The End of the World Notwithstanding

Broad target audience, including young and old fans of Mike Birbiglia, David Sedaris, Samantha Irby, Julia Sweeney and Scott Carpenter…anyone who enjoys armchair travel and/or comedic memoir…readers able to recognize, embrace and poke fun at their Inner Alarmist…and perhaps, especially, readers who live along the Front Range or anywhere in the Rocky Mountain West, where Janna lives, and where several of the stories take place. In the midst of cultural transformation, social unrest and a global health crisis: grounded levity, uplifting-yet-thoughtful stories, and a sense of perspective are all appealing if not necessary. While the book is humor, and does not explicitly address current events, Janna’s voice is feminist, socially-aware, cognizant of and sensitive to issues of race, gender and class, and readers should discover currents and undercurrents highly pertinent to our turbulent times. Multiple websites that appeal to a reading public have posted articles, since February, 2020, extolling uplifting books. From bookriot.com and getliterary.com to today.com and goodhouskeeping.com, uplifting and inspirational books have been featured and promoted since COVID-19 started. Fans of Janna’s work may have seen her performance of some of these stories during the brief tour of the solo piece (You Are Reminded That Your Safety Is Your Own Responsibility) upon which this book is based; she also has been active in theatre and comedy communities for over thirty years, and has remained an active member of Facebook groups (and her personal/professional social media platforms are built; they can be far more activated). In terms of “author’s circles” readers: Janna is a professor of Communication at Regis University, with a community of approximately 775 faculty and over 2,300 students; she’s also on faculty in the Mile High MFA writing program. She has taught there for sixteen years and, including former majors and advisees, participates in an alumni network of around 1,600; she can also call up a community from her former graduate program at the University of Massachusetts.