An Unseen Angel - by Alissa Parker (Paperback)

About the Book

Subtitle in pre-publication: A mother's story of healing and hope after Sandy Hook.

Book Synopsis

As the mother of one of the children who died at Sandy Hook school in Newtown, Connecticut, in 2012, Alissa Parker had her world shattered by a mass murderer's rampage. She was left to make sense of her daughter's life and death and to rebuild, seeking a deeply spiritual path to carry on with her life and find new meaning and purpose.

As a co-founder of SafeandSoundSchools.org, a touring national advocacy group that helps people take action to make schools safer, Alissa has talked to hundreds of parents around the country about her ordeal and how she was able to endure the unspeakable horror of Sandy Hook.

An Unseen Angel takes readers though Alissa's complete journey, chronicling the moment-by-moment account of the day that began with every parent's worst nightmare: hearing, "There's been a shooting at your child's school." It follows her faith-filled spiritual path to coping, healing, forgiving, and eventually feeling gratitude for the life and love of her daughter Emilie. She describes a bond of love between a mother and daughter that is so profound it transcends the physical body and touches Alissa and the people who loved Emilie who feel her presence every day. And she articulates her deep Christian faith, which guided the answers to Alissa's gut-wrenching, post-tragedy questioning:

• "Where is Emilie now?"
• "Can love transcend the physical body?"
• "How can I know that Emilie is in a better place?"
• "How do I deal with the 'here and now' when the pain and anger I feel is so overwhelming?"

This is the first book about the school-shooting tragedies with a focus on faith and spirituality. As we learn Alissa's story, we are introduced to a special little girl who was wise beyond her years and whose lessons about life and the transcendent power of love continued even after she had passed away.

Review Quotes

"An Unseen Angel is a beautiful message of peace. I'm inspired by how Alyssa Parker found hope after the horrible murder of her daughter Emilie. Her story of strength as she worked through her pain and heartbreak is amazing. I feel relief with Alyssa when she ultimately found closure and forgiveness in the worst of situations."

--Stephanie Nielson New York Times Best-selling author (3/1/2017 12:00:00 AM)

"An Unseen Angel has left me feeling inspired. Alissa Parker's personal journey brings you out from the depths of that fateful day at Sandy Hook Elementary Schoool to lessons applicable to everyone on how to rise above the evil and hardships faced in our lives. My heart and mind has been drawn back to this powerful story many times and will continue for years to come."--Mark Shriver, bestselling author and president of Save the Children Action Network (4/3/2017 12:00:00 AM)

"From the deepest pain a mother can imagine, comes a beautiful book whose message of redemption and healing touches all of us. Reading her words, my breath caught in my throat, and yet, her story reminds us that sun follows night, love and faith are powerful balms, and we can choose whether we live in the darkness or light. Alissa's Parker's healing story is a testament to the best parts of human nature and the power of resilience."
--Lee Woodruff - Contributing Reporter for CBS This Morning and New York Times Best-selling author (3/1/2017 12:00:00 AM)

"Alissa Parker, who lost her daughter Emilie in the Sandy Hook Elementary mass shooting, shares how her Christian faith was pivotal to learning how to accept, forgive, and find peace. Poignant and profound testimony."-- "Midwest Book Review"

About the Author

Alissa Parker is the mother of one of the twenty children who died tragically in the Sandy Hook school shootings in Newtown, Connecticut, in 2012.

After Emilie's death, Alissa began TheParkerFive blog as a tool to express the emotions she and her family experienced throughout the grieving process. She is also the co-founder of SafeandSoundSchools.org, which helps people take action to make schools safer, and The Emilie Parker Art Connection, a charity helping local community art programs for children.

• The Parker Five Blog (theparkerfive.com): 3.5 million p/v; Visitors: 922,689
• The Emilie Parker Art Connection (emilieparkerfund.com): 297K Facebook followers
• Safe and Sound Schools (safeandsoundschools.org): Since 2013, 200K+ visitors to the website, 100K people have downloaded free online materials for use in their school or professional community, more than 30,000 people have attended a speaking engagement or workshop, 6K+ social media followers. Organization has also visited schools in 31 states.