Women and Children First Bookstore Review – A Tale of Two Authors Splash Magazine

I have wanted to visit the Women and Children First Bookstore, located in Andersonville, for many years. The store has had a strong presence in the Chicago area, and a piece about their history on the store's website states that, “In 2014, our co-founders, Ann Christophersen and Linda Bubon, sold the bookstore to two of their staffers, Lynn Mooney and Sarah Hollenbeck. The change in ownership kept the store 'in the family' and renewed the strength and vitality of our mission to promote the writing of women and other marginalized voices. “ A recent presentation by two authors from the East Coast, New Jersey and New York, was the strong motivation that finally propelled me to visit the store. These two authors, Donna Baier Stein and Ronna Wineberg, met at a Bread Loaf Writers' Conference in Middlebury, Vermont.  They became fast friends and interestingly, their writing careers have paralleled one another.  Both have written novels and short story collections, have won prizes, and have an involvement with journals that publish the works of upcoming writers. The day before this presentation, Ronna Wineberg learned that the recent novel she had written, “On Bittersweet Place “won a contest for best indie book, 2016, shelf unbound contest!