Julie Mars is the recipient of the NYS Council on the Arts Grant in Screenwriting, the NJ Council on the Arts Grant in Fiction, and the Cone Fellowship for Literary Criticism. She lives and teaches in Albuquerque, NM. Her novel, THE SECRET KEEPERS, was published by GreyCore in 2000.
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PRAISE FOR A MONTH OF SUNDAYS
"Beguiling... a work of stinging honesty that is difficult to put down." --Jennifer Egan, LOOK AT ME
"Riveting... I swallowed this book in a single radiant gulp, and feel infinitely enriched for having done so. It has all the makings of a classic story of pilgrimage told with candor, humor and a sense of adventure." -- Richard Selzer, LETTERS TO A YOUNG DOCTOR
"Uniquely authentic... The deep intuition with which Mars sought answers and the quiet listening to different spiritual world views were integrated in a most skillful manner. Her Sundays connect the dots of her relationship with her family and lead to a deeper interaction with death and life itself." --Stephen Levine, UNATTENDED SORROW
"Beautiful, shining with pathos and humor, sung with unwavering honesty, calling us to consider what we continually deny—the problem of death and loss. Weaving together with elegance the anguish of losing her sister, the thirst for God, and the love that saves us all, Julie Mars has created an intensely interesting meditation on life's big issues… I was completely caught by it, laughing and crying by turns." --Rocco Lo Bosco. BUDDHA WEPT
"Early on in her memoir, Mars says of her dying sister, 'I consider it an honor and a privilege to be with her, every day, as she reflects on the state of her soul.' We could say the same of Julie Mars." (Summer 2005 Selection) --Barnes & Noble Editors: Discover Great New Writers Program
"A moving (but never mawkish) account of [Mars'] search for spiritual sustenance." -- People Magazine ("Great Reads" column)
"Mars longs for belief but retains an intelligent, unsentimental skepticism throughout. This is the book's strength." -- Washington Post
"A substantial, rich, healing story—Julie Mars is a gifted storyteller." -- Massage Therapy Journal Magazine
"This deeply personal chronicle is uplifting and excellent on many levels. Some aspect of [Mars's] story will strike a chord with each reader." --Walla Walla Union-Bulletin
"Is A Month of Sundays a sad book? Yes, at times, because we relate. We have all lost someone who means the world to us. We are familiar with that kind of longing. But the book also has wit and humor and plenty of food for thought. More than anything, A Month of Sundays is about the power of love. I am thankful that Mars documented her journey from grief to healing. It did me a world of good to turn the pages and follow along." --Daily Sentinel, Nacodoches TX
"[Mars] is so descriptive in her feelings it is easy become totally enmeshed in her world. …This book is a touching essay on one woman’s journey for life after loss." --Science of Mind Magazine
"Mars unravels her tale with style and suspense, lightening the heavy spots with humor along the way…From the preface to the last page, Mars’ spiritual longing is so exquisitely expressed that few readers will get through the book without tissues. Whether believers or not, readers will cheer for Mars in her breakthroughs and sympathize with her in her doubts. And while the ultimate result of her church-going is perhaps not what she, or we, expected, her journey through faith and questioning is as valuable for readers as it was for her." --Bucks County Reader
"This book is useful on many levels—as a companion on a grief journey and also as a series of fascinating snapshots of religion in very diverse settings. It is memoir at its best—a story that though individual speaks to all of us." --New Mexico Magazine
"The stories of the churches are fascinating, but the most moving (and often funny) parts of the book are the descriptions of her family life… [Mars' search for the spirit] has brought into focus the love and loyalty she shared with her sister, and the real meaning of family—one's own, and the wider one 'out there'." --Taconic Newspapers, NY
"Mars takes the reader on a profoundly moving path of grief and reclamation of familial and spiritual relationship. Highly recommended by this reviewer." --New Mexico Woman
"As a study of the many ways we approach spirituality, the book is insightful and often funny, but it is the chapters between the Sundays that make this book invaluable. These are a heart-wrenching and brutally honest chronicle of Mars' journey through the painful ordeal of watching a loved one die, and having the courage to go on. Mars proves that death, while always shocking—even when it's expected—can be a time for renewal, recommitment, and even laughter." -- Hudson Valley Magazine
"This is a spectacular book and a wonderfully captivating story." --Magical Blend Magazine
"Mars' writing, laden with humor and much introspection, portrays the quest for religious community with honesty and intelligence." --News Star, Northeastern Louisiana
"It blew me away… It's a 'real' book, as raw and urgent and painful—and joyous—as life." --Jesse Kornbluth, Beliefnet.com
"Joyfully written despite its inherent sadness, the emotionally honest and intriguing journey Mars follows in A Month of Sundays reads like an incantation or a blessing." -- Chronogram Magazine
"A thought-provoking work of non-fiction chronicling the external search for a communal atmosphere conducive to an inner journey…beautifully written…crafted with the literary tools of a fine fiction writer." --Catskill Mountain Guide
"A Month of Sundays is more than a simple memoir, it is a story of hope and the hard, upward struggle from grief. Mars speaks openly about both her loss of faith and her experiences with pain and guilt, as well as sharing her treasured memories of her sister, Shirley, and the courage with which she faces her final days. The book is both funny and heart-breaking, showing life's moments of great beauty, moments that can often only be truly appreciated when looking back on times of despair. --GothicReview.com
"Honest and open-hearted… Sundays reminds us of how simple life can be if we so choose. It reminds how at the most important times of our life, it is not the world that comforts us; it is God, people and our faith in both. While Mars went searching for her sister, it is grace and peace that found her." -- UMC.org (United Methodist Church)
"Mars started out to write an elegy to her sister, but, not surprisingly, with its skillfully interwoven stories of Shirley's life and death, Mars' weekly quest and meditations on her motivations for taking it, the book becomes a more personal and engaging memoir. Her experience as a novelist gives Mars a good sense for the story and a discerning eye for scene, character and detail throughout." --Albuquerque Journal
"Julie Mars is an insightful, delightfully human and original writer ... Every page of A MONTH OF SUNDAYS, reveals honest, evocative and beautifully acknowledged insights into the wonder of love and the human mind. As a voyeur with an active imagination, combined with one who has personally known and experienced deep grief, I applaud this excellent exploration of inner depths, delved into by a well-crafter tale spinner who is unafraid to face turmoil, not to mention, crossing, if briefly, over the thresholds of many religious attitudes." -- Joyce Metzger for Small Press Review
"So often memoirs can be maudlin or portray the author as an innocent victim of circumstances. This is not the case in A MONTH OF SUNDAYS. The author mixes tears and humor and is not afraid to show herself or others 'warts and all'. Julie seems to come full circle in her spiritual journey with more questions than answers, but this true tale is both heartbreaking and uplifting." —Compulsive Reader
"A beautiful, enduring, and haunting journey. A salute to the connections women have with each other as sisters, friends, mothers, and daughters. Also, a celebration for the strength, and understanding they provide each other." —Midwest Book Review
"A memorable memoir of an individual seeking solace and worth reading especially by those going recently or expecting to go down that lonely path soon." —Harriet Klausner
"A painstakingly honest memoir of two sisters, this is a must read that is sure to evoke many, many heartfelt emotions." —Tri-County Woman Magazine (Hudson Valley, NY)
"I loved traveling with Julie into churches I may never visit in this lifetime. Julie may or may not have found the spirit in her quest, but in this book she helps us all." —RoundTableReviews.com
"Wonderful… I loved the moments of Mars' 'real life' that check in as we read - her friends, the junker cars, a baby being born, the broken vacuum cleaner - this is the stuff that still makes up the lives of the people who have watched others die, or are going to funerals, or are attending temple after a death… Everyone can relate to and enjoy Ms. Mars' fresh, new book. I encourage QME readers to pick it up, and also to enjoy Julie Mars' last book from GreyCore Press, The Secret Keepers." —Suzanne Sunshower, Quiet Mountain Essays
"Not a page goes by that does not reveal some new insight into the beauty and wonder of the human heart. You'll love this book. —Keynotes, Millbrook, NY
"Readers [will] find [this] beautiful little book earnest and heartfelt. This is a book of memory, dreams, meditations, loss, hope and faith, a story that tells us it may be difficult to recover from loss (of loved ones and of faith) but there is always another Sunday, another day to try to do better." —BookPitch.com
"A very interesting, and at times heart wrenching, glimpse at Julie's attempts to reconnect with both her sister Shirley and God." —BVSReviews.com
Recommended Book of the Month at ReligiousTolerence.org
Recommended Summer Reading Selection at BeliefNet.com
A Barnes & Noble "Discover Great New Writes" title
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