serena Lane Ferrari

Serena Lane Ferrari is a mother and an English teacher.
She writes books for children concerning the future of our planet.
Serena hopes her stories will encourage future generations to be aware of and engage with environmental issues.