{"title":"Tanya Shaffer","description":"\u003cp\u003eDiscover the insightful and humorous travel memoirs of Tanya Shaffer. Perfect for fans of Bill Bryson and Elizabeth Gilbert, explore her adventures and reflections on culture, identity, and the human experience.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"baby-taj-book-tanya-shaffer-9780573698422","title":"Baby Taj","description":"Comedy \/ Characters: 2m, 3f \/ \"I've dreamed you for so long, I can hardly believe you're with me now. Yet here you are: a tiny human voyager, sleeping off the shock of migration...\" The legendary Taj Mahal is the next assignment for Rachel, an American travel writer whose failed romances have led her to ask: Why not have the baby she craves - on her own? She finds unexpected answers - and larger questions - among the glittering legacies of India's past. Alive with the sounds and colors of a remarkable country, this bittersweet comedy of mischievous matchmaking raises provocative questions about love, friendship, family, and what it means to be ready to be a parent. Baby Taj had developmental readings at Jeffrey Bihr Studio in Berkeley, California; The Lark Theatre in New York City; and TheatreWorks in Mountain View, California. It premiered at TheatreWorks in October, 2005, in a production directed by Matt August, to great critical acclaim. It was selected as one of the Top Ten Shows of the Year by the San Francisco Chronicle, the Oakland Tribune, and the San Jose Mercury News, and nominated for an American Theatre Critics' Association Steinberg Award and a Bay Area Theatre Critics' Award. \"A captivating inquiry into love and freedom...Thrives on a witty, probing clash between freethinking modernity and tradition.\" -Robert Hurwitt, San Francisco Chronicle \"A bundle of cross-cultural joy...Marries the breezy cynicism of the now with the eternal power of India...[Shaffer's] ear for mod-groovy lingo gives the play a to-die-for sparkle.\" -Karen D'Souza, San Jose Mercury News \"...Filled with a savvy traveler's enthusiasm for the cultural and historical rewards of her journey.\" -Chad Jones, Oakland Tribune \"...Depicts the characters in all their contradictions and with such clarity that the humorous result is full of delicate reflections on caring and family.\" -Marianne Messina, Silicon Valley Metro \"It's refreshing to come across a playwright who is able to write so honestly about life...Witty, poignant and frequently funny...It's hard not to get swept away.\" -Julie O'Shea, Mountain View Voice \"Provocative and true, laced with snappy dialogue...\" -Jeanie Forte, Palo Alto Weekly \"A beautiful play...[Shaffer] has brilliantly integrated theatricality through the story of...the building of this famous fairy tale palace.\" -Richard Connema, Talkin Broadway","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"GB \/ VERY_GOOD \/ INTERNAL","offer_id":49516764659985,"sku":"GOR013645140","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"US \/ GOOD \/ SBYB","offer_id":50303668257041,"sku":"CIN0573698422G","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"US \/ NEW \/ INGRAM","offer_id":51003744649489,"sku":"NIN9780573698422","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"GB \/ NEW \/ INGRAM","offer_id":52455678607633,"sku":"NLS9780573698422","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/0573698422.jpg?v=1751262021"},{"product_id":"somebody-s-heart-is-burning-book-tanya-shaffer-9781400032594","title":"Somebody's Heart Is Burning","description":"It's my life, and if I want to run from it I can, quips Tanya Shaffer. An incorrigible wanderer, Shaffer has a habit of fleeing domesticity for the joys and rigors of the open road. This time her destination is Ghana, and what results is a transformative year spent roaming the African continent. Eager to transcend the limitations of tourism, Shaffer works as a volunteer, building schools and hospitals in remote villages. At the heart of her tale are the profound, complex, often challenging relationships she forms with those she meets along the way. \u003cbr\u003eWhether recounting a perilous boat trip to Timbuktu, a night of impassioned political debate in Ghana, or a fumbled romance in Burkina Faso, Shaffer portrays the collision of African and North American cultures with self-deprecating humor and clear-eyed compassion. Filled with warmth, candor, and an exuberant sense of adventure, Somebody's Heart is Burning raises provocative questions about privilege, wealth, and the true meaning of friendship.","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"US \/ VERY_GOOD \/ SBYB","offer_id":50039425073425,"sku":"CIN1400032598VG","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"US \/ GOOD \/ SBYB","offer_id":50372495311121,"sku":"CIN1400032598G","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"US \/ WELL_READ \/ SBYB","offer_id":51769371984145,"sku":"CIN1400032598A","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/1400032598.jpg?v=1750755447"},{"product_id":"fourth-messenger-book-tanya-shaffer-9780692545874","title":"The Fourth Messenger","description":"\u003cp\u003eWhat if the Buddha were a woman, living in our times? In this captivating new musical by award-winning author and playwright Tanya Shaffer and beloved recording artist Vienna Teng, Mama Sid is a modern-day awakened one with a worldwide following. But a determined young woman seeks to unearth Mama Sid's mysterious past, exposing long-held secrets that could change everything. Epic and intimate, comic and profound, \u003cem\u003eThe Fourth Messenger\u003c\/em\u003e investigates what it means to be both enlightened and human.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003ePraise for \u003cem\u003eThe Fourth Messenger: \u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eAn exciting and ambitious project, driven by Teng's eclectic score, Shaffer's inspired rewrites of the Buddha story, and their punchy, provocative lyrics... An absolute delight.\u003cstrong\u003e - San Francisco Chronicle\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e Intelligent and skillfully crafted...A hugely ambitious and refreshingly original musical that demands the attention of any serious theatergoer...Driven by Teng's propulsive score, Shaffer's musical has the audience emotionally involved and on the edge of their seats...Teng is a fresh and exciting new theatrical talent with a distinctive voice of her own... Highly recommended. - \u003cstrong\u003eThe HuffingtonPost\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e A satisfying and remarkably entertaining new musical that takes on spiritual life with wit and emotional resonance... Funny and touching in all the right places\u003cem\u003e... The Fourth Messenger]\u003c\/em\u003e seems sure to catch fire if the outside world gets a chance to hear it. - \u003cstrong\u003eKQED\/NPR\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e The Fourth Messenger is a triumph...Beautiful, ambitious and with the kind of depth we've come \u003cem\u003enot \u003c\/em\u003eto expect from musicals...Compelling from beginning to end... Shaffer's book brims with intelligence and wit and Teng's music feels rich in original ways, full of melody and intricacy... It's time for \u003cem\u003eThe Fourth Messenger\u003c\/em\u003e to...share its own nirvana with a much wider audience. - \u003cstrong\u003eTheater Dogs\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e An exceptional new musical... unique and captivating... Shaffer's masterful and compelling story, both timeless and contemporary, puts a fascinating spin on the idea of a Buddha-like sage negotiating the sort of headline scenarios that make up today's world...\u003cem\u003eThe Fourth Messenger\u003c\/em\u003e strikes a balance of passion, intensity, light humor, profundity and quiet, almost serene, resolution...\u003cstrong\u003e - Stage and Cinema\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eProfound and profane, combative and compassionate, \u003cem\u003eThe Fourth Messenger\u003c\/em\u003e has everything and more for a musical worth seeing... Teng's complex harmonies and inspired melodies ...stick with you long after the curtain goes down...  - \u003cstrong\u003eArt Animal\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eWith a lively book and lyrics and a collection of stirring songs, \u003cem\u003eMessenger\u003c\/em\u003e delves into the world of self-proclaimed gurus, whose virtuous charisma may, or may not, be justified by their private lives. - \u003cstrong\u003ePacific Sun\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"US \/ GOOD \/ SBYB","offer_id":50357253046545,"sku":"CIN0692545875G","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"US \/ VERY_GOOD \/ SBYB","offer_id":50357255307537,"sku":"CIN0692545875VG","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/0692545875.jpg?v=1750783956"}],"url":"https:\/\/www.worldofbooks.com\/collections\/author-books-by-tanya-shaffer.oembed","provider":"World of Books ","version":"1.0","type":"link"}