"Lonely, despondent, and hopeless, Andrea, a junior in high school, is determined to become perfect. She sets out to master the scale, to smite her mother, and to bury depression in what becomes an all-consuming, life-threatening eating disorder. When her physician-father is unable to heal her as she hovers at 70 pounds and below, has manipulated all forms of counseling, has lost all friendships, and is terrified of ingesting the calories of food, her Greek family continues to rally around her, despite her caustic attitude towards them. When she stares death in the face during a hot summer run with purpose to destroy calories, she encounters God and it is her renewed faith in Christ – her hope in His will for her life - that enables her to slowly overcome her self-inflicted trauma and to embark on a journey towards health, wellness, and living not for the desires of self, but for the contentment of others. Set in the Western suburbs of Chicago, "Tatsimou, Hold On" is a retrospective memoir chronicling the psychological distortion of anorexia and its destructive wide-ranging effects on family relationships, personal growth, and spirituality. An obsession with control, family tension, resistance to cultural norms, grief, and unexpected triumph are predominant themes throughout this memoir. Told in a linear fashion with moments of flashback and foreshadowing to reveal character growth, it is a generative memoir with dynamic characters, a tangible setting, and the pulsing belief that through faith, fitness, and prayer, hope can remain in the cracking fissures of the human heart."

NOTE: Here's the question that popped into my head when I found out Andrea had written a memoir. What could a seemingly healthy, sinisterly energetic, exercise instructor who took glee in making us all achy, have to write about? Turns out there was quite a bit. From page one on, I was strapped into an emotional ride that wouldn't let me go until the very end. A testiment to her ability to bring you into each moment. To bear witness to her struggles, her faith in God and the strong bond of family.

When you read her story, be prepared to feel. Everything. The good news is that you don't have to worry about the ending because you already know how she's doing. If you're unsure, just sign up for one of her exercise classes and she'll be happy to show you! - P. Walker

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"What if instead of being 'fine,' I could be fearless? Fearless in my love for Christ. Fearless in my pursuit of His will for my life. Fearless in my willingness to sacrifice self for others. Being fearless alone can be reckless, but being fearless in Christ, I learned, can be transformative. Designed as a twelve-week devotional series, Fearless Stride is rooted in understanding Christ and answering the question of what it means to take ?fearless strides? and live authentically for Him."

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