New Book Reflects on Lessons Learned in Life

In "Orchids of Venezuela," a new book by Karen Sturges-Vera, Tamara wakes to the news that rebel forces are attacking the president of Venezuela and bombing the airport in a second attempt to overthrow the government. To get through the present, she focuses on her past by retracing her childhood and life.

She seeks reassurance in her troubled present by revisiting her childhood in Merida, youth in Caracas, university years in Dallas, Texas, and her return to Caracas as an adult. Lastly she relives becoming a wife and mother, and how she has witnessed both dictatorship and

democracy in Venezuela. Through the story of her life, she reveals her relationships with her family, friends, society, and ultimately herself.

Sturges-Vera has a BA from Middlebury College and an MA in International Relations from George Washington University. Her main focus of study was the economic development of Latin America, and she has traveled extensively in Venezuela and Europe. She now lives in Vienna, Austria with her husband and two children.

"Orchids of Venezuela" is available in softcover (ISBN 1-58939-829-7) from Virtual-bookworm.com, Amazon.com and Barnes and Noble.com. The Spanish translation of the book, "Orquídeas Venezolanas" (ISBN 1-58939-968-4), is also available from the same channels. The books can also be ordered from most bookstores around the United States and the United Kingdom. More information can be found at the author's official website, sturgesverabooks.com.