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Able Greenspan's Bookshelf
Concrete Botany: The Ecology of Plants in the Age of Human Disturbance
Joey Santore
Cool Springs Press
c/o Quarto Publishing Group
https://www.quarto.com
9780760391884, $28.00, HC, 224pp
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Concrete-Botany-Ecology-Plants-Disturbance/dp/0760391882
Barnes & Noble
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/concrete-botany-joey-santore/1147999482
Synopsis: "Concrete Botany: The Ecology of Plants in the Age of Human Disturbance" by Joey Santore is a 'no holds barred' study of the ecological disturbance humans have caused (and are continuing to cause) and the resilience of the plants living amongst it.
Delivered in a raw and unapologetic yet botanically accurate tone, Joey Santore (the unforgettable host of Crime Pays but Botany Doesn't) offers an often unsettling view of human-caused ecological destruction and its impact on the natural ecosystems our very lives depend on.
In the author's words: "The choices of modern civilization have led to a f***ed-up planet, scraped bare and covered in concrete and invasive species. We've wiped out entire ecosystems, moved invasive plants to new continents where they don't belong, and, in a few hundred years, we've managed to muck up the intricate balance of a planet that has been evolving for eons. The consequences of our actions are now at our doorstep, ready to strike a match."
But not all is lost.
In this groundbreaking examination of plants and their role in the Anthropocene (the age of human disturbance), we see light through the cracks in the concrete and learn that humanity's course correction starts with an understanding of plant ecology. With this knowledge comes the realization that the lives of humans and plants are interconnected in ways humans cannot live without. Plants are the base of every terrestrial ecosystem on the planet, and their presence can heal the damage humanity has caused. Our willingness to restore native plant communities and the biodiversity they support (starting in our immediate surroundings) is an essential first step in the right direction.
While returning every abandoned brownfield and old rail corridor into a native plant - filled, fully restored ecosystem may be out of reach for the average citizen, fostering the native ecology and biodiversity of our own backyards is not. "Concrete Botany" is ultimately about how the choices we make as individuals can help ensure humanity's survival on a very disturbed and rapidly changing planet.
Critique: Original, exceptional, a clarion call for environmental activism starting starting in our own backyards, "Concrete Botany: The Ecology of Plants in the Age of Human Disturbance" is both alarming and inspiring -- as well as critically important reading if we are to avoid the environmental collapse of the environmental systems that are critical for human survival. Thoroughly 'reader friendly' in organization and presentation, "Concrete Botany" is an extraordinary, timely, and unreservedly recommended addition to personal, professional, community, and college/university library Nature Conservation, Ecology, and Environmentalism collections and supplemental curriculum studies lists. It should be noted for the personal reading lists of students, academia, environmental activists, governmental policy makers, and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject that this hardcover edition of "Concrete Botany" from Cool Springs Press is also readily available in a digital book format (Kindle, $14.99).
Editorial Note: Joey Santore (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joey_Santore) is the misanthropic Chicago Italian creator and host of Crime Pays but Botany Doesn't. A self-described "tender bastard beneath an epidermis covered in spines, caustic sap, & irritating hairs," Joey is the writer, director, producer, editor, and talent behind the brand's many videos, podcasts, and written missives. He's into botany, taxonomy, evolution, and toilet humor. Joey's everyman's approach to plant ecology and evolution is adored by millions of plant and nature lovers worldwide.
The Red Italians of Monfalcone
Luke Gramith
University of Wisconsin Press
https://uwpress.wisc.edu
9780299356101, $79.95, HC, 378pp
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Red-Italians-Monfalcone-Communist-Migration/dp/0299356108
Barnes & Noble
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-red-italians-of-monfalcone-luke-gramith/1148226704
University of Wisconsin Press
https://uwpress.wisc.edu/Books/T/The-Red-Italians-of-Monfalcone
Synopsis: Between 1946 and 1948, roughly five thousand ethnic Italians from the northern Adriatic shipbuilding town of Monfalcone relocated to the newly communist Yugoslavia. This rare case of eastward Cold War migration demonstrates how ordinary people conceived of liberation during the transitional years between World War II and the early Cold War -- a time when Monfalcone was both the object of competing Italian and Yugoslav territorial claims and the subject of Anglo-American military occupation.
With the publication of "The Red Italians of Monfalcone: Everyday Fascism, Communist Horizons, and the Migration of an Italian Border Community Beyond the Iron Curtain", independent scholar Luke Gramith undertakes a deep and detailed analysis (based on archival sources in Italy, Slovenia, and the United States) of how the Monfalconesi came to understand Fascism and communism through everyday experience and how those emergent ideologies affected and were affected by their migration.
In the course of his analysis, Gramith also examines the failure of "defascistization" and how it fueled strong (but ultimately unsuccessful) pro-Yugoslav and communist movements.
Critique: An extraordinary, unique, and impressively informative contribution to Cold War History collections, "The Red Italians of Monfalcone: Everyday Fascism, Communist Horizons, and the Migration of an Italian Border Community Beyond the Iron Curtain" by Luke Gramith is enhanced for the reader's benefit with the inclusion of a one page listing of Illustrations, Maps and Tables, a two page Glossary of Commonly Used Italian Terms, a six page Glossary of Organizations and Political Parties, a four page Appendix (Monfalconese Emigration by the Numbers), sixty-eight pages of Notes, a fourteen page Bibliography, and a ten page Index. Exceptionally well organized and presented, "The Red Italians of Monfalcone: Everyday Fascism, Communist Horizons, and the Migration of an Italian Border Community Beyond the Iron Curtain" is a seminal and groundbreaking study that is unreservedly recommended for personal, professional, community, and college/university library 20th Century Italian Political History collections and supplemental curriculum studies lists.
Editorial Note: Luke Gramith is an independent scholar and a coauthor (with William I. Brustein) of "Antisemitism Without Jews in Germany, France, and the US: Phantom Enemies".
Able Greenspan
Reviewer
Diane Donovan's Bookshelf
A Symphony of Spies
Thomas R. Boniello
Olympia Publishers
www.olympiapublishers.com
9781835435229, $20.99 Paperback/$6.67 eBook
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Symphony-Spies-Thomas-R-Boniello-ebook/dp/B0GRB4QTR4
A Symphony of Spies is a compelling thriller that revolves around physicist Drew Reid's decision to confide in his roommates about classified research he's conducting - a decision that places everyone in the crosshairs of a CIA analyst and charges of espionage.
The story opens with Russian hockey player Pietro "Ollie" Olyokintov's involvement in the Russian Junior Hockey League and fellow athlete Kostin Alendreypov's arrest for espionage.
Chapter 2 introduces CIA agent Elizabeth Orr's mandate to monitor the movements of international money in and out of Russia. Her side hobby of experimenting with surveillance codes leads to a revelation about tracking laundered money in a new way:
Beth could see it: a pathway leaning on statistical probabilities developed out of the international banking system to identify illicit monies leaving Russia that would not require the yeoman-like development of a centralized database. Why hasn't anyone thought of this?
Her epiphany sends her in a different direction and introduces other characters who add insights not just about Russian assets, espionage, and research, but the psyches and lives of ordinary Russians:
"In Russia, impoverished people often have little except friendships and emotional integrity. Sometimes, it is all they have."
Freshman cellist Nash, principal cellist Slava Svyetnakov (whose agenda includes more than musical ambition "Svyetnakov's family is part of the new Russian autocracy. He is likely here to plunder American women, drink American beer, and steal nuclear secrets for Mother Russia."), and the special language of instrument currency entwine in a plot steeped in music, intrigue, insurance and financial entanglements, and CIA, FBI, and researcher special interests.
As the search for traitors reveals underlying connections and threats, other characters such as Dr. Wilderotter, the Deputy Director of the Clandestine Service, and the circumstances surrounding Slava Svyetnakov's connections to music and possible mayhem evolve intriguing blends of international espionage and national security questions.
Thomas R. Boniello weaves music, Russian interests, financial and political entanglements, and investigative pathways in a manner that will delight thriller readers seeking a multifaceted story enriched by the dilemma of a physicist's work and choices.
Libraries seeking suspense stories that move between special interests and dangerous associations will find A Symphony of Spies especially compelling for its dovetailing of more than one kind of spy, snafu, and definition of loyalty.
Its many twists and injection of musical interludes make A Symphony of Spies an unusual, involving tale of assets, survival tactics, and revelations that's hard to put down.
Ghost Gun
cc ECK
https://www.cceckauthor.com
Midblock Press
9798995540700 $15.99 (paperback); $4.99 (eBook)
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Ghost-Gun-Novel-cc-ECK/dp/B0H1K54B8H
Mobile, Alabama is the setting of the novel Ghost Gun, which focuses on a racially mixed family whose present-day lives are shaped by past racial violence and modern assumptions.
The story opens with a bang as it outlines one such assumption:
Everyone thought she was my nanny. That's how she tells it. Just assumed she was another Caribbean immigrant caring for another white kid whose parents were working downtown. I guess correcting people was exhausting, because after a few months she began to just go with it. Sometimes she'd even speak in a ridiculous Jamaican accent to make me laugh and to match the expectations of whatever well-intentioned but stupid-as-fuck white mother or father was trying to engage. And that's the issue, really. That's what they don't get. What you don't get. The small concessions made every day, all day, just to get through the day.
Mixed race families can confuse those who would peg behaviors and racial profiles to expectations and assumption. From "snap origin stories" to tumultuous family relationships and thought-provoking contrasts between Black and white perceptions, Ghost Gun weaves together a mosaic of racial interactions to create a powerful set of revelations and insights as Natasha navigates familiar and unfamiliar territory:
I tried the first door, but it was locked. Tried the second and it opened into what appeared to be a preschool room. Or maybe Bible study for youngsters. Sunday school? There were small chairs around tables and bookcases along the far wall. A circular carpet in the middle of the room. What did I know about what might happen in a space like this? My parents never took me to church unless we were down here, and for that we were always the special guests, not part of the fabric of everyday activity.
The plot doesn't just rest on her impressions, however, moving between multiple first-person voices (Natasha, Elijah, Neil Engel, Zora), as well as two third-person voices (LaVonn and Willamita Patterson).
From love and churches to civil rights issues and sibling relationships, Ghost Gun comments on underlying social influences and prejudices in all kinds of ways that emerge both outside of and within the family:
He's always been The Golden Child in the eyes of Dad and Mom, but now that we're here and he's sitting up there on stage in cap and gown, I can see the bigger perspective too. They all love him, his teachers and classmates, and now I see that it really goes back to the beginning. Like it's all been some self-fulfilling prophecy that was set in motion on the day of his birth which, when you think about it, isn't really that different or unique than how it's been for thousands of years, at least in the West and in terms of Anglo cultures. Or really most cultures. All hail the Firstborn Boy Child! Primogeniture is the rightful way, as God on high hath ordained. Hold him high above your head and let the gathered masses witness his beauty and inevitable might. Love him now, fear him later.
cc ECK shifts points of view between Natasha, Neil Engel, and LaVonn & Willamita Patterson, moving between first-person observation and third-person reflection as different facets of relationships and life interactions are revealed.
This creates a powerful series of contrasts in experience and expectation that neatly consider actions, choices, consequences, and character growth.
Ghost Gun is especially highly recommended for book clubs interested in discussions surrounding race, survival tactics, prejudice, assumptions about family and life connections, and religious perceptions of what constitutes "righteous" choices.
Libraries that choose Ghost Gun for their collections will find it replete with insights and power that flows from the interactive strength of its characters into different kinds of battles won and lost in families, communities, and American society.
Quant
Anthony Bidulka
www.anthonybidulka.com
Bon Vivant Books
9781990495120, Paperback: $16.99/eBook: $8.99
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Quant-Russell-Mystery-9/dp/1990495125
P.I. Russell Quant returns in his ninth investigation in Quant, the further exploits of the Canadian, gay, world-hopping former farmboy/ex police officer.
Over twenty years since the first Quant mystery and fifteen years since the last seeming-concluding volume, thankfully Anthony Bidulka returns Quant to newcomers and prior fans who felt that Book 8 didn't finish matters.
Here, fifty-four-year-old Quant opens with a dreaded day arrived at last - the walk-through of his mother's farmhouse, with all its memories and clutter, before his mother moves on.
There's more to the story than laying old memories to rest, however, for Quant's ongoing ability to question himself, his motivations, and his actions drove his prior adventures and continues to provide satisfyingly realistic adjuncts to the mystery that evolves in this story:
Was this internalized homophobia? Had I automatically downgraded my ability and appeal as a provider and companion for my mother just because I'm gay? Well, screw that.
In the midst of his emotional reflections, mentor, friend, and quasi-father figure Anthony Gatt brings Quant a new problem concerning his mother, Kay, who seeks to sell off art to pay a P.I. - who is not Quant.
Saskatchewan continues to be a powerful backdrop to events that swirl around Quant's family, the Beautiful Prairie Rainbow Retirement Inn, criminal behaviour that permeates even the small village of Howell, and matters of rich and powerful entrepreneurs such as Phillip Painchaud.
As Quant delves ever deeper into a rabbit's warren of interconnected purposes, special interests, and evolving threats, his personal and professional lives become ever more entwined in a captivating story that further develops Quant's relationships, motivations, and talents.
Prior fans will relish these expanded visions of his work and perspectives while newcomers dropped into the 9th book won't be lost - references to past relationships, events, and challenges keep all of Quant's decisions and experiences logical and easily understood.
Especially poignant are challenges of aging and caring for a declining mother:
At the core of all my recent sadness and grief and dissatisfaction with life was the fact that Mom's disease was slowly but surely taking her away from me. Every day I watched helplessly as she moved further away from me, from fully being with me, from knowing me.
Librarians should know that acquiring Quant doesn't mean the prior eight books are a prerequisite. They also should know, however, that newcomers that delve into Quant will likely turn to the others for more delightful adventure and insights.
Replete with mystery combined with the anguish of growing old and the decisions revolving around shifting family connections, Quant is a winner.
Reclamation: An Asexual & Aromantic Journey to Wholeness
Cindy Mundahl
Arising From Within Press
www.arisingfromwithin.com
9798234038746, $18.00 paperback; $7.99 ebook
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Reclamation-Asexual-Aromantic-Journey-Wholeness/dp/B0H1SXLT8K
Bookshop.org
https://bookshop.org/p/books/reclamation-an-asexual-and-aromantic-journey-to-wholeness-cindy-mundahl/f1d0757bc9d75d0a
Reclamation: An Asexual & Aromantic Journey to Wholeness is a memoir that surveys the cultural norms surrounding sexuality and categorization, using author Cindy Mundahl's life and experiences to question the assumptions about gender and sexuality which dictate the course of human interactions and lives.
The journey opens with Mundahl's reflection: "How could I live nearly fifty years without knowing who I truly am at my core?"
This mirrors decades of a search for answers that probes the foundations of self in a series of candid revelations that come from as ordinary a routine as looking in the mirror deeply for answers both simple and complex.
As she moves through life, death, trauma and her tendency to hide from herself as much as the world, Mundahl reflects on the costs and methods of these choices:
Joyce said, "You seem depressed. Are you happy here? Do you still want to be here?"
The word "no" arose from the depths of me and floated out of my mouth with no conscious effort on my part to give it life. Joyce's question gave me an out from what I had begun to believe was a failed experiment of living on my own in a city far from home. I was already spinning a story for my friends and family about my job not working out. I could go back home as if nothing had happened and start a new life. I was the person who bought this story the most. There was no trauma I was running from. I had already told myself it didn't happen. I had no awareness that I was depressed, but I did know I wanted to flee myself, especially my body, and the feeling that was taking root in me of not feeling alive.
Readers that move through Mundahl's reflections and self-analysis receive many opportunities to better understand their own choices, reactions, and hidden agendas as they absorb her nuances of denial, reflection, self-analysis and revelation. These emerge from many seemingly ordinary but unexpected life encounters.
Readers read about tears, pain, trauma, recovery, a grandmother's devastating secret, and more. Most of all, they will benefit from the peace-finding mission Mundahl embarks upon which calls into question all manner of expectations, choices, family experiences, and social connections.
Librarians interested in memoirs that probe the delicate balance between grief and recovery, discovery, and the hard work of both hiding and evolving will find Reclamation: An Asexual & Aromantic Journey to Wholeness a powerful survey of not just one life, but outside and internal definitions of emotions, health, and self-realization.
Especially highly recommended for reading groups strong in self-help, psychological introspection, and memoirs that contain journeys into new choices, Reclamation: An Asexual & Aromantic Journey to Wholeness is a journey replete with startling breakthroughs that redefine the author's past, present and future:
Caught between straightness and gayness made my sexuality seem oversized, as if I were wearing a flashing neon sign that was so large it could be seen from space ... My sexuality pushed all my other identities out of me as it tried to integrate this new part of me that required my entire body to hold it.
The Last Gift-Knight
Dylan Madeley
https://www.dylanmadeley.com
Independently Published
9798245067421, $9.99 ebook / $15 paperback
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Last-Gift-Knight-Dylan-Madeley-ebook/dp/B0GR78585B
The Last Gift-Knight gives readers of epic fantasy an adventure packed with action surrounding ancestral legacies and grudges, two lives that view the same events from different angles, and legacies that give rise to revised perceptions of past and present.
The tale opens with Derek's flight:
A sacred gust whipped past the horse's mane and through Derek's hair; it whistled past his ears. He welcomed the briskness of it against his cheeks. He let himself be so thoroughly consumed by the rush he felt, one which allowed neither time nor space to question where he must so urgently go or why. Is this how an ancestor felt in a fateful time? Could Derek let himself imagine, even for a moment, that this experience brought him closer to Lenn, someone he could never meet nor forget?
Viewpoints shift and a cast of characters emerges, from Lucen Gutmen to crown princess Chandra Kenderley, lady-in-waiting Ophelia, Lenn, and others whose special interests swirl around Derek's purposes. Each adds observations and connections into the mix to deepen the story's examination of shifting relationships and values:
You believed in me. Of the duties you left me with, one must be to believe in myself.
Issues of control and empowerment are also threads that connect these seemingly disparate lives:
The closer Chandra got to a once unimaginable throne, the further she felt from control.
As atrocities, dangerous decisions, and Derek's personal challenge of becoming the personal guard of his family's greatest enemy come to light, the blend of knightly duties, royal perceptions, and plots which arise to immerse unsuspecting characters makes for a vivid saga. Adaptation, attacks, and angst give fantasy readers a rollicking knight-hopping fantasy adventure packed with mystery and intrigue.
Libraries choosing The Last Gift-Knight for these strengths will relish how it weaves fantasy, a surreal world of knights and royal relationships, suspense, and discovery into a multifaceted read hard to put down and packed with enlightening contrasts in perspective and wonder.
Red Horizons
James Bultema
https://www.jamesbultema.com
P.D. Publishing
9798988075103, $5.99 eBook -Softbound $19.99 -Hardbound $25.99
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Red-Horizons-James-Bultema/dp/B0GTTM7GLM
Red Horizons is a military novel that envisions a surprise attack by North Korea on the U.S. This embroils the nation in a conflict that tests Navy pilots Jesse Hampton and his wife Sarah Freedman.
Both face increasing danger in the skies and observe the costs of the war as battle engagements result in more and more lost lives and strategies that seem to contribute more danger and confrontation than solutions.
James Bultema builds this gathering storm with an attention to not just these individual experiences and perceptions, but a myriad of involvements on both sides, shifting from American to North Korean perspectives as he builds a battle in which all ages and personalities find a role:
One face among hundreds, Private Kim Hae-min sat in the second row of Unit 121's cyber operations hall. His equipment was battered, and his constantly sticky keyboard was missing the N key. He wasn't one of the code architects, nor was he an officer who wrote the attack scripts. His task was execution and maintenance, simple enough for a nineteen-year-old to handle but crucial because every mistake could unravel the entire deception.
President Preston oversees a national emergency as a strike against the Navy that claims the lives of thousands of military men leads to the awakening of the "sleeping giant" America in more ways than one.
Especially notable and powerful are the costs of this war on everyday individuals on both sides. Bultema's "you are here" descriptions pull no punches, describing the ultimate costs of battles that immerse civilians and military fighters as Japan becomes part of the collateral damage of a widening conflict:
As the two entered the bathroom, she heard a deafening, tearing roar that was louder than any thunder she had ever known. Looking down at her only child, she held Mina more tightly. Then their world dissolved into light. The warhead hit Sakamoto's apartment dead-on.
The result is a military war story that is realistic, thought-provoking, and driven by strong characters whose lives and efforts are changed forever by the struggle.
More so than most military novels of erupting disaster, Red Horizons reaches past major players to depict the spill-over results of battles that move beyond borders to involve ordinary people in all walks of life.
Libraries and readers seeking a military action-packed story that rests not just on strategy and political maneuvering, but the lives of all involved, will find Red Horizons a powerful story of targets, enemies, and an endless war that promises future ramifications whether it's won or lost.
While the ending is conclusive, the door is left ajar for more. Given the strength and force of the military and social connections made in Red Horizons, this would be a welcome event.
True to Your Boots
Lexie Sloane
www.Lexiesloane.com
Caffeinated Llama
9798995331605, $18.99 Paperback/$8.99 E-Book
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/True-Your-Boots-Lexie-Sloane-ebook/dp/B0GTC79WTG
True to Your Boots is a novel that opens with the realization of a husband's dream to own a ranch and widowed Ava's determination to make that dream real after his passing.
Hidden Meadows Horse Ranch is the dream - but Ava is derailed mid-pursuit of that ideal by a strip mall, a small daughter, and a handsome man.
In short order, her life changes from all three influences, moving far beyond her husband's dreams and into territory as vivid and uncertain as the risks she once took with her beloved husband.
As Ava steps into her independence only to find it threatened by romance, readers join her foray into single parenthood, love, and business management which takes the form of a romp through temptation, progress, horses, family, and love.
Lexie Sloane crafts a vivid story, following the first-person revelations of Ava as she recovers and struggles with loss, grief, and moving on to rebuild her life. The insights about how and why she's making these decisions capture especially poignant moments of realization and enlightenment:
Nina stared at me, probably wondering why I was crying. She didn't understand the permanence of death. She wouldn't think of all the missed opportunities and plans we'd never make. Birthdays, holidays, family trips... I wasn't just grieving for him. I mourned the loss of all the things we'd looked forward to. That was why I had to buy Hidden Meadows. Our future was on its deathbed.
Even more important are thought-provoking moments of growth Ava experiences in many different ways as she steps into a new future and grapples with influences of the past.
Sloane shifts viewpoints between Ava and Eli, exploring both their lives and experiences in a manner that allows readers to delight in contrasts of experience and growth.
Librarians seeking a conjoined love story in which each character finds their life trajectory changing in response to the other, and circumstances beyond their control, will find it easy to highly recommend True to Your Boots to readers seeking ultimately uplifting stories about change, adaptation, love, and family-building experiences.
Packed with insights about what brings people together and encourages them to adapt, True to Your Boots takes an emotional foray into romance and the kinds of journeys that can lead full circle to home in an unexpected manner.
Dear Denver
Jaclyn Duden
Atmosphere Press
www.atmospherepress.com
9798901741672, $30.99 (HC), $18.99 (PB), $8.99 (ebook)
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Dear-Denver-Jaclyn-Duden/dp/B0GVPY7PXT
Dear Denver is a novel told entirely through journal entries about a Tennessee visitor who leaves a blank journal at a Denver bus stop and invites strangers to write:
Howdy, Denver. My name is Kelly Rugsdon. I have purchased this journal for y'all to write in. I'd like to hear anything you want to say. You don't have to sign your name; you can leave it blank or make a pen name if you like.
As contributors to the journal pen their experiences, perceptions, lives, and insights, readers receive an invigorating series of contrasts and insights into American life that come from interesting, unexpected points of view.
Readers may not expect the scope and depth of these writings. Fictional though they may be, they capture segments of American society in interesting stages of questioning, flux, and realization that prove thought-provoking and unusual for their variety and viewpoints:
If I don't fight enough for LGBTQ rights in front of all my queer companions, they'll feel betrayed because I'm so involved in the church. If I don't stay in the church, I won't find a husband who is a good Christian but loves gay people and who will do what I tell him to do and financially support my superb taste in wine and spirits. I need it all. This is something I have given considerable thought to. I'm not sure if there's any other way.
From Mauve's insights into bedrooms and private spaces and the qualities which have caused her to fall in love with Jeremiah to Greg's realizations about the influence he may have cast upon his daughter in his desire for a son after she comes out as transgender, the entries are thought-provoking, varied, and reflect a diverse cross-section of society:
What kind of man makes his own daughter believe she is a boy? How neglectful would a parent have had to be for a child to come out disbelieving their own gender? Did I spend too much one-on-one time with her? Did my desire for a boy show so much that I have done this to her?
The shared stories and lives create dialogues even as they explore the perceptions and rationales behind decision-making and life outlook, making for a novel rich in comparisons and emotional connections.
Libraries and readers that choose Dear Denver will relish the opportunity to discuss the nature and depth of these connections in book clubs and reading groups. The diversity of these characters and their candid sharing of lives create an enriching series of experiences that deserve not just food for thought, but avid discussion in women's groups, reading circles, and any discussion centered on life connections and experiences.
The Perfect Kingdom
Lily Corsello
Independently Published
9798986143248, Price: $15.99 (paperback), $5.99 (ebook)
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Perfect-Kingdom-Last-Two-Part-Novel/dp/B0GYJGPM14
Christian readers of dystopian fiction will find The Perfect Kingdom's special blend of faith-based plot and survival story just the ticket for absorbing a future world in which the new Millennial age means that hundred-year-old baby Hassadah is still just a little girl. Ben and Ruth can now enjoy extended time with their family. But is this a blessing, or something different?
Lily Corsello raises this and other questions as family life and a peaceful Millennial morning open the story with a church visit and reflection on life's blessings ... when disaster strikes. What was to be a day of hope and connection among church members turns into a grief-laden day in the Millennial Kingdom in a turn of events that is the first to spark discord in paradise.
Christian readers will readily recognize the shaken faith and questions which arise from these events:
"Is this the Lord God we serve? Do you see what's happening to us? How could He allow this now - after keeping us through the worst period of history?"
They will also appreciate how Ruth and her family come to not just question, but reflect on deeper meanings of faith and connection which arise from unexpected adversity and life-changing moments.
Is an outside force trying to attack the family's foundations? As family and church face a long recovery, many questions, and rough physical and spiritual moments, readers are brought into a world which deviates from planned perfection into realms of religious inspection. Questions buffet not just this family, but Christian readers who have struggled with their own reactions to unexpected life changes.
As Ruth's journey, The Rebellion, and other forces coalesce, a thoroughly engrossing story examining perfection, faith, tradition, and new world opportunities emerges to delight readers of dystopian fiction seeking a spiritual component in their reading.
Christian libraries will find The Perfect Kingdom an engrossing, winning story of an ultimate struggle between good and evil which begins with one family's challenges and moves into the greater world to reflect how individual choice and consequences resonate through all levels of society.
Packed with reflective moments, The Perfect Kingdom is recommended for Christian readers and reading groups interested in the intersection between sci-fi, faith, and social and spiritual examination.
Road Journals 2006-2007: 48 States By Motorcycle
Woodrow "Pack" Landfair
www.PackmanSurfsTheWorld.com
Harbinger Book Group
9781940500034, $30.00
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Road-Journals-States-Motorcycle-2006-2007/dp/B0FW59VVX6
When a back injury sidelined professional baseball player Woodrow "Pack" Landfair, he didn't just sit on the bench cheering the team. He sold nearly everything he owned to buy a motorcycle and embark on the road trip of a lifetime.
Road Journals 2006-2007: 48 States By Motorcycle follows this journey with vignettes of his experiences week by week as he addresses the basics of learning how to ride a motorcycle, then embarks on a series of life lessons and encounters. These lead him in unexpected directions - including full circle.
The endeavor, undertaken in Landfair's early twenties, opens with a reflection of how others his age are already on roads to different objectives and futures while he has "outgrown my previous self":
I thought of all my friends all over the globe doing so many things. Some of them were pitching in the major leagues. Some of them were doing drugs just blocks away. Some of my friends were in law school, some were mowing lawns, and a handful of them were half a continent and one ocean away fighting a war in the Middle East.
His journey of personal growth chronicles a series of forays into others' lives which skirt the edges of social norms. He captures conversations and reflections about American society that are rarely presented in print, offering insights that contribute to his shifting values and objectives, as with an encounter with homeless men at Thanksgiving:
I listened to conversations around the dinner tables. Some of the homeless men were talking about books they'd recently read. Others were talking about where to find jobs. One homeless man, a tall guy with black matted-down hair, was telling a group that working everyday wasn't worth it. "What's it gonna do?" He asked. "We're all gonna die. So you go to work, sit in that office for 50 or 70 hours a week and what do ya got? A nice car that takes you ten years to pay off ? A nice house where ya gotta pay the mortgage the rest of your life?" Some of the men at his table nodded. Some shook their heads. "I say, it's just not for me. My freedom's not worth that. This system doesn't make sense to me."
The most notable achievement Landfair makes in his memoir lies in vivid reflections about the ultimate impact of America's diversity and his encounters with all kinds of people, which change his attitude and life:
I had left Texas as a peon, entered New York City like a plebe. Somewhere in between New York and here, I'd gathered the strength of all the million-toone shots that formed this nation. I'd slammed them inside of me and now stood on the mountain top of the Arkansas-Oklahoma border facing the west of my future, abandoning the east of my past.
The process by which he embraces, absorbs, and reflects all these lives and encounters to revise his psyche and future will prompt many discussions among book clubs, fellow travelers, self-help readers interested in the wellsprings of growth, and audiences intrigued by road trips that prove transformational.
Librarians and readers choosing Road Journals 2006-2007: 48 States By Motorcycle will find it an outstanding example of just what can be achieved when experience and reflection meld in a journey far from familiar territory and social expectations.
Packed with vivid color and sizzling descriptions, Road Journals 2006-2007: 48 States By Motorcycle is much more than another travelogue of nomadic experience. It's ultimately a deep dive into the roots of growth that will encourage many a reader to reconsider their life trajectory and undertake their own paradigm-changing journeys.
Daffy: Laughter as Self-Care for Autism Moms with Very Little Time and No Interest in Exercise
Andrea Moriarty
Atmosphere Press
www.atmospherepress.com
9798901741757, $17.99 Paperback; $30.99 Hardcover; $8.99 ebook
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Daffy-Laughter-Self-Care-Interest-Exercise/dp/B0GVPRXJQX
Daffy: Laughter as Self-Care for Autism Moms with Very Little Time and No Interest in Exercise, a study in parenting a child with autism, comes from a mother who spent decades juggling twins, autism, and life.
Despite its subtitle reference to laughter, mothers facing the challenge of raising an autistic child may not initially believe there is fun to be had in reading Daffy - but they'd be wrong.
Reflecting the adage that "laughter is the best medicine," Andrea Moriarty proceeds to invite parents of autistic kids to reflect on their past, present, and futures in a different, unexpected way:
These painful memories accumulated in the pit of my stomach like burnt bits on the surface of a skillet. They're crusted on, stubborn, and stuck. Recently, I have discovered that laughter is the best way to clean up the result. Like water (or wine), it deglazes the surface of our souls and loosens up this gunk so it can be whooshed down the disposal. Or, better yet, whisked together with a few choice ingredients and transformed into a rich, flavorful sauce you can pour over the whole meal to improve the taste and impress your holiday guests.
Whether its encounters with the medical profession and all kinds of health challenges or the intuitive methods mothers employ to raise their kids, Daffy explores experiences that reinforce a mother's empowerment and ability to navigate all manner of life challenges:
Some rules were made to be bent. And some doctors, God bless them, trust mothers to bend them. Most of the time, by the way, moms know how and why the cotton ball got stuck up there in the first place. It's as easy as understanding our child's babbling before it's intelligible to others or intuiting what they're thinking before they say it. After lots of practice, we can also predict their reactions to stimuli.
From life hacks for Christians and spiritual readers to the experiences of other mothers as they move through public and private places with their autistic children, readers receive inviting stories which spark not just laughter, but insight and understanding:
We are so grateful for these "plants," as in people woven into the fabric of community to influence others. Not spider ivy. When Henry spent a month at an overnight independent living experience designed for his comorbid condition (not his autism), the variables started stacking up. Multiple times, poor Henry got squished in the back row of a van for outings. He's got long legs, and no one explained why he never got a turn in the front seat. It wasn't fair, and that offended him most. There were other stressors, like shared bathrooms, someone stealing his razor, and the noise of communal living. These stacked up undetected and unsupported over the course of four months until he flipped out, kicking and screaming in generalized mutiny in front of a restaurant. As his mom tells it, "He found his middle finger."
The result is unexpectedly inviting and easy to read, capturing the ups, downs, and realities of living with an autistic child of any age while showing how laughter can be part of the solution to a myriad of life challenges.
Librarians seeking a different approach to autism, parenting challenges, or empowerment will find Daffy: Laughter as Self-Care for Autism Moms with Very Little Time and No Interest in Exercise a standout for its joy, reflective scenarios, adulting challenges, and the experiences of "Daffy moms" who find their lives not just challenged, but enlightened by their experiences.
Nobody's Daughter
Jan Keyes
Magic Dog Press, LLC
9798295517570, $19.99 Paperback/$9.99 eBook
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Nobodys-Daughter-My-Quest-Family/dp/B0GT3Z3TN5
Nobody's Daughter: My Quest for a Family is a work of creative nonfiction by author Jan Keyes' which offers a portrait based of her life from when she becomes a ward of the state at age eight. Through child's eyes, she vividly portrays her family's maltreatment of her, the terror of being in institutions and in foster care, and how those experiences affected her life and the reality of not belonging to anyone.
The memoir opens with an attempted suicide of her as a desolate, single young mother. The book's theme reveals itself when Jan changes course, realizing she must remain alive in order to care for her daughter, and so chooses not to end her life. She then resolves to step up to her parental responsibilities, which are in stark contrast to her own mother who left her locked in a detention facility as a ward of the state - the cause of losing her own family. (In this preface, she recalls how she felt after her mother abandoned her, reliving the terrorizing memory detailed in Chapter 3.)
Remarkably, Jan took back her life from the state and lived on her own at sixteen; but by nineteen she had a baby of her own to care for. The journey that follows reflects her fervent desire to create a sense of normalcy for her daughter as she tries to give her daughter what she never had.
Especially poignant are the encounters she faces along the way, including attempts at making a family with foster parents who prove mercurial in their perceptions of the role foster children should assume in their lives.
More so than most accounts of foster children, family, adoption, and survival, Nobody's Daughter: My Quest for a Family offers the potential for greater understanding about family origins, decisions, and the impact of being a foster child wanted by nobody. Its personal reflections and assessments introduce valuable insights to foster parents, adoptive parents, and other surrogates called upon to assume family roles.
Another unique aspect of the story lies in the challenge of tackling motherhood without having the experience of what a "normal" family is. She compensates by engaging with other in-tact families for meaningful family experiences for herself and her daughter.
As she matures, Keyes looks for opportunities to build her career, and, during the social revolution of the 60s-70s, she learns to grow spiritually and emotionally, by developing a positive outlook. She unburdens from her past by allowing herself to forgive those who have mistreated her. In Chapter 30, "You create your own reality," becomes her mantra. This may offer hope and inspiration to many burdened by similar childhood traumas.
The jump from being a foster child, experiencing homelessness, and living in a detention facility to constructing new paradigms for family and love, nearly from scratch, makes Nobody's Daughter a vivid story of overcoming nearly impossible odds to succeed not just as a parent, but as an entrepreneur, wife, and well-rounded individual.
Keyes navigates a host of questions and possibilities surrounding her own tumultuous childhood and her impact on a future generation, reviewing issues common to parents and families both intact and struggling. These, in turn, will lead to avid book club discussions in a wide group of readers, from parenting circles to psychology students and family social workers, child welfare policymakers, and researchers documenting the psychological and social impacts of foster care on society.
This topic and Keyes's treatment of it holds a LOT of potential audience interest, and is more diverse than usual, in this respect.
Libraries that choose Nobody's Daughter: My Quest for a Family for their collections will want to very highly recommend the saga for its powerful inspections of family concepts, creation, interactions, and choices. The story's ability to delve into the heart of relationship-building, family adversity, and intentional community make its wide-ranging considerations of equally broad interest, all delivered with a vivid attention to detail and analysis of family ties that will shake even the firmest foundation of readers who believed they knew what family bonds entailed.
The Land of Everlasting Sky
Jill D. Swenson
She Writes Press
www.shewritespress.com
9798896363187, $17.99 Paperback/$12.99 eBook
Bookshop.org
https://bookshop.org/p/books/the-land-of-everlasting-sky-a-memoir-of-loss-and-legacy-on-lake-of-the-woods-jill-d-swenson/cb8a9b7d8108f41e
The Land of Everlasting Sky: A Memoir of Loss and Legacy on Lake of the Woods is a memoir steeped in contemporary First Nations affairs, friendship, issues of land usage and heritage, and history that takes Jill D. Swenson's grief and gives it new direction.
Readers interested in any or all of these topics will find it a powerfully evocative discourse on race, culture, and personal empowerment which weaves together a seemingly disparate set of values and observations, creating a narrative powerfully impactful in its tone and approach to life:
The bonfires and stories of Indian lore, the legacy of Leopold, listening to the loons at night, waking to the wild screech of herons, identifying wildflower species, hiking geological formations, re-creating a fish habitat, transforming minds and bodies with good hard work, and swimming and bathing in the small gorges of spring-fed creeks. What romantic notions I entertained about the nobility of my work.
Why wasn't I held accountable for the damages to vehicles? I don't recall feeling any sense of responsibility for those mistakes. To be young, female, and white in Wisconsin.
As Swenson struggles with loss and grief and a growing, unexpected community which emerges from it, she also discovers issues about inheritance, casino development and land usage, surprising political legacies that resonate into the choices and lifestyles of future generations, and more.
Swenson's surveys swing strongly from the political to the personal, drawing deep connections:
I had believed back then that I had deserved it. The victimization. The trauma. The drama. Without Dad playing that role in my life, I found Reggie to replace him. Even though I'd let myself fall head over heels with someone as different from my own father as I could possibly imagine, I'd accepted a dynamic even more toxic and dysfunctional.
These create a dynamic, volatile story that proves the epitome of the fine line between personal and community connection and experience, illustrating how a memoir steeped in new revelations for self can translate to bigger-picture thinking about all kinds of life encounters.
The insights about how prejudice and bigotry erase not only individuals, but entire cultures, are particularly hard-hitting and poignant when couched in personal reflection and encounters as described in The Land of Everlasting Sky.
All these reasons are why The Land of Everlasting Sky should be an essential library addition to any library strong in Native American history, culture, and memoirs.
Packed with an outstanding weaving of personal and political affairs, The Land of Everlasting Sky offers lessons and insights rarely seen elsewhere, drawing all kinds of readers into its evocative discussions.
Necromancers and Navy Grog
Melissa Jacobson
Blackridge Publishing LLC
9798992513950, $14.99 paperback/$4.99 eBook
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Necromancers-Navy-Grog-Bad-Magic-ebook/dp/B0GSX1MV1C
Necromancers and Navy Grog is a paranormal fantasy thriller steeped in San Francisco's atmosphere:
The morning fog burns away as we crest the hill on Third Street, the bay and the wharf spread out before us. Masts of the ships crowding San Francisco Bay poke through the mist like the bare bones of dead leviathans in the distance.
Female protagonist Mary Catherine (Mick)and her partner Loosh (Agent Aloysious Temple), members of the Anti Death Magic Division of the Bureau of Magical Investigation, are on a mission, chasing ghost sightings which most likely will prove to be a prank.
They aren't.
Agent Mick Kelly also possesses the gift of Gleaning (the ability to absorb supernatural power from dying souls), but falls on hard times when her partner is killed and she is suspended from the agency. Alone, she determines to confront her shifting world. The action moves from docks to museums and legendary actions to her evolving friendship with Gold Tooth Mary, a crime boss who can help Mick find her missing young apprentice.
As Gold Tooth Mary confronts a Gleaner thirsty for death and considers her own mortality, her own innate talents inject new quandaries into her confrontation of forces of magical corruption, political might, and personal empowerment in the magic-infused city.
As events coalesce around a missing relic, a vanished boy, and two women whose lives entwine in unexpected, magical ways, readers are treated to a supernatural thriller replete with diverse, strong characters whose special interests converge.
Mary seeks protection from revenants; Mick seeks redemption and answers. Their conjoined purposes create a story richly packed with political connections which are intriguing and exciting:
"How many federal agents do you think are stationed in San Francisco? Five? Maybe ten with that new task force? Now consider how many regular police patrol these streets. Perhaps three hundred on a good day, for a city of half a million if you count the transients?" Her gold tooth twinkles. "They can't be everywhere. They focus on the threats that matter, anything that might make the newspapers. A little market where desperate souls buy harmless charms and potions?" She shrugs. "That's just commerce."
The result is a fine book in the Bad Magic Historical Fantasy Series that excels with many gripping moments, powerful female characters, magical displays and confrontations, and insights into how far each individual will go in pursuit of what they value the most in their lives.
Filled with fast-paced action powered by these strong women and a realistic San Francisco backdrop, Necromancers and Navy Grog is highly recommended reading for fantasy, thriller, and paranormal genre readers alike.
Its ability to depict several realistic characters whose purposes and life examinations feel especially realistic and rich despite the fantasy influences that direct their lives makes Necromancers and Navy Grog a top recommendation for libraries looking for crossover titles that hold the capacity to appeal to an especially wide audience.
Under the Tree Ferns
Kathryn L. Robinson
https://www.kathrynlrobinson.com
She Writes Press
www.shewritespress.com
9798896363323, $17.99 Paperback/$12.99 eBook
Simon & Schuster https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Under-the-Tree-Ferns/Kathryn-L-Robinson/9798896363323
Under the Tree Ferns is an intriguing mystery set in Puerto Rico and Idaho. It moves between different milieus, a dead body, and two disparate investigators with the dexterity of a dancer, opening in a steamy mountain rainforest where a woman struggles to understand what has happened to her.
The prologue leads to a mystery which unfolds in 1942 Puerto Rico with the discovery of a corpse in the jungle. The forest is rumored to be haunted, so those tasked with locating and retrieving the body are terrified - except for police chief Moreno.
What does this event have to do with 2012 Idaho, which pops up in the third chapter? Plenty, because a family secret that played out in the jungles of Puerto Rico reaches out to involve a modern family. Pamela Palmer gets a job on the island, only to discover that her new venture immerses her in revelations about the past that could endanger her future.
Kathryn L. Robinson's story moves back and forth in time and place, but keeps these shifts logical and easy to understand as Pamela reflects on the events that brought her to Puerto Rico, and then led her to abandon a sunny island climate for the faraway chill of Idaho.
She takes the time to embed the story with a solid sense of place, capturing Puerto Rico's culture and changes through succinct descriptions:
Below, the marketplace sprawled across a courtyard the size of a city block. Of the dozens of stands, each little more than one long table and a chair, fewer than half were in use, displaying dwindling piles of tropical fruits and vegetables - green limes, yellow bananas, variegated mangoes and squash. Shoppers wandered from stand to stand, the women shaded by parasols. Vendors wore large hats to shield their faces from the sun; their calls occasionally rose above the general din. "You should see this when there's no war. Tables sag with items from all over the Caribbean, and shoppers barely have room to stand."
As 2012 turns into 2013, Pamela reflects on the lasting impact of her ex-husband's Gomez clan, the consequences of her ongoing passivity in the face of challenge, and the impact of the unresolved Morrison case on her new marriage to upper-class Luis.
The fact that the Palmer clan abhors confrontation doesn't help Pamela's struggle with her mother-in-law, her family's heritage and choices, and her difficult contemplation of Laura Morrison's death in the rainforest. Her discovery of her family's hidden tragedy leads to further anguish as Pamela struggles while other characters, including treasure hunter Henry Erlich, matriarch Angela Colon and her adopted son Eduardo, and possible murderer Jose Martin, are drawn into murky waters of connection and dysfunction.
When a scandal Pamela's mother professes to know nothing about produces new evidence that she was involved, the quest for truth embraces characters who each hold special interests in the past and a revised notion of what the future will bring.
Robinson's story neatly merges the disparate worlds of Idaho and Puerto Rico, the questions involving family legacy and truths, and the impact of a woman's murder as the years pass.
Libraries and readers seeking a novel nicely steeped in Puerto Rican culture, investigative twists and turns, and the intersection of family truths and lies will welcome how Under the Tree Ferns provides sinuous connections between characters whose ambitions and perceptions shift as new realizations emerge.
Replete with a powerful sense of community and individual responsibility, Under the Tree Ferns is a story that proves hard to put down, coming full circle in an unexpected manner to reveal a real treasure of discovery.
Dead Exit
Michael Balter
www.mbalter.com
Mission Point Press
https://www.missionpointpress.com
9781968761462, $17.99 Softcover/$29.95 Hardcover/$9.99 Kindle
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0GX2XRZ5F
Author's Website
https://mbalter.com/books
In Dead Exit, the third Marty Schott and Bo Bishop thriller adventure story, the dynamic investigative duo confronts a brother-in-law's murder which arrives on the heels of the deadly partnership they'd become entangled in previously.
It's not unusual to find the investigative leaders of a story fall under suspicion of wrongdoing themselves - but what is revealing is how Marty and Bo find old adversaries rise to confront and question them once again, while old threats from within their own organization add angst and danger to their investigations.
As their foundations shake in many ways, Marty and Bo confront cops, perps, state-sponsored syndicates, and their own proclivity to skirt the edges of danger and disaster.
The story embraces Marty's point of view, which adds interesting perspectives and experience to the evolving dilemmas. Caught between a criminal underworld and their own special interests, Marty and Bo face a series of confusing networks, international forces, and a probe that moves from personal to professional challenges.
Michael Balter leads his readers through a series of confrontations and realizations that edge ever closer to complete disaster as Marty and Bo pursue a killer poised to strike again, even closer to home.
Marty's observations and involvements add complexity and delightful personal attraction to the story as unexpected twists embrace readers in a story of international intrigue and personal challenge.
Readers will also appreciate the explicit, bold descriptions which paint powerful portraits of the emotional costs of these involvements:
All the bones in my face began to throb in sympathy with my cheekbone. Even my scalp screamed in agony.
Librarians seeking a thriller that stands nicely alone but also dovetails neatly with the personalities and motivations Marty and Bo exhibited in prior adventures will welcome the opportunity to recommend Dead Exit to a wide audience of prior fans and newcomers to their adventures.
Packed with action, Dead Exit unfolds as a sweeping saga of smuggling, corruption, and intrigue inspired by a real-world FBI sting operation. It's a story of friendship, love, and destruction - and a "dead exit" that refuses to stay dead.
The Pebble in the Pond
Suzanne Groves
Atmosphere Press
www.atmospherepress.com
9798901741214, $19.99 Paperback/$8.99 eBook
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Pebble-Pond-Tale-Stuarts-Landing/dp/B0GHF9GFRT
In The Pebble in the Pond: A Tale of Stuarts Landing, Miriam Llewelyn's move to Stuart's Landing was supposed to represent a fresh start in her life. Instead, it turns into a reason for questioning small town relationships and her own connections in life when her presence threatens the social hierarchy in ways she couldn't have predicted. A family secret, powerful long-held relationships within the community, Miriam's new friendships and a few enemies, and tragedy shape the landscape of her "new beginning."
As a social war emerges against an entrenched cotillion and long-held traditions, characters such as Louise Winston Caldwell's daughter Emma find themselves questioning the set trajectories of their lives:
"C'mon, Em," her father said. "You're smarter than this."
Smarter than challenging the mighty Louise Winston Caldwell, or smarter than standing up for what I believe?
As the women of Stuart's Landing find their differences and backgrounds clashing, readers will appreciate the many references to past connections and situations that raise new questions about relationships and community-building - especially in the face of an emerging tragedy that shakes everyone's foundations.
Tradition, ambition, and personal ties coalesce in a small-town story that embraces the choices, consequences, and growth of residents whose lives are all impacted by Miriam's arrival and past.
Suzanne Groves creates a powerful juxtaposition of personalities and special interests with historical precedents that simmer under the surface of present-day challenges. As the lives of Bitsy Butler, Louise's friend, and others turn in unexpected directions, readers will appreciate both the warmth and competition of women's lives in Stuart's Landing and appreciate how finely woven are the threads of connection and competition that drive newcomers and long-time residents alike.
Librarians interested in small-town stories about women forced to adapt secrets of the past to circumstances of the present will find this story replete with entwined lives, convictions and challenges:
Once the women finished their creme brulee, Bitsy thanked them for lunch and departed, leaving a trail of sadness in her wake. "Louise will get through this," Iris said, finishing her wine. "But you can't do it for her, nor would she want you to. Besides... we have a building to renovate and a business to birth!" Miriam wished she shared Iris's pragmatism.
Book clubs and individual readers will appreciate how The Pebble in the Pond sends ripples of possibility and change through these seemingly disparate lives as loyalties are tested, long-held ties questioned, and mysteries are tackled.
The Journey Home
Diane Hatz
www.dianehatz.com
Whole Healthy Group LLC
9798990849822, $15.99
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Journey-Home-Mind-Monsters/dp/B0GZV9TC8S
The Journey Home, the fourth book in the Mind Monster series, again follows Alex's confrontation with dark forces and tyrannical billionaires, opening with the same powerful descriptive force as the previous books:
Alex bolted toward the hallway, her improbable blonde hair streaked dark green disgust and anger black. She raced past her assistant, Dawn, waiting in the outer reception suite.
Newcomers and prior fans of Alex will be drawn to find the source of her latest angst and will easily absorb the return of mind messenger monster "Spike," whose admonitions direct her life and forge new pathways with the Spiritual Enterprise Network (a covert group that thwarts unknown threats most of the world doesn't know about).
From violating assaults by boss JT Wilson, who reconnects her with men she'd loved in the past, to the efforts of former colleague Hellie to help her, Alex encounters the rich, the deadly, and the dangerous with a strength backed by forces within and outside of her mind.
Prior readers have an edge on absorbing all these characters and influences from previous escapades, making The Journey Home especially recommendable to previous fans who will find this latest adventure easy to enter.
Newcomers have plenty to absorb, between paranormal encounters, underlying messages about courage and ongoing healing processes, the impact of vanity and wealth on society, and even kidnappings and robot bodies.
All these facets meld in a work of visionary fiction that is cemented by a proactive, creative main character whose likeable force drives a blend of psychological thriller and paranormal suspense.
Libraries seeking genre-bending stories that can be highly recommended to a wide audience of thriller readers, fans of paranormal fiction, and those who love mystery and suspense packed with unexpected twists and turns will find The Journey Home just the ticket. Its top-notch quasi-fantasy offers important insights on self-empowerment, self-love, and friendships.
I Live You Forever
Meredith Rutter Marple
Atmosphere Press
www.atmospherepress.com
9798901740149, $8.99, eBook
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Live-You-Ever-Dementia-Marriage-ebook/dp/B0GQZ71XYL
I Live You For Ever: Dementia in a Loving Marriage chronicles nine years of lovingly living with a spouse's dementia, and is drawn from personal journals Meredith Rutter Marple kept during the experience. As such, its intention is to capture the immediacy of dementia and "to give you a gut feeling for how our life morphed as we encountered his illness and lost our freedoms."
Unlike most look-backs at chronic conditions, Marple's journals captured conversations and experiences as they were happening. Nothing has been embellished or re-imagined, making this true story much more impactful than most... sensitive readers, beware.
That said, much is to be absorbed from the daily trials and movement of time captured within these pages - more so than the usual account of living with dementia and decline.
Perhaps most striking is the outline of freedoms taken for granted and lost during the process of continual adjustment and fluctuation, which outlines many dilemmas readers won't expect:
It seems to me that digital technology has increased the difficulty of dealing with dementia in its transition stages. When a person has been oriented to computers and now needs help living his life with those tools, even as he's forgetting how to use them, you can't just say no, stop using those tools. At least, I don't think a spouse can say that - or not this spouse.
From handling shifts between "old Gary" and new situations to navigating daily challenges, Marple's outline of living with dementia not only reviews her experiences, but imparts coping strategies key to understanding and adaptation:
Once home and settled with our separate projects, it's only a few minutes before I hear, "Meredith? Come here. I'm making a book." I go over and ooh and aah about his plans, not really understanding them. Then he says, "I need the paper cutter." He leaves for the back room. I can't imagine what he's envisioning. I turn to addressing holiday cards and soon notice it's been quiet too long in the back room. I'm not hearing paper cutter sounds and I'm not hearing the copier, two skills he still possesses.
These insights make I Live You For Ever especially thought-provoking and attractive to anyone embarking on a similar journey. Most of all, it displays how love is maintained and retained in the face of vast changes - an effort which could prove a near-impossibility without the guidance and experiences outlined in this book.
This is why librarians and readers need to place I Live You For Ever ahead of many others about dementia. It's both a "you are here" guide to daily interactions and regular adjustments and a blueprint for preserving love against all odds that offers rare glimpses into the process by which a marriage adapts, but retains its foundation of love.
Marple's effort is brilliant, tear-inducing, and thought-provoking, all in one.
Death and All That Follows
Javier Pinol Serra
Atmosphere Press
www.atmospherepress.com
9798901741252, $17.99 Paperback; $29.99 Hardcover; $7.99 ebook
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Death-Follows-Javier-Pi%C3%B1ol-Serra-ebook/dp/B0GR6KTN6L
Death and All That Follows tells of twins Sara and Nico, who return home to bury their mother and confront their past. It opens with a prologue set in 1981 which reviews Sara's relationship with her Guatemalan mother Raquel. Sara is thirteen and is tackling a special feeling of loneliness.
Fast forward to 1997. Sibling Nico is journeying back to the coastal town of Santa Magdalena with Sara in the aftermath of their mother's demise. As adults, each has chosen a very different path in life - Sara is a lawyer, while Nico is still searching for his place in the work world and life.
Each tackles grief and family in different ways - but the real challenge comes from joining together to confront the secrets of their childhood, which range from trauma and abuse to unacknowledged pain and connections that ripple into their adult choices and lives.
Intriguing, potentially controversial (certainly fodder for book club debate) revelations emerge from each character's life and choices, which originated in these early influences:
In college, it made her sad: hearing friends talk about orgasms, losing boys she cared for because they were sexually unsatisfied. But the sadness curdled into anger. Anger at being used. At trying to break the curse by sleeping with every pervert who offered to walk her home. The more she tried to escape it, the sicker she felt. She started smoking to ward them off. She ruled courtrooms because nothing repelled a man's man more than a successful woman. But they always came back. And a part of her - some small, shameful part - wanted them to.
Some bruises never fade. As Nico and Sara confront their monsters in different ways, readers are drawn into an engaging story of grief, obsession, and most of all, coping methods either logical or unhealthy.
Libraries seeking literary fiction that delves into psychological adaptations and life choices will find Death and All That Follows a thought-provoking story of family relationships, the lasting impact of trauma, and the influences on change which emerge from confronting the past.
Replete with moments of cultural revelation as well as individual contemplation, the story creates many engrossing realizations that readers will find thoroughly absorbing:
"Your mother fell in love with someone outside of her circumstance. And if you belong to the high ranks of Guatemalan society, well, there's nothing more despicable in their eyes. Those hateful, ignorant eyes."
Fated Rebirth
Reno R. Mist
Posh Pangolin Publishers
9798998905377, $19.99 Paperback/$4.99 eBook
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Fated-Rebirth-Fantasy-Romance-Heretical/dp/B0GN8S1845
Book 1 of the Heretical Gods duology, Fated Rebirth, is a long read that contains possible triggers, and should best be digested slowly. That said, it will absolutely delight fantasy and romance readers interested in complex sagas that reveal many unexpected twists and thought-provoking revelations. Lest readers think the romance component will be gentle or lusty, or its female protagonist Violet Shaw tender and vulnerable, the story lets it be known from its opening prologue that Violet is a force to be reckoned with:
The hemp rope around Edward Fitzgerald's throat was beautiful, precise, and tight enough to make him understand he was mine now as we stared at each other. He looked older than I remembered, impressively so, even while tied to a chair in the room that would become his coffin.
In this life, victim Edward has never made Violet his property, taken or twisted her. And he never kidnapped her.
Her companion in her mission is childhood friend Rowan Monroe, "a god's sinful angel in human form." His help is key to addressing the terrible, haunting memories of entrapment and murder which have impacted her studies at Shademore University. Rowan has faced his own monsters, and has been reborn to confront many things. Violet's mission is one of them.
Reno R. Mist's story of attraction, danger, violence, fate, and learning new things is presented with the lure of compelling realizations which will give book clubs much fodder for discussion:
Natural order. That had been the same justification Edward used when explaining why some people were born to serve, while others were born to be served ...My chest tightened. Choice and control. Freedom and survival. The same questions that had circled my skull since waking up in this younger body with older nightmares...
Mist's proclivity for focusing on bigger-picture revelations and powerful insights about protective forces and being pawns in a "game for monsters" creates intriguing inspections readers won't anticipate from a dark fantasy romance.
Embedded within these notes of discovery are ethical, moral, and psychological examinations that will lead readers to question approaches to life, death, and rebirth.
Murder, ruin, dangerous love, redemption, magic, and the clash between past and present lives and personas emerge to give readers a satisfying journey into a world where everything changes and nothing completely resolves.
Action is tempered with psychological clashes and reflections that are fast-paced yet should ideally be absorbed slowly for their depth and complexity. Again - this will delight readers who appreciate multiple thought-provoking moments in their stories over adventure alone.
Librarians interested in epic dark fantasy stories whose romances are edgy, characters powerfully proactive, and influences and intentions mercurial and interesting will find Fated Rebirth a thoroughly engrossing portrait of rage, redemption, and rebirth that's steeped in questions about fate, destiny, and choice.
Its ability to inject all kinds of questions about these circumstances makes Fated Rebirth a winner, exhibiting passion and intention in unexpected ways.
The Guardian Angel: The Recruit
Miriam Ferraresi
Atmosphere Press
www.atmospherepress.com
9798901740460, $21.99 Paperback; $33.99 Hardcover; $8.99 ebook
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Guardian-Angel-Recruit-Part-ebook/dp/B0GMYXLPWZ
The Guardian Angel: The Recruit tells of Columbian cartel second manager Jay, whose life has changed virtually overnight. As the story opens, he's just been rescued by Columbian cartel boss Tony, and is in poor condition.
Fast forward to a few days earlier, when his job for Diego, boss of the Venezuelan cartel, seemed predictable and secure. After only a few events, his world and relationships are shattered.
As the recruit builds new relationships, a new life, and a possible romance with Sinaloa Cartel boss Rita, he comes to find the complications and potential of love in new ways as strife and struggle emerge between the cartels and matters of the heart.
Readers seeking an international thriller replete with fast-paced action, shifting alliances and deliveries gone awry will find the interconnected lives of these cartel managers, overseers, and participants to be engrossing and nicely detailed.
The rich psychology of their interactions, social and political encounters, and struggles come to life in a series of dramatic events which embrace shootings and murder attempts, safe houses, angry relatives who have lost everything, and strategies gone awry as a host of interests collide.
Miriam Ferraresi brings to life the world of cartels and conflicts, drawing connections between a broad circle of interrelated activities and interests to keep readers guessing about outcomes and alliances.
Libraries seeking gripping, action-packed thrillers about South American cartels, family ties, and a touch of romance which changes everything will find it easy to highly recommend The Guardian Angel: The Recruit. It will attract readers who like their action tempered by close psychological inspection and interconnected relationship quandaries.
Rich in contrasts between Los Angeles culture and South American special interests, The Guardian Angel: The Recruit is a thriller marked by its consideration of different forms of closeness and connection - and what happens when these associations shift or fail.
An Apache Iliad
W. Michael Farmer
Otterfield
c/o Roan & Weatherford Publishing Associates, LLC
www.roanweatherford.com
9798892991025, $31.99 Hardcover/$15.99 Paperback/$9.99 eBook
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Apache-Iliad-Geronimos-Reservation-1877-1886/dp/B0GSSMSH4C
An Apache Iliad: True Stories of Geronimo's War And Reservation Life 1877-1886 should be in any collection strong in Native American history and Apache culture. It gathers powerful facts that don't appear in many other places, surveying the extent of a ten-year war in which Geronimo and his warriors defied invaders who believed their mountain refuge to be impenetrable.
W. Michael Farmer's story of how that war was lost through ideological failure rather than physical strategy makes for thoroughly engrossing reading. Audiences will include those already well versed in Geronimo's story as well as newcomers to Apache history and culture. Farmer traverses this landscape by employing drama and bringing the personalities, intentions, politics, and struggles of the frontier world to life:
Just before dawn three women and a young man (Talbot Gooday, grandson of Loco) went to check on the cooking mescal. Laughing and talking they came within twenty-five feet of the hiding scouts. Knowing the attack was about to happen anyway, the commanding officer ordered the scouts to fire and killed all four - except the army record is wrong - one of the women who ran was killed, the others managed to escape. The Apache had planned to begin an early morning march if the mescal had finished cooking. The shots were an alarm bell, and it put them in instant motion to escape.
The perceptions, strategies for battle and survival, and misconceptions between different peoples, from Natives and whites to Hispanics, create a powerful contrast in lives and intentions that not only brings these times to life, but offers insights unavailable in other considerations of Geronimo's times.
Of special note are the rivalries and retributions of major players surrounding Geronimo and Apaches which juxtapose Native experiences with the intentions and trials of other groups harboring their own special interests:
Chato thought Chihuahua might be dispirited and sent a woman with an offer to either kill Geronimo or surrender (if Geronimo had been there it might have been his end). Instead, Chihuahua and his brother, Ulzana, knowing that Ulzana's son had been killed and their families captured, swore vengeance on Chato.
The result not only retells history, but adds historic photos and rare personal source material to embrace the the times and the various peoples struggling for control of their lives and world.
Librarians will find An Apache Iliad dramatic, revealing, surprising in its depth and connections, packed with vividly narrated, true stories that intersect in unexpected ways. It will be easy to recommend to readers interested in Apache history, narrated from source material and enlivened with a "you are here" feel that turns the author's fifteen years-plus research into a highly accessible, involving story readers won't forget.
Las Mujeres
BJ Taylor
https://bjtaylorauthor.com
Atmosphere Press
www.atmospherepress.com
9798901740927, $16.99 Paperback; $28.99 Hardcover; $8.99 ebook
Author's Website
https://bjtaylorauthor.com/books/#las-mujeres
Las Mujeres is a literary historical novel set in 1800s Mexico that revolves around the women in the life of narrator Don Miguel. These are: Moroccan doctor/midwife Dona Isabel; his grandmother, the Dowager Marquesa Gavilan; his cousin, Dona Leticia; and a cadre of house fairies and Aztec deities who help mortals.
Mexico is moving from being a colony to a Republic, with all the political struggle and ideological shifts that occur with social and cultural change. Augmenting this scenario is a sense of magical realism which injects a different flavor of influence and inspection into the experiences of Mexican mortals.
Justice, spiritual redemption, mysticism, and personal evolution entwine in this story, injecting just the right degree of intrigue and interest as a murder investigation draws Don Miguel ever closer to truths about his own life and its future.
Dialogues between men, women, and forces operating on different levels of Mexican culture will spark both interest and reflective moments in readers:
As aristocrats in the New Republic of Mexico, we do not enjoy the outrageous privileges once held during colonial times. EVERYONE must be accountable, especially for the murder of working-class people. Because our constituents will not abide favors extended to landowners when ordinary citizens fought and died for independence.
Some might think a prior familiarity with Mexican history or the times will be a prerequisite to enjoying this novel, but BJ Taylor incorporates all the information and elements needed to thoroughly understand what motivates those who see their government and lives in flux.
Life unravels, then comes back together in a very different way as Las Mujeres evolves an atmosphere blending political intrigue with social issues.
Librarians seeking a novel that balances magical realism with the heady realizations of realistic characters whose lives are buffeted by personal and political processes will find Las Mujeres a fine acquisition. It's highly recommendable to readers who enjoy stories of justice, redemption, depicting men and women who bow to the forces of social and political change, but emerge from the fray more empowered.
Congress: An Irrelevant Institution or Guardian of the Republic
William L. Kovacs
Paperback Press, LLC
9781970560237, $9.99 Paperback/$2.99 eBook
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Congress-Irrelevant-Institution-Guardian-Republic/dp/1970560231
Congress: An Irrelevant Institution or Guardian of the Republic describes what most Americans already surmise: Congressional power and operations stand on a precipice that bodes huge changes for the future.
William L. Kovacs considers how America has gotten to this point, documenting decades of expanding presidential power and Congressional erosion, showing that no single party or process is the cause of the issue.
He documents a steady lean towards authoritarian rule and the ongoing decline of a system designed with checks and balances, surveying Congressional and American history with an eye to detailing the many ways in which various support systems have failed, such as taxation:
The federal tax system is flawed. It imposes higher taxes on wages and interest income while levying fewer taxes on corporations, capital, inherited wealth, and government preferred activities. The federal government taxes work and savings rather than income. As a result, the wealthy accumulate more resources, thereby gaining greater influence over the politicians who decide tax policy. For lower-income individuals, saving money is extremely difficult since all their earnings go towards basic living expenses. To the federal government, the laborer is a commodity that pays taxes.
While much of this won't be news to already-thinking readers who have historical and social analysis on their radars, the part about how America arrived at where it is today links many seemingly disparate threads of connection and dysfunction to review the shifting tides and forces at work in dissembling democratic processes.
More so than most critical surveys of American political systems, Kovacs creates a close inspection of Congress's role in all these events, considering the actions of the judicial system, administrative state, and revised frameworks of accountability.
This will give politicians, political science students, and the general public a much broader inspection of political history and choice than the usual approach to government-wide operations, narrowing the onus not just to Congress, but the systems that support its powers.
Libraries that choose Congress: An Irrelevant Institution or Guardian of the Republic for their collections will find this survey enlightening, hard-hitting, and worthy of top recommendation to political discussion groups and anyone interested in American history and politics.
Its focus on precedent, intention, and the constitutional duty of Congress and its processes creates important food for thought certain to fuel many an avid discussion.
Irkoy Crystal
Raylene Lyon
Atmosphere Press
www.atmospherepress.com
9798901741733, $20.99 Paperback; $32.99 Hardcover; $8.99 ebook
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Irkoy-Crystal-Raylene-Lyon-ebook/dp/B0GK2BCBT8
Irkoy Crystal reveals a life transformed by a hike in the mountains when Nila Brant encounters an otherworldly stranger, Rion, and finds herself bonded (in thrall?) to the Iroky Crystal, a mysterious key to becoming an Iroky Bearer that changes her world.
As ordinary encounters move into extraordinary circumstances that propel Nila into a transformative experience, readers follow her journey into empowerment and new realizations.
The weave of fantasy, magical realism, and interplanetary encounters is delivered with romantic elements of suspense that create intrigue and attraction as Rion becomes Nila's love and hero and the two tackle the challenges of courtship and destiny together.
Nila's involvement with a cast of odd characters, from pilot Tirk to "cat" Liseth's special ability to analyze, and Rona the Bearer, leads readers into a story of alliances, empowerment, and intergalactic encounters that are fueled by emotional connection and choice.
Libraries seeking sci-fi fantasies that simmer with enchanting encounters and new possibilities for connection and transformation will welcome how Irkoy Crystal takes one ordinary woman's life and turns it on end.
Replete with odd encounters and new challenges, Irkoy Crystal is about tackling the unknown and unexpected with strength and proactive thinking. This offers insights and encouragement for women facing their own paradigm-changing encounters.
Sleeping With the Enemy
Edouard Prisse
https://edouardprisse.net
Independently Published
9798253362686, $16.99 pbk / $2.99 Kindle
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Sleeping-Enemy-White-House-Misses/dp/B0GTZRND3C
Sleeping With the Enemy comes from an independent European political observer who analyzes the relationship between Trump, America, and China. It offers a close inspection of the policies between these countries past and present, considering imports and exports, how China uses the money from trade, and imbalances in the existing trade system.
Even more pointed are observations about the political and psychological influences on Beijing, Taiwan, Europe, Russia and America. These delve into conjoined interests and Chinese patterns of aggression, considering the financial powers China wields, which the average American may not realize:
In our daily lives, we do not yet feel the financial power that China already wields. Many people, therefore, have a healthy skepticism about this power. Is this not being exaggerated? That is a legitimate question. So, allow me to put things in perspective...
Readers interested in the China/US relationship could not have a better overview of the situation. Edouard Prisse considers all kinds of relationships between the countries and their changing leaders, contrasting political thinking with past and present precedents and actions to lay a historical foundation for understanding both nations today.
Even more importantly, Prisse delves into specifics about free trade and restriction that give additional value for those who would better understand the motivations and influences of each nation:
These Chinese attitudes and methods have a significant negative impact on our economies, but they still pose a far lesser threat than the massive enrichment from free trade.
From policies to missteps and successes, warning signs of danger and the actions of elite influences, and the risks of China's expanding powers, Prisse provides the kind of reasoned analysis that might only have come from an observer outside the U.S. with inside information on the actions and choices of both nations.
Librarians seeking a multidisciplinary observer's narrowed focus on the governing practice of political relationships with China and its underlying threat will find Sleeping With the Enemy a powerful survey. It's worthy of recommendation to book clubs, political science readers, and especially any group interested in China's policies, processes, and interactions with the world.
Memory, Memory, Go Away
Christopher W. Selna
Independently Published
9798993607627, $24.99 Hardcover/$13.99 Paperback/$1.99 eBook
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Memory-Away-Christopher-William-Selna/dp/B0FXLPZYS6
Memory, Memory, Go Away is a dystopian sci-fi thriller set in a future where the United Founded States of America has long struggled with a suicide and opioid epidemic. The program "Memory, Memory, Go Away" promises to obliterate that epidemic by deleting certain memories that are obstacles to leading a good life. Sounds perfect? It isn't.
The story opens with the reflections of a man who finds himself on the doorstep of a former love with murder in mind:
Oh, yes, there is a volcanic rage stored inside of him. He can easily explode like an atomic bomb. And this potential violence has been inside of him all his life... Now, he will unleash this rage boiling inside him without anyone to protect the unfortunate victims.
As readers absorb the disjointed thoughts of a psychotic personality's dreams and nightmares, the heart of a program that promises to erase them cements its allure and potential even as the danger posed by its creator's intentions emerges.
Protagonist Malcolm B. Jenners has long been fed the idealistic vision of how wonderful this program promises to be. Chapter One is a startling opening contrast to the deranged personality that introduced the story, presenting a very different family man who seemingly lives a perfect life: "...I don't remember a time in all of my life when I wasn't happy. Strange."
As the first-person story unfolds, murder, adventure, confrontation, and control entwine in unusual ways to attract readers with a powerful assessment of the costs of perfection and ceding control to others.
Christopher W. Selna creates a series of characters whose lives are transformed by the promise of an easier life in a chaotic environment such as Beatrice and her children, who also are attracted to the potential happiness posed by a program of erasing the bad stuff from their lives:
There was no packing for Beatrice; the reasons were essential and obvious. She didn't want anything from her old life to follow. She'd have gone into her new life without the clothes on her back if possible. She felt the same about her children. She wanted them naked and bare of any trace of their former life. She wanted them to forget everything. She wanted them reborn, as she had already felt.
What is the cost of rebirth, and who controls it and the world?
Selna's venture into unknown territory and possibilities creates a powerful story of the origins of insanity and reactions to a much-changed world. Issues of empowerment and choice contrast nicely with characters whose lives are changed by new possibilities - not necessarily for the better:
David received the praise and commendation with great pain. God, did it hurt! All that only stoked the anger, which continued to fuel the madness.
The result is a gripping dystopian story of adaptation, murder, madness, and transformation that offers numerous contrasts between lives and choices changed by new opportunities that represent wolves in sheep's clothing.
Libraries that choose Memory, Memory, Go Away for their collections will find it easy to highly recommend to fans of dystopian sci-fi who enjoy enlightening reflections about the importance of memories and self-control and the elements that make people individual and human. It also will prove a winner for those who enjoy psychological and social inspections, murder and intrigue, and the juxtaposition of high technology and authoritarian rule over its applications.
Filled with action and contrasts in changed lives, Memory, Memory, Go Away is a page-turner that's hard to put down - or stop thinking about.
Mortimer's Magical Goo
Megan K Palmer
https://www.megankpalmer.com/books
WinnBrook Press
9781967983124, $20.99 HB, $12.99 PB, $2.99 eBook
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Mortimers-Magical-Goo-Megan-Palmer/dp/1967983127
Mortimer's Magical Goo contains appealing illustrations by Nabila Amanda that compliment the story of a boy who refuses to clean his room - until he discovers a magical goo that will clean it for him.
The magical wishing goo seems to be everything he's needed - until Mortimer discovers that his invention comes with a hefty price tag. It relies on a special ingredient that is hard to find, and so Mortimer determines to apply it wisely. But as he uses his magical goo, he discovers that each wish includes unforeseen consequence.
Read-aloud adults can use this book to explore Mortimer's dreams and how the reality of their incarnation often negates another benefit of the dilemma which Mortimer hadn't realized until he eliminated his problem.
Mortimer's worries about making an effort, being perfect, and preserving the delightful things in life translate to a fun tale that holds many thought-provoking moments of realization about the underlying possibilities of adversity and the detriments of leading a life without challenge.
Librarians that choose Mortimer's Magical Goo for their picture book collections will find it delightfully revealing, thought-provoking, and colorful - perfect for individual recommendation, adults reading to kids, or group enjoyment.
Sinner's Prayer
Dwain Lee
www.dwainlee-author.weebly.com
Maison Laide Press
9798218702953 $25.00 Paperback/$5.99 eBook
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Sinners-Prayer-Randolph-Greg-Mystery/dp/B0GT28D7W6
The second book in the Dan Randolph/Greg Zhu mystery series has the couple involved in an even more challenging mystery that is also based on a musical note of intrigue.
Chapter headings include the names of a piece of music while religious insights permeate a story steeped in not just intrigue, but spiritual and artistic conundrums. Dwain Lee uses the "sinner's prayer" as the foundation for a story that opens with Dan Randolph's construction of a prayer for the upcoming Sunday worship service for his Parkville Presbyterian Church.
The discovery of a human skeleton buried in the church unearths a host of problems involving the disappearance of an esteemed church member forty years earlier which Dan and Greg are forced to confront. Another church member's suicide after the discovery further challenges them with accompanying issues of sexual abuse, scandal and murder.
The choices he makes places the minister in the heart of a maelstrom of issues as he faces accusations over his own possible poor choices or misconduct while tackling bigger issues in his church than faith or its lack thereof.
Lee includes flashbacks from present to past, introducing readers to situations and scenarios that reinforce the couple's lives, faith, choices, and shifting circumstances. Embedded in these different challenges is love and social reflections:
Greg slipped his hand into Dan's. Dan looked into Greg's moist eyes and saw tenderness, compassion, and... what?
"I'm proud of you."
Dan stared into his lap. They're going to come after us, he thought. Our equality. Our civil rights. Our marriage. All of it. They want to erase us. And not just us, but a lot of others, too. They are not going to get away with it.
As truths and guilt surface, readers will find themselves grappling with issues regarding LGBTQ+ equality, spirituality, psychological entanglements, motivations for murder and suicide, and more.
Sinner's Prayer is dark, but it also holds the light of love as Greg and Dan pursue answers that lead to further enlightenment about their own choices, lives, and future.
Readers seeking a murder mystery entwined with changing social conundrums and issues of acceptance, truth, legacy, and redemption will find Sinner's Prayer more than a murder mystery alone. It's a consideration of roles in the community and church which allows thinking readers to absorb many insights about diversity and social change.
Diane C. Donovan, Senior Reviewer
Donovan's Literary Services
www.donovansliteraryservices.com
Gary Roen's Bookshelf
Robert B. Parker's Booked: A Sunny Randall Novel
Alison Gaylin
Putnam
c/o Penguin Random House
www.penguinrandomhouse.com
9780593854402, $30.00 HC/ $14.99 Kindle
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Robert-Parkers-Booked-Sunny-Randall/dp/0593854403
"Robert B. Parker's Booked", the 13th novel in the continuing series of Sunny Randall, is a great addition to this series of enduring mysteries. In this outing Sunny is hired by a bestselling author to confront the person who has written an unfavorable review of her forthcoming nonfiction title and try to get an apology. Shortly into her investigation her client is charged with murder. Now she has to deal with that as well as finding who was out to destroy the writer she represents. The story rapidly moves along to a surprising ending that it hoped never happens in the publishing world. "Booked" is first class entertainment for the many Robert B. Parker fans.
Tom Clancy Rules Of Engagement: A Jack Ryan Novel
Ward Larsen
Putnam
c/o Penguin Random House
www.penguinrandomhouse.com
9780593718094, $32.99 HC/ $14.99 Kindle
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Clancy-Rules-Engagement-Jack-Novel/dp/0593718097
A Jack Ryan novel is always something to look forward to and "Tom Clancy Rules Of Engagement" is a very satisfying addition to the long running cycle of Ryan adventures. The tense nail biting thriller opens with the secretary of commerce and others in his team on a mission for the country die in a horrific way. President Jack Ryan is given the news a short time later, he also is informed something is not kosher in the representative's demise. Ryan orders different factions of covert operatives and military personnel to investigate and take action if it was something more than an accident as it appears to be. "Tom Clancy Rules Of Engagement" is a gripping whirlwind of action adventure sure to please the most jaded reader.
Stuart Woods' Deep Water: A Stone Barrington Novel
Brett Battles
Putnam
c/o Penguin Random House
www.penguinrandomhouse.com
9798217179275, $32.00 HC/ $14.99 Kindle
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Stuart-Woods-Water-Stone-Barrington/dp/B0FPKYM9PK
"Stuart Woods' Deep Water" is the 67th in the series of Stone Barrington adventures, is a high-speed, thrilling jaunt to the end filled with numerous plot twists. Stone is out on the yacht of a client when something happens to the boat tossing hm into the water. He wakes up in the hospital to find he is one of four survivors. His client is not one of them. When he is able, he has to contact the beneficiaries of a will he did for the craft possessor. At the same time an old friend shows up to ask for help with a situation she is having that he ends up involved in. "Stuart Woods' Deep Water" has several directions it takes that lead to a pistol packing slam bang ending guaranteed to thrill fans of Stone Barrington.
I Will Ruin You
Linwood Barclay
William Morrow
c/o Harper Collins
www.harpercollins.com
9780063276321, $18.99 pbk / $10.99 Kindle
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/I-Will-Ruin-You-Novel/dp/0063276321
Consistently Linwood Barclay is a name you can trust, for a suspenseful tale. "I Will Ruin You" is another topnotch thriller that keeps readers glued to the story. Mark LeDrew, a former student at a high school, comes back with an attached bomb to his body, to carry out his revenge for someone there. English teacher Richard Boyle, jumps into action, to keep LeDrew from entering the building, by directly confronting him, steering him to the athletic field, where the bomb explodes. Boyle is declared a hero for saving the students, but his life drastically changes as he learns there was more to LeDrew's downfall, that involves so many other people. The tension never wavers, as the meticulous pacing unfolds with strong writing, believable characters and a complicated plot till the very end. "I Will Ruin You" is a great title for anyone to enter the world Linwood Barclay.
I'm Not The Only Murderer In My Retirement Home
Fergus Craig
Berkley
c/o Penguin Random House
www.penguinrandomhouse.com
9798217189052, $30.00 HC / $14.99 Kindle
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Not-Only-Murderer-Retirement-Home/dp/B0F929CHBR
"I'm Not The Only Murderer In My Retirement Home" hooks readers with its unique title, that begs to be opened to find out what is going on. Carol, a woman put away in prison for her multiple number of murders, is about to be released, looking forward to the beginning of a whole new life at a retirement home. She hopes to keep her past life hidden, as she enters her new existence with many other senior citizens. But as fate would have it some of the tenants learn about her and feel uncomfortable especially when bodies begin to add up. The writing smoothly drifts along, with numerous characters and situations make this a wonderful laugh out loud mystery, for an enjoyable ride. "I'm Not The Only Murderer In My Retirement Home" is fast paced yarn that is a rollercoaster of fun.
The Picasso Heist
James Patterson and Howard Roughan
Little, Brown and Company
c/o Hachette Book Group
https://www.hachettebookgroup.com
9781538758434, $32.00 HC / $14.99 Kindle
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Picasso-Heist-Thriller-James-Patterson/dp/1538758431
Patterson and Roughan are back again with another fabulous thriller with "The Picasso Heist." The art world learns there is a long-forgotten Picasso painting that few have ever known about until it is found, in a French home in the attic. From then on different characters become involved with this incredible artistic masterpiece, to find a way to profit from it so many different ways. The complicated plot races along, to its conclusion with rapid fire excitement. "The Picasso Heist" is like a pot of soup stirred until done with all the ingredients that come together for an enjoyable feast.
Blood Moon
Sandra Brown
Grand Central Publishing
c/o Hachette Book Group
https://www.hachettebookgroup.com
9781538742983, $30.00 HC / $11.99 Kindle
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Blood-Moon-Sandra-Brown/dp/1538742985
"Blood Moon" is another Sandra Brown yarn of excitement. This time out Detective John Bowie, has some personal conflicts to resolve as well as his superiors of the Louisiana police department would love to have him off the force, because he gets results his own way. Enter another complication of Beth Collins a producer on Crisis Point a news investigative magazine show. She has the belief that a serial killer is there about to commit another murder when there is the next moon cycle called a blood moon because all the others have been in the same cycle. Bowie and Collins come together to expose and stop the killer as well as deal with other cops out to take down Bowie before the nest pattern of the moon completes its sequence. "Blood Moon" delivers rousing uneasiness, strong writing, a complicated plot for a page turning thriller.
Pendergast: The Beginning
Douglas Preston & Lincoln Child
Grand Central Publishing
c/o Hachette Book Group
https://www.hachettebookgroup.com
9781538765746 $30.00 HC / $14.99 Kindle
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Pendergast-Beginning-Agent-Douglas-Preston/dp/1538765748
For so long these two authors have collaborated, on standalone works, as well as distinctive series. "Pendergast: The Beginning" reveals how Pendergast became the established agent readers have enjoyed for many years. Dwight Chambers has enough to deal with, just after the death of his partner and wife, when he is told he is to train a new man named Pendergast, who is not easy to work with. In fact, he gets both agents suspended. Pendergast has been monitoring a case in Mississippi, that he decides to look into, dragging Chambers along. What they find is an intricate set of murders they become determined to solve. "Pendergast: The Beginning" is a rollercoaster ride of bizarre situations that is rapid pacing to its final conclusion.
Creating a Joy-Centric Culture: A Leader's Journey Through Dream, Believe, Dare Do
Bill Capodagli
Capodagli Jackson Consulting
https://capojac.com
9798994418000 $18.99 pbk / $9.99 Kindle
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Creating-Joy-Centric-Culture-Leaders-Journey/dp/B0GRG932GD
Why do few businesses do fantastically while and most have to merge with other companies to stay afloat? "Creating a Joy-Centric Culture" has lots of ways to improve revenues, employee satisfaction with their job and environment. The principals are not new by no means, but things people have forgotten possibly because of our overwhelming techno society. Walt Disney, The Four Seasons Hotel and many others are utilized to promote their principals. while some of the aspects are not asking who is responsible for something going wrong, but what was it that was negative to fix it, letting employees make certain decisions where a customer ends up pleased how it was handled. One example is with the Four Seasons event where a person attending did not have the proper attire until a staff member, found a way to resolve the problem. "Creating a Joy Centric Culture" is a wonderful guide book that should be utilized by all companies in their worker training programs from CEOs to all other levels to have a more harmonious more productive workplace environment.
Just Try It! Someplace New!
Phil & Lilly Rosenthal, authors
Luke Flowers, illustrator
Simon & Schuster Books For Young Readers
https://www.simonandschuster.com/kids
9781665942652, $19.99 HC / $7.99 Kindle
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Just-Try-Someplace-Phil-Book/dp/1665942657
"Just Try It! Someplace New!" Lil, a young girl, is told by her dad they are going to be spending three days with Grandma at her house. Lil dreams up many reasons she will not enjoy her time there like the bed she will sleep in will be itchy, they will be served only broccoli for everything, and many other negative things. Grudgingly she goes with her dad. What she learns is things are not always as they seem. Although "Just Try It! Someplace New!" is geared toward kids, all age groups should read, enjoy, and learn from it to be more open to diverse stimuli in life.
Gary Roen
Senior Reviewer
Helen Dumont's Bookshelf
Sweet, Tart, and Golden: Apples in the Midwestern Imagination
Lucy M. Long
3 Fields Books
c/o University of Illinois Press
https://www.press.uillinois.edu
9780252049781, $110.00, HC, 200pp
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Sweet-Tart-Golden-Midwestern-Imagination/dp/0252049780
Synopsis: Whether Jonagolds or Ida Reds, the apple provides Midwesterners with both a versatile food and a powerful archetype of their culture and heritage.
With the publication of "Sweet, Tart, and Golden: Apples in the Midwestern Imagination", Lucy M. Long examines the ubiquitous fruit's place in regional culture and its role in how people in the Midwest think of themselves and the wider world.
"Sweet, Tart, and Golden" deftly guides readers to festivals and introduces them to orchard owners while tracing the history of how apples became a central part of Midwesterners' landscape, leisure, tables, and way of life. Johnny Appleseed folklore, sustainability and the apple business, the meanings behind the Grand Rapids Applebutter Fest, a recipe for apple caramel cheesecake.
Revealing this quintessential American fruit in all its glory, "Sweet, Tart, and Golden" ably blends food history with on-the-ground exploration to tell the multifaceted story of the apple.
Critique: Original, exceptional, informative, and an inherently interesting read (especially for apple lovers!), "Sweet, Tart, and Golden: Apples in the Midwestern Imagination" is a unique and unreservedly recommended addition to personal, professional, community, and college/university library Food Science/Fruit collections and supplemental curriculum studies lists. It should be noted that this hardcover edition of "Sweet, Tart, and Golden" from 3 Fields Books is also readily available for students, academia, and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject in paperback (9780252089459, $22.95) and in a digital book format (Kindle, $9.99).
Editorial Note: Lucy M. Long is the founder and director of the Center for Food and Culture. Her books include Culinary Tourism: Eating and Otherness. There is an online listing of her books at Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/list/176469.Lucy_M_Long
Adventures in the Louvre: How to Fall in Love with the World's Greatest Museum
Elaine Sciolino
W. W. Norton & Company
www.wwnorton.com
9781324021407, $29.99, HC, 384pp
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Adventures-Louvre-Worlds-Greatest-Museum/dp/1324021403
Barnes & Noble
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/adventures-in-the-louvre-elaine-sciolino/1145603129
Synopsis: The Louvre is the most famous museum in the world, attracting millions of visitors every year with its masterpieces. With the publication of "Adventures in the Louvre: How to Fall in Love with the World's Greatest Museum", Elaine Sciolino immerses herself in this magical space and helps us fall in love with what was once a forbidding fortress.
Exploring galleries, basements, rooftops, and gardens, Sciolino demystifies the Louvre, introducing us to her favorite artworks, both legendary and overlooked, and to the people who are the museum's lifeblood: the curators, the artisans producing frames and engravings, the builders overseeing restorations, the firefighters protecting the aging structure.
Blending investigative journalism, travelogue, history, and memoir, Sciolino walks her readers through the museum's front gates and immerses them in its irresistible, engrossing world of beauty and culture. Adventures in the Louvre reveals the secrets of this grand monument of Paris and basks in its timeless, seductive power.
Critique: Exceptional, informative, and an inherently fascinating read from start to finish, "Adventures in the Louvre: How to Fall in Love with the World's Greatest Museum" by Elaine Sciolino is enhanced for the reader's benefit with an Introduction (Falling for the Louvre), 53 B/W photographs, an Appendix (Reimagining the Louvre), two Appendices (Parting Strategies & A Selection of Artists and Works), a twelve page Chronology, an eight page Selected Bibliography, and a thirteen page Index. Thoroughly 'reader friendly' in organization and presentation, "Adventures in the Louvre" is an extraordinary and unreservedly recommended pick for personal, professional, community, and college/university library French Travel Guide, French History, and Art History collections in general, and The Louvre Museum in particular. It should be noted that this hardcover edition of "Adventures in the Louvre" from W. W. Norton & Company is also available in paperback (9781324123439, $21.99), and in a digital book format (Kindle, $9.99).
Editorial Note: Elaine Sciolino (https://elainesciolino.com) is the former Paris bureau chief for the New York Times and the author of six books, including the bestsellers "The Only Street in Paris" and "The Seine". She currently resides in Paris.
The Sleep You're Longing For
Ken Wytsma
Brazos Press
c/o Baker Publishing Group
www.brazospress.com
9781587436826, $21.99, PB, 256pp
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Sleep-Youre-Longing-Connects-Happiness/dp/1587436825
Barnes & Noble
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-sleep-youre-longing-for-ken-wytsma/1147595983
Synopsis: We often overlook the power of sleep -- until we struggle to get enough of it. Our culture glorifies productivity and achievement, yet millions suffer from chronic exhaustion, stress, and anxiety. If we could sleep better, could we live better?
Ken Wytsma, an educator who has grappled with chronic illness, insomnia, and years of fragmented rest, believes we can. "The Sleep You're Longing For: How Rest Connects Us to Happiness, Healing, and Hope" is his compassionate and empowering guide that:
Reframes sleep not just as a health necessity but as a foundation for physical, mental, and spiritual well-being; Explains the surprising connection between rest and creativity, happiness, and resilience; and Offers concrete strategies for repatterning the thoughts and habits that keep us awake.
A natural storyteller, Wytsma deftly blends research with personal reflection to explore why modern life makes rest so elusive and what happens in our bodies and minds when we finally surrender to sleep. For those ready to take action, he offers practical wisdom for overcoming sleep struggles, including ten practical approaches for reclaiming the sleep you long for.
An encouraging and fascinating guide, "The Sleep You're Longing For: How Rest Connects Us to Happiness, Healing, and Hope" will help you escape the cycle of exhaustion and rediscover the joy of a well-rested life.
Critique: Exceptionally well written, impressively informative, and thoroughly 'reader friendly' in tone, organization and presentation, "The Sleep You're Longing For: How Rest Connects Us to Happiness, Healing, and Hope" by Ken Wytsma will be a timely and unreservedly recommended pick for anyone having to deal with being exhausted due to inadequate sleep. While highly recommended for personal reading lists, as well as community and college/university library Sleep Depravation/Disorders collections and supplemental curriculum studies lists, it should be noted that this paperback edition of "The Sleep You're Longing For: How Rest Connects Us to Happiness, Healing, and Hope" from Brazos Press is also readily available in a digital book format (Kindle, $17.27).
Editorial Note: Ken Wytsma (https://kenwytsma.com) is a writer and teacher with a love for exploring how history, philosophy, and culture shape the way we live today. He has spent nearly two decades speaking and teaching at universities and conferences around the world, inviting people into deeper conversations about meaning and purpose. A natural storyteller, Ken blends research with personal reflection to make big ideas approachable and engaging. He is also an entrepreneur who has started organizations, guided nonprofits, and launched creative projects that connect people across disciplines and communities.
Helen Dumont
Reviewer
John Taylor's Bookshelf
The Proxy Condition
Harrison Rose Tate
ECS Publishing
https://www.ecspublishing.com
9798998773747, $18.99, PB, 275pp
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Proxy-Condition-Reshaped-Attention-Identity/dp/B0FBMKZ1JM
Barnes & Noble
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-proxy-condition-harrison-rose-tate/1147755978
Synopsis: "The Proxy Condition: How Systems Reshaped Attention, Identity, and What It Means to Be Present" by Harrison Rose Tate is an inherently fascinating and thought-provoking study that challenges the architecture of digital life itself. With clarity and force, it reveals how we have come to inhabit a world designed around proxies; stand-ins for attention, presence, emotion, and even identity. These proxies interact, multiply, accelerate, and begin to shape who we think we are, sometimes obscuring truth. We live in two places at once. One is physical. The other is constructed by the systems we interact with.
Drawing from philosophy, cognitive science, design theory, social psychology, epistemology, and system logic, "The Proxy Condition" names the invisible structures that govern our time and behavior. The book traces the evolution of presence as a system requirement, no longer defined by proximity or intention. What shapes reality now is influence, and what is influenced shapes reality.
Additionally, "The Proxy Condition" gives readers language for what they've been feeling but couldn't name, establishing a realistic framework for navigating it with integrity.
Both analysis and artifact, responsible and fearless in its approach, "The Proxy Condition" is the foundational text for a new paradigm in human-digital relations.
Critique: An original, iconoclastic, seminal, groundbreaking and meticulous study, this paperback edition of Harrison Rose Tate's "The Proxy Condition: How Systems Reshaped Attention, Identity, and What It Means to Be Present" from ECS Publishing is an extraordinary and unreservedly recommended addition to personal, professional, community, and college/university library Contemporary Social Philosophy/Technology collections and supplemental Communications/Media curriculum studies lists.
Editorial Note: The extensive role of Harrison Rose Tate (www.harrisonrosetate.com) over the last two decades as a writer and documentarian has largely been on behalf of corporations, often without a byline. Her work has appeared in essays, articles, technical publications, and archival formats. Her academic background includes a master's degree, but most of her insight comes from years spent inside the system; building it, running it, watching how it shapes the people who use it.
Practical Projects for the Handy Man, 3rd Edition
By the Editors of Popular Mechanics Press
Introduction by David Stiles
The Lyons Press
c/o The Globe Pequot Press
www.globepequot.com
9781493094516, $29.95, PB, 478pp
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Practical-Projects-Handy-Man-Yourselfer/dp/1493094513
Barnes & Noble
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/practical-projects-for-the-handy-man-editors-of-popular-mechanics-press/1147508792
Synopsis: Now in a newly published third edition from The Lyons Press, "Practical Projects for the Handy Man: More than 700 Projects for the Do-It-Yourselfer" from Popular Mechanics Press is the perfect instructional guide for any model maven, do-it-yourselfer, or just plain grown-up kid.
Originally published in 1913 by the editors of Popular Mechanics Press, this gigantic collection of activities and improvements for home, garden, transportation, recreation, and more can keep a pair of hands busy for a lifetime.
Written at a time when precision and craftsmanship were as important as the final product, this new edition of "Practical Projects for the Handy Man" provides clear, step-by-step instructions and offers detailed illustrations for nearly every job. "Practical Projects for the Handy Man, 3rd Edition", is as satisfying and reliable a guide for the modern builder as it was at the turn of the century.
Some of the hundreds of fun and fascinating projects from which to choose include:
Porch swing chair
Toboggan sled
Mission library table
Homemade still
Electric clock
Aquarium
Wooden paddleboat
Treehouse
Grape arbor
Leatherwork
Ornamental ironwork
Bird house
Telescope
and much more
Critique: Exceptionally well organized and presented, this newly published third edition of "Practical Projects for the Handy Man: More than 700 Projects for the Do-It-Yourselfer" is an extraordinary 'reader friendly' DIY resource for anyone wanting to engaging in building or repairing all manner of projects. This large format (7 x 0.3 x 10 inches, 1.82 pounds) trade paperback edition is a unique and unreservedly recommended addition for personal, professional, community, and college/university library DIY Home Improvement/Design, and Carpentry/Construction collections. It should be noted that this new third edition of "Practical Projects for the Handy Man" from The Lyons Press is also readily available in a digital book format (Kindle, $21.99).
Editorial Note #1: Since 1902, Popular Mechanics (www.popularmechanics.com) has been the authority on how our world works. They bring their readership the latest news on innovations and inventions across the automotive, DIY, science, technology, and outdoor spaces. They also serve their readers with the knowledge they will need to get the most out of life, whether that's how to change a tire, how to build a farmhouse table, how to find your lost phone, or how to hike the Appalachian Trail. Popular Mechanics is about wonder, about being curious about the world around us, and it's about getting our hands dirty, too!
Editorial Note #2: David Stiles (https://www.stilesdesigns.com) is an industrial designer and has written twenty books on do-it-yourself building projects, including The Lyons Press's How to Build Treehouses, Huts and Forts. His playground designs have won awards from the New York City planning commission.
John Taylor
Reviewer
Kathryn Atwood's Bookshelf
Human of the Year: A Novel
Beka Wueste
Fox Island Press
9781967077090, TBA ebook
9781967077106, $TBA Hardcover
9781967077113, $TBA Paperback
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Human-Year-Beka-Wueste/dp/1967077118
"You aren't going in to see him, he's coming out to meet you. You aren't going in to see him, he's coming out to meet you. You are NOT going inside to see him, he's coming outside... outside... "
"Jenny had repeated this to herself (half mantra and half reminder) for the past several weeks. She started when she received confirmation of the date and time for Matt's release. She'd visited her brother at the prison well over one hundred times, so many she'd lost track years ago. Jenny was used to going there, but she was used to going there alone, and leaving alone. This chant she rehearsed helped her come to terms with the fact that he really was coming home with her this time.
She repeated it when she got off the phone each time she fought with her parents about the living arrangement. She especially repeated it after her mother, Helene, clarified, again, that she "won't be coming to visit as long as he," the reference to her oldest child always spit from her mouth like venom, "is staying there".
She repeated it after her father, Ted (more conciliatory but still dubious) reminded her, "Jenny, you and Hector have so much on your plate, you don't need one more project... and I'm not sure Julia needs him as an influence."
She repeated it to herself as she read countless resources about recidivism, filled with statistics on the high likelihood of arrest within the first ninety days after release, and a return to prison within the first year."
This compelling opening of Beka Wueste's third novel, "Human of the Year," places the reader in the middle of a gripping tale about family dynamics, emotional survival, and second chances.
Despite his privileged upbringing 20 years prior, teenaged Matt decided to create a drug enterprise, selling to his equally privileged fellow classmates. He was caught, tried as an adult, and sentenced. At the outset of the story, he has been invited by his younger sister, Jenny, to live in her home with her husband Hector, and their small daughter.
As the opening lines illustrate so clearly, the stakes are high. Will Matt adjust to life on the outside? Will he be able to function at his new job graciously provided by his brother-in-law? Will his parents - who lost careers and reputations because of Matt's crimes - ever forgive their son? And will the embittered vengeful parent of one of Matt's former "customers" leave him in peace?
The novel switches points of view from Matt to Jenny and the reader cannot help being squarely in both of their corners. Matt is no longer the cocky teen who ran a drug enterprise and Wueste makes us feel his fears and complete disorientation. And because he kept very much to himself while in prison, he has become unaccustomed to relationships and cannot respond as he would like to his sister's nervous affection and concern, or his brother-in-law's generosity, though he is deeply appreciative of both.
There's much at stake for Jenny too, as she has taken a great risk, jeopardizing her relationship with her parents (and possibly her career) for her brother. But she has married into a warm, loving Mexican American family, a completely different environment than was provided her by her white, privileged, social-climbing, success-hungry parents and the wealthy grandparents who wrote Matt out of their wills while he was behind bars.
And this presents the only quibble I had with the book. At first, I thought I could easily get past the broad stereotypical strokes with which Wuest seems to be painting: White families=bad. Hispanic families=good. Matt is saved from the cold mercies of his white parents because his sister has found love with a Mexican American who is warm, wise, likeable, and written as a character without any noticeable flaws.
But as I continued to read, I realized that the entire plot points an accusing finger at the novel's rich white parents who overextend their children with the type of extracurricular activities that garner trophies. At one point, when Jenny point blank blames her ambitious mother for Matt's fall, I couldn't be sure that the author was not trying to say it through her character.
The reader, however, will likely get beyond this issue because it is the framing of the story, not the story itself. Wueste is an excellent writer, and her main characters feel very real. We care deeply about Matt. We care deeply about Jenny and her endearing little family. We hope against hope that cold hearts will melt. It's a bit slow moving at times, but the story contains too many details and gradual character alterations for it to be otherwise.
Readers will surely enjoy this emotional ride, with all its twists and turns, hanging on until the very end.
How Normal People Get Rich: Avoid the Traps, Build the Wealth
Josh Weaver
Weaver Publishing
9798234009449, $18.99, HC, 176pp
9798234009456, $10.99, PB
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/How-Normal-People-Get-Rich/dp/B0H13GVL5N
"In this book, rich doesn't mean private jets. It means being in control and having options. You start with one solid first step that makes the rest possible. Everything else builds from there." -- Josh Weaver
"How Normal People Get Rich" is an informative read that more than fulfills the above quote, taken from chapter one. The steps Josh Weaver suggests are a foundation of common sense layered with knowledge, the latter which might not be apparent to everyone.
The chapters are organized within the following headings:
Step One: Stop the Bleeding
Step Two: Kill the Leaks
Step Three: Lock the System
Step Four: Protect and Prepare
Step Five: Quiet Wealth
Each "step" includes multiple chapters which are then organized under headings for additional clarity. For example, chapter 8, titled "Breaking the Car Payment Curse" (which appears under "Step Three: Lock the System"), contains the following topics:
The Monthly Payment Mirage
Rent with Rims
Your Last Car Payment
The Checklist that Breaks the Cycle
Though some of his advice may seem obvious, at least in the earlier chapters, his ideas are presented in clever memorable ways. For instance, he describes two ways to become debt-free:
The snowball method (that is, paying off the smallest loan balance first so you get something paid off, psychologically helpful) or the avalanche method (paying off the highest interest rate first).
Weaver's straightforward style is like listening to a trusted friend who has made good choices but understands clearly (and without condescension) how someone else might take a wrong turn.
"How Normal People Get Rich" has something for everyone, no matter at which life stage they find themselves or what degree of financial intelligence they possess.
Memorial: The Year My Dad and I Stopped Keeping Score
Nita Sweeney
Mind, Mood, and Movement
https://mindmoodandmovement.com
9798988074434, $34.99, HC, 306pp
9798988074441 (paperback) $TBA
9798988074458 (ebook) $TBA
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Memorial-Year-Stopped-Keeping-Score/dp/B0H13HQXM7
Nita Sweeney's new book, "Memorial," chronicles 1995, the year her father was given a terminal diagnosis. Although the term "journey" can be overused, that's precisely what this book is: a journey not only through an adult child's impending loss of a parent, but a journey into a daughter's past as she seeks to make sense of her relationship with her father.
The story is framed in terms of golf, a game in which her father excelled and which Sweeney often joined him during their final year together. The chapters are divided into sections headed by golf terms (The Approach, The Front Nine, The Turn, The Back Nine) and each is set up with an inspirational quote from a golf superstar which can be applied not only to the game played with drivers and irons but also to a woman seeking to be the best version of herself in an emotionally difficult situation.
Sweeney's writing is often beautifully evocative, as seen in the following excerpt which depicts a scene prior to 1995:
"Mom and Dad picked me up at the airport in Phoenix and we drove north to Sedona. The first morning, we stood on the bank at Red Rock Crossing watching Oak Creek rush past. I was thinking about the seven-year relationship I had ended. As with most major decisions, I hadn't consulted my parents. I was playing "happy camper," pretending I was fine, life with my female roommate was swell, and things back home would go on as they expected. Cottonwood leaves swirled around us on the sandy shore and I looked up at Cathedral Rock. The sun's rays formed diamond patterns on the ground and across my white leather sneakers. Deep green water smoothed the rocks as it had for thousands of years, wearing away the rough edges. As I struggled to take in the awe-inspiring scenery, my chest began to fill with the familiar feeling of a balloon blowing up inside me..."
"Memorial" weaves in and out of multiple timelines, where we learn that Sweeney's sensitive nature and previous high-demand profession led her into a deadly downward spiral before her father's diagnosis. In the hands of a less talented author, this back and forth might create a sense of disjointedness, but Sweeney's segues are flawless and the shifting timeline only serves to layer and deepen the story.
The golf theme ultimately works well as a motif for the father-daughter relationship, as related by the author toward the end of the book:
"Every game my father and I played on the golf course was an opportunity for him to give me a lesson. It never dawned on him that we were keeping score of entirely different things. I was there for the sunshine, the trees, and the time with him. If I had tried to explain, he would have said, "A thing worth doing is a thing worth doing well."
When he stood behind me and put his arms around me to help me with my grip and stance, I could feel the urgency in his hands. He would pull my arms around in a circle the way they were supposed to go. He had needed me to get better.
By the end of the summer, when he tried to guide me that way, the resentment I'd previously felt had vanished. I didn't even tense. This is who he is."
Although "Memorial" will particularly resonate with readers familiar with mental health issues and difficult family relationships, it will also be appreciated by anyone who enjoys a beautifully written, well-constructed, emotionally charged memoir.
What She Left Behind
Scott Petinga
Published by HRTLND
ISBN, Price, Format, Page Count TBA
To commemorate his romantic relationships, Scott Petinga has collected more than ticket stubs and photographs. He's written a series of poems and "confessions" which form the essence of his book, "What She Left Behind."
Petinga doesn't seem to harbor bitterness toward his past lovers, writing the following in his acknowledgements:
"To the women in this book-
You were not muses. Muses are passive. You were not.
You moved. You laughed. You left - or stayed - or stood in a
particular light and did something to me I am still paying for."
We can leave relationships, certainly, but how many of us care to admit, as Petinga does, that a part of each connection takes up permanent residence in our souls?
"All of them left something behind - a word, a wound, a spark - something I'm still watching grow/without knowing what it will become."
The poems in "What She Left Behind" are organized via relationship stages:
Chapter One: Glimpse
Chapter Two: Wonder
Chapter Three: Want
Chapter Four: Burn
Chapter Five: Remain
The lines in the first section, which demonstrate Petinga's gift for describing the essence of his lovers before intimacy, almost read like a 21st-century version of romantic medieval troubadour poetry:
your face -
sun-drunk
salt-slick
hair tangled like seaweed
beneath a sky
that forgot how
to stop being blue
and you (almost-smiling)
hold the horizon whole
inside a single glance
while the sand still trembles
where your body
meets the earth
As I read through "What She Left Behind", I collected more lines than I could reasonably expect to include in this review, but I couldn't leave out the following, also from section one:
my pulse
blanks out
numbers drunk
and useless
when your shadow
crashes into mine
the frost unbuttons
my shivering soul
whenever you appear
Petinga's poems are endearingly passionate and I'm not sure how any woman could resist someone reading the following to/about her from the final section, "Remain":
oh if heaven
(being kind for once)
should loosen
fate's tight fingers
I should be granted
the small
(immeasurable)
privilege
of walking
beside her
for every
last breath I own
but if time
(cruel thing that it is)
chooses otherwise
still -
I will keep her
like a dream
refuses waking
(unfading)
forever
almost
mine
And these lines, placed toward the end of the final section, though calmer, are still beautiful:
the stars
that drew us
together -
will one day
scatter themselves
so perfectly
across the heavens
like
The Starry Night.
Petinga's work is not necessarily polished, and except for center page alignment, one can't precisely call it crafted. But his word choice is often astonishing, almost as if he were a poetic version of Hemingway, a writer who also got to the heart of the matter in few words. The essence of many of these poems is truly stunning, and anyone immortalized in this collection should be honored at what she inspired within the soul of an artist.
Scott Petinga: Cancer survivor. Girl dad x3. Cancer gave him a war. Words gave him a way through. His daughters gave him the sacred burden of becoming the standard every man in their lives will one day be judged against. Still single. Still believes in the kind of love that makes all the pain make sense.
Ivy in America
Diane Helentjaris
https://www.dianehelentjaris.com
Alkira Publishing
https://www.alkirapublishing.com
ABN: 32736122056
9781922893055, $TBA, PB, Page Count TBA
Publication Release date: August 28, 2026
Alkira Publishing
https://alkirapublishing.com/product/ivy-in-america-diane-helentjaris
"Ivy in America" is the second book in "The Adventures of Ivy O'Neill" series, stories loosely based on author Diane Helentjaris's distant ancestor. The novel is a standalone and even if it was not, Helentjaris provides enough occasional backstory in "Ivy in America" for the reader to understand the gist of the previous book, "The Indenture of Ivy O'Neill": Ivy emigrated from Ireland to colonial Maryland, was sold as an indentured servant to widowed tobacco farmer, George Stokley, and married him. At the outset of "Ivy in America" she is living with his children and elderly aunt and about to give birth to his child.
The book provides a realistic look at what concerned people who lived in early 18th century rural Maryland - birth, marriage, death, survival, love, family - while also featuring Catholicism, specifically the dangers of the devout attempting to practice their faith in a colony that, though founded by Catholics, has since banned it.
I was often struck by Helentjaris's descriptive writing, which is quite evocative:
"Early morning light smudged dim highlights on the pewter plates and cups. A mourning dove called through the open window as the mist burned off the land. The six members of the Stokely family stirred, cut, and swallowed in bleary-eyed silence. Fried eggs and bacon, day-old bread, churned butter, shiny blackberries, cream, milk, and tea gradually roused them, like a friendly shake on the shoulder."
"Outside, in the fields, the ripeness of the crops was reaching its crescendo. Hens and hogs were fattening and calves growing. The hillocks in the tobacco fields sported topknots of big-leafed greenery."
And as a lover of all things historical, I especially appreciated the author's detailed and entertaining descriptions of everyday colonial life, such as clothes washing:
"Armed for their mission, the two headed to a cleared spot east of the stables, near the well. In the center, two large copper pots nestled in a bed of dying coals. Soiled laundry floated in the warm water along with a small bag of fireplace ashes. The bags' leached lye had started the cleaning process when Ivy set up the pots the night before."
"Without hesitation, Prissy set to stirring the laundry with her maiden stick. Ivy set up a second pair of copper basins and began the first of many trips to the well with her bucket, filling them with fresh water. The two dragged the pots with laundry off to the side, added fuel to the coals, and hauled the newly filled pots to the fire to heat up. Once the fresh water was warm, they pulled one of the pots aside."
Ivy is a weaver, and as a lover of craft, I thoroughly enjoyed watching it on the page:
"Ivy's feet pressed the treadles on her loom. The old wooden loom's rattle soothed and convinced her there was order in her world after all, despite the sadness lingering from the past Saturday. Like a huge set of jaws, the frame opened up. Half the loom's loops of string rose and the other half lowered. With an economy of movement, she deftly threw the shuttle wound with gray yarn across the opening. She then used the loom's beater bar to shove the new line of wool in place against what she had already woven. Weft thread by weft thread, the length of cloth grew."
Too often historic settings exist only as a backdrop to wildly improbable plot points and soap opera-like situations, but "Ivy in America" strikes the perfect balance between fact and fiction. Helentjaris not only gives history buffs an immersion into the lives of 18th century colonists, but she also provides fiction lovers with a sweetly compelling plot and well-delineated characters about whom one cares enough to keep the pages turning.
Editorial Note: Diane Helentjaris's education includes a BA cum laude in Interdisciplinary Humanities and an MD from Michigan State University as well as a Master's in Public Health degree from the University of Michigan. She was a finalist in the 2020 Icelandic Writers Retreat Alumni Award and in 2025, the Thomas Balch Library presented her with the Loudoun History Award in recognition of her research, writing, and public history work.
"The Indenture of Ivy O'Neill," Helentjaris's first book in "The Life and Adventures of Ivy O'Neill" series, won the history and romance category of the 2024 Maryland Writer's Association Novel Competition. Her highly praised novel, "I Ain't Afraid - The World of Lulu Bell Parr, Wild West Cowgirl," was published in 2024.
Renewed Masterpiece: Finding Beauty and Hope in Genesis 1-11
Stephen C. Meade
Stephen C. Meade, Publisher
9798995853305, $13.95, PB, 222pp
9798995853312, $6.99 Kindle
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Renewed-Masterpiece-Finding-Beauty-Genesis/dp/B0GZC1PJSX
"Renewed Masterpiece," Stephen C. Meade's first book in a new series he has titled, "The Marble Suspended in Space," covers the first 11 chapters of Genesis utilizing a combination of poetic scriptural musings, theology, and personal stories.
One prime example of his creative writing takes its inspiration from Genesis chapter three:
"Let us use our mind's eye and return to that day in the garden. The sun is shining; the birds are chirping, and the enjoyable cool wind of the day is upon us. Then, an extra noise. The sound of someone walking. The walker is not Adam or Eve, as they have made crude loincloths out of fig leaves and were attempting to hide among the trees. Although the day is beautiful, its charm is unnoticed by the people who are now concealing themselves from God's presence. Something has changed, and that change has produced fear in the hearts and minds of this couple. The Lord God is walking nearby. Joy and peace should be abundant, but those things are far from this couple as they now know evil - and this evil brought things they had not expected or wanted."
Meade is not only a creative writer, however. He often utilizes more academic theological concepts to make his points:
"A chiasmus, sometimes called a chiasm, is a repetition method to help a narrative stay in human memory. These repetitions are sometimes difficult to see in translations, depending on the exact wording used by the translators in any translation of the Bible. And I find great comfort and hope in the chiasms of Scripture. Allow me to share a famous chiasmus containing a section from the Sermon on the Mount:
'Or how can you say to your brother, "Let me take the speck out of your eye," when
there is the log in your own eye?
You hypocrite,
first take the log out of your own eye,
and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother's eye.'
(Matthew 7:4-5 ESV)
"Now allow me to detail the chiasmus in this passage. There are a few repeating ideas used by Jesus in this teaching, namely a 'speck in your brother's eye' and a 'log in your own eye.' These repeated phrases guide us to a central part of the teaching."
Meade shares his doctrinally sound truths in a way that is unique among authors of religious books; he never assumes the position of master teacher. Instead, he presents his epiphanies as if he's encountering them in real time. The reader cannot help being pulled in, not only because of this humility, but simply because of Meade's stellar command of the English language.
"Renewed Masterpiece" is not a book to scan for answers to specific questions, and the way in which Meade unravels his ideas does not lend itself to a quick read. Rather, it is a journey to be experienced and savored. The reader who comes along for the ride - whether they consider themselves a believer or a seeker of truth - will be rewarded with some real gems.
Editorial Note: Stephen C. Meade has been a student of the Bible since 1991, with over three decades of experience teaching in church settings and serving on multiple short-term mission trips to Central America. His time in ministry, combined with hands-on life experience, shapes a perspective that is both deeply rooted in Scripture and grounded in everyday reality.
Holding a Master of Arts in Organizational Leadership from Saint Mary's University of Minnesota, Stephen has engaged Scripture not only devotionally but academically, integrating biblical principles into his studies. He also developed conversational Spanish during his mission work, which has supported his growing interest in understanding the original biblical languages of Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek.
After overcoming a challenging form of epilepsy in his teenage years, Stephen pursued martial arts and earned a Black Belt in GoJu Ryu in 2009. This journey instilled in him a lifelong commitment to learning, embracing the mindset of always being a student rather than an expert.
Writing from a non-denominational Christian perspective, Stephen avoids theological division and instead focuses on encouraging others in their faith. As a grandfather and a lifelong worker in factories and warehouses, he brings a practical, relatable voice to his writing.
Through his books, including "Renewed Masterpiece" and "Turmoil," Stephen invites readers to explore Scripture with curiosity, humility, and a desire to discover the light, hope, healing, and belonging found in God's Word.
The Girl Who Talked to the Moon
Christine Candland
Pubisher: TBA
ISBN, Price, Format, Page Count -- TBA
(Prepublication manuscript review: Publishing Release Date TBA)
"If I feel physically as if the top of my head were taken off, I know that is poetry." -- Emily Dickinson
While reading Christine Candland's poems, I often experienced something akin to what Dickinson described in her famous quote. Please allow me to reconstruct my head as I elucidate the beauties of "The Girl Who Talked to the Moon".
Whether she is observing patrons in "The Coffee Shop," recalling an old friend in "The Selvedge Edge," or visiting a woman living alone with her dog in a tiny, rented house in "Gallup, New Mexico," Candland displays substantial powers of observation and treats each of her subjects with great respect.
The same can be said of her nature poems, which reflect an individual completely immersed in the grandeur of the natural world. Candland uses her pen to far better effect than any other means of recollection, as evidenced by the following lines from "Tycho's Star":
As light spills out, pockets of nearby song can be heard
to capture the shine; trails light up never seen before.
The full moon's flame pierces spectrum, a rainbow
suspended in space...
And while observing nature, her mind often travels to mythology, as seen in "Swimming in Waimea Bay." Similarly, her love for classical literature is evidenced in "Antigone's Good-bye," "Chiron's Enchantment," "Imogen Drinks the Potion," and "Cressida Waits." The latter, written in first-person and sympathetic to an oft-maligned character, allows the reader to experience the mounting tension and hopelessness of Cressida waiting for her royal warrior lover:
Oh, Troilus! Night stalks me without you...
Fight for the day we will be together again...
Troilus, where is your resolve - you who boast of a
royal's boldness - has your courage abandoned you,
your chivalry no longer viable?
My love, rescue me now!
Candland writes in free verse while making brilliant use of assonance and alliteration as noted in the following from "Hunter's Moon":
A gulf of turquoise
discerned in the dark.
How high will the shine rise?
And from "Riding Darkness":
Just before Dawn, Darkness spreads ruby lined wings
descends so softly, only flickers feel the majesty of
its flutter.
The lines that threatened to remove the top of my head are too numerous to mention, but perhaps those that affected me the most came from the titular Pushcart-nominated "The Girl Who Talked to the Moon":
In the Sea of Rains the sun blows scarlet,
sunset after sunset, while scattered opal light
leads right out of the basin...
We'll ride gondolas perched in the sky;
fly from peak to peak, as stars settle around us
wondering who we are.
This collection exhibits an immense admiration for nature, as well as for individuals both real and mythological. Every poem in "The Girl Who Talked to the Moon" is a quietly stunning revelation, clearly the work of an artist whose technique is in perfect synchronization with her expansive soul.
Editorial Note: Christine Candland has published two previous collections of poetry: When Snow Walks In and Paris Spoken Here, as well as two novels: Topaz Woman, which was a National Best Books Award Finalist, and Pleiades Rising, an Eric Hoffer Book Award finalist.
Her work has been featured in California Quarterly, Altadena Review and was nominated for the Pushcart Prize.
Kathryn J. Atwood, Senior Reviewer
https://kathrynjatwood.com
Mary Cowper's Bookshelf
Collide: Running Into Healing When Life Hands You Hurt
Willow Weston
Tyndale Momentum
c/o Tyndale House Publishers
www.tyndale.com
9798400511387, $18.99, PB, 272pp
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Collide-Running-Into-Healing-Hands/dp/B0FD7PQ768
Barnes & Noble
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/collide-willow-weston/1147629382
Synopsis: What if your pain is the place where healing begins?
Life doesn't always turn out the way we hoped. Heartbreak, trauma, loss, shame -- it can leave us feeling shattered, overwhelmed, and messy. We often try to run from our hurt, but we never get far. Our unresolved pain comes out sideways appearing as anxiety, unforgiveness, friendship break-ups, big feelings and discontentment. But what if healing our hurt is possible? What if our healing can help those hurting around us?
With the publication of "Collide: Running Into Healing When Life Hands You Hurt", author Willow Weston invites you to bravely let Jesus run into your hurt -- trusting it's right there that He collides with your mess and brokenness to bring healing, freedom, and transformation.
Through Willow's own broken and raw story we are given permission to be real in examing our own. She will help you understand how Jesus collides with the messiest parts of our lives, not to condemn, but to walk with us, heal what's hurting, and begin the slow, beautiful work of making us whole.
Written with honesty, compassion, humor, and deep spiritual insight, with Willow will help you:
uncover the roots of your past hurt and recognize how it's shaping your present
confront the harmful patterns and beliefs that keep you stuck
discover that emotional healing begins not by avoiding your hurt, but by bravely stepping into it
explore what Scripture says about pain, weakness, and the nearness of God
experience healing that not only transforms your own life, but also brings restoration to those around you
"Collide" offers a powerful invitation to run (limping, weeping, doubting, hopeful) straight into the arms of Jesus. Because it's there, in the collision of your pain and His presence, that true healing can begin.
Critique: Exceptional, timely, emotionally inspiring and intellectually engaging, "Collide: Running Into Healing When Life Hands You Hurt" is especially and unreservedly recommended reading for any member of the Christian community having to deal with emotional, physical, and spiritual damage arising from our daily lives. Of special relevance to readers with an interest in emotional healing and the Christian approach to spiritual growth, "Collide" is unreservedly recommended for personal, church, seminary, and community library Self-Help/Self-Improvement collections. Articulate and eloquent, it should be noted for clergy, seminary students, and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject that this paperback edition of "Collide" from Tyndale Momentum is also readily available in a digital book format (Kindle, $11.99).
Editorial Note: Willow Weston (https://wecollide.net/staff/willow-weston) has an infectious love for God, His Word, and other people that permeates her life.
Small Wonders: A Field Guide to Life's Quiet Joys
Jennifer Shoop
Rock Point
c/o Quarto Publishing Group
https://www.quarto.com
9781577157267, $19.99, HC, 244pp
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Small-Wonders-Field-Guide-Lifes/dp/1577157265
Barnes & Noble
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/small-wonders-jennifer-shoop/1147999543
Synopsis: In our busy and stress-filled world, it's easy to miss the smaller moments that can provide happiness and fulfilment. With the publication of "Small Wonders: A Field Guide to Life's Quiet Joys", Jennifer Shoop invites you to slow down and savor the minor miracles of everyday living.
A compendium of insightful prose and evocative poetry, Jennifer celebrates the little moments that connect us to each other and to the world around us. Dreamy photography brings the text to life, showcasing the beauty found in the often-overlooked, mundane details all around us.
Jennifer is also the creator of the literary lifestyle publication 'Magpie' and encourages her readers to find joy and replenishment in the small stuff, such as:
A long phone call with a friend
The dance of backyard fireflies
The well-worn charm of a beloved hand-me-down
And more.
In Jennifer's words -- Wherever you are on your path, life's small wonders can nurture your soul.
Critique: Original, exceptional, heartfelt and heart-healing, "Small Wonders: A Field Guide to Life's Quiet Joys" by Jennifer Shoop is an ideal guide to finding happiness and comfort in life's everyday moments. An insightfully visual volume of elegant prose and eloquent poetry, this hardcover edition of "Small Wonders: A Field Guide to Life's Quiet Joys" from Rock Point is an especially and unreservedly recommended pick for personal reading lists, as well as community and college/university Self-Help and Meditation collections.
Editorial Note: Jennifer Shoop (https://magpiebyjenshoop.com) is the creator of Magpie, the literary lifestyle publication and platform that focuses on inspiring women to live thoughtful, well-curated lives, with an invitation for self-discovery. Magpie features a daily blog with an engaged readership that covers a wide range of lifestyle topics, including motherhood, friendship, love, literature, and beyond. Jennifer holds an advanced degree in literature from Georgetown University.
Mindset in Motion: Activate Purpose, Power, and Peak Performance
Debbie DiMaggio
https://debbidimaggio.com
DiMaggio House Publishing
9798995115212, $29.99, HC, 364pp
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Mindset-Motion-Activate-Purpose-Performance/dp/B0GWJSZ3LG
Synopsis: What if the only thing standing between you and your next breakthrough is a single decision?
Before Debbi DiMaggio ran the LA Marathon, she hadn't trained her body -- she'd trained her mind. With less than a month to race day, no coach, and no formal plan, she committed fully and crossed that finish line on mental discipline alone. That experience didn't just change how she approached running. It changed how she approached everything -- business, leadership, motherhood, loss, and reinvention.
With the publication of "Mindset in Motion: Activate Purpose, Power, and Peak Performance", Debbi introduces her 5-Step Mindset in Motion Method(TM): Goal, Believe, Internalize, Share, Activate. It is not a theory. It is a structured, real-world framework she has lived, tested, and refined across decades of building businesses, leading teams, and coaching others through their most pivotal seasons of change. The method works because it bridges the gap most people fall into -- the space between knowing what they want and actually doing something about it.
"Mindset in Motion" meets you wherever you are. Whether you are navigating a career transition, rebuilding after a setback, chasing a long-deferred dream, or simply feeling called to more, Debbi shows you how to move from hesitation to momentum. She draws on the mindset of soldiers, the science of dopamine and self-efficacy, and the hard-won lessons of real business wins and losses to give you something rare: a guide that is both deeply motivating and genuinely actionable.
You will learn how to build the Pre-Game mindset that sets you up to win, how to stay in The Game when it gets uncomfortable, and how to use the Post-Game not as an ending but as your most powerful launchpad. Along the way, Debbi also shares personal stories that feel like a conversation with a trusted friend who also happens to expect the best from you.
Confidence is not waiting for you at the finish line. It is built in the doing. And your next chapter does not begin when everything is perfectly in place. It begins the moment you decide to move.
Endorsed by the CEOs of Compass and The Corcoran Group, TEDx speakers, bestselling authors, and business leaders across industries, "Mindset in Motion" has been called practical, powerful, and long overdue.
Critique: An original, deftly crafted, inspiring, motivating contribution to the growing library of self help books, "Mindset in Motion: Activate Purpose, Power, and Peak Performance" is an ideal DIY guide for the non-specialist general reader seeking to get the most out of life personally and professionally, succeed in positions of leadership, making decisions and solving problems. While "Mindset in Motion" is especially and unreservedly recommended for personal, professional, community, and college/university library Self-Help/Self-Improvement collections, it should be noted that this hardcover edition from DiMaggio House Publishing is also readily available in paperback ( 9798995115205, $22.99) and in a digital book format (Kindle, $9.99).
Editorial Note: Debbi DiMaggio (https://debbidimaggio.com) is a Mindset Strategist, Author, Speaker, and top Real Estate Advisor and Realtor(R) with more than 35 years of experience helping clients achieve extraordinary results in business and life. She is the author of six books. and has worked with thousands of clients while continuously studying mindset, performance, leadership, and personal growth. A lifelong learner committed to improving both professionally and personally, she draws on her own experiences, insights, and decades of client work to help others move forward with clarity and confidence. A portion of proceeds from "Mindset in Motion: Activate Purpose, Power, and Peak Performance" will be used to supports breast cancer causes.
Mary Cowper
Reviewer
Micah Andrew's Bookshelf
Expense Tracker business workbook series
Amy Rose Herrick
www.amyroseherrick.com
Privately Published
A tax expert with ore than 33 years of experience in the financial sector, Amy Rose Herrick helps individuals and small business owners strengthen profitability, make better tax decisions, and build clearer long-term plans. Her work combines practical tax knowledge, financial planning insight, and a direct, results-focused approach. Also a publisher of DIY tax guides and business manuals, three of her newest publications are workbooks specially designed for entrepreneurs and small business owners.
"Freelancer & Independent Contractor Expense Tracker: A Concise Self-Employment Tax Record Book to Track Income, Expenses, and Tax Set-Asides"
9781960427588, $26.99, PB, 230pp
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Freelancer-Independent-Contractor-Expense-Tracker/dp/196042758X
Synopsis: This is a large, write-in 8.5 x 11 paperback record book built to help you keep consistent, defensible records all year -- so tax time is boring (in the best way). Whether you call it a work expense tracker, a freelance expense tracker, a self-employment expense tracker, or an independent contractor tax book, the goal is the same: clean numbers, fewer surprises, and a smoother Schedule C handoff.
Who this is for: Freelancers, independent contractors, consultants, gig workers, and service providers who want a simple system that actually gets used Anyone who needs a practical freelance tax tracker and freelance tax record book that supports Schedule C-style organization
Who this is not for: W-2-only employees who don't report self-employment income Business owners who want software to do the work for them (this is a paper system you control).
Inside you will be able track Income, so you stop "forgetting" deposits and under-reporting -- or over-panicking Expenses by category with space for business-purpose notes, so your records make sense months later Tax set-asides, using a simple method to avoid the year-end "how do I owe THAT?" moment Invoices and what's still owed, because freelancers don't get paid by hoping Subscriptions and software, so recurring tools don't quietly drain your profit Mixed-use expenses like phone, internet, and home office -- tracked the adult way Travel and multi-state work logs that prevent "I forgot I worked there" surprises Contractor payments (optional) if you outsource work and want clean year-end records Non-cash compensation and barter (optional) for those "paid with something other than cash" situations. The year-end wrap-up checklist is so you can hand your tax professional a clean package instead of a shoebox of panic
Why this tracker works" Because it's built around real freelancer problems: uneven income, payment processor fees that make deposits look "wrong," receipts that vanish at the worst possible time, and mixed-use purchases you need to document correctly.
"Virtual Assistant Expense Tracker & Bookkeeping Log (Schedule C)"
9781960427595, $29.99, PB, 314pp
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Virtual-Assistant-Expense-Tracker-Bookkeeping/dp/1960427598
Synopsis: If you're a Virtual Assistant, you don't need another "planner". You need a system that makes your business numbers easy to track, easy to explain, and easy to hand off at tax time -- without turning bookkeeping into a second job.
This premium 8.5 x 11 record book was built specifically for U.S.-based VAs who file Schedule C, whether you prepare your own taxes or work with a tax professional. Either way, the goal is the same: clean records that hold up and a workflow you can actually stick to.
Inside, you will get far more than a basic expense log. Amy Rose Herricks' "Virtual Assistant Expense Tracker & Bookkeeping Log" helps you control the real-world problems VAs deal with all year including:
Tracking expenses in a Schedule C - friendly format
Tracking deposits, invoices, retainers, and platform payouts (so your numbers don't "mysteriously" fail to match)
Capturing subscriptions and software tools -- and review them quarterly so they don't quietly drain your profit
Handling fees, refunds, and chargebacks without confusion
Tracking contractors and subcontractors cleanly (including worldwide help) with simple forms and year-end summaries
Planning and recording monthly tax set-asides and complete a quick quarterly mini-review
Logging barter/non-cash payments correctly (yes, it counts)
Wrapping the year cleanly with a one-page year-end checklist
"Virtual Assistant Expense Tracker & Bookkeeping Log: is specifically designed for busy VAs: simple enough to use in real life, structured enough to support a clean tax return, and detailed enough to protect you from the "year-end meltdown" that hits self-employed people who try to reconstruct everything at the last minute.
Who this is for:
Virtual Assistants working with multiple clients
VAs paid by invoice, direct payments, or platforms
U.S. Schedule C filers who want clean records and less stress
DIY tax filers and VA's who work with a tax professional
Who this is not for:
Anyone looking for a basic notebook with a few blank pages
Anyone who wants a generic budgeting planner unrelated to business expenses
Anyone who wants a tax law textbook (this is recordkeeping - not legal advice)
If you're serious about running your VA work like a business, this DIY record book will quickly pay for itself in saved time, cleaner records, and fewer tax-season surprises.
"Content Creator Tax & Expense Tracker: Track Income, Write-Offs, Platform Fees, and Quarterly Tax Set-Asides - All in One Place"
9781960427571, $25.99, PB, 194pp
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Content-Creator-Tax-Expense-Tracker/dp/1960427571
Synopsis: If you're a content creator, your money doesn't show up like a normal paycheck. You've got payouts from multiple platforms, brand deals, affiliate income, subscriptions, tips, digital products, maybe even merch... and then your deposits hit your bank after fees, refunds, chargebacks, and processing costs you never "see." That's exactly how creators end up stressed at tax time -- because the numbers feel messy even when you worked hard and earned every dollar.
This DIY workbook fixes all that.
"Content Creator Tax & Expense Tracker" is a creator-focused recordkeeping system built to help you track your income and expenses in a clean, consistent way all year -- so your Schedule C is easier, your deductions are supported, and year-end doesn't become a guessing game.
What makes this Creator Edition different is that isn't a generic ledger with a "tax" label slapped on it. It's specifically and effectively designed for the real-world chaos of creator income and creator expenses, including:
Multiple income streams + platforms (payout reports, processor statements, "why don't my deposits match?")
Platform fees, processing fees, refunds & chargebacks - tracked in a way that actually reconciles
Brand deals & sponsorship tracking (deliverables, payments, product received, reimbursable expenses)
Affiliate income tracking (approved vs. paid, reversals/returns, payout timing) Creator-specific expense categories (gear, software, props, set/wardrobe, licensing, shipping, contractors, marketing)
Gear & equipment logs for the purchases creators actually make (and upgrades/sales, too) Home office worksheets (including a second workspace option for creators who move mid-year)
Quarterly tax set-aside planner to help you avoid "surprise" tax bills Year-end wrap-up checklist so you know exactly what to hand your tax pro
Who this book is for:
Creators who file Schedule C, including influencers, YouTubers, streamers, podcasters, bloggers, UGC creators, affiliate marketers, and creators selling digital products or merch.
What this workbook is not for:
It's not legal or tax advice. It is a practical organizational tool meant to work alongside your tax professional or bookkeeping software. Rules and thresholds change -- this workbook helps you keep the facts clean so your pro can apply the rules correctly.
If you want fewer missed deductions, fewer tax-time surprises, and a system that finally matches how creators get paid, that's what "Content Creator Tax & Expense Tracker" will provide.
Critique: These three new DIY workbooks from professional tax preparation expert Amy Rose Herrick are truly practical and thoroughly 'user friendly' financial logbooks and trackers that are effectively designed to make recordkeeping simpler for business owners, side hustlers, entrepreneurs, and self-employed households. Each one of these extraordinary workbooks are built around real-life tax-time needs with an impressive focus on clarity, consistency, and easy documentation -- so you are not scrambling later trying to recreate details from memory. Tax time confusion, panic, uncertainty, and apprehension are all done away with each of these three new DIY style workbooks from Amy Rose Herrick with their organized systems, clean pages, and "fill it in and move on" simplicity.
Editorial Note: There is a listing of books by Amy Rose Herrick available online at
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B01KZ0QKA8
Author's Website
https://www.amyroseherrick.com/books
Goodreads
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/13466551.Amy_Rose_Herrick
Micah Andrew
Reviewer
Michael Dunford's Bookshelf
Landscape In Lavender: A Young Man's Search For His Gay Identity
Brooks Kolb
https://www.brookskolb.com
SparkPress
c/o Spark Point Studio
www.gosparkpress.com
9798896363804, $17.99, PB, 328pp
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Landscape-Lavender-Young-Search-Identity/dp/B0FWZXT6YJ
Barnes & Noble
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/landscape-in-lavender-brooks-kolb/1148560725
Synopsis: When society is primed to regard you as an outcast even before a sexually transmitted disease starts killing your gay brothers, coming out of the closet is hard enough -- but even that is only the first step. Afterward, it can be challenging to cultivate self-respect, let alone find the lasting love you deserve and the home you crave.
"Landscape In Lavender: A Young Man's Search For His Gay Identity " is the earnest and hopeful memoir of Brooks Kolb as he explored the conflict between his personal and professional identities as he traces his round trip journey from Seattle to Paris, Philadelphia, London, and San Francisco against the backdrop of the 1970s sexual revolution and the devastating AIDS pandemic that followed.
During his travels, Brooks becomes a landscape architect, comes out of the closet, crosses racial barriers to win lasting love, loses that love, and finds belonging. Along the way he learns that freedom demands that one construct their own morality in the face of social ostracism, that loss is an inherent attribute of love, and that the need to belong can be just as urgent as the need for love.
Heartbreaking but ultimately inspiring, "Landscape in Lavender" will charm readers across generations (LGBTQ+, cisgender, and straight alike) who struggle, or have struggled, to live their own truly authentic life.
Critique: Emotionally engaging, intellectually informative, and thoroughly 'reader friendly' in organization and presentation, "Landscape In Lavender: A Young Man's Search For His Gay Identity" is impressively candid and an inherently fascinating read from start to finish. An ideal and unreservedly recommended for community and college/university LGBTQ+ and American Biography/Memoir collections, it should be noted for personal reading lists that this paperback edition of "Landscape In Lavender" from SparkPress is also readily available in a digital book format (Kindle, $12.99).
Editorial Note: Brooks Kolb (https://www.brookskolb.com) was educated at the American College in Paris, University College London, and the University of Pennsylvania. At Penn he trained under Ian McHarg, famed author of Design With Nature, and with Laurie Olin, subject of the 2024 documentary Sitting Still. After coming out of the closet, he moved to San Francisco, where he witnessed two key periods of gay history: the post-Stonewall era of sexual liberation and the tragic AIDS epoch. The principal of Brooks Kolb LLC Landscape Architecture and an avid swimmer, Brooks lives in Seattle with his husband, Dennis, and their dog, Stella.
Body, Soul, and Comics: Graphic Religion and Graphic Medicine
A. David Lewis
University Press of Mississippi
www.upress.state.ms.us
9781496862266, $99.00, HC, 188pp
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Body-Soul-Comics-Religion-Medicine/dp/1496862260
Barnes & Noble
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/body-soul-and-comics-a-david-lewis/1148125144
Synopsis: "Body, Soul, and Comics: Graphic Religion and Graphic Medicine" follows Professor A. David Lewis's unique scholarly journey through graphic religion and graphic medicine, exploring how comics intersect with healthcare, clinical practice, spirituality, patient experience, and belief. Drawing on more than two decades of academic research, Lewis brilliantly reframes both fields through the distinct narrative and visual language of comics.
Though often seen as opposites (spiritual versus scientific) religion and medicine share concerns with selfhood, community, personal well-being, and transformation. Through comics, Lewis reveals these shared concerns and examines how selfhood, identity, and embodiment emerge through visual storytelling.
Blending scholarship with autobiography, Professor Lewis weaves personal moments (a religious conversion, experiences with anxiety, and academic work within a healthcare setting) into a broader analysis of representation and meaning in comic books. His account resists the traditional divide between theory and lived experience, grounding abstract ideas in the personal and the visual.
"Body, Soul, and Comics" is both a call for disciplinary reunification and a meditation on how comics themselves bridge seemingly disparate realms -- text and image, body and spirit, illness and meaning.
Critique: Original, exceptional, and a seminal, groundbreaking study of meticulous scholarship, "Body, Soul, and Comics: Graphic Religion and Graphic Medicine" by Professor A. David Lewis is a simply fascinating, informative, and thought-provoking read from start to finish. Of extraordinary appeal for readers with an interest in a graphic novel format with respect to an unique approach to the study of religion and medicine, "Body, Soul, and Comics: Graphic Religion and Graphic Medicine" is unreservedly recommended for personal, professional, community, and college/university collections. It should be noted that this hardcover edition of "Body, Soul, and Comics: Graphic Religion and Graphic Medicine" from the University Press of Mississippi is also readily available in paperback (9781496862273, $30.00) and in a digital book format (Kindle, $28.50).
Editorial Note: A. David Lewis is associate professor of English and health humanities at Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences (MCPHS). Lewis is also an Eisner Award nominee (2015) and judge (2023) as well as coeditor of Graven Images: Religion in Comic Books and Graphic Novels and Muslim Superheroes: Comics, Islam, and Representation. A founder of library collections at both Boston University and MCPHS, Lewis focuses his teaching and research on the depictions of cancer and of loneliness in comic books and graphic novels. He is inaugural coeditor of the Graphic Medicine Review and the acclaimed author of such comics as The Lone and Level Sands and the one hundredth anniversary comics adaptation of Kahlil Gibran's The Prophet.
Michael Dunford
Reviewer
Paul Vogel's Bookshelf
Dead Funny: Telling Jokes in Hitler's Germany
Rudolph Herzog, author
Jefferson Chase, translator
Melville House
https://www.mhpbooks.com
9781685892814, $19.95, PB, 256pp
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Dead-Funny-Telling-Hitlers-Germany/dp/1685892817
Barnes & Noble
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/dead-funny-rudolph-herzog/1111426802
Synopsis: Hitler and Goring are standing on top of the Berlin radio tower. Hitler says he wants to do something to put a smile on the Berliners' faces. Goring says, "Why don't you jump?"
When a woman working in a German factory told this joke to a colleague in 1943, she was arrested by the Nazis and sentenced to death by guillotine -- it didn't matter that her husband was a good German soldier who died in battle.
"Dead Funny: Telling Jokes in Hitler's Germany" is a seminal and groundbreaking work of Germany history in which Rudolph Herzog takes up such stories to show how widespread humor was during the Third Reich. It is a fascinating and frightening history, covering the suppression of the anti-Nazi cabaret scene of the 1930s, the persecution of numerous comedians and comic film and stage actors, to the collections of "whispered jokes" that were published in the immediate aftermath of the war.
Herzog argues that jokes provide a hitherto missing chapter of WWII history. The jokes show that not all Germans were hypnotized by Nazi propaganda, and, in taking on subjects like Nazi concentration camps, they record a public acutely aware of the horrors of the regime. Thus Dead Funny is a tale of terrible silence and cowardice, but also of occasional and inspiring bravery.
Critique: Remember that when those in power begin by burning books, they end by burning people.
Humor in a totalitarian state is no joke. Note how Donald Trump responds to the various hosts of late night talk shows on television when they make jokes about him and his presidential administration. Satire is seen by tyrants and wannabe political 'strong men' as dangerous to their ambitions, exploitations, ineptitude, and cruelty. That's just one of the reasons while "Dead Funny: Telling Jokes in Hitler's Germany" by Rudolph Herzog (as ably translated into English by Jefferson Chase) is so timely and deserving of as broad and numerous a readership as possible.
While unreservedly recommended for personal, professional, community, and college/university library World War II History collections and supplemental Fascism, Holocaust, and History of Humor curriculum studies lists, it should be noted for students, academia, political activists, and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject that this paperback edition of "Dead Funny: Telling Jokes in Hitler's Germany" from Melville House is also readily available in a digital book format (Kindle, $12.99).
Editorial Note #1: Rudolph Herzog is an award-winning filmmaker, and the author of several books. Dead Funny grew out of his research for the BBC documentary Laughing with Hitler. His second book, the critically acclaimed SHORT History of Nuclear Folly, led to a Netflix documentary. He is also the author of the short story collection, Ghosts of Berlin. The son of filmmaker Werner Herzog, he lives in Berlin.
Editorial Note #2: Jefferson Chase is one of the foremost translators of German history. He has translated Wolfgang Scivelbusch, Thomas Mann and Gotz Aly, among many others.
Darkhorse: Harnessing Hidden Potential in War and Life
Amatangelo "AJ" Pasciuti and Neil McGinness, authors
HarperCollins Leadership
c/o HarperCollins Publishers
www.harpercollins.com
9781400254972, $29.99, HC, 384pp
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Darkhorse-Harnessing-Hidden-Potential-Life/dp/1400254973
Barnes & Noble
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/darkhorse-amatangelo-aj-pasciuti/1147137168
Synopsis: With the publication of "Darkhorse: Harnessing Hidden Potential in War and Life", Amatangelo "AJ" Pasciuti (with the assistance of Neil McGinness) delivers an entirely new combination memoir and war narrative that is an intense exploration of authentic leadership, sacrifice, and the resilience of the human spirit. By challenging established notions of masculinity and authority, Pasciuti shows that true strength lies in our hidden potential.
Compelled to serve by the events of 9/11, AJ enlisted in the Marine Corps at the age of 17, embarking on a 21-year odyssey through some of the most harrowing battles of the Global War on Terror. Serving as an Infantry Marine, Scout Sniper, and Force Reconnaissance Marine, while completing seven deployments across the globe and leading elite teams in high-stakes special operations missions, taught him that courage is useless without compassion.
A pivotal moment came during his legendary sniper vs sniper duel with the infamous enemy sniper, Juba -- the first sniper battle since the Vietnam War. His actions saved countless lives and recovered a stolen Marine sniper rifle, highlighting how intellect, strategy, and the ability to look at problems differently can transform the nature of warfare.
Driven by a strong commitment to advocate for the voiceless and a desire to push the limits of possibility, AJ set out to reform the Marine Corps Infantry education system and redefine Marine infantry training to make the finest fighting force the world has ever known even better. This challenge proved to be one of AJ's toughest battles, confronting the very institution that shaped him. But what kind of person would AJ be if he settled for anything less?
Critique: Exceptional, informative, emotionally and intellectually engaging, and an inherently fascinating read from start to finish, "Darkhorse: Harnessing Hidden Potential in War and Life" by former American Marine Force Recon Scout Sniper A. J. Pasciuti is informatively enhanced for the reader's benefit with the inclusion of a Timeline, a Prologue, and Epilogue, a Letter to the Leader, and a Glossary. Part memoir, part motivational self-help book, "Darkhorse" is an especially and unreservedly recommended pick for personal, professional, community, and college/university library Contemporary American Biography/Memoir, Military History/Leadership, and Self-Help/Self-Improvement collections. It should be noted that this hardcover edition of "Darkhorse" from HarperCollins Leadership is also readily available in a digital book format (Kindle, $14.99).
Editorial Note #1: Amatangelo "AJ" Pasciuti began his military career as a rifleman and team leader with the renowned 3rd Battalion, 5th Marines, 1st Marine Division, deploying three times in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. During one of these deployments, he played a key role in a historic sniper vs. sniper mission - tracking down and eliminating a notorious enemy sniper known as "Juba" while recovering a stolen Marine sniper rifle. This marked the first mission of its kind by an American service member since the Vietnam War.
AJ continued his service as a Recon Team Leader and Platoon Sergeant with 3rd Reconnaissance Battalion, deploying to Helmand Province, Afghanistan, from 2009 to 2010 in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. From 2010 to 2013, he served with 2nd Force Reconnaissance Company, deploying with the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit as a Force Recon Team Leader.
Committed to mentoring the next generation of Marines, AJ returned to instructor duty with the Reconnaissance Training Company from 2013 to 2017. During this time, he was selected for the highly competitive Infantry Weapons Officer (Marine Gunner) program, marking his transition from enlisted to officer, where he deployed twice to support global response operations in the Indo-Pacific region.
In January 2020, AJ's career came full circle when he transitioned to the School of Infantry - West. There, he led the development of the Infantry Marine Course, a groundbreaking initiative that modernized the foundational training for enlisted Marines, better preparing them for the complexities of modern warfare. AJ retired from the Marine Corps in 2023. He holds a Master of Business for Veterans from the University of Southern California and a Master of Public Leadership from the University of San Francisco, and is pursuing a Ph.D. in Leadership Studies at the University of San Diego.
Editorial Note #2: Neil McGinness is a New York Times bestselling content creator and writer. In 2021, McGinness partnered with the world's #1 bestselling author, James Patterson, to develop the New York Times bestselling series, The Shadow (Little Brown, 2021). McGinness's most recent nonfiction book, on the origins of superheroes, Pulp Power (Abrams, 2022), was a bestselling new release in graphic novel/comic book criticism and adopted for an American Literature course curriculum by a major university.
Paul T. Vogel
Reviewer
S.A. Gorden's Bookshelf
Vanilla Vendetta (A Penny Hawthorne Cozy Mystery, Book 2)
Fiona Grace
Self published
B0DBWBM7P9, $2.99 ebook, 200 pages
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Vanilla-Vendetta-Penny-Hawthorne-Mystery-Book-ebook/dp/B0DBWBM7P9
Vanilla Vendetta is a solid cozy mystery with an exotic location and a protagonist who blends specialty teas. The narration is smooth and the mystery is well developed. But Vanilla in the title sums up the story.
Penelope "Penny" Hawthorne is a world-famous blender of unique teas. She is commissioned to go to Venice and make a special blend for a masquerade ball. The hostess is killed during the ball and Penny becomes involved in the investigation.
Vanilla Vendetta is a nice relaxing cozy read. The heroine is a complex character and there is a touch of romance and clues all set in a fun location. The well-written cozy doesn't stand out in the genre but that makes it a comfortable tale that mystery readers will enjoy. It is an easy recommendation.
Murder Carte Blanche (The Claire Baskerville Mysteries, Book 12)
Susan Kiernan-Lewis
Independently published
9798864896488 $9.99 paper
B0BXFDF7TS, $6.99 ebook, 286 pages
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Murder-Blanche-Claire-Baskerville-Mysteries-ebook/dp/B0BXFDF7TS
Murder Carte Blanche is a PI procedural. It has a murder mystery folded with a spy tale. The blended story works for building the character but the story would read smoother with just the murder mystery.
Claire Baskerville is a grandmother expat living in Paris. Both she and her boyfriend, a retired cop, make a living as PIs. On a trip with her book club to the Paris catacombs one of her friends is murdered. Claire feels she has to investigate after another of her friends is accused of the murder. When another death shortly follows, the danger increases and the mystery becomes more complex.
Murder Carte Blanche is a well written procedural with interesting and unusual characters. The murder mystery is well written and is an easy recommendation. The secondary storyline is a distraction with a weak conclusion. The story, as a whole, is strong enough to be recommended for mystery readers.
S.A. Gorden
Senior Reviewer
Suzie Housley's Bookshelf
Yoga Bind
Meryl Davids Landau
Alignment Publishing
9781936586004, $19.00, PB, 280pp
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Yoga-Bind-Meryl-Davids-Landau/dp/1936586002
Barnes & Noble
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/yoga-bind-meryl-davids-landau/1150109514
Synopsis: In Yoga Bind, Meryl Davids Landau delivers an emotionally layered and spiritually introspective novel that explores the fragile intersection between faith, personal identity, mindfulness, and betrayal. The story follows Janelle Logan, a spiritually devoted New Yorker whose carefully balanced life unravels after shocking allegations emerge against her beloved guru. As Janelle struggles to reconcile the teachings that shaped her life with the disturbing possibility that her spiritual mentor may not be who he appears to be, she is also navigating the arrival of her younger cousin Danny, who spends the summer discovering New York City, and herself.
Through yoga studios, meditation practices, family dynamics, career pressures, and difficult moral questions, Landau crafts a thought-provoking journey about the complexity of human imperfection and the challenge of maintaining spiritual grounding during moments of personal crisis. The novel beautifully examines what happens when the people we admire fall from grace and whether wisdom can still retain value when delivered through flawed messengers.
Critique: Yoga Bind is not simply a story about spirituality; it is a compelling exploration of trust, emotional resilience, and the human longing for meaning in an increasingly chaotic world. Written with warmth, authenticity, and emotional precision, the novel immediately immerses readers into Janelle's internal struggles while balancing moments of humor, tenderness, and personal awakening.
One of the novel's greatest strengths lies in Landau's ability to portray modern spirituality with realism rather than romanticism. Janelle's devotion to mindfulness and yoga feels sincere and grounded, making the devastating allegations against Guruji all the more emotionally impactful. Readers will appreciate that Landau avoids simplistic answers, instead allowing the story to wrestle honestly with difficult questions surrounding spiritual authority, personal accountability, and emotional dependence on charismatic leaders.
The relationship between Janelle and Danny adds both heart and levity to the narrative. Their intergenerational bond creates some of the novel's most charming moments as Danny experiences the excitement of New York City through fresh eyes. Their conversations feel natural, affectionate, and layered with emotional truth, giving the novel an inviting warmth that balances its heavier themes.
Landau's prose flows with an easy elegance that makes the novel highly accessible while still offering moments of philosophical depth. Her descriptions of yoga practice, meditation, and mindfulness are immersive without becoming preachy, allowing even readers unfamiliar with spiritual practices to connect with the material. Particularly impressive is the author's nuanced handling of emotional conflict. Rather than portraying spirituality as a cure-all, she acknowledges the very human tendency toward doubt, fear, ego, and uncertainty.
Yoga Bind is a memorable exploration of faith, identity, and personal transformation. Meryl Davids Landau delivers a compelling story that encourages readers to examine what it truly means to seek wisdom while remaining authentically human. This is highly recommended for readers of contemporary women's fiction, spiritual fiction, and book clubs seeking meaningful discussion material.
Cincher's Waltz: A Riley Forte Suspense Thriller Book 3
Joslyn Chase
Paraquel Press
https://paraquelpress.mailerpage.com
9781952647437, $17.99 PB, $5.99 Kindle, 539pp
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Cinchers-Waltz-Riley-Suspense-Thriller-ebook/dp/B0G674P2VN
Synopsis: In Cincher's Waltz, Joslyn Chase delivers a suspense-filled story that blends wartime mystery, espionage, and personal redemption into an engaging thriller. The novel begins during the last days of World War II, when a secret Nazi operation leaves behind unanswered questions hidden deep within the mountains of Germany. Years later, those secrets resurface, pulling concert pianist turned covert operative Riley Forte into a dangerous investigation tied to the past.
Riley is still carrying the emotional scars of personal loss while training with the highly secretive Olivero organization. As her assignments grow more dangerous, she becomes entangled in hidden codes, international conspiracies, and long-buried wartime secrets that refuse to stay forgotten. As she makes each discovery, she enters a world where trust is limited and danger waits around every corner.
Critique: Cincher's Waltz is a well-written suspense thriller that combines emotional storytelling with powerful elements of international intrigue. Joslyn Chase creates a believable and layered heroine in Riley Forte, whose transition from accomplished pianist to undercover operative feels genuine rather than exaggerated. Riley's emotional struggles add depth to the story and give readers a reason to invest in her journey beyond the action itself.
One of the novel's strengths is its steady pacing. Chase allows the suspense to build naturally while balancing action scenes with quieter moments that develop both character relationships and the larger mystery. The historical storyline involving wartime secrets adds additional intrigue and helps give the novel a broader sense of scope.
Chase vividly describes the settings, especially the underground tunnels, isolated forests, and covert training environments. Chase's attention to atmosphere keeps a feeling of tension hanging over the story, making it difficult to predict what danger may come next. Riley's musical background also gives the novel a unique identity that separates it from more traditional espionage thrillers.
Readers who enjoy suspense novels featuring hidden history, intelligent twists, and emotionally grounded characters will probably find Cincher's Waltz an enjoyable read. Joslyn Chase successfully combines mystery, action, and emotional complexity into a thriller that keeps readers engaged until the final chapter.
Recommended for fans of spy fiction, historical suspense, and strong female-driven thrillers.
Kali the Elephant Learns from Socrates the Philosopher
Neera K. Badhwar, author
Ady Branzei, illustrator
Archway Publishing
www.archwaypublishing.com
9781665773669, $22.99, HC, 36pp
9781665773683, $12.99 PB, $0.99 Kindle
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Kali-Elephant-Learns-Socrates-Philosopher/dp/1665773685
Barnes & Noble
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/kali-the-elephant-learns-from-socrates-the-philosopher-neera-k-badhwar/1147419630
Synopsis: Kali the Elephant Learns from Socrates the Philosopher is a thoughtful children's picture book that explores teasing, self-confidence, and learning to appreciate individuality. After classmates make hurtful remarks about her large ears, trunk, and eyes, Kali becomes convinced that she must change her appearance in order to fit in. Her humorous attempts to solve the problem only deepened her frustration until she unexpectedly discovered the story of Socrates, the ancient Greek philosopher who faced similar teasing about his own appearance. Inspired by his wisdom, Kali sees that the very qualities others criticize can also become strengths.
Critique: Neera K. Badhwar has created a heartfelt and imaginative story that addresses childhood insecurity with both humor and emotional understanding. Kali the Elephant Learns from Socrates the Philosopher approaches the topic of teasing in a manner that feels genuine, compassionate, and highly relatable for young readers.
Kali is an engaging and sympathetic character whose emotional struggles will resonate with children navigating their own feelings about appearance and acceptance. The story thoughtfully captures how deeply teasing can affect a child's self-esteem while still maintaining a light and encouraging tone throughout. Kali's exaggerated attempts to shrink her features provide playful moments that balance the emotional core of the narrative and keep younger readers entertained.
What makes this story especially memorable is the way Badhwar transforms a familiar childhood experience into a lesson about confidence and perspective. Instead of teaching children to simply ignore teasing, the author encourages young readers to reconsider how they view themselves. Kali's journey from embarrassment to self-assurance unfolds naturally and gives the story emotional sincerity that young audiences will understand immediately.
Ady Branzei's illustrations contribute warmth and charm to the book. The expressive artwork effectively captures Kali's changing emotions while maintaining the playful tone that makes the story inviting for younger audiences. The bright illustrations complement the gentle humor and emotional growth found throughout the narrative.
Particularly noteworthy is the book's ability to encourage meaningful conversations between children, parents, and educators. Themes involving empathy, resilience, self-worth, and kindness are woven naturally into the storyline without overwhelming younger readers. The educational back matter discussing genes, elephants, and Socrates further strengthens the book's classroom and library appeal.
Blending humor, emotional reassurance, and age-appropriate philosophical ideas, Kali the Elephant Learns from Socrates the Philosopher offers young readers an uplifting message about individuality and inner confidence. Neera K. Badhwar delivers a memorable picture book that reminds children that the qualities making them feel different may ultimately become the very things that make them special.
Editorial Note: Recommended for ages 4-8. Winner of the Literary Titan Book Award. Finalist for the American Legacy 2026 Award. Awarded Pencraft Awards Best Book, Spring 2026.
Suzie Housley, Senior Reviewer
https://housleysliteraryservices.com
James A. Cox
Editor-in-Chief
Midwest Book Review
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