Allenbaugh, Kay

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ALLENBAUGH, Kay

PERSONAL: Married second husband Eric Allenbaugh (an author and leadership consultant); children: four sons.

ADDRESSES: Home—612 Cabana Lane, Lake Oswego, OR 97034. Agent—c/o Author Mail, Simon & Schuster, 1230 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10020.

CAREER: Writer and conference speaker.

WRITINGS:

COMPILER; "CHOCOLATE" SERIES

Chocolate for a Woman's Soul, Simon & Schuster (New York, NY), Volume 1: Seventy-seven Stories to Feed Your Spirit and Warm Your Heart, 1997, Volume 2: Seventy-seven Stories That Celebrate the Richness of Life.

Chocolate for a Woman's Heart: Seventy-seven Stories of Love, Kindness and Compassion to Nourish Your Soul and Sweeten Your Dreams, Simon & Schuster (New York, NY), 1998.

Chocolate for a Woman's Heart and Soul, Simon & Schuster (New York, NY), 1998.

Chocolate for a Lover's Heart: Soul-Soothing Stories That Celebrate the Power of Love, Simon & Schuster (New York, NY), 1999.

Chocolate for a Mother's Heart: Inspiring Stories That Celebrate the Spirit of Motherhood, Simon & Schuster (New York, NY), 1999.

Chocolate for a Woman's Spirit: Seventy-seven Stories of Inspiration to Lift Your Heart and Soothe Your Soul, Simon & Schuster (New York, NY), 1999.

Chocolate for a Teen's Soul: Life-Changing Stories for Young Women about Growing Wise and Growing Strong, Simon & Schuster (New York, NY), 2000.

Chocolate for a Woman's Blessings: Seventy-seven Heartwarming Stories of Gratitude That Celebrate the Good Things in Life, Simon & Schuster (New York, NY), 2001.

Chocolate for a Teen's Heart: Unforgettable Stories for Young Women about Love, Hope and Happiness, Simon & Schuster (New York, NY), 2001.

Chocolate for a Woman's Dreams: Seventy-seven Stories to Treasure as You Make Your Wishes Come True, Simon & Schuster (New York, NY), 2001.

Chocolate for a Teen's Spirit: Inspiring Stories for Young Women about Hope, Strength, and Wisdom, Simon & Schuster (New York, NY), 2002.

Chocolate for a Woman's Courage, Simon & Schuster (New York, NY), 2002.

Chocolate for a Teen's Dreams: Heartwarming Stories about Making Your Wishes Come True, Simon & Schuster (New York, NY), 2003.

Author's works have been translated into Spanish.

ADAPTATIONS: Author's writings have been adapted for audio cassette.

SIDELIGHTS: Kay Allenbaugh had what she calls a "mountain-top experience" one day while combing her hair in front of the bathroom mirror. A voice that she said was God told her to write a book for women. Despite her self-proclaimed shyness and fear of book signings and interviews, Allenbaugh wrote Chocolate for a Woman's Soul, the first in what would become the best-selling "Chocolate" series.

Allenbaugh described her reaction to hearing the voice: "For an hour, my creativity soared. I knew exactly what I would do. And then as quickly as euphoria arrived it departed, and my fear took over. God must surely have a good sense of humor." Allenbaugh admitted to feeling in over her head. "Because of our mind-body-spirit connection, my physical body reacted to my emotional fear," she explained on soulfulliving.com. Allenbaugh spent two years writing Chocolate for a Woman's Soul, unable to sit down due to severe back spasms, and so completed the book standing at her computer.

Chocolate for a Woman's Soul was so well received that Simon & Schuster contracted with Allenbaugh for a series, and Allenbaugh began addressing not only adult females, but teens as well. Of Chocolate for a Lover's Heart, School Library Journal reviewer Cynthia J. Rieben said, "The stories don't gloss over the rough spots in relationships; instead, they show love shining through in spite of illness and death, unfaithfulness or abandonment, misunderstandings and dashed hopes." Dana Vance, reviewer for Voice of Youth Advocates, called Chocolate for a Teen's Soul "a good choice for classroom read-alouds or for reluctant readers."

The "Chocolate" series books generally contain sixty-nine to seventy-seven stories contributed by women of all ages.

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Booklist, June 1, 2001, Linda Zeilstra, review of Chocolate for a Teen's Heart: Unforgettable Stories for Young Women about Love, Hope and Happiness, p. 1801.

Library Journal, June 15, 1998, Nancy R. Ives, review of Chocolate for a Woman's Heart: Seventy-seven Stories of Love, Kindness and Compassion to Nourish Your Soul and Sweeten Your Dreams, p. 122; October 15, 2000, Barbara Hoffert, review of Chocolate for a Woman's Soul: Seventy-seven Stories to Feed Your Spirit and Warm Your Heart, p. 53.

Publishers Weekly, April 28, 1997, review of Chocolate for a Woman's Soul, p. 68; August 20, 2001, "Bittersweet Tales for Teens," p. 82; November 5, 2001, review of Chocolate for a Woman's Dreams: Seventy-seven Stories to Treasure as You Make Your Wishes Come True, p. 55.

School Library Journal, August, 1998, Catherine Charvat, review of Chocolate for a Woman's Heart, p. 198; July, 1999, Cynthia J. Rieben, review of Chocolate for a Lover's Heart: Soul-Soothing Stories That Celebrate the Power of Love, p. 115.

Voice of Youth Advocates, April, 2001, Dana Vance, review of Chocolate for a Teen's Soul: Life-Changing Stories for Young Women about Growing Wise and Growing Strong, p. 59.