Don't Kill the Birthday Girl: Tales from an Allergic Life with Sandra Beasley

Join Charis in welcoming poet and non-fiction writer Sandra Beasley as she shares from her two most recent books, Don't Kill the Birthday Girl: Tales from an Allergic Life and I Was the Jukebox. Like 12 million other Americans, Beasley suffers from food allergies. Her allergies - severe and lifelong - include dairy, eggs, soy, beef, shrimp, pine nuts, cucumbers, cantaloupe, honeydew, mango, macadamia nuts, pistachios, cashews, swordfish and mustard. Add to that mold, dust, grass, tree pollen, cigarette smoke, dogs, rabbits, horses and wool, and it's no wonder Beasley felt she had to live her life as "Allergy Girl." When butter is deadly, and eggs can make your throat swell shut, cupcakes and other treats of childhood are out of the question - and so Beasley's mother used to warn guests against a toxic, frosting-tinged kiss with "Don't kill the birthday girl!"