by Sheli Ellsworth
Local author, Patrice Karst, is planning the sequels to her bestselling (2000) children’s book, The Invisible String. Karst describes the book, that has sold more than 250,000 copies, as a heart-warming and reassuring story that addresses the issue of separation anxiety for children of all ages.
Karst’s “string” is the love that binds us to each other, reminding us that we are never alone, and that when we are loved beyond our wildest imagination. “I simply wrote it because it was something that had comforted my son Elijah from me being gone all day as a single working mother and I wanted him and all others to know that this string transcends time and space and that love connects us all and always will and nothing is stronger than love—not time or space or anger or even death.”
Karst says the book is also being used by school districts, therapists, hospitals and hospices, the military, the prison system, divorce attorneys, foster and adoption programs, bereavement groups, etc. and helps children understand what love really is.
Karst, who has been writing since she was a teenager, is also the author of The Smile That Went Around the World, and the adult books: God Made Easy and The Single Mother’s Survival Guide. She wrote her first book as the result of a difficult break-up. Karst says she, “. . . has been on a fascinating spiritual journey since she was a young girl looking out in awe at the glistening stars.”
Born in London, England, Karst moved to Ventura from Ojai a couple of years ago and lives at the beach with a zany wiener dog named Coco. She loves living in Ventura. She says the food, the people, the hills and the beach make for a unique Bohemian vibe.
