Title: The Most Revolutionary Act: Memoir of an American Refugee
Author: Dr Stuart Jeanne Bramhall
Web site: http://www.stuartbramhall.com/
Genre: memoir
ISBN: 978-1-60911-858-7
Reviewed by Michael David Morrissey
This is a frightening book. Much of it reads like a thriller, but unfortunately it is a true story. Dr. Stuart Jeanne Bramhill, a woman (despite the unusual first name) and a psychiatrist, describes her 15-year long mental, emotional and physical ordeal resulting from her involvement in leftist activist politics in Seattle, Washington. Beginning in 1986, says Bramhall, "for some unknown reason, some faceless higher-up in one of the eleven federal agencies that spy on American citizens decided I posed a threat to national security," and from then on she was subjected to phone harassment, wiretaps, break-ins, and even attempts on her life. Since she was never able to prove any of this (and how does one prove it?), she was also confronted with the disbelief of her own professional colleagues, who were quick to diagnose her as "psychotic" and gave her the choice of losing her medical license or spending a week in a locked ward at a mental hospital for observation. She chose the latter, though she continued to be misdiagnosed and over-medicated, which exacerbated her mental torment and had serious physical side-effects that lasted for years afterward.
Bramhall learned the hard way that her fellow medical professionals were the last people in the world she could be honest with about her feelings of persecution:
"The moment I mentioned the CIA, my psychiatrist decided I was psychotic and refused to listen anything else I said... Nelson's erroneous diagnosis stemmed from pure political naiveté. He had no reason to come in contact with political or union activists, unemployed whistleblowers or the low-income street people that the police, and, I believed, U.S. intelligence, recruited as informants. Nevertheless, I had no confidence in any of my colleagues to objectively assess my mental state. I practiced in a totally different world from other Seattle psychiatrists, who automatically turned away patients who couldn't afford their one hundred dollar fee."
Bramhall was never more than a "lukewarm radical":
"I was a very late bloomer politically. Despite my early disenchantment with the "establishment," as we called it in the sixties and seventies, it never occurred to me to blame political factors for my chronic sense of loneliness, alienation, and unmet emotional and social needs."
At thirty-five, she "fell into Marxism almost by accident" when a medical colleague invited her to join CISPES (Committee in Solidarity with the People of El Salvador, formed in 1981 to protest Reagan's covert war against El Salvador). Marxism helped her "make sense for the first time of a political system riddled with contradictions," but she "never accepted the need for violent revolution to overthrow capitalism."
This would have been enough, I think, to have alienated her from most of her colleagues, since it must be as almost as hard to be a "Marxist" psychiatrist in the U.S. as it was to a "capitalist" one in the former Soviet Union, where political deviance was routinely equated with psychosis.
But Bramhall crossed a number of other tripwires in her efforts to combine political activism with her profession, the most conspicuous one being the color line. As a white woman who actively pursued her profession, as well as social and political associations, in the African American community, she became involved with other activists whose motivations, she came to suspect, were not as innocent or transparent as her own. One of her early acquaintances, a former Black Panther called Jabari Sisulu, put it succinctly: "White professionals who fraternize with black radicals are at much greater risk than I am." Bramhall's story is testimony to the truth of this statement.
Over the years, as she continued to participate in local activist projects like the effort to turn an abandoned school building in Seattle into an African American museum and cultural center, Bramhall broadened her political consciousness by reading about the assassination of the Kennedys and Martin Luther King, Cointelpro, AIDS, and more recently, 9/11 -- in short, by delving into the immense body of literature dealing with the facts and evidence about such topics that continues to be systematically suppressed by the mainstream press and dismissed as "conspiracy theory" but which is now readily accessible on the internet. At some points, her activities at the "micro" level intersected, perhaps with consequences, with the "macro" level (my terms), such as her association with Edna Laidlow, who claimed to be the lover of the "umbrella man" at Dealey Plaza who supposedly gave the signal to begin the shooting of JFK. She also suspects that her effort to publicize an ulcer drug called "Tagomet" [sic, presumably Tagamet] as a treatment for AIDS may have triggered a covert response.
The reader, like Bramhall herself, waits in vain for any resolution of the question of who was harassing her and why. This is hardly surprising, since none of the issues at the "macro" level have been resolved either. Despite the ever-increasing mountain of evidence of government involvement in multitudinous conspiracies ("plans by more than one person to do bad things") against "the people," both domestic and foreign, the steadfast response of both government and mainstream press, which are in this respect identical, remains the same. It is not denial -- which would require facts and arguments -- but silence.
Thus Bramhall leaves us, at the end of the book in 2002, having emigrated to New Zealand in hope of starting a new life at a healthy distance from the "insidious pseudo-culture" of the U.S. public relations industry and "stranglehold of the U.S. military and U.S. intelligence." I wish her luck, and as an longtime ex-pat myself I can say that she made a rational decision. I too am a kind of "American Refugee," as Bramhall subtitles her memoir. Fortunately, I never experienced the kind of personal harassment she did, but reading her book gives me a strong sense of "there but for fortune." I could have easily gone the way of Stuart Bramhall, just as I could have ended up in Vietnam or (more likely) in Canada fleeing the draft. But I got lucky. First of all, I was lucky enough to realize early on that the Vietnam war was insane, and secondly, I found a psychiatrist who shared my view. (He called it a "mass neurosis," which I thought a gross understatement, but it served my purpose of escaping the draft.)
I did not leave the U.S. for political reasons, however. I left, in 1977, because even armed with a Ph.D. (in linguistics), I couldn't get a decent job. So I guess I was an economic "refugee." (Part of Bramhall's motive for emigrating was also economic, her medical practice having suffered under cutbacks in Medicare and Medicaid in the Reagan, Bush, and Clinton administrations.) I was, obviously, opposed to the Vietnam war, but I did not become "radicalized" until much later, in 1988, when I was older than Bramhall was when she turned to Marxism, so I too was a late bloomer, politically. The catalyst for me was, I am almost ashamed to say, a TV program: Nigel Turner's documentary about the assassination of President Kennedy (The Men Who Killed Kennedy). I saw this in Germany, after I had been living here for almost 11 years. This was the major turning point for me, but it all happened in my head. In Bramhall's case, despite the opinion of her bourgeois colleagues, I don't think it was in her head. Maybe some of it was, but her story is much too detailed to be dismissed as paranoia.
So the irony of our two stories is complete. On the one hand, we have a psychiatrist who is persecuted for political reasons and falsely judged by her colleagues to be insane. On the other hand we have a linguist who opposes an insane war and is correctly judged by a "renegade" psychiatrist (as I'm sure his colleagues would have described him in those days) to be sane and therefore unfit to "serve." Both of us end up leaving the country.
But not everyone can leave. Vietnam did not end. It's here again under a different name: Afghanistan/Iraq. In fact, things are much worse now, much more insane, than they were in the sixties. There was at least some attempt to lie convincingly about the reasons for the Vietnam war. The "communist threat" was more convincing than the the blatant lies about non-existent weapons of mass destruction, retaliation for 9/11, and bringing "freedom and democracy" to those unfortunate countries. A very large portion of the population, probably close to one half, disbelieves the government's story of 9/11, and a clear majority does not support the ongoing war (read "military engagement"). There is a huge disjuncture between what people think and what the government and the mainstream media tell them.
If societies were people, the U.S. would have to be locked up with the criminally insane. No person could remain sane harboring so many violently conflicting ideas. Societies are not people, but people do have to live in this insane society. How do they do it? I think there are three alternatives: 1) denial, 2) acceptance, and 3) fighting back. 1) and 2) are themselves psychotic states. How can you deny or accept insanity without becoming part of it?
3) is the only sane, reasonable and honorable alternative. This is what Bramhall did, and what many of us try to do, each in our own way. It is wrong to see her story as negative or her struggle as futile. It is part of the ongoing struggle.
P.S. Dr. Bramhall mentions me as the "translator" of AIDS researcher Jakob Segal, but in fact I only proofread the English edition of his book "AIDS Can Be Conquered" (Verlag Neuer Weg, 2001; "AIDS Ist Besiegbar," 1995). I did translate a couple of shorter pieces, which are accessible on my homepage (mdmorrissey.info) and in my book "Looking for the Enemy." The latter and my more recent book "The Transparent Conspiracy" (on 9/11) are available on Amazon.com.
-----
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by genre, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. As a courtesy to the author, please tweet and retweet this post using this little green retweet widget :
This blog, #TheNewBookReview, is "new" because it eschews #bookbigotry. It lets readers, reviewers, authors, and publishers expand the exposure of their favorite reviews, FREE. Info for submissions is in the "Send Me Your Fave Book Review" circle icon in the right column below. Find resources to help your career using the mini search engine below. #TheNewBookReview is a multi-award-winning blog including a MastersInEnglish.org recommendation.
Showing posts sorted by relevance for query mainstream. Sort by date Show all posts
Showing posts sorted by relevance for query mainstream. Sort by date Show all posts
Thursday, August 19, 2010
Thursday, October 18, 2012
Book Lover and Blogger Gives Mainstream Novel Kudos
--Title: Wander
Home
--Author: Karen A. Wyle--Author’s web site: http://www.KarenAWyle.net
--Genre or category: Fiction: Mainstream with mystery elements
--Reviewer:
--Reviewer’s rating: Amazon five stars
Oh do I have a treat
for you today! Today I am proud to bring you the latest from author Karen A.
Wyle – and you’re going to LOVE IT.
I first met Karen
almost a year ago, through Book Blogs. She was looking for reviewers for her
sci-fi novel Twin-Bred
(review available
here), I responded with interest, and then after reading
the book, responded with even more interest. Karen knows how to tell a great and
original story, and I can say with absolute conviction that I will read any- and
everything she writes from here on out…
Her latest, Wander Home, is
not only a lovely tale about the after-life and after-world, but also a
lovely vision of what I hope that life/world
looks like. The book came to me at a particularly auspicious time – a wonderful,
kind, generous man, one whose children I have babysat and who I’ve also had the
privilege to toss back a beer or two with over the years, passed away recently
(we miss you Marty S, and always will). Reading a book about untimely death and
its aftermath was a little bittersweet, to say the least. But hopefully Karen
Wyle knows something the rest of us don’t, because reading her imagining of what
happens after we pass made things a little more poignant and left me a little
more hopeful.
Let me explain.
(review available
here), I responded with interest, and then after reading
the book, responded with even more interest. Karen knows how to tell a great and
original story, and I can say with absolute conviction that I will read any- and
everything she writes from here on out…Her latest, Wander Home
, is
not only a lovely tale about the after-life and after-world, but also a
lovely vision of what I hope that life/world
looks like. The book came to me at a particularly auspicious time – a wonderful,
kind, generous man, one whose children I have babysat and who I’ve also had the
privilege to toss back a beer or two with over the years, passed away recently
(we miss you Marty S, and always will). Reading a book about untimely death and
its aftermath was a little bittersweet, to say the least. But hopefully Karen
Wyle knows something the rest of us don’t, because reading her imagining of what
happens after we pass made things a little more poignant and left me a little
more hopeful.
Let me explain.
To begin my
explanation, I’m going to give you the synopsis of the book. First, because it’s
easier and more concise than my retelling it, and second because I want to focus
this review on my reactions and the writing, rather than on a recitation of the
plot. From Karen:
Death is what you
make it. . . .
Eleanor never
wanted to leave the daughter she loved so much. The overpowering urge to wander
— to search, without knowing what she sought — drove her away. She left little
Cassidy in her family’s loving care. But Cassidy and the others died in an
accident before Eleanor could find her way home.
Cassidy has her
grandparents, and her Great-Grandma. And all of them have what may be eternity.
Memories can be relived, or shared. The wonders of the world they left behind
are only a thought away. The one-way tyranny of aging is no more — a
white-haired and stooped great-grandmother one moment can be a laughing young
playmate the next. But nothing can ease Cassidy’s longing for her mother; and
Eleanor’s parents know better than to hope that Eleanor’s life has been a happy
one.
Now, they are all
reunited, with the chance to understand and heal. But the restlessness that
shaped Eleanor’s life still haunts her in death. Somehow, she must solve the
mystery of her life — or none of them will be at
peace.
There’s a lot in that
summary, so read it again. I’ll wait.
Okay, now that you’ve
read it twice, think past what it says a little. This is the story of an
after-life in which we are whatever age we want to be, surrounded by whatever
people we want around us. It is a story about how death, even untimely death,
doesn’t have to be the end of everything. It is a story about the consequences
of the choices we make, and the difficulty even we can have in understanding –
and living with – the reach of those consequences. Wyle’s isn’t the first vision
of the afterlife that addresses these concepts (Richard Matheson’sWhat Dreams May
Come springs to mind), but it is one of the
loveliest.
springs to mind), but it is one of the
loveliest.
Eleanor’s life is
tragic and heart-breaking; not only for the things she lost, but for the things
she spent so long trying to find. There is a nice twist hidden in the layers of
family drama, redemption, and the quest for understanding, and it’s handled
deftly and with a unique spin that keeps it from feeling in any respect
derivative, even if it’s not a brand-new construct. (Sorry that is so obtuse,
but I don’t want to give spoilers!) Wyle has a lovely way with language, weaving
characters and setting together into a seamless tapestry of an after-life that I
personally hope bears more than a passing resemblance to what’s really out
there.
I started the book in
the morning, on a sick day. I read through until it was finished, that evening.
Even with my cold medicine-addled brain and eyes I could barely keep open, I
couldn’t put it down. Don’t miss this one. It’s a beautiful story, well-written
and smoothly paced with characters you can’t help but fall in love with
(especially Cassidy and Great Grandma Amanda). Thanks for another great novel
Karen – I can’t wait for the next one!
Sunday, December 23, 2012
A Can't-Put-Down Mainstream Novel
TITLE: The Seeds of a Daisy
AUTHOR: +Alison Caiola
AUTHOR'S WEB SITE: www.theseedsofadaisy.com
AVAILABILITY: Amazon US , Amazon UK (Kindle e-book), Barnes & Noble,
iTunes
Paperback: https://www.createspace.com/4081993
http://www.amazon.com/The-Seeds-Of-A-Daisy/dp/1481159623/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1355941253&sr=8-2&keywords=alison+caiola
Kindle: Amazon http://www.amazon.com/The-Seeds-Of-Daisy-ebook/dp/B00AKR2XVW/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1355922302&sr=8-1&keywords=alison+caiola
Nook Barnes and Noble
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-seeds-of-a-daisy-alison-caiola/1113921263?ean=2940015756111
APPROXIMATE LENGTH: 366 pages
GENRE: Mainstream Fiction—Drama/Women’s FictionRecommended for readers seeking character-driven dramas.
Reviewed by Mary Fan, originally for Zigzag Timeline
The Seeds of a Daisy is the story of a young woman dealing with
emotional turmoil following her mother’s devastating car accident.
This novel is full of raw emotion and high drama, set against the
backdrop of Hollywood politics.
PACE
Let’s just say I devoured this one. I started reading during lunch and finished by mid-afternoon. Caiola’s conversational style and flair for drama make this novel a suspenseful and absorbing read.
PERSPECTIVE
First person present. The book opens with Lily Lockwood, a successful TV actress, in the hospital following her mother’s accident. As she comes to grips with the tragedy, she reflects on her past, and much of the book consists of her flashbacks.
CONTENT REVIEW
From a distance, Lily Lockwood has it all. She’s the star of a popular and acclaimed TV series with a handsome boyfriend poised to become a big time Hollywood leading man. But in her own eyes, her life is
unraveling. That boyfriend, Jamie, is cheating on her with his costar
on a film set miles away, and Lily’s mother, Daisy, is comatose
following a devastating car accident
The Seeds of a Daisy opens with Lily by Daisy’s side in the hospital,
begging her to return to the realm of the conscious. As she waits for
news from the doctors, she reflects on her life and relationship with
her mother, who raised Lily alone and guided her through the mad world
of Hollywood. When Lily goes through Daisy’s possessions in search of
a living will, she discovers things about her mother’s past that she
could never have dreamed of, things that reveal the woman behind the
tough-cookie career queen Daisy the bestselling author was known as.
Caiola writes with a natural, conversational style that brings Lily’s
voice to life. The realistic dialogue and easy, fluid prose carry the
story forward in a way that makes the pages turn themselves. The
reader is privy to all of Lily’s thoughts and raw emotions as she
faces the madness her life has become—her grief, her anger, her hope,
and then some. Each moment is a suspenseful one for Lily as she waits for news from the doctors and comes to grips with reality, and that suspense carries over to the audience, making this book an unexpectedly fast-paced page-turner.
Although the story is told from Lily’s point of view, The Seeds of a Daisy, as the title implies, is as much about Daisy—her effect on Lily and the world around her. Lily spends much of the book reflecting on her somewhat codependent
relationship with her mother and learning to stand on her own and take charge of her life.
Behind the mother-daughter drama is a colorful supporting cast and a fascinating glimpse of Hollywood politics. While the reader sees Lily as a vulnerable young woman, the rest of the world views her as a celebrity to be gossiped about. Paparazzi mob her in the hospital lobby, trying to get a snapshot of her distraught face for the tabloids. So when Jamie flies back to be with her, is he actually trying to comfort her, or is this another publicity stunt? Meanwhile, Daisy’s longtime friends flock to Lily’s side out of genuine concern.
Also, I must note that this book seems incredibly well-researched on the hospital drama front. The medical jargon and explanations—dry and impenetrable to both the reader and Lily—add to the story’s realistic atmosphere. Although the book’s set-up, with the Emmy’s and the paparazzi hovering in the background, may seem glamorized, the story itself is very down-to-earth. Lily may not be the most eloquent speaker, but her words ring true even though she sometimes seems to
have trouble expressing her emotional frenzy.
I didn’t mean to read The Seeds of a Daisy in one sitting, but I ended up getting so absorbed in the drama and the characters that I couldn’t put it down. Entertaining, gripping, and sometimes tear-jerking, it’s the kind of book that’s easy to get lost in.
THE NITPICKY STUFF
I received an advance copy of this novel, which has since been edited,
so I can’t comment on typos and the like.
This novel contains a handful of mild sex scenes and some adult language.
AUTHOR INFO
[from the back cover]
Alison Caiola's many years in Hollywood, first as a PR Executive and then as a writer, makes her qualified to write about the entertainment industry and the behind-the-scenes craziness that it often spawns.
Like Daisy, the mother in The Seeds of a Daisy, her son JD Daniels is
a successful and award-winning actor. Alison recently wrote, directed,
and produced the television series The Tyme Chronicles. She currently
resides on the beautiful North Fork of Long Island with her Malti-Poo
daughter-dog Emma, surrounded by vineyards, farms, and wonderful
friends. Learn more at www.theseedsofadaisy.com.
-----
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by genre, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. As a courtesy to the author, please tweet and retweet this post using this little green retweet widget :
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
New Literary Novel Praised by Book Pleasures Reviewer Jennifer Andrew
Title: The Secret of Lies Author: Barbara Forte Abate
ISBN: 978-160844-418-2
Genre: Mainstream Literary Fiction
Originally reviewed for Book Pleasures by Jennifer Andrew
The Secret of Lies is a character driven novel, which gave the reader insight into the internal struggle of the main character. Stephanie Burke, was trying to regain some happiness in her life after being dragged through the lies of her family. This young woman, who had been forced to grow up in a web of lies, was attempting to make a life for herself.
The novel began with a prologue before the first chapter. The reader is drawn into the feelings of the main character. You realize her state of mind, the turmoil she has endured and the emotional struggle that has her torn apart by what has happened in her life. Within the first chapter, the reader is brought to the beginning of how it all happened.
Conflict lies throughout the book with the main character. Stephanie having to grow up with the guilt surrounding her sister, the ties that she had with her Aunt Smyrna, the deception she held from her mother were all issues battling at Stephanie’s psyche. Struggling to overcome her personal demons, she tried to cope and go on with life.
Barbara Forte Abate resolves the conflict and does not leave the readers hanging. She brought us through an exciting story through the efforts of her main character. To the detriment of Stephanie’s own relationship, she tries to solve her problems alone.
The author brought everything to life and made you feel you were a part of the family. You felt empathy when the relationship between Uncle Cal and Aunt Smyrna slowly started to unravel. You saw through the façade of what began to happen with Eleanor and her coming of age. You are drawn into the story and feel sorry for the chain of events that occured in the story.
The characters jump out at you. They are animated and relatable. Barbara does an amazing job in describing the characters; the setting, Stephanie’s hometown, the people she interacts with, her own family and making it all come together in one satisfying story.
The dialogue was enjoyable and true to life. The words were descriptive and continued to propel the story forward. The Secret of Lies was written in Stephanie’s point of view and the story did not sway from her outlook but continued to flow.
Barbara Forte Abate has written a creative, entertaining story in The Secret of Lies, which makes any reader understand the hidden secrets in any family. Your heart goes out to lovable characters and an appreciation for what is important.
-----
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by genre, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. As a courtesy to the author, please tweet and retweet this post using this little green retweet widget :
ISBN: 978-160844-418-2
Genre: Mainstream Literary Fiction
Originally reviewed for Book Pleasures by Jennifer Andrew
The Secret of Lies is a character driven novel, which gave the reader insight into the internal struggle of the main character. Stephanie Burke, was trying to regain some happiness in her life after being dragged through the lies of her family. This young woman, who had been forced to grow up in a web of lies, was attempting to make a life for herself.
The novel began with a prologue before the first chapter. The reader is drawn into the feelings of the main character. You realize her state of mind, the turmoil she has endured and the emotional struggle that has her torn apart by what has happened in her life. Within the first chapter, the reader is brought to the beginning of how it all happened.
Conflict lies throughout the book with the main character. Stephanie having to grow up with the guilt surrounding her sister, the ties that she had with her Aunt Smyrna, the deception she held from her mother were all issues battling at Stephanie’s psyche. Struggling to overcome her personal demons, she tried to cope and go on with life.
Barbara Forte Abate resolves the conflict and does not leave the readers hanging. She brought us through an exciting story through the efforts of her main character. To the detriment of Stephanie’s own relationship, she tries to solve her problems alone.
The author brought everything to life and made you feel you were a part of the family. You felt empathy when the relationship between Uncle Cal and Aunt Smyrna slowly started to unravel. You saw through the façade of what began to happen with Eleanor and her coming of age. You are drawn into the story and feel sorry for the chain of events that occured in the story.
The characters jump out at you. They are animated and relatable. Barbara does an amazing job in describing the characters; the setting, Stephanie’s hometown, the people she interacts with, her own family and making it all come together in one satisfying story.
The dialogue was enjoyable and true to life. The words were descriptive and continued to propel the story forward. The Secret of Lies was written in Stephanie’s point of view and the story did not sway from her outlook but continued to flow.
Barbara Forte Abate has written a creative, entertaining story in The Secret of Lies, which makes any reader understand the hidden secrets in any family. Your heart goes out to lovable characters and an appreciation for what is important.
-----
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by genre, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. As a courtesy to the author, please tweet and retweet this post using this little green retweet widget :
Saturday, August 11, 2012
Mainstream Fiction Gets Crack Review from Quilldipper
TITLE: Twelve Months
AUTHOR: Steven Manchester
AUTHOR'S WEB PAGE: http://www.StevenManchester.com
PUBLISHER: The Story Plant
RELEASE DATE: August 14, 2012
ISBN: 978-1611880533
GENRE: Commercial Fiction
Available on Amazon
Reviewed by Heather Froeschl originally for Quilldipper.com
"Life. A series of lessons for the soul? What is our purpose here on earth? That’s up to you. Life is what you make of it, or don’t make of it. For Don Dimarco, at age 57, he’s going to make the best of it. In Steven Manchester’s newest book, Twelve Months, readers will experience the hardest thing we have to face as human beings and will be grateful to the author for the reminder to live.
Don discovers that he has colon cancer. At stage four there really is nothing humane that can be done and the doctor tells him to live life to the fullest for what will be at best, twelve months longer. After the natural reaction of denial, resentment, anger, frustration and sorrow, Don gets on with the business of living. He writes a list of the top five things he’s always wanted to do and with the help of his dedicated wife, he sets out to accomplish them. What happens is more than he expected and greater than his family could have anticipated. The love between Don and his wife blossoms to the fullest capacity and through their shared adventures, readers will feel it radiating off the pages. The support and love from his family, as well as complete strangers, will bolster the reader’s feelings for humanity. Witnessing the growth of Don himself is a miraculous and amazing thing.
Facing the past, playing cowboy, declaring his love, confronting his demons, visiting paradise on earth…all are chapters in Don’s book of life and all are written with exquisite detail and deep feeling. You will experience each moment through outstandingly descriptive writing. Steven Manchester made me cry. I don’t think there is a reader who could get through this book without a tissue and a good healthy sob. What’s more important is the reminder the author gives us to live our own lives. Such a level of inspiration can be found here, such clarity of portraying the massive emotions of the characters, that one is in awe of the author’s wisdom. Steven doesn’t just write books; he authors life lesson plans.
Twelve Months is a powerful work of fiction."
~Contact the author at http://www.facebook.com/#!/AuthorStevenManchester
-----
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by genre, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. As a courtesy to the author, please tweet and retweet this post using this little green retweet widget :
AUTHOR: Steven Manchester
AUTHOR'S WEB PAGE: http://www.StevenManchester.com
PUBLISHER: The Story Plant
RELEASE DATE: August 14, 2012
ISBN: 978-1611880533
GENRE: Commercial Fiction
Available on Amazon
Reviewed by Heather Froeschl originally for Quilldipper.com
"Life. A series of lessons for the soul? What is our purpose here on earth? That’s up to you. Life is what you make of it, or don’t make of it. For Don Dimarco, at age 57, he’s going to make the best of it. In Steven Manchester’s newest book, Twelve Months, readers will experience the hardest thing we have to face as human beings and will be grateful to the author for the reminder to live.
Don discovers that he has colon cancer. At stage four there really is nothing humane that can be done and the doctor tells him to live life to the fullest for what will be at best, twelve months longer. After the natural reaction of denial, resentment, anger, frustration and sorrow, Don gets on with the business of living. He writes a list of the top five things he’s always wanted to do and with the help of his dedicated wife, he sets out to accomplish them. What happens is more than he expected and greater than his family could have anticipated. The love between Don and his wife blossoms to the fullest capacity and through their shared adventures, readers will feel it radiating off the pages. The support and love from his family, as well as complete strangers, will bolster the reader’s feelings for humanity. Witnessing the growth of Don himself is a miraculous and amazing thing.
Facing the past, playing cowboy, declaring his love, confronting his demons, visiting paradise on earth…all are chapters in Don’s book of life and all are written with exquisite detail and deep feeling. You will experience each moment through outstandingly descriptive writing. Steven Manchester made me cry. I don’t think there is a reader who could get through this book without a tissue and a good healthy sob. What’s more important is the reminder the author gives us to live our own lives. Such a level of inspiration can be found here, such clarity of portraying the massive emotions of the characters, that one is in awe of the author’s wisdom. Steven doesn’t just write books; he authors life lesson plans.
Twelve Months is a powerful work of fiction."
~Contact the author at http://www.facebook.com/#!/AuthorStevenManchester
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The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by genre, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. As a courtesy to the author, please tweet and retweet this post using this little green retweet widget :
Monday, March 14, 2011
Publisher Reviews Sci-Fi by Doc Meisenheimer
Title: The Immune
Author: Doc Lucky Meisenheimer
Web site: http://www.theimmune.com/
Publisher's Web site: http://www.ljsspublishing.com/
Genre/Category: Science Fiction
ISBN: 978-0-9667612-2-1
Reviewed by: Victoria Andrew
The paintbrush I use is history, and history paints the same picture repeatedly. Large centralized governments always cause internal collapse and ultimately destruction of the masses. All governmental evils are justified and rationalized, as necessary, to maintain the all-powerful, all-knowing, current leaders for the good of society. – Doc Lucky Meisenheimer, The Immune
Doc Lucky Meisenheimer’s science fiction debut is being hailed as a prospective masterpiece of American fiction. Meisenheimer has fashioned a capacious yet intricately ordered narrative that in its majestic sweep seems to capture multiple themes executed in a fast-paced, action/adventure plot. Furiously ingenious at this stage in his writing career, Meisenheimer has achieved an incredible feat of imagination, intellect, and matchless writing talent within The Immune, which is sure to engender fiery debate, strong opinions, and much rhapsodizing over his shocking plot twists and turns.
Mainstream readers will most likely deem The Immune as an entertaining, often humorous, and sometimes terrifying escapade of one man’s thirst for vengeance against the deadly stings of biogenetically manufactured creatures and their maniacal, Hilter-esqe inventor, Joseph Sengele. The politically astute will compare the work of Meisenheimer to Heinlein, as his story could be a manifesto advocating individual liberty, free will, and a lack of government regulation and oversight on matters of the economy. Literary academics will perceive it as a beacon lighting the way for a new kind of novel, as Meisenheimer has cracked open the opaque shell of postmodernism, tweezed out its tangled circuitry, and inserted in its place the warm, beating heart of authentic humanism. Like other great literary giants, Meisenheimer conveys the drama of his protagonist’s interior life while vividly conveying a world on the brink of total annihilation. As his contemporaries diminish the place of the single human being in complex plot conceptualizations, Meisenheimer has enlarged it while evoking empathy, excitement, revulsion, amusement, a thirst for justice, and sleepless nights of rapid page turning within his readers.
John Long, a distinguished physician and avid swimmer, and his fiancé, Cassandra, emerge from a romantic rendezvous in Grand Cayman only to discover the shocking news of massive deaths occurring across the world from the virulent, lethal stings of a biogenetically manufactured phenomenon named airwars. Such creatures resemble gargantuan Man O’ Wars which have gone airborne, mercilessly wounding and killing seemingly random, innocent souls. A rapidly formed world government, entitled the Airwar Scientific Council (consisting of scientists, politicians, and military members) emerges to disseminate world policy to all governments, resulting in the amelioration of free speech and calling for total gun confiscation.
John Long’s seemingly idyllic life and thriving practice in Orlando, FL come to a screeching halt with the disappearance and announced death of his fiancé in the midst of the chaos. Consumed with grief and burning rage, John confronts and surprisingly defeats his first airwar discovered when its monstrous self is siphoning water in Orlando’s Lake Eola. His murder of the first airwar by suffocation was impulsive, dangerous, and driven by reckless fury, earning him massive fame for being one of the rare, extraordinary individuals who are immune to the poisonous, paralyzing stings.
Much to our horror, readers discover that such “Immunes” are surreptitiously and forcefully sent to a processing plant owned and operated by the government, where they are tortured and skinned alive in order to extract proteins secreted from an Immune’s sebaceous glands used to manufacture aerosol sprays providing members of the Airwar Scientific Council protection from the deadly airwar stings.
However, John’s destiny is salvaged by the “ultimate PR genius of the world,” Admiral Beckwourth, who restores humanity’s faith in government intervention to the airwar crisis by formulating an “Immune Corp” attack force, with John Long as their leader. Readers will become immersed in Meisenheimer’s triumphs of characterizing the Immune Corp team members as they endeavor to kill and destroy as many airwars as possible. Meisenheimer paints one terrifying airwar attack scene after the other with vivid detail and enthralling description of the various types of airwars populating the sky, while instilling admiration for John’s bravery and catalyzing cathartic release with each successful airwar downing.
The plot thickens as we discover an advanced, alien race (referred to as Krones) have contacted prominent world leaders with promises of opportunities “beyond their wildest dreams” - including immortality - in return for their cooperation with their plot of selecting political leaders, key military personnel, scientists, and their families as “The Chosen.” Attitudes, intellect, political strength, compatibility, and one’s propensity for even treachery were considered behind their selection, thus reminiscent of Nazi endeavors to create an ideal, Aryan race.
We discover the Krones are the one who have actually created airwars as a diversion tactic in order to prepare the earth for their alien strike force involving 60-foot tsunamis (with the advanced application of force fields) to wipe out the majority of humanity in preparation for a Krone colonization of the earth, in which “The Chosen” are supposedly to be saved.
However, one intrepid and ingenious character, Admiral Beckwourth, cultivates a brilliant plot coined by Meisenheimer as an “FS Maneuver”, which is a keystone of public relations campaigns and “a deception hiding an underlying agenda.” With audacity and intrepid valor, Beckwourth endeavors to annihilate the greatest alien, military force in the history of the earth to save humanity from an apocalypse.
Does he succeed? We highly recommend you read the book now available for pre-sales at LJS&S Publishing http://www.immune.com/ and coming to a store near you on May 13, 2011.
~Reviewer Victoria Andrew is owner and director of Words Prevail, LLC. Visit http://www.wordsprevail.com/ for more information. Their blog is at http://www.wordsprevail.wordpress.com/. For her articles on Career Transition, visit http://www.examiner.com/career-transition-in-orlando/victoria-andrew /
-----
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by genre, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. As a courtesy to the author, please tweet and retweet this post using this little green retweet widget :
Author: Doc Lucky Meisenheimer
Web site: http://www.theimmune.com/
Publisher's Web site: http://www.ljsspublishing.com/
Genre/Category: Science Fiction
ISBN: 978-0-9667612-2-1
Reviewed by: Victoria Andrew
The paintbrush I use is history, and history paints the same picture repeatedly. Large centralized governments always cause internal collapse and ultimately destruction of the masses. All governmental evils are justified and rationalized, as necessary, to maintain the all-powerful, all-knowing, current leaders for the good of society. – Doc Lucky Meisenheimer, The Immune
Doc Lucky Meisenheimer’s science fiction debut is being hailed as a prospective masterpiece of American fiction. Meisenheimer has fashioned a capacious yet intricately ordered narrative that in its majestic sweep seems to capture multiple themes executed in a fast-paced, action/adventure plot. Furiously ingenious at this stage in his writing career, Meisenheimer has achieved an incredible feat of imagination, intellect, and matchless writing talent within The Immune, which is sure to engender fiery debate, strong opinions, and much rhapsodizing over his shocking plot twists and turns.
Mainstream readers will most likely deem The Immune as an entertaining, often humorous, and sometimes terrifying escapade of one man’s thirst for vengeance against the deadly stings of biogenetically manufactured creatures and their maniacal, Hilter-esqe inventor, Joseph Sengele. The politically astute will compare the work of Meisenheimer to Heinlein, as his story could be a manifesto advocating individual liberty, free will, and a lack of government regulation and oversight on matters of the economy. Literary academics will perceive it as a beacon lighting the way for a new kind of novel, as Meisenheimer has cracked open the opaque shell of postmodernism, tweezed out its tangled circuitry, and inserted in its place the warm, beating heart of authentic humanism. Like other great literary giants, Meisenheimer conveys the drama of his protagonist’s interior life while vividly conveying a world on the brink of total annihilation. As his contemporaries diminish the place of the single human being in complex plot conceptualizations, Meisenheimer has enlarged it while evoking empathy, excitement, revulsion, amusement, a thirst for justice, and sleepless nights of rapid page turning within his readers.
John Long, a distinguished physician and avid swimmer, and his fiancé, Cassandra, emerge from a romantic rendezvous in Grand Cayman only to discover the shocking news of massive deaths occurring across the world from the virulent, lethal stings of a biogenetically manufactured phenomenon named airwars. Such creatures resemble gargantuan Man O’ Wars which have gone airborne, mercilessly wounding and killing seemingly random, innocent souls. A rapidly formed world government, entitled the Airwar Scientific Council (consisting of scientists, politicians, and military members) emerges to disseminate world policy to all governments, resulting in the amelioration of free speech and calling for total gun confiscation.
John Long’s seemingly idyllic life and thriving practice in Orlando, FL come to a screeching halt with the disappearance and announced death of his fiancé in the midst of the chaos. Consumed with grief and burning rage, John confronts and surprisingly defeats his first airwar discovered when its monstrous self is siphoning water in Orlando’s Lake Eola. His murder of the first airwar by suffocation was impulsive, dangerous, and driven by reckless fury, earning him massive fame for being one of the rare, extraordinary individuals who are immune to the poisonous, paralyzing stings.
Much to our horror, readers discover that such “Immunes” are surreptitiously and forcefully sent to a processing plant owned and operated by the government, where they are tortured and skinned alive in order to extract proteins secreted from an Immune’s sebaceous glands used to manufacture aerosol sprays providing members of the Airwar Scientific Council protection from the deadly airwar stings.
However, John’s destiny is salvaged by the “ultimate PR genius of the world,” Admiral Beckwourth, who restores humanity’s faith in government intervention to the airwar crisis by formulating an “Immune Corp” attack force, with John Long as their leader. Readers will become immersed in Meisenheimer’s triumphs of characterizing the Immune Corp team members as they endeavor to kill and destroy as many airwars as possible. Meisenheimer paints one terrifying airwar attack scene after the other with vivid detail and enthralling description of the various types of airwars populating the sky, while instilling admiration for John’s bravery and catalyzing cathartic release with each successful airwar downing.
The plot thickens as we discover an advanced, alien race (referred to as Krones) have contacted prominent world leaders with promises of opportunities “beyond their wildest dreams” - including immortality - in return for their cooperation with their plot of selecting political leaders, key military personnel, scientists, and their families as “The Chosen.” Attitudes, intellect, political strength, compatibility, and one’s propensity for even treachery were considered behind their selection, thus reminiscent of Nazi endeavors to create an ideal, Aryan race.
We discover the Krones are the one who have actually created airwars as a diversion tactic in order to prepare the earth for their alien strike force involving 60-foot tsunamis (with the advanced application of force fields) to wipe out the majority of humanity in preparation for a Krone colonization of the earth, in which “The Chosen” are supposedly to be saved.
However, one intrepid and ingenious character, Admiral Beckwourth, cultivates a brilliant plot coined by Meisenheimer as an “FS Maneuver”, which is a keystone of public relations campaigns and “a deception hiding an underlying agenda.” With audacity and intrepid valor, Beckwourth endeavors to annihilate the greatest alien, military force in the history of the earth to save humanity from an apocalypse.
Does he succeed? We highly recommend you read the book now available for pre-sales at LJS&S Publishing http://www.immune.com/ and coming to a store near you on May 13, 2011.
~Reviewer Victoria Andrew is owner and director of Words Prevail, LLC. Visit http://www.wordsprevail.com/ for more information. Their blog is at http://www.wordsprevail.wordpress.com/. For her articles on Career Transition, visit http://www.examiner.com/career-transition-in-orlando/victoria-andrew /
-----
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by genre, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. As a courtesy to the author, please tweet and retweet this post using this little green retweet widget :
Friday, June 25, 2010
Psychiatrist Tells Her Own Harrowing Tale
The Most Revolutionary Act: Memoir of an American Refugee
By Dr Stuart Jeanne Bramhall
Review by Stuart Kreisman, author of Dick Cheney's Diary originally for Amazon.com
A simple sit-in at an administration building becomes the catalyst for a surreal, Kafkaesque, hellish fifteen years for Dr. Stuart Jeanne Bramhall in her compelling new book The Most Revolutionary Act: Memoir of an American Refugee. Dr. Bramhall, a practicing Seattle-based psychiatrist tells in chilling detail how attending a seemingly innocent meeting to protest racial abuse at a local school triggers a covert government plot to destroy the cause and her life.
Dr. Bramhall's work confirms the myth of the "Vast right wing conspiracy" that was dismissed by the mainstream media when it was coined by then first Lady Hillary Clinton. It is a country where no person or secret is safe. People who you trust are not to be trusted. Harassment, violence and murder are tools used to subvert the Progressive agenda and the people who advocate it.
Lest you think The Most Revolutionary Act: Memoir of an American Refugee is just tell the story of one woman's struggle to fight the system, it is much more than that. Dr. Bramhall's amazing tale also involves the Kennedy assassination, the government's "War" on AIDS, the plot against single player healthcare, suppression of African Americans and much more. Paranoia is real. Schizophrenia is not just a mental disorder, it' a weapon.
A psychological thriller of the first order, The Most Revolutionary Act: Memoir of an American Refugee is also a cautionary tale. CIA and FBI operatives are indeed among us. Opposing the agenda of Corporate America is not tolerated. Those that try fight the good fight, but the establishment will stop at nothing to stay in power. Dr. Bramhall's harrowing tale is testament to that.
-----
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've loved. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by author names, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the index handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. As a courtesy to the author, please tweet and retweet this post using the widget below:
By Dr Stuart Jeanne Bramhall
Review by Stuart Kreisman, author of Dick Cheney's Diary originally for Amazon.com
A simple sit-in at an administration building becomes the catalyst for a surreal, Kafkaesque, hellish fifteen years for Dr. Stuart Jeanne Bramhall in her compelling new book The Most Revolutionary Act: Memoir of an American Refugee. Dr. Bramhall, a practicing Seattle-based psychiatrist tells in chilling detail how attending a seemingly innocent meeting to protest racial abuse at a local school triggers a covert government plot to destroy the cause and her life.
Dr. Bramhall's work confirms the myth of the "Vast right wing conspiracy" that was dismissed by the mainstream media when it was coined by then first Lady Hillary Clinton. It is a country where no person or secret is safe. People who you trust are not to be trusted. Harassment, violence and murder are tools used to subvert the Progressive agenda and the people who advocate it.
Lest you think The Most Revolutionary Act: Memoir of an American Refugee is just tell the story of one woman's struggle to fight the system, it is much more than that. Dr. Bramhall's amazing tale also involves the Kennedy assassination, the government's "War" on AIDS, the plot against single player healthcare, suppression of African Americans and much more. Paranoia is real. Schizophrenia is not just a mental disorder, it' a weapon.
A psychological thriller of the first order, The Most Revolutionary Act: Memoir of an American Refugee is also a cautionary tale. CIA and FBI operatives are indeed among us. Opposing the agenda of Corporate America is not tolerated. Those that try fight the good fight, but the establishment will stop at nothing to stay in power. Dr. Bramhall's harrowing tale is testament to that.
-----
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've loved. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by author names, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the index handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. As a courtesy to the author, please tweet and retweet this post using the widget below:
Wednesday, March 27, 2013
Compulsive Reader Reviews Aussie's Newest Novel
TITLE Ascending Spiral
AUTHOR Bob Rich
GENRE Metaphysical fiction
ISBN 978-1-61599-186-0 (paper); 978-1-61599-187-7 (e)
Reviewed by Magdalena Ball for The Compulsive Reader and Bobbing Around
Dr Pip Lipkin has lived for 12,000 years, in many lives, different sexes, and even different species and he's here for a reason. Dr Bob Rich's Ascending Spiral is a true genre-buster, incorporating elements of historical fiction, literary fiction, science fiction, and even a hint of nonfiction to create an entertaining novel with an important message.
Beautifully researched, the book opens in present day, but quickly moves back to 805-806 AD, where the first person protagonist is named Padraig, and he is fighting a Viking attack. The book then moves into the life of Dermot, an Irishman dealing with the campaign of repression conducted by the English against the Irish during this period. Dermot's section is the longest, taking the reader through full scale war, vigilantism, transportation to Australia as a convict, slavery, life on a squat as a free man, and the committing of a terrible crime. Dermot's act has repercussions that take him into the next chapter of his existence, as Amelia, a woman who has to experience the consequences of Dermot's crime again and again. When Amelia dies, our protagonist experiences something completely different -- a life that is free of gender and hate -- focused solely on survival and the support of the species. The next life jumps to 10,000 BCE, where, as a giant space flower, the protagonist commits a thoughtless but devastating crime, the likes of which forms the basis for the atonement and multiple births throughout the novel. The final section belongs to Pip, bringing us back to the start.
Pip is the most evolved being and the development from Padraig to Pip is the ascending spiral that the title refers to. Along the way he learns (and teaches us) about the meaninglessness and pain of war, about greed and violence, about the folly of our desperation for happiness over wisdom, about the beauty and delicacy of our planet, and about the power of love and forgiveness to change these cycles. The themes of the book are Buddhist, showing us the Samsara or "the cycle of birth and death" and the lessons we all need to learn in order to evolve ourselves and to save our rapidly dying world. Though the ultimate purpose of the book does appear to be didactic -- global warming and impending environmental catastrophe are generally accepted within the mainstream scientific community as proven fact -- and the parallels between Dr Lipkin and the author's own studies are probably the subject of at least a few fascinating interviews, the story reads well as fiction, creating each world entirely so that the reader becomes engrossed in the historical time and place along with the protagonist. The overall message is delivered with subtlety and sophistication, and the descriptions are particularly powerful, especially in Dermot's section where we move from war-torn Ireland to NSW (New South Wales, AU). The long, painful journey by boat is evocative, as this example from Dermot's time in solitary confinement shows:
Water constantly seeped through the timbers of the ship. I had no way of measuring time, except that every now and then two men came, one carrying a lantern, the other a bit of food. Four extra soldiers came the first time, and the doctor carrying clothes. They allowed me to dress before shackling me to the chain again. On every second or third occasion, they also had an Irishman along, who brought an empty bucket and took away the one I'd filled. I did have company: rats scurrying around. At first, I was concerned they might bite me, but this didn't happen and after a while I ignored them.
The space flower descriptions were also well done -- adding a fun sci-fi twist to the story and showing Rich's scientific bent:
The fifth planet was unique in my experience. It twinkled everywhere with low-energy emissions over a wide band of wavelengths. That was pretty to look at, but utterly baffling. I couldn't think of any natural phenomenon that'd account for this kind of radiation, and it clearly had a water-oxygen sheath. I'd heard of small, primitive, unintelligent life forms on planetary surfaces, but of course they were not in a deadly corrosive environment like this planet's .(94)
Through each section there are a number of important threads that link the novel together, including the recurring cycle of racism and prejudice in all of its forms, of uncontrolled hunger and its ability to damage, and of the healing power of sympathy, connection and perception. All of these threads come together through a series of stories that are historically engaging and powerful, at times whimsical, and above all, meticulously presented. Ascending Spiral is a book that will take the reader to many different places and times, showing, ultimately, that our differences and divisions, even at their most devastating, are less important than our similarities. This is an important and timely novel full of wisdom and insight.
More About the Reviewer:
Magdalena Ball is the owns the review Web site The Compulsive Reader and has her own radio show. Hers was the first advance review of Ascending Spiral.
-----
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by genre, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor.
AUTHOR Bob Rich
GENRE Metaphysical fiction
ISBN 978-1-61599-186-0 (paper); 978-1-61599-187-7 (e)
Reviewed by Magdalena Ball for The Compulsive Reader and Bobbing Around
Dr Pip Lipkin has lived for 12,000 years, in many lives, different sexes, and even different species and he's here for a reason. Dr Bob Rich's Ascending Spiral is a true genre-buster, incorporating elements of historical fiction, literary fiction, science fiction, and even a hint of nonfiction to create an entertaining novel with an important message.
Beautifully researched, the book opens in present day, but quickly moves back to 805-806 AD, where the first person protagonist is named Padraig, and he is fighting a Viking attack. The book then moves into the life of Dermot, an Irishman dealing with the campaign of repression conducted by the English against the Irish during this period. Dermot's section is the longest, taking the reader through full scale war, vigilantism, transportation to Australia as a convict, slavery, life on a squat as a free man, and the committing of a terrible crime. Dermot's act has repercussions that take him into the next chapter of his existence, as Amelia, a woman who has to experience the consequences of Dermot's crime again and again. When Amelia dies, our protagonist experiences something completely different -- a life that is free of gender and hate -- focused solely on survival and the support of the species. The next life jumps to 10,000 BCE, where, as a giant space flower, the protagonist commits a thoughtless but devastating crime, the likes of which forms the basis for the atonement and multiple births throughout the novel. The final section belongs to Pip, bringing us back to the start.
Pip is the most evolved being and the development from Padraig to Pip is the ascending spiral that the title refers to. Along the way he learns (and teaches us) about the meaninglessness and pain of war, about greed and violence, about the folly of our desperation for happiness over wisdom, about the beauty and delicacy of our planet, and about the power of love and forgiveness to change these cycles. The themes of the book are Buddhist, showing us the Samsara or "the cycle of birth and death" and the lessons we all need to learn in order to evolve ourselves and to save our rapidly dying world. Though the ultimate purpose of the book does appear to be didactic -- global warming and impending environmental catastrophe are generally accepted within the mainstream scientific community as proven fact -- and the parallels between Dr Lipkin and the author's own studies are probably the subject of at least a few fascinating interviews, the story reads well as fiction, creating each world entirely so that the reader becomes engrossed in the historical time and place along with the protagonist. The overall message is delivered with subtlety and sophistication, and the descriptions are particularly powerful, especially in Dermot's section where we move from war-torn Ireland to NSW (New South Wales, AU). The long, painful journey by boat is evocative, as this example from Dermot's time in solitary confinement shows:
Water constantly seeped through the timbers of the ship. I had no way of measuring time, except that every now and then two men came, one carrying a lantern, the other a bit of food. Four extra soldiers came the first time, and the doctor carrying clothes. They allowed me to dress before shackling me to the chain again. On every second or third occasion, they also had an Irishman along, who brought an empty bucket and took away the one I'd filled. I did have company: rats scurrying around. At first, I was concerned they might bite me, but this didn't happen and after a while I ignored them.
The space flower descriptions were also well done -- adding a fun sci-fi twist to the story and showing Rich's scientific bent:
The fifth planet was unique in my experience. It twinkled everywhere with low-energy emissions over a wide band of wavelengths. That was pretty to look at, but utterly baffling. I couldn't think of any natural phenomenon that'd account for this kind of radiation, and it clearly had a water-oxygen sheath. I'd heard of small, primitive, unintelligent life forms on planetary surfaces, but of course they were not in a deadly corrosive environment like this planet's .(94)
Through each section there are a number of important threads that link the novel together, including the recurring cycle of racism and prejudice in all of its forms, of uncontrolled hunger and its ability to damage, and of the healing power of sympathy, connection and perception. All of these threads come together through a series of stories that are historically engaging and powerful, at times whimsical, and above all, meticulously presented. Ascending Spiral is a book that will take the reader to many different places and times, showing, ultimately, that our differences and divisions, even at their most devastating, are less important than our similarities. This is an important and timely novel full of wisdom and insight.
More About the Reviewer:
Magdalena Ball is the owns the review Web site The Compulsive Reader and has her own radio show. Hers was the first advance review of Ascending Spiral.
-----
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by genre, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor.
Friday, March 21, 2014
Keeping Dreams Book Reviews New Karen Wyle Novel
Dear Carolyn --
By Karen A. Wyle
Genre: Fiction: Near-future, Science Fiction, Mainstream
E-book available from Amazon
The multi-country link is: http://smarturl.it/Division
Available in other formats via at author's Web site: http://www.karenawyle.net/buy-division.html.
5 of 5 stars
Reviewed by Charles J. Kravetz originally for his blog Keeping Dreams Book Reviews
Can two individuals,
joined together before birth, be two separate
individuals?
Conjoined twins,
raised as individuals, yet never being apart. Johnny would like to live a
separate life now that it is possible. Gordon, on the other hand, believes him
and Johnny can and will live together forever.
The author took the
time to weave a delicate and sensitive story into a great novel. It is so much
more than the idea that cloning could be acceptable at some time. It is much
more than science fiction. It is the story of love and relationships between
brothers. It is the story of the delicate threads that bind us together at
times. It is also the story of fear and loathing that sometimes sneaks in to our
relationships.
The author writes a
very serious story with this book. She also writes a story of the love between
brothers, and the battles that sometimes take place. This is a work of fiction,
but who can say that it will not be a work of fact some
day?
I have enjoyed every
one of Karen A. Wyle’s books that I have read. She writes with authority about
subjects that are near to her own heart. I would recommend this book to adults
and teens alike.
LEARN MORE ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Author Web site is
at http://www.KarenAWyle.net.
Also find her on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/KarenAWyle.
Also find her on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/KarenAWyle.
-----
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by genre, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor.
Monday, April 19, 2010
Two Faces, Two Dreams: A Novel Not To Be Forgotten
When She Sleeps
By Leora Krygier
Toby Press, 2004
ISBN: 1592640869
Adult/Mainstream Fiction
Author’s Site: www.leorakrygier.com
Toby Press, a small publishing house with a knack for discovering prize-winning authors features Leora Krygier’s When She Sleeps in their fall fiction lineup. It looks as if they have acquired another winner.
Leora Krygier weaves the enchanted world of Vietnam and the asphalt streets and privileged hillside homes of LA into an intricate story. When She Sleeps is as much about language and how we are shaped by it as it is about two girls in different parts of the world who are attached genetically to one another but who have no knowledge of the other’s existence. Out of neglect and destitution, the child of war-stricken Saigon takes to living her Vietnamese mother’s life through the fragile woman’s dreams; the American daughter of a doctor in Los Angeles’ San Fernando Valley finds little sleep and when she does, it is troubled.
Two stories are told with distinctive voices that somehow are entwined. Their real lives throb with vibrant sights, sounds and smells while their dream sequences feel much like a song that was sung in the past and remains with us as we walk our every day lives. The reader comes to understand the emotional needs that draw the two to one another; the sisters are like two parts of a Miz Pah coin, each worn as a charm by strangers a half globe away. Inevitably the jagged edges begin to fit and the mystery of their lives is revealed.
Krygier has woven a kind of magical realism that fits this literary category and, at once, is uniquely her own. Publishers often become jaded, believing that there nothing new is offered to them; some don’t recognize it when it comes to sit in their laps. This press deserves much credit for taking a chance on a story entirely its own, on a book--from the story line to the melody--consuming and beautiful.
This book is out of print but you should still be able to get it on Amazon's New and Used feature. The author is also wrote another book I love, First the Raven.
-----
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've loved. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by author names, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the index handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor.
And while you're at it, as a courtesy to the author, please retweet this post:
By Leora Krygier
Toby Press, 2004
ISBN: 1592640869
Adult/Mainstream Fiction
Author’s Site: www.leorakrygier.com
Toby Press, a small publishing house with a knack for discovering prize-winning authors features Leora Krygier’s When She Sleeps in their fall fiction lineup. It looks as if they have acquired another winner.
Leora Krygier weaves the enchanted world of Vietnam and the asphalt streets and privileged hillside homes of LA into an intricate story. When She Sleeps is as much about language and how we are shaped by it as it is about two girls in different parts of the world who are attached genetically to one another but who have no knowledge of the other’s existence. Out of neglect and destitution, the child of war-stricken Saigon takes to living her Vietnamese mother’s life through the fragile woman’s dreams; the American daughter of a doctor in Los Angeles’ San Fernando Valley finds little sleep and when she does, it is troubled.
Two stories are told with distinctive voices that somehow are entwined. Their real lives throb with vibrant sights, sounds and smells while their dream sequences feel much like a song that was sung in the past and remains with us as we walk our every day lives. The reader comes to understand the emotional needs that draw the two to one another; the sisters are like two parts of a Miz Pah coin, each worn as a charm by strangers a half globe away. Inevitably the jagged edges begin to fit and the mystery of their lives is revealed.
Krygier has woven a kind of magical realism that fits this literary category and, at once, is uniquely her own. Publishers often become jaded, believing that there nothing new is offered to them; some don’t recognize it when it comes to sit in their laps. This press deserves much credit for taking a chance on a story entirely its own, on a book--from the story line to the melody--consuming and beautiful.
This book is out of print but you should still be able to get it on Amazon's New and Used feature. The author is also wrote another book I love, First the Raven.
-----
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've loved. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by author names, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the index handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor.
And while you're at it, as a courtesy to the author, please retweet this post:Tuesday, December 7, 2010
Humor and Romance Mix Pleases Happily Ever After Reviewer
Title: Confessions of a Liberal Lover
Author: E.M. Muller
Author's Website: http://emmuller.com/
Publisher: Red Rose Publishing
Genre: Mainstream Fiction: Contemporary, Chick Lit, Comedy
Reviewed by Kylie for Happily Ever After Reviews
Rating: 5 out of 5 Tea Cups
E.M. Muller's Confessions of a Liberal Lover is poignantly funny from start to finish. Not just a story of finding the right guy, but of finding oneself.
After failing to live up to expectations one too many times, Maud leaves home at 19. She is thrust into the world of full time work, part time school, and one disastrous relationship after another. Which includes such enjoyable calamities as receiving a rifle instead of a ring, a delightfully disastrous wedding, and the most perfectly comical divorce. Along for the ride is Maud's pet gargoyle, who dispenses wisdom, advice, and wit, all rolled into one. Maud's gargoyle steadfastly refuses to let her give up on herself or settle for less than she deserves. Forget the fairy godmothers, ladies; what we all really need is a gargoyle.
Maud's sexual encounters run the gambit from Young Republicans, mishaps with the missionary position, to riding cowboys, and much more. From faking orgasms to fellatio, nothing is taboo. While never explicit, Muller's frank honesty and witty portrayal of sex will have you laughing with delight and cringing in understanding.
With a sassy and smart heroine, and a gargoyle that's part fairy godmother and part Jiminy Cricket, Confessions of a Liberal Lover is the perfect book for any girl who ever felt overshadowed by a sibling, misunderstood by a parent, or turned herself inside out for a guy.
-----
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by genre, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. As a courtesy to the author, please tweet and retweet this post using this little green retweet widget :
Author: E.M. Muller
Author's Website: http://emmuller.com/
Publisher: Red Rose Publishing
Genre: Mainstream Fiction: Contemporary, Chick Lit, Comedy
Reviewed by Kylie for Happily Ever After Reviews
Rating: 5 out of 5 Tea Cups
E.M. Muller's Confessions of a Liberal Lover is poignantly funny from start to finish. Not just a story of finding the right guy, but of finding oneself.
After failing to live up to expectations one too many times, Maud leaves home at 19. She is thrust into the world of full time work, part time school, and one disastrous relationship after another. Which includes such enjoyable calamities as receiving a rifle instead of a ring, a delightfully disastrous wedding, and the most perfectly comical divorce. Along for the ride is Maud's pet gargoyle, who dispenses wisdom, advice, and wit, all rolled into one. Maud's gargoyle steadfastly refuses to let her give up on herself or settle for less than she deserves. Forget the fairy godmothers, ladies; what we all really need is a gargoyle.
Maud's sexual encounters run the gambit from Young Republicans, mishaps with the missionary position, to riding cowboys, and much more. From faking orgasms to fellatio, nothing is taboo. While never explicit, Muller's frank honesty and witty portrayal of sex will have you laughing with delight and cringing in understanding.
With a sassy and smart heroine, and a gargoyle that's part fairy godmother and part Jiminy Cricket, Confessions of a Liberal Lover is the perfect book for any girl who ever felt overshadowed by a sibling, misunderstood by a parent, or turned herself inside out for a guy.
-----
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by genre, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. As a courtesy to the author, please tweet and retweet this post using this little green retweet widget :
Monday, March 16, 2009
Short Story Collection Earns Five-Star Reviews
In All Probability: A collection of short stories
By Steve Morris
Paperback: 140 pages
Publisher: Pneuma Springs Publishing (1 Feb 2009)
ISBN-10: 1905809433
ISBN-13: 978-1905809431
Genre : Fiction : Short Stories
Morris's first collection is well worth a read. Silky little belters at the start such as "Dead-Eye", "Lightning Strikes Twice" and "My tune" live off their late probability twists. More mainstream tales appear alongside quite bizarre offerings like the sci-fi based stories "Winston Churchill" and "If I could bottle it". It includes some retro-twisters that just "fill in" but I particularly rate Morris's darker "Progress" and the graphic "Revenge on a plate". It made me think.....
Recommended, and I hope to read more of his stuff
Reviewed by Dellboy
Rating 5 stars
-----
In all probability . . . one of the best collections of short stories I've ever read! Really likely characters and situations with which we can all draw parallels. A fantastic introduction to this talented author. When's the next volume Mr Morris?!
Reviewed by Miss K Hindley for Amazon.co.uk
Rating 5 stars
From the Author:
This book deliberately contains no heroes. The world does not revolve around heroes. It revolves around real people who sometimes find themselves in amazing situations. When we sympathise with the characters within these stories and with the ways that fate deals with them, we sympathise with ourselves. Some of the characters and events in these stories are based on real people and situations the author met along his way.
An assassin with a unique technique, an almost-was soccer star and a bitter long-forgotten one-hit-wonder pop star are just a few of the random characters who turn up within the stories in this book. Each are lovable in their own different ways and are doing their very best to dodge Lady Luck's sadistic target practice. Heroes they are not. And do they all live happily ever after? In all probability- probably not.
-----
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've loved. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by author names, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the index handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor.
By Steve Morris
Paperback: 140 pages
Publisher: Pneuma Springs Publishing (1 Feb 2009)
ISBN-10: 1905809433
ISBN-13: 978-1905809431
Genre : Fiction : Short Stories
Morris's first collection is well worth a read. Silky little belters at the start such as "Dead-Eye", "Lightning Strikes Twice" and "My tune" live off their late probability twists. More mainstream tales appear alongside quite bizarre offerings like the sci-fi based stories "Winston Churchill" and "If I could bottle it". It includes some retro-twisters that just "fill in" but I particularly rate Morris's darker "Progress" and the graphic "Revenge on a plate". It made me think.....
Recommended, and I hope to read more of his stuff
Reviewed by Dellboy
Rating 5 stars
-----
In all probability . . . one of the best collections of short stories I've ever read! Really likely characters and situations with which we can all draw parallels. A fantastic introduction to this talented author. When's the next volume Mr Morris?!
Reviewed by Miss K Hindley for Amazon.co.uk
Rating 5 stars
From the Author:
This book deliberately contains no heroes. The world does not revolve around heroes. It revolves around real people who sometimes find themselves in amazing situations. When we sympathise with the characters within these stories and with the ways that fate deals with them, we sympathise with ourselves. Some of the characters and events in these stories are based on real people and situations the author met along his way.
An assassin with a unique technique, an almost-was soccer star and a bitter long-forgotten one-hit-wonder pop star are just a few of the random characters who turn up within the stories in this book. Each are lovable in their own different ways and are doing their very best to dodge Lady Luck's sadistic target practice. Heroes they are not. And do they all live happily ever after? In all probability- probably not.
-----
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've loved. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by author names, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the index handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor.
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Calling Cat Lovers Everywhere!
Title: Buckley's Story - Lessons from a Feline Master Teacher
Author: Ingrid King
Genre: Pets, Memoir
ISBN: 9781440166242
Reviewed by Olivera Baumgartner-Jackson for Reader Views
If you’ve ever had the great honor to share your life with a pet, “Buckley’s Story: Lessons from a Feline Master Teacher” will not come as any surprise to you, but it will certainly make you shake your head in agreement and cause you to smile often, particularly when you’ll reach some parts which will greatly remind you of your pet’s habits. Animals could – and do! – teach us so much, if only we stop for long enough and truly listen to them.
Buckley was a small cat with a huge personality and an even bigger heart. She entered Ms. King’s life with a whisper, as the “office cat” in the veterinary hospital which was managed by Ms. King at the time. An extremely affectionate tortoiseshell cat, she became a constant companion who was very much missed when Ms. King decided to explore other career paths and left the hospital. After a couple of not immediately successful attempts to assimilate into Ms. King’s household, Buckley finally came home for good. Amber, the “original” cat sharing Ms. King’s home, had to adapt to the new situation, and she learned to share “her human” with another cat quite quickly. Sadly, Buckley was diagnosed with a heart condition after two years of her arrival into the new home, and the second half of the book deals with the treatments, challenges and final acceptance of the situation. The many moments of pure joy were always tainted with sadness over the inevitable final outcome of this situation, and Ms. King managed to capture the process of ultimate acceptance in incredible vivid detail.
Warm, intelligent and wise, this is a beautiful book that will touch the hearts of animal lovers, particularly those who are grieving over the loss of their companions or who are living with the knowledge that their companions will not be able to share their lives with them for much longer. It shall also prove useful to anybody who might be thinking of adopting an older and possibly not so healthy animal, showing very clearly why that might be a particularly good choice. The detailed information on Buckley’s diagnosis and treatment course, with clearly described challenges and rewards, might very well make some pet owners reconsider the path they are taking and make them realize that oftentimes we would do better to follow our instincts more and feel less obliged to blindly accept the mainstream information. And more than anything, “Buckley’s Story: Lessons from a Feline Master Teacher” by Ingrid King should make you realize again how much we should and do learn from the animals who graciously share their love and life with us.
Author Contact:
Ingrid King may be found at www.ingridking.com. Connect with her on
Facebook www.facebook.com/ingrid.king
and on Twitter at www.twitter.com/consciouscats
-----
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've loved. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by author names, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the index handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor.
As a courtesy to the author, please tweet and retweet this post using the widget below:
Author: Ingrid King
Genre: Pets, Memoir
ISBN: 9781440166242
Reviewed by Olivera Baumgartner-Jackson for Reader Views
If you’ve ever had the great honor to share your life with a pet, “Buckley’s Story: Lessons from a Feline Master Teacher” will not come as any surprise to you, but it will certainly make you shake your head in agreement and cause you to smile often, particularly when you’ll reach some parts which will greatly remind you of your pet’s habits. Animals could – and do! – teach us so much, if only we stop for long enough and truly listen to them.
Buckley was a small cat with a huge personality and an even bigger heart. She entered Ms. King’s life with a whisper, as the “office cat” in the veterinary hospital which was managed by Ms. King at the time. An extremely affectionate tortoiseshell cat, she became a constant companion who was very much missed when Ms. King decided to explore other career paths and left the hospital. After a couple of not immediately successful attempts to assimilate into Ms. King’s household, Buckley finally came home for good. Amber, the “original” cat sharing Ms. King’s home, had to adapt to the new situation, and she learned to share “her human” with another cat quite quickly. Sadly, Buckley was diagnosed with a heart condition after two years of her arrival into the new home, and the second half of the book deals with the treatments, challenges and final acceptance of the situation. The many moments of pure joy were always tainted with sadness over the inevitable final outcome of this situation, and Ms. King managed to capture the process of ultimate acceptance in incredible vivid detail.
Warm, intelligent and wise, this is a beautiful book that will touch the hearts of animal lovers, particularly those who are grieving over the loss of their companions or who are living with the knowledge that their companions will not be able to share their lives with them for much longer. It shall also prove useful to anybody who might be thinking of adopting an older and possibly not so healthy animal, showing very clearly why that might be a particularly good choice. The detailed information on Buckley’s diagnosis and treatment course, with clearly described challenges and rewards, might very well make some pet owners reconsider the path they are taking and make them realize that oftentimes we would do better to follow our instincts more and feel less obliged to blindly accept the mainstream information. And more than anything, “Buckley’s Story: Lessons from a Feline Master Teacher” by Ingrid King should make you realize again how much we should and do learn from the animals who graciously share their love and life with us.
Author Contact:
Ingrid King may be found at www.ingridking.com. Connect with her on
Facebook www.facebook.com/ingrid.king
and on Twitter at www.twitter.com/consciouscats
-----
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've loved. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by author names, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the index handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor.
As a courtesy to the author, please tweet and retweet this post using the widget below:
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Vivek Chaturvedi Reviews Debutante Indian Author
Title: Knots and No Crosses - Heartbreak after heartbreak, he still dreams of as perfect wedding...Author: Hitesha Deshpande
Website: http://knotsandnocrosses.com/
Genre: Fiction, Humor, Romance
ISBN: 9788122310481
Reviewer's Rating: 4 out of 5
Reviewed by Vivek Chaturvedi
Debutante Indian Authors
Debutante Indian authors have been making quite some waves recently. The seeds may have been sown with Anurag Mathur’s ‘The Inscrutable Americans’, but there was a hint of a lull thereafter. The current scenario, however, has changed. Right from Chetan Bhagat becoming a sensation on debut, to Arvind Adiga picking the Booker for his first published novel, a section of modern Indian fiction seems to be coming of age. This shift is also characterised by changes in language, flow and appeal of the content. The urban woman oriented themes, clubbed as ‘chick lit’, are becoming more rampant and gaining popularity. Books like ‘Almost Single’ by Advait Kala, that has sold around 2000 copies by now, or the lesser known ‘Pink or Black’ by Tishaa, both debut novels, reflect this trend.
To add to this, is the trend of blogging that is proving to be a wonderful platform for a number of aspiring authors to test and hone their craft before attempting anything mainstream. So we have the likes of Meenakshi Reddy Madhavan, trying her pen via the blog ‘The Compulsive Confessor’ and then landing a contract with a major publication for her debut novel ‘You Are Here.'
Knots and No Crosses - The Book
Hitesha Deshpande, making her debut with the book “Knots and No Crosses”, falls in a similar league. Having had a strong following on her blog ‘Wild Imagination’ (http://wildindigestion.blogspot.com/) (just one of over 5-6 well read fiction blogs that she has created over last few years), she has now come up with her debut novel.
The brevity of her narration and her tact of connecting multiple threads of a story, and literally forcing the reader to remain glued to the book is most notable. The way the author connects one chapter to the other and how the story moves back and forth in time in a smooth and exciting manner displays her instinctive craftsmanship at story telling. Amusingly titled as ‘Knots and No Crosses’, roller coasters could learn a thing or two from this one hell of a reading ride.
The story is about a young small town lad called Akkie and his multiple relationships in life, culminating into the holy grail of an intended perfect wedding. A wedding that nightmarishly turns out to be almost everything except, perfect. The book captures multiple emotions and thought processes of the characters in a hilarious and crisp manner. Right from the comical description of the parental pressure of marital expectations and the ways to avoid them, to the almost insane behavior of a bride getting cold feet right before the day of the wedding, the book pulls you into its plot page by page. Weaved in between the wedding drama, is the past of this small town boy with big dreams, his multiple relationships and how he grows through them. Each relationship teaching him something about life, each relationship giving him something except what he wanted, but all of them ripping his emotions apart with equal mercilessness. The tagline of the book wonderfully captures the thought - ‘Heartbreak after heartbreak, he still dreams of a perfect wedding…’.
The story is imaginatively rich with anecdotal details and displays good understanding of the subtleties of human behaviour on the author’s part. For eg. this scene at the dinner table where young Akki has decided to boldly express to his father (and uncles) his intent of moving out of Jodhpur, to go to Pune to study Commerce and Germen, while the “women hovered around pretending to serve, but not wanting to miss out on even a bit of this exchange. It would make excellent gossip as they dried mangoes for their pickles on the terrace, the next afternoon.”
The book also grips you with an interesting unexpected twist that makes it all the more worthwhile a read. Without revealing much more of the plot, let me just say that this book is a great fun read, where each chapter makes you crave for the next and you can’t stop until you are done with it all! If you are the type looking for a light humorous gripping read, and don’t care that time flies by while you are at it, then this is just the right thing to pick. Once you pick it up, you just can’t put it down!
Book Site - http://knotsandnocrosses.com/
--
Reviewed by Vivek Chaturvedi
+91 9873693951
"Heartbreak after heartbreak, he still dreams of a perfect wedding..."
Check out 'Knots and No Crosses' by Hitesha Deshpande.
http://knotsandnocrosses.com/
-----
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've loved. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by author names, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the index handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor.
Website: http://knotsandnocrosses.com/
Genre: Fiction, Humor, Romance
ISBN: 9788122310481
Reviewer's Rating: 4 out of 5
Reviewed by Vivek Chaturvedi
Debutante Indian Authors
Debutante Indian authors have been making quite some waves recently. The seeds may have been sown with Anurag Mathur’s ‘The Inscrutable Americans’, but there was a hint of a lull thereafter. The current scenario, however, has changed. Right from Chetan Bhagat becoming a sensation on debut, to Arvind Adiga picking the Booker for his first published novel, a section of modern Indian fiction seems to be coming of age. This shift is also characterised by changes in language, flow and appeal of the content. The urban woman oriented themes, clubbed as ‘chick lit’, are becoming more rampant and gaining popularity. Books like ‘Almost Single’ by Advait Kala, that has sold around 2000 copies by now, or the lesser known ‘Pink or Black’ by Tishaa, both debut novels, reflect this trend.
To add to this, is the trend of blogging that is proving to be a wonderful platform for a number of aspiring authors to test and hone their craft before attempting anything mainstream. So we have the likes of Meenakshi Reddy Madhavan, trying her pen via the blog ‘The Compulsive Confessor’ and then landing a contract with a major publication for her debut novel ‘You Are Here.'
Knots and No Crosses - The Book
Hitesha Deshpande, making her debut with the book “Knots and No Crosses”, falls in a similar league. Having had a strong following on her blog ‘Wild Imagination’ (http://wildindigestion.blogspot.com/) (just one of over 5-6 well read fiction blogs that she has created over last few years), she has now come up with her debut novel.
The brevity of her narration and her tact of connecting multiple threads of a story, and literally forcing the reader to remain glued to the book is most notable. The way the author connects one chapter to the other and how the story moves back and forth in time in a smooth and exciting manner displays her instinctive craftsmanship at story telling. Amusingly titled as ‘Knots and No Crosses’, roller coasters could learn a thing or two from this one hell of a reading ride.
The story is about a young small town lad called Akkie and his multiple relationships in life, culminating into the holy grail of an intended perfect wedding. A wedding that nightmarishly turns out to be almost everything except, perfect. The book captures multiple emotions and thought processes of the characters in a hilarious and crisp manner. Right from the comical description of the parental pressure of marital expectations and the ways to avoid them, to the almost insane behavior of a bride getting cold feet right before the day of the wedding, the book pulls you into its plot page by page. Weaved in between the wedding drama, is the past of this small town boy with big dreams, his multiple relationships and how he grows through them. Each relationship teaching him something about life, each relationship giving him something except what he wanted, but all of them ripping his emotions apart with equal mercilessness. The tagline of the book wonderfully captures the thought - ‘Heartbreak after heartbreak, he still dreams of a perfect wedding…’.
The story is imaginatively rich with anecdotal details and displays good understanding of the subtleties of human behaviour on the author’s part. For eg. this scene at the dinner table where young Akki has decided to boldly express to his father (and uncles) his intent of moving out of Jodhpur, to go to Pune to study Commerce and Germen, while the “women hovered around pretending to serve, but not wanting to miss out on even a bit of this exchange. It would make excellent gossip as they dried mangoes for their pickles on the terrace, the next afternoon.”
The book also grips you with an interesting unexpected twist that makes it all the more worthwhile a read. Without revealing much more of the plot, let me just say that this book is a great fun read, where each chapter makes you crave for the next and you can’t stop until you are done with it all! If you are the type looking for a light humorous gripping read, and don’t care that time flies by while you are at it, then this is just the right thing to pick. Once you pick it up, you just can’t put it down!
Book Site - http://knotsandnocrosses.com/
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Reviewed by Vivek Chaturvedi
+91 9873693951
"Heartbreak after heartbreak, he still dreams of a perfect wedding..."
Check out 'Knots and No Crosses' by Hitesha Deshpande.
http://knotsandnocrosses.com/
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The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've loved. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by author names, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the index handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor.
Wednesday, August 14, 2013
Mainstream/Literary Read on Culture Gets Five Stars
Title: Tall man small shadow
Author: Vipin Behari Goyal
Author's Web site link: http://vipinbeharigoyal.blogspot.in/
Genre: Fiction/ Literature
ISBN : 978-8182534124
Book Cover
Available on Amazon Author: Vipin Behari Goyal
Author's Web site link: http://vipinbeharigoyal.blogspot.in/
Genre: Fiction/ Literature
ISBN : 978-8182534124
Book Cover
Rating-5 star
Reviewed By Rosa Maria originally for Amazon.com
This novel is truly a challenging read on many levels. Each vivid character
is faced with a highly emotional life situation that threatens his/her cultural
traditions and social standing. Just as we begin to fear that the central
characters cannot possibly get their lives on the right track and the threat of
suicide is ever present, the true power of the cultural matriarch comes to light
each and every path. The honor of editing this novel for Cyberwit was mine, and
the author is truly a skilled writer with engaging philosophical insights.
Definitely a 5-star rating on this one, and I look forward to his next novel.
MORE ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Vipin Behari Goyal, viping19@gmail.com, Mobile
No:9928805905. He blogs at: Author's Diction--My
Blog
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The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by genre, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor.
Thursday, July 12, 2012
Major Reference Important for ESL Students and US Emmigrants
What America Needs To Know About America From A To Z
Subtitle: How To Understand Crazy American Culture, People, Government, Business, Language and More
By Lance Johnson
Author's Web site: http://howtodoitfrugally.com/A_to_Z.htm
Author's E-mail: info@AmericaAtoZ.com
ISBN: 978-1468172362
Endorsed by U.S. and foreign
ambassadors and editors, this new book paints a revealing picture
of America and its people for those foreigners who will benefit from a better
understanding of America. It will also inform Americans who want to learn more
about the U.S. and how it compares to other countries around the
world.
World traveler and teacher Lance Johnson
studies cultural differences and the difficulties foreigners (even Americans!)
have understanding crazy America, as some call it. Foreigners might come to the U.S. to work
for American employers, to open branch offices or factories for their homeland
employers, to start their own businesses (100's of thousands do each year), go
to school (1 million a year do), or just move here (500 thousand do yearly).
Others might work for American organizations in their homelands or have American
teachers there. An understanding of American culture and language without
question will contribute to their success.
•Section IV – America's Language - The
number one problem area foreigners say they have with American culture. Easy,
practical ways to improve English grammar, speech, writing, communication
skills, and accent reduction. Common English grammar and speech errors made by
foreigners are identified and simple tips are provided for overcoming them.
This book is also in paperback in Europe and Asia at:
Austria
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Canada
-
France
-
Germany
-
Italy
-
Japan
-
Spain
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It is also available in Chine from Oriental Press in simplified Chinese.
For those with
special needs or interests,
the sections of this book
are also available separately:
the sections of this book
are also available separately:
Book 1 - America's Heritage
Find it on Amazon at http://bit.ly/AmericasHeritageBook1
Book 2 - America's Culture
Find it on Amazon at
http://bit.ly/AmericasCultureBook2
Book 3 - America's Business
Find it on Amazon at
http://bit.ly/AmericasBusinessBook3
Book 4 - America's Language
Find it on Amazon at
http://bit.ly/AmericasLanguageBook4
The above volumes are also available on Amazon in Austria, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Spain, and the United Kingdom.
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The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by genre, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. As a courtesy to the author, please tweet and retweet this post using this little green retweet widget :
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