Authors to speak Saturday

Published April 17, 2008 Times Argus

Thomas Moore, author of the New York Times best-seller "Care of the Soul," will be at the Barre Opera House on April 19, along with Northfield author Wendy Stofan Halley and Montpelier vocalist Abby Jenne.

Jenne will start the evening off by performing songs from her album "Connect."

Moore will explore how people deal with depression, betrayal and the loss of meaning in their lives, and will talk about how to create a "soulful" life in modern America. Moore followed his 1990s best-seller with "Dark Nights of the Soul: A Guide to Finding Your Way Through Life's Ordeals," "A Life at Work: The Joy of Discovering What You Were Born to Do," and "The Soul of Sex: Cultivating Life as an Act of Love."

Halley is a mental health counselor who became involved in the study and practice of shamanic healing. For the last four years, her studies have focused on Hawaiian mysticism and healing methods. Her book "Slaying the Mouse" describes her experience as a spiritual healer. Halley will discuss her work with spirit medicine, an ancient practice used for healing physical, emotional and spiritual wounds.

The trio has been assembled by Amy Miller, a psychiatric nurse practitioner in private practice and host of the CVTV show "Connect With Amy Miller." Miller created the first holistic program in the country for the persistently mentally ill, incorporating acupuncture, massage, Reiki and therapeutic touch into medical and social support.

In January, some 400 people attended Miller's first Barre Opera House program on the mind-body connection. Joe Dispenza - "the brain doctor" - described how people can change their lives by changing their brain's physiology.

Moore and Halley will sign books during Saturday's program. Jenne will perform at 6 p.m., followed by the discussions from 7-9 p.m. For tickets -- $15 in advance and $20 the day of the show - call (802) 476-8188 or visit http://barreoperahouse.org. All profits go to the Vermont chapter of the American Cancer Society.