There’s a NEW dust jacket!

August 12, 2015 - Donna-Marie Cooper O'Boyle

There’s a brand new dust jacket for my upcoming memoir: THE KISS OF JESUS! Click on the image below to enlarge it for easier viewing.

New description of the book on the dust jacket:

Donna-Marie Cooper O’Boyle is a Catholic author, a radio and television host, and an inspirational speaker known and admired from coast to coast. Yet with all of her public exposure, she has revealed very little about her personal history, that is, until now. When she discovered that sharing her struggles gives encouragement to others, she was persuaded to write this story of her life.

Growing up in a Polish-American Catholic family, Donna-Marie was blessed with hard-working parents who provided a stable home for their eight children. At times her childhood was golden and carefree, but other times it was tarnished by pain that she felt was best left unspoken as she sought God for help and strength.

After she left home after high school, her path took some harrowing turns. A Vietnam veteran fiancé snapped and held her against her will. She suffered pregnancy loss, serious illness, divorce, and single motherhood. Perhaps her greatest trial was an epic custody battle in which she needed to defend both her reputation as a mother and the safety of her five children.

Yet through all the dark valleys, Donna-Marie kept the fire of her faith burning. Helping her to see the beauty of the crosses in her life, and to rely on the presence and the providence of God, were saintly souls who became her friends and mentors. One of these was Blessed Mother Teresa, who was her confidant and spiritual mother for ten years.

Pre-order your autographed copy (on sale!) here.

What do you think?

The Sacredness and Hidden Blessings in Christian Marriage

June 8, 2015 - Donna-Marie Cooper O'Boyle

June is a time of bountiful “I do’s.” I was a June bride, therefore I will be celebrating my wedding anniversary in the coming days with my husband Dave. When asked to write a piece for Magnificat magazine under the category of “She Pondered These Things In Her Heart” and knowing it would be about marriage and family, I decided to convey something very real–not just a warm and fuzzy kind of love story.

I wanted to be honest in my article, brutally honest. Real love doesn’t translate to bliss or “warm and fuzzy.” Sure we enjoy those moments, but indeed marriage overall requires our work. And, love hurts sometimes. Mother Teresa often professed that real love requires sacrifice and often hurts. As well, we can’t rely on our feelings to forge ahead in our marriages. We choose to love–to give–to surrender our hearts.

I titled my piece, “Unexpected Discovery” because I think that is what discovery often is–unexpected. We can discover something we never realized about ourselves or about our spouse as we go through the daily grind–the nitty gritty details of life where we are supposed to be working out our salvation. We can also decide to work on getting rid of a vice as well as work towards cultivating a particular virtue once we open our hearts to discovery and God’s amazing grace.

In my piece for Magnificat which is in the June 2015 issue, I recalled a sort of funny, but what started out as a bit of a frustrating experience with my dear husband. The challenge that was presented in writing it (especially for me because I love to tell stories–long stories!) was to say it in a very limited number of words (and spaces!) because an exact amount of space is calculated and permitted in which to express the message so that it will fit on to the small Magnificat page. But, no more than that–not even one additional word or space.

Hopefully my message about sacrificial and sacramental love in marriage and family comes through. Hopefully I have expressed it in the little story I have shared. One woman who read the piece told me that she is going to put the page in a pretty photo frame and gift it to her daughter and soon-to-be son-in-law who are about to be married.

I think that is a beautiful and creative gift!

May God bless all marriages everywhere in which spouses bound in their sacramental covenant are actually actively helping one another to get to heaven through thick and thin, in good times and bad, and throughout every single detail they share every ordinary day!

May I ask? Have you discovered something very unexpected while navigating the vocation of marriage with your spouse? Will you seek to discover a hidden blessing waiting to be unearthed? Please share your thoughts and experiences in the comments below.

The Cross in Our Lives

March 31, 2015 - Donna-Marie Cooper O'Boyle

There are so many reasons that Christ’s Cross should be on our minds as a Christian, especially because we are navigating the season of Lent—that beautiful and prayerful time of year. Holy Mother Church prods us to become more mindful of Jesus’ Passion and Death on the Cross—His unselfish holy sacrifice so that we might have Eternal Life…

I recently wrote about the Cross using a couple of very beautiful stories about the Cross in the lives of two friends. You can read it here.

Giving the “best of my heart.”

March 12, 2015 - Donna-Marie Cooper O'Boyle

In his March 11 general audience, Pope Francis recalled the encouraging holy words from his grandmother.

“I still treasure the words my grandmother wrote to me on the day of my ordination. I carry them with me to this day inside my breviary,” he told pilgrims gathered in St. Peter’s Square.

The text reads, “May these my grandchildren, to whom I have given the best of my heart, have a long and happy life, but if on some painful day, sickness or the loss of a loved one fills you with grief, remember that a sigh before the Tabernacle, where the greatest and most august martyr resides, and a gaze at Mary at the foot of the Cross, can make a drop of balm fall on the deepest and most painful wounds.”

Donna-Marie with her beloved grandmother and two of her five brothers

I am very grateful for the love and guidance of my own grandmother who was indeed a holy role model to me. I speak about her in many of my books. Hopefully, some time soon I will write more about the role of grandmothers in the lives of their grandchildren. And, that’s not because I am about to become a grandmother soon!

But, for now, I want to at least bring attention to Pope Francis’ grandmother’s poignant words. May all Christian parents and grandparents reflect on this beautiful sentiment and ask themselves, “Am I giving the “best of my heart” and setting a holy example for my children, grandchildren, nieces, and nephews with my words and actions?

[You can see an article here.]

So excited to announce my upcoming memoir: The Kiss of Jesus

February 5, 2015 - Donna-Marie Cooper O'Boyle

This is the very first time that I am unveiling the book cover of my memoir, The Kiss of Jesus: How Mother Teresa and the Saints Helped Me to Discover the Beauty of the Cross.

The publisher, Ignatius Press has just announced it on their website. You can sign up there to learn more about the book.

The time is getting closer. My memoir, The Kiss of Jesus: How Mother Teresa and the Saints Helped Me to Discover the Beauty of the Cross will be released in August.

Here is the very first sneak peek at the dust jacket description:

When Donna-Marie Cooper O’Boyle was growing up, she had no thought of one day becoming a popular author and television host. She was immersed in her life as the seventh of eight children in a Catholic family. Sometimes that life was carefree and fun, spending time with relatives dancing the festive Polkas at family weddings, and enjoying picnics in her back yard dappled with fruit trees and flower gardens. Other times, life for her was very dark and tarnished with struggles and pain. Struggles that she felt were perhaps best left a secret.

Donna-Marie retreated to the beauty of nature, thanking God for its splendors, pondering and meditating. She plunged her heart and soul into a deeper meaning of life as she tried to navigate the ups and downs in a large struggling family. She turned to God for help especially as she became increasingly misunderstood by her family and her peers.

Life took some bizarre turns, and Donna-Marie was forced to deal with a crazed man who took away her freedom and held her hostage. Eventually escaping the nightmare of her prison, she married and began raising her family, believing she had finally found her true vocation. But she couldn’t seem to get out from under the shadow of the Cross. She lost three babies to miscarriage, struggled with her husband’s serious drinking problem and was later abandoned by him just before she gave birth to her third living child.

Raising her family alone, she was subjected to abusive neighbors and appalling living conditions, struggling to overcome these challenges as she held onto hope for better days.

Her knight in shining armor finally came on the scene. Or so she thought. Another unexpected adventure ensued, thrusting Donna-Marie into a more affluent yet controlled life. “Prince Charming” had charmed his way into her life, but under the veneer of his charm was a dark side.

Survival mode took over as Donna-Marie had to fight for her life and for her children’s safety. Providentially, a saint or two crossed paths with Donna-Marie and impacted her life greatly. One was Blessed Mother Teresa who would become her close friend and spiritual mother.

The Kiss of Jesus is a powerful, moving true story of a well-known Catholic author who faced great suffering, abuse and rejection, but through faith, hope and love she found redemption and the beauty of the Cross.

Please take a quick moment to subscribe at this simple form to be among the first to learn more about this book AND to receive a discount! I will be in touch to let you know when you can pre-order The Kiss of Jesus. All sign ups are entitled to a sale price (to be announced)!

[Have no fear! I promise that your email address will never be shared.]

The Kiss of Jesus Email List

Information about The Kiss of Jesus book