My Own Magic: A Reappearing Act

Written by Anna Kloots

Narrated by Anna Kloots

Read by the author.

For every woman searching for her voice, Anna Kloots shares her story of starting over by trusting the magic that was always within...

Despite what appeared to be a glamorous existence full of globetrotting adventures, behind the scenes, Anna felt invisible in her own life. Consumed by a marriage that left no space for her own desires and creativity, she chose to reframe the failure of her marriage as an opportunity to begin again.

It was Anna's innate sense of adventure and love for the unknown that led her to move abroad; travel around the world, visiting 80 countries; start her own business; and marry a magician—all before her mid-twenties. From the outside, her jet-setting lifestyle alongside her husband looked perfect. But though she appeared to have all the freedom in the world, in reality she was trapped in a slow-motion disappearing act.

When her marriage collapsed, she decided to use her unhappy ending as a chance for a new beginning—a reappearance into her own life and sense of exploration and discovery, letting each destination challenge, change, and shape her.

Following Anna's extensive travels from the bustling streets of Jaipur to the canals of Venice to the desert of Dubai, My Own Magic is a powerful memoir—a true, coming-of-age story about a woman rediscovering the magic that she always had.

Anna's memoir is proof that travel can transform you, inspire you, and even save you. Perfect for fans of Eat Pray Love.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Harper Horizon
• Release date: May 16, 2023
• ISBN: 9780785255703

Anna Kloots

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, chinks outside the box, and drinks champagne every day.

Reviews for My Own Magic

[Kat · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Disjointed especially in the first half, where the time jumps from one moment to the time of the divorce and back again over and over, but not in a clear split timeline, instead muddled all over the place. At some moments one can question what time we are hearing, what year is it now?

Tons of positivity, follow your dreams dedication, mixed with a privileged life that she does not see, but all full of platitudes and positivity at every turn. It is a tell-don't-show book (you hear the story in a way that a young writer would say "we did this then that" ) mixed with pain-meets-positivity assessments and conclusions.

It could have been written so much better, it is clearly access to in-crowds that got her this book deal, but it is mildly inspiring. And kudos to her dream to become a writer, and then with the aid again of privilege, she did get there. For some it will be very inspiring, for others it will be infuriating for all the positivity liberally doused throughout this privileged access life. She has the life she has, and she is making the best of it, and for that I applaud her. I just wish she would see beyond her rose colored glasses to the masses who struggle without the access she has lived, without the family support and in-crowd invites and travel-mentality-crowd access, without the entertainment crowd creativity access, and that she would go out to help others to prove that she sees her privilege. All of these influencers live gilded lives of ignorance, imagining their struggle is something like what many go through, and that could not be further from the truth. She cries a lot in this book, and if you have lived a life of great true pain and hardship and obstacle, if your parents were not so united, if you did not have a meal at every year of life, if you have counted dimes and nickels, this may not be what you want to read.

Read with those caveats, if you can take high-school level writing and so much positivity and the assessments of her pain and triumph. The world would be better if most thought as Anna Kloots does, but if they also saw others without the access, and offered a lifeline.

[Joshua Nobles · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Loved hearing Anna do the narration of her book. I have been following her for years, so I knew many of the stories she tells, but it was still enjoyable to hear again. Highly recommend!