Voice Lessons ─ A Sisters Story

Voice Lessons is the story of Cara and Idina -- a real-life Anna and Elsa story that will be familiar to every woman with a big sister and a must-read for Idina Menzel fans.

It’s the story of one woman growing up in the shadow of an older, dazzling sister -- trying to be like her, fighting with her, and ultimately learning how to live her own life and speak in her own voice on her own terms. As Cara Mentzel, an elementary school teacher who lives in Boulder, Colorado, set off on her own journey, she watched her sister Idina from the wings and gives readers a front row seat to opening night of Rent and Wicked, a seat at the Tonys, and a place on the red carpet when her sister taught millions more to “Let It Go”.

As Cara puts it, “My big sister is Tony-Award-Winning, Gravity-Defying, Let-It-Go-Singing Idina Menzel who has received top billing on Broadway marquees, whose face has graced the cover of Billboard and Redbook magazines, who has performed for Barbra Streisand and President Obama, at the Super Bowl and at the Academy Awards. John Travolta may have called her 'Adele Dazeem’ but I call her Dee.” Voice Lessons is Cara’s memoir of their lives together.

Cara Mentzel is a writer and a teacher. She graduated Magna Cum Laude with her Bachelor’s in Psychology from the University of Colorado, Boulder in 1996. She returned to CU Boulder in 2004 for her teaching certificate and Masters in Elementary Education with an emphasis in child literacy. She received her National Board certification as a reading teacher in 2011.

Cara lives in Boulder, Colorado with the love of her life. She has two teenage boys who like to reprimand her for cursing too much, and an older stepson who is an aspiring musician. She also has two dogs with whom she has much in common, a Border collie with OCD and a Maltipoo with a weak bladder. Voice Lessons is her first book.