Laura Burkett’s sister, Danielle, ran away to Puerto Rico when she was 15 because she got a bad perm.
That’s the opening, truthful anecdote to the 52-year-old Lower Burrell woman’s debut work, “This Is Not My Life: A Memoir of Sisterhood, Suspicion, and Starting Over.” It launched June 3.
The book, which centers around the life of Danielle Burkett, recently earned Amazon bestseller status in the genres of love and loss, grief and true crime.
“I thought I was going to be judged. Instead, it was a lot of women saying, ‘I’m going to be open about my pain, because you opened yours,’ ” Laura Burkett said of the public response to her memoir. “I did not expect that.”
Burkett was 29 when her sister died unexpectedly in 2003. Circumstances surrounding her death were never clear, Burkett said.
“She was adventurous, wise beyond her years, and lived an amazing life over 33 years; but she was troubled, like a lot of people are,” Burkett said. “There was a lot of drama, a lot of chaos, and a lot of good men and bad men. When she was removed from my life, it left a void.”
Burkett thinks their upbringing as children contributed to the ups and downs in Danielle’s life. She also believes her sister had bipolar disorder, though she was never diagnosed.
Burkett said she felt compelled to write the book because she is the last person living in her family who knows the story. Journaling her thoughts helped in the grieving process, she said. Previously, Burkett would be avoidant or silent when asked about Danielle.
She compared her years following Danielle’s death to a lesson her father taught her in the Melwood Park Pool, where he would throw her into the water and she’d have to “swim or die.”
That was a harsh lesson, Burkett recalled, but one that became necessary.
“I did what I needed to do everyday to keep moving forward, and some of it was not good,” Burkett said. “I think what resonated with people is that (the book) is honest.”
“This Is Not My Life” has a bit of everything: from quick-wit humor, to a detective story and as a love letter to sisterhood, Burkett said.
It also showcases the small-town American life of living in the Lower Burrell community, she said.
“Laura writes like she’s spilling secrets over whiskey,” said reader Erin Donley. “She’s funny, smart and achingly honest.”
Another reader, Joanie Kranik, said: “Once I started I couldn’t put it down. I finished this in 24 hours. I have true admiration for her vulnerability and willingness to share her story.”
The book is available on Amazon.
“Power comes in honesty, freedom comes in honesty, because I had carried this weight for 20 years avoiding people,” Burkett said. “It’s OK to say, ‘I had trauma in my life.’
“You just have to keep moving forward, and that’s what I hope people take away from it: resilience and honesty.”