By Tatum France-Kelly
Andrea Van de Loo reading her book at Trident Booksellers & Cafe (Tatum France-Kelly/Radio 1190)
Sept. 2, Trident Booksellers & Cafe invited author Andrea van de Loo to read from her memoir “The Pressing Stones: The Healing Journey of a Nazi’s Daughter” as part of its weekly Author Series. Marco V Morelli, founder of Cosmos Cooperative, also spoke at the event. The Author Series took place on the back patio of Trident, which offers a variety of cafe and bar items. The event included a live reading and book signing.
Van de Loo was born in the Netherlands during World War II to a German mother and Dutch father. Following the war, her father was sentenced to death for his position in the Nazi SS and involvement with German extermination camps. He was later released following a psychiatric reevaluation. However, the war and her father’s past cast a shadow on Van de Loo’s isolating childhood.
“I love my father and I am profoundly concerned about offending those whom he harmed and their surviving families.” Van de Loo said.
Andrea Van de Loo reading her book at Trident Booksellers & Cafe (Tatum France-Kelly/Radio 1190)
Van de Loo studied psychology at the University of Amsterdam before hitchhiking to India in 1971. It was in South India that she met the Mother, a French-Indian guru and yogi who inspired Van de Loo’s subsequent spiritual journey. While in India she resided in Auroville, the Mother’s experimental city considered by its residents to be “the city of the future.” In 1978, she moved to Santa Cruz with her two daughters and opened her own healing practice. Following experimentation with psychedelic therapy, Van de Loo became addicted to cannabis and began recovery with the 12-step-program.
She was inspired to write her memoir in 2003, following the U.S. entrance into Afghanistan.
“I saw everybody waving their little flags and I was like, ‘Oh my god’.” Van de Loo said, “We’re all the same… This country has got to get humble and face its own shadow.”
“The Pressing Stones: The Healing Journey of a Nazi’s Daughter” is articulate, intimate and emotional. It explores themes of family, recovery, isolation, spirituality, generational trauma, grief, healing and forgiveness. Throughout the reading, Van de Loo spoke extensively on her experiences, providing insight into her own journey and struggles. The excerpts she read were chosen with care, offering a peek into a few of the many pivotal moments in her life. Van de Loo is thoughtful and gracious, though not lacking in humor.
“I’m excited to get to read more about it and just see how truly personal it is.” A member of the audience, Avery, said.
Van de Loo hopes to inspire the reader to “find and follow your own truth and pursue your own healing one step at a time in your own unique way as you feel yourself to be guided.”