Yvonne Blackwood
|
Yvonne Blackwood is an author, award-winning short story writer, columnist, world traveler, and retired banker. Her published adult books include: Into Africa: A Personal Journey; Will That Be Cash or Cuffs? Into Africa: the Return, College Life of a Retired Senior: A Memoir of Perseverance, Faith, and Finding the Way, and her debut novel, The Ambition, published September 2024. Her children's books include: Nosey Charlie Comes to Town; Nosey Charlie Goes to Court; Nosey Charlie Chokes on A Wiener! Yvonne has also contributed to several anthologies including Human Kindness, Canadian Voices, and WordScape. She has published articles in More Our Canada, Adelaide, InTouch and Green Prints magazines. She has written numerous articles for several newspapers including the Toronto Star.
|
College Life of a Retired Senior: A Memoir of Perseverance, Faith, and Finding the Way
|
Memoir
Seven years after she retired from a lengthy career in banking, Yvonne Blackwood surprised her friends and family by returning to school at age sixty-four to pursue an English degree. Her purpose was fueled by four powerful reasons—to add texture to her writing; to ward off dementia; to enhance structure in her life; and to inspire her two young grandsons to continue their education after high school. But as she stepped onto the campus of Canada’s third-largest university, Blackwood had no idea of the hurdles she was about to face. In a retelling of her journey into a new beginning, Blackwood details how, after enrolling in York University, she struggled to maintain her established lifestyle, attend class with hard-to-connect-with millennials, and face a series of challenges that included two strikes at the university, a campus lockdown during the COVID-19 pandemic, and a shocking health diagnosis in her final year of studies. 
|
Into Africa: A Personal Journey
|
Memoir
A remarkable and intriguing story about a journey to West Africa, the land of Blackwood’s ancestors. Into Africa, a Personal Journey begins in Nigeria with exposure to the tight control by the military that causes Blackwood to experience fear as never before. The journey takes her on an exploration of a new mysterious world where she experiences joy and wonderment as she shares in the lives of family members, friends and new acquaintances. In Ghana, her respect for human beings, and her sense of adventure along with destiny, lead her to meet Adamson. Determined to see it all, she finds herself in desperate situations, each mysteriously resolved by strangers. Peppered with nostalgic flashbacks to her native Jamaica, and colourful descriptions of West Africa, the memoir resonates with unique poignancy, a love of people, and Blackwood’s growing spiritual quest for her African roots among the proud Ashanti people. Down to earth, vulnerable yet fearless, Blackwood shares with us a small part of her life as it unfolds. 
|
Into Africa: The Return
|
Memoir
Into Africa, the Return is a heartwarming story of a courageous woman who dared to step outside of her comfort zone to discover her roots and give back to the land of her ancestors. Parts describing Africa s sights, sounds, smells and tastes are truly delightful. 
|
The Ambition
|
Fiction, Thriller, Crime
In the hustle and bustle of 1990s Toronto, John Cippione and his older brother Carmine take over their hard-working Italian immigrant father’s small heating and air-conditioning company. John is determined to propel the business into the big leagues and finally have the lavish lifestyle he craves, so the brothers join forces with a powerful development company. But when an industry player sets out to bankrupt them, they risk tarnishing their father’s name and losing the legacy he entrusted to them. With everything crashing down around them, they must scramble to survive in a dangerous game of adultery, murder, and ruthless ambition. "The Ambition is a riveting story of high-finance business deals, Italian family ties, an illicit romance, and murder. You won't soon forget Connie, Lorenzo, and the other vivid characters who populate this unique tale."-Marcia Trahan, author of Mercy 
|
