Confessions of a Hippie: Always Searching for Love
Love and Loathing in the islands — Searching for Gauguin
In this sequel to the memoir Confessions of a Hippie, author Adriana Bardolino struggles to make her art and work synonymous. She falls in and out of love with masters of distance, while seeking true love. She still records her feelings and life events in journals, and she tucks precious photos away in albums as unsolved mysteries. Approaching thirty, Bardolino searches for something to replace the security of the old commune. She seeks therapy to unlock her self destructive habits. On a month’s vacation to Hawaii, she experiences an artistic rebirth and decides the island of Maui is where she belongs. A tragic turn of events in her life thwarts her dream. She is tossed into an abyss of longing and regret. Filled with love, art, romance, humor, sex, and history, mostly on a tropical island, Love and Loathing in the Islands shares Bardolino’s story from 1975 to 1981 when she faced a crossroads in her life. Will Adriana find Gauguin and true love?
“Love and Loathing in the Islands is a raw and evocative memoir of art, love, and self-discovery, capturing one woman’s search for meaning, passion, and the spirit of Gauguin amid the beauty and heartbreak of 1970s Maui.”
– NewInBooks.com
Love and Redemption in the Tropics,
Adriana Bardolino’s spicy memoir finds her out of her element, and missing her happy place. This new world is nothing like the magical tropical island of Maui she left behind. There, her life was filled with love, beauty, art, and romance. Everything goes topsy-turvy when a dear friend’s promise dissolves into the humid Miami air. When her new life in Florida turns out to be less than expected, she misses her island home. Life events send her through dark clouds and tumbling tides. Gauguin (Art) keeps Adriana stable through most storms, but eventually even Gauguin deserts her. She floats through the universe without a spacesuit, searching for creativity to return. She visits new lands in hopes of a renewed spark. Adult life forces her to grow up, to learn to forgive herself and others for past mistakes, but there are deep emotional losses along the way. Will Adriana find Gauguin?
Reviews
Thank you for the opportunity to edit Confessions of a Hippie. Your book is rich with evocative images of that time in American History, and you’ve relayed the story of your personal journey in a way that’s both forthright and poignant. Your book likely will prompt nostalgia for those readers who also lived through that time and perhaps a little envy from those who missed it.
Marna P.,
Editor for iUniverse
