Live Your Life: My Story of Loving and Losing Nick Cordero

Description

Amanda Kloots bravely reflects on love, loss, and life with her husband, Broadway star, and Tony Award nominee Nick Cordero, whose public battle with COVID-19 and tragic death made headlines around the world. In March 2020, Broadway star and Tony Award nominee Nick Cordero was hospitalized for what he and his wife, Amanda Kloots, believed to be a severe case of pneumonia. Entering the hospital, they had every reason to believe that Nick-a young father and otherwise healthy man-would return home. After an eventual diagnosis of COVID-19 that led to Nick's being placed on a ventilator, Amanda took to documenting their journey on social media, showing the dangers COVID-19 posed to everyone, regardless of age. Her updates quickly captivated millions, inspiring people around the globe to dance each day to Nick's song "Live Your Life" and offer positive thoughts and prayer. When he passed away after ninety-five grueling days in the ICU, the world grieved for Amanda, her infant son, Elvis, and the future COVID-19 had snatched away from them. Live Your Life is the story of Nick and Amanda's life together-of their beautiful relationship, of Nick's dramatic fight for survival, of those sudden tragic months that permanently changed her world and ours-and of their interrupted future as a family. From the confusing early days of his illness to searching for signs of hope in every update from the doctors to the healing sound of Elvis's laughter, Amanda details how she approached even the most devastating moments with the personal optimism and faith that have shaped her life. Written with her sister Anna Kloots, who was with her every step of this journey, Live Your Life explores how Amanda's willingness to accept help from an entire community of people-friends, family, and even total strangers-played a vital role in enduring this hardship. In the process, she offers a touching meditation on how even the worst times have silver linings that deepen our connections to the world around us and to the people who matter most. What emerges is an inspiring and unexpectedly uplifting message for life in the time of COVID, a vision of courage for anyone coping with overwhelming loss or the collective trauma of what the pandemic has taken from us. A poignant reflection on love, hope, motherhood, and the transformational power of music, Live Your Life is a love letter to Nick and a reminder that, sometimes, celebrating life today is the only path through tomorrow's darkness. Live Your Life includes 16 pages of color photos exclusive to the book.

Amanda Kloots is a celebrity fitness trainer known for her positive and empowering attitude, and a cohost of The Talk. A former Broadway dancer and Radio City Rockette, she met her late husband, Nick Cordero, when they starred together in Bullets Over Broadway. She and her son, Elvis, live in California. Anna Kloots is an American writer and photographer often seen dancing down the streets of Paris, where she currently lives. Her writing candidly recounts her decade traveling, her relationships, and her observations on life as an expat. Anna always adds a little sparkle to anything she does, thinks outside the box, and drinks champagne every day. Her second book will be published by Harper Horizon in summer 2022

"Poignant... [Kloots's] is a thoroughly contemporary story, and not only because it's about coronavirus. It is a tale of vulnerability, authenticity, and what it means to grieve in public, which, for better or worse, is how we grieve now, especially this year." - Elle "Amanda's story should've left me heartbroken, yet I found myself filled with a renewed belief in the good ness of humankind. If you're looking for comfort and hope, you'll find it in the pages of this book. We all have a lot to learn from the way Amanda lives her life." - Sarah Michelle Gellar "Kloots' story...is one of resilience in the face of unbelievable loss." - Los Angeles Times "During a worldwide pandemic, Nick Cordero and Amanda Kloots taught me the true value of living your life. This book captures the human spirit, the fighter in all of us, and the love of family, and shows that even strangers can help hold us up in our darkest of times if we are willing to let them." - Jennifer Love Hewitt "[Kloots] writes of their romance, careers and dreams, and the grief that comes with the quiet... a ticktock of her husband's plight, her search for hope for herself and their son, Elvis, who turns 2 this month, and new details that will surprise even the most avid watchers of her Insta-stories." - New York Times "Reading Live Your Life was like having an intimate and powerful conversation with Amanda. The writing was so honest and inclusive, I felt like I was taking the whole beautiful and painful ride with Amanda and her son, Elvis. Such a wonderful way to honor Nick. What an incredible person." - Courteney Cox "Amanda is a hero of our time. Her willingness to grieve publicly shows us the healing power of living with an open heart even in the darkest moments. Live Your Life teaches readers the power of spiritual faith, community, and an ever-present connection to love, no matter what." - Gabrielle Bernstein, #1 New York Times bestselling author "The wrenching story of the death of Kloots's husband, Broadway star Nick Cordero, from COVID-19-and how she found strength to carry on." - People "It's extremely emotional and honest, and will make you want to hug your loved ones" - The Skimm