‘One More Gift to Give’: Christmas novella is about family, faith and making a difference

Photo caption: Book cover to "One More Gift to Give" by John Shaughnessy.

By Mike Krokos

It began as a Christmas gift for his wife and

parents.

It evolved into a story about family, faith and the way people can make a difference in other’s lives.

The result of this three-year labor of love is author John Shaughnessy’s first book.

“Those three things [family, faith and the way we can make a difference in people’s lives] are the legacy of my parents and my extended family,” said Shaugh-nessy of one of the messages of his recently released book, One More Gift to Give.

Shaughnessy, who is assistant editor of The Criterion, said his first work of fiction is a Christmas novella whose foundation was a story he once wrote while on staff at The Indianapolis Star. That story was a short fiction piece about a Santa Claus on a Christmas morning, a story that drew on the experiences of people who have played the role.

The 64-page book was published by St. Catherine of Siena Press in Indianapolis and is the company’s second work of

fiction, explained Jean Zander, editorial director. The first book, Cacique: A Novel of Florida’s Heroic Mission History, was co-written by Bishop Robert J. Baker of Charleston, S.C., and Tony Sands.

“We never intended to publish fiction,” Zander said, but works like Bishop Baker’s novel and Shaughnessy’s book helped change the publisher’s mindset.

“It’s [John’s book] a very appealing story,” Zander said.

“It’s very real. … John has a really good way of tapping into that’s genuine.”

In the book, eight people are brought together by unusual circumstances on a cold Christmas morning. The story centers on a newborn child, young married couple, nurse, cab driver, detective, young boy and a man dressed as Santa Claus who are linked by adversity.

“They are people filled not with hope, but with the heartbreak of the season,” Shaughnessy explained.

Despite the crisis that brings them together, the group is able to rediscover the meaning of the

season and bring good out of each other. Through each of their gifts, they are able to see Christmas as a time of family, hope and joy.

Although the book is fiction, natives of the Philadelphia area may see familiar landmarks like Our Mother of Sorrows Church, Sellers Park, Paxson Street and Harwood Avenue.

“I did that so the book would have meaning to my family,” said Shaughnessy, 51, a native Philadelphian who moved to Indiana to attend the University of Notre Dame in Notre Dame, Ind., in 1973.

Family is something the author treasures for several reasons.

“I grew up in a home where faith and family are the foundations of your life,” he said. “I’ve been surrounded by lots of good examples of faith and family.

“We are all influenced by the way we grow up, the way we live.”

Shaughnessy hopes another thing that makes the book appealing is the fact that its characters cross generations.

Though the author is Catholic and there is a faith element in the story, Shaughnessy said the book is intended for a wider audience.

“I see it as a mainstream story to

connect faith and family,” said Shaugh-nessy, a member of St. Thomas Aquinas Parish in Indianapolis. “Hopefully, it appeals to people across faith lines.”

While the book was dedicated to his parents, Doris and John Shaughnessy, his brother and sisters as well as his wife, Mary, and their children, John Michael, Brian and Kathleen, the author at the end of the work acknowledges many other family members who have touched him and helped shape the person he is today.

“It [the acknowledgements] was the last thing I wrote,” Shaughnessy said. “I felt like I needed to thank not only the people who helped me in the process of [writing] the book, but also the people who helped in the process of my life.”

For the author, it always begins with loved ones.

“I grew up in a family that gave gifts from the heart,” he said.

(Editor’s Note: To order a copy of One More Gift to Give, call 888-232-1492 or visit www.onemoregifttogive.com. The cost is $9.99 plus shipping and handling. The book is also available at Holy Family Gifts in Carmel, Ind., and at many area Border’s bookstores.) †