Review of Stacey Bartlett's Page Turning Book, FREE SINGS THE SEA

BOOK TITLE: FREE SINGS THE SEA

AUTHOR OF BOOK: Stacey Bartlett

AUTHOR'S EMAIL ADDRESS: staceybartlettauthor@gmail.com

AUTHOR'S FAVORITE LINKS: https://linktr.ee/staceybartlettauthor

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 __ Yes, I have received permission from the reviewer to reprint their review in its entirety. 

REVIEWER’S BYLINE: Cordelia Tait, originally published at Goodreads

THE REVIEW:

Free Sings the Sea is an exquisite tale of hope over adversity where the promise of freedom for the female characters had me turning the pages into the wee hours to quell my craving.

Shanna’s fierce sense of protection towards her younger sister and mother shone as brightly as the moon over the misty, Blue Ridge Mountains—and it is from these soaring mountains and plush valleys nestling their trailer—where I embarked upon my journey of willing the characters to overcome the obstacles stacked against them from the festering cruelty of the antagonist stepfather and husband, Travis. 

The backdrop of some of Mother Nature’s finest creations cocooning the cruel terror that existed in the family trailer lent a poetic, breath-holding slant — the expectant universe waiting for growth and freedom to bloom.

The striking scenery, a salve for the darker themes that lurked throughout this story, was beautifully captured by the author: I could smell the pine trees in the woods, zigzag through them while running free with the wild deer, taste the ripe pears, be enthralled by the horse under that big ol’ moon. Exquisite fairytale vibes of snaking danger coiling through the natural beauty and seemingly elusive escape from terror.

There’s a realistic depiction of the insidious and progressive nature of Domestic Abuse. The survival tactics used by the characters expertly captures the strategies utilised by victims of DA: the placement of the glass of water the night before, the creeping about the trailer and grounds, the various tones of voice used to placate the perpetrator, and the expert skills honed by victims to analyze said perpetrator’s current, twisted deployment.

This book was fantastic in creating the atmospheric tension: “Lia cries and pulls the blanket tightly over her head, because everyone knows that if you hide under a blanket, the monster in the room can’t get you. This one can, though. My one thought is to get him away from her and Mom who’s asleep at the end of the hall. And I need to do it fast.”

Travis’ dark character, and the abusive relationship he has with Shanna’s mother, is juxtaposed with the parallel relationship between Shanna and Free, a burgeoning bond that depicts the healthy tenets of a relationship built on trust, friendship, and boundary establishment, but mostly, respect.

This novel was a beautiful and satisfying read. Where there was tension, there was tenderness. Heartbreak turned to hope. Moments of despondent despair, balanced by delectable victory, and where a delicious denouement occurs and the nuanced title continued to wash over me long after I closed the final page.

REVEWER'S TWITTER MONIKER: 

@corrietait_: 

A Seldom-Heard Voice of Autism Speaks

Title: Finally Autistic:

Subtitle: Finding My Autism Diagnosis as a Middle-Aged Female

Author: Theresa Werba

Publisher: Bardsinger Books, 

Genres: Nonfiction, Women;

Nonfiction Health;  Memoir

ISBN: 978-0-9656955-3-4

Released August 2024

$12.95 paperback

124 pages

Find it on Amazon 

 

Reviewed by Andrew Benson Brown 

 

Finally Autistic: Finding My Autism Diagnosis as a Middle-Aged Female is a revealing portrait of one woman’s lifelong struggle with autism.

As someone who worked in mental health for nearly a decade, I can testify that this memoir shows a level of insight and awareness that many people with mental health issues struggle to achieve, and never find. Werba herself groped towards awareness after being misdiagnosed for years, and admits to still struggling with the underlying emotional and behavioral issues that come with an Autism Level 1 diagnosis. As she put it, “Why, with grey hairs abounding, do I still have problems when people ask me, ‘How are you?’

Calling it a memoir is not entirely accurate. It is more of an autobiographical case study.
Werba’s personal reflections and anecdotes are firmly rooted in data: an autism assessment, school report cards that highlight her “unsatisfactory” levels of self-control, and even developmental reports from when she was in preschool (all reproduced in full within these pages). Her blending of subjective reflections with objective data points make this a unique work.

This is not Werba’s first go at autobiographical writing. She is also the author of Warning Signs of Abuse: Get Out Early and Stay Free Forever (2015), and When Adoption Fails: Abuse, Autism, and the Search for My Identity(2001). Even further back, as she tells us in the pages of this book, she wrote her first autobiography in second grade: “I was ‘a baby that cried a lot,’” she tells us.

Theresa Werba’s life story is fascinating in the worst possible way. “Childhood was difficult, challenging, painful, and even sad for me,” she writes. Born of a teenage sex worker, adopted by members of a religious cult who abused her, getting in constant trouble at school, self-harming as an adolescent, struggling to hold jobs as an adult, being disinherited by her adoptive mother, living in an abusive marriage to a drug addict: these experiences are superficially similar to those of many who end up on the wrong side of the criminal justice system, or in a psychiatric institution.

Somehow, though, Werba did not end up like so many others. Quite the opposite, in fact—she became a successful classical singer and poet. She had a litter of children, all of whom are successful today. In short, she beat the odds.

How? Well, as she described it, things got better for her “as I developed the ability to ‘mask’—the face I learned to put on when singing and in social activity.” Interestingly, she attributes her successful masking to her identity as an artist, since eccentric behavior is tolerated more in this social type. Her talent for singing music and performing poetry, she tells us, turned out to be her “saving grace.” It not only provided her with a creative outlet, but allowed her to communicate with an audience in socially acceptable ways.

My own familiarity with Werba, prior to reading this book, was through poetry. She is a widely acknowledged master of formal lyric verse, one of the best sonneteers writing today. Reading her published work or watching her perform, one would not have any idea that she struggles with neurodivergence, and most who know her from this world remain ignorant of the fact. I’ve known her for several years now myself and had no idea about any of this until a few months ago. Her masking, as she put it, has “led to many close friendships throughout my life, as well as more lovers and entanglements than I care to remember.”

I read this book in one sitting, unable to put it down. I think this, in part, has to do with humankind’s addiction to schadenfreude: while it is illuminating and usually sad, it is also entertaining in a tragicomic sort of way. Werba chronicles, in detail, all the jobs she was fired from for behavioral issues that affected her performance, as well as social situations that wrecked many of her personal relationships.

One disastrous social situation highlights the book’s instructive and entertaining aspects. Once while substitute teaching for a Kindergarten class, Werba decided to bring some historical context to a reading of “The Night Before Christmas.” Conditioned by her religious beliefs to believe that presenting fairy tales as truth was bad, she told the children about the real Saint Nicholas, saying that he died in the 4th century. This somehow turned into children going home and telling their parents that “Teacher said Santa Claus is dead,” which turned into a teacher’s visit to the principal’s office, which turned into an interview with a local news station. “I ended up getting hate mail from all over the country,” Werba said. This in addition to being fired from substitute teaching at that school.

The explanation she gives for her behaviors here could well stand in for every situation in the book: “I was rigid and inflexible when confronted with this dilemma and I could not see any nuanced resolution to my problem.” This is, in a nutshell, how people with Autism Level 1 deal with the world.

In uncovering the roots of her “rigid and inflexible” nature, Werba highlights the surprising connection between autism and religion. She partly attributes her early lack of proper diagnosis to living in a conservative Anabaptist community and the black-and-white thinking this engendered. “My one-minded obsessive thinking could be interpreted as religious fervor,” she writes, observing that people with autism are prone to being drawn towards fundamentalism, “and even cults.”

Werba does not go into much detail about her years in a fundamentalist religious community or her abusive marriage, events she has previously recorded in When Adoption Fails and Warning Signs of Abuse. While this would no doubt make for more fascinating reading, she stays focused on the topic of neurodivergence and only relates life events directly relevant to her autism.

A chapter that describes being wrongly classified as having bipolar disorder goes into the horrors of misdiagnosis. During a particularly difficult time when the responsibilities of life were overwhelming her, Werba’s psychiatrists placed her on a bevy of medications she shouldn’t have been on. She was largely bedridden for five years.

Werba remained misdiagnosed for three decades, into her early fifties. Eventually it was a relative, not a medical professional, who first noticed that Werba was probably not bipolar. After reading about autism in a psych 101 textbook, her daughter-in-law told her son, “this sounds like your mom.”

“Bulls**t,” said Theresa when her son brought it up. “I am bipolar with anxiety. I don’t have autism.”

She slowly came around to the idea, though, and “welled with tears” when receiving the results of her 2015 autism assessment. “I was glad and sad at the same time,” she writes.

The book ends on an inspiring note. Since being properly diagnosed, she has been living her best life: tracking down her Jewish biological father, studying Hebrew and exploring Judaism, publishing numerous books of poetry, and living independently.

Finally Autistic is good source for professionals researching this area. More generally, it is useful for anyone seeking to understand people with this diagnosis. Above all, it is a window into the mind of a great artist.

 

 

Andrew Benson Brown is Arts Columnist at The Epoch Times and author of Legends of Liberty.

 

Theresa Werba the author of eight books, four in poetry, including What Was and Is: Formal Poetry and Free Verse (Bardsinger Books, 2024). Her website is theresawerba.com and she can be found on social media @thesonnetqueen. She is frequently reviewed and reviews of her books appear often on this The New Book Review blog. She also frequently shares reviews of others’ books here have published several reviews of my books before in addition to books I have reviewed.

 

 

More About #TheNewBookReview Blog 

 The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. Authors, readers, publishers, and reviewers may republish their favorite reviews of books they want to share with others. 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 and love. Please see submission guidelines in a tab at the top of this blog's home page or go directly to the submission guidelines at http://bit.ly/ThePlacetoRecycleBookReviews or to the guideline tab at the top of the home page of this blog. Authors and publishers who do not yet have reviews or want more may use Lois W. Stern's #AuthorsHelpingAuthors service for requesting reviews. Find her guidelines in the right column of this blog home page (a silver and gold badge and threee silver-gray circles beneath it. Carolyn Wilhelm is our IT expert, an award-winning author and veteran educator, she also contributes reviews and posts on other topics related to books. Reviews, interviews, and articles on this blog are indexed by genre, reviewers' names, and review sites so #TheNewBookReview may be used as a resource for most anyone in the publishing industry. As an example, writers will find this blog's 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. #TheFrugalbookPromoter, #CarolynHowardJohnson, #TheNewBookReview, #TheFrugalEditor, #SharingwithWriters, #reading #BookReviews #GreatBkReviews #BookMarketing HowToDoItFrugally http://bit.ly/ThePlacetoRecycleBookReviews. Pre-format the post editor for each new post. Cancel Save Post published

GREAT REVIEW FOR PUBLIC SPEAKING – Banish the Butterflies by JanHurst-Nicholson

TITLE OF YOUR BOOK: PUBLIC SPEAKING – Banish the Butterflies

 

AUTHOR OF BOOK's NAME: Jan Hurst-Nicholson

 

AUTHOR'S EMAIL ADDRESS jannev@mweb.co.za

 

AUTHOR'S FAVORITE LINKS: https://just4kix.jimdofree.com/

 

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REVIEWER’S BYLINE: (Karen Siddall, public speaker, originally reviewed on Amazon.com )

 

INCLUDE THE REVIEW ITSELF, of course! 

5.0 out of 5 stars 

MUST-READ FOR NEW PUBLIC SPEAKERS AND RENEWING FOR THOSE THAT HAVE BEEN DOING THAT FOR AWHILE

REVIEWED in the United States on Amazon.com

As a career public speaker, I can say that this book was an awesome little breath of inspiration and renewal. Good, common-sensical tips are presented in a practical way. Very helpful and refreshing and full of good ideas that I wish I’d had when I was just starting out. I especially enjoyed the asides of actual experiences “on the road.” I recommend this book especially to those that find themselves having to speak up and speak out at public gatherings of any kind! There is even a section regarding being chosen to say grace before a public meal.

  

ABOUT THE AUTHOR WHOSE BOOK IS BEING REVIEWED: 

Jan Hurst-Nicholson began her writing career over 40 years ago by penning “Letters to the Editor” (a good exercise in brevity, and winning letters can pay handsomely). She then went on to write magazine articles, short stories, humour, children’s and teen books, a variety of novels and non-fiction. After winning her first writing award 35 years ago and begging the MC not to ask her to give an acceptance speech she realised she needed to join a public speaking club. This gave her the self-confidence to promote her books by speaking at libraries, schools, clubs and various events (writers can become minor celebrities in their community) and she went on to become an educator in public speaking. In this book Jan shares her experiences as a public speaker hoping to encourage others to learn this life-changing skill.  She has also added some fun anecdotal stories from other speakers about the pitfalls and pratfalls they encountered. Jan originally lived in the UK but now resides in a retirement village in South Africa, where she finds plenty of ideas for another novel. Learn more about Jan’s writing on her website https://just4kix.jimdofree.com/

 

REVIEWER'S TWITTER MONIKER: https://twitter.com/just4kixbooks

 

Review of ASTROLOGY IN THE ERA OF UNCERTAINTY BY JOE LANDWEHR

TITLE OF YOUR BOOK: ASTROLOGY IN THE ERA OF UNCERTAINTY

AUTHOR OF BOOK's NAME: JOE LANDWEHR

AUTHOR'S EMAIL ADDRESS joelandwehr@socket.net 

AUTHOR'S FAVORITE LINKS: https://www.joelandwehr.com/astrologyintheeraofuncertainty

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REVIEWER’S BYLINE: Armand Diaz, review originally published in the NCGR Memberletter, Spring 2024

INCLUDE THE THE REVIEW ITSELF, of course!

In a kind of symmetry, Joe Landwehr wishes more people would pay attention to astrology, and I wish more astrologers would pay attention to Joe Landwehr. He’s among the most original and grounded astrologers writing today, and his work has a tremendous benefit to offer the thinking astrologer: his work is always thought-provoking. Astrology in the Era of Uncertainty is his latest book, and perhaps his most accessible work.

Reading the title, I thought that I might be in for a book about mundane astrology and how to handle the aftermath of the last decade’s Uranus-Pluto square or other celestial signposts. What I found instead was a reorientation of astrology within the already-accepted ‘era of uncertainty’, an era that extends in both directions well beyond any current transits.

In the first chapters, the author takes up the question of astrology’s relationship to the dominant paradigm in Western culture, scientific materialism. This is a topic that has been frequently addressed by many astrologers— myself included—and Landwehr does an excellent job of showing both why the materialist paradigm is limited and why astrology doesn’t fit in as a science (and should stop trying to do so). 

Thinking that particular argument had been dispatched, I found to my surprise that Astrology in the Era of Uncertainty goes on to deconstruct not only scientific materialism, but the gushier side of the New Age, as well as traditional religion (to some extent). Landwehr has little tolerance for sloppy thinking, whether it comes from the rationalist or non-rationalist, and he doesn’t mind taking aim at astrologers who slide around in the mud of overgeneralizations and simplistic arguments.

The book presents a history of current thought; that is, how we got where we are, both astrologically and in the dominant paradigm. Landwehr follows the New Age back to its origins, and he traces astrology forward into Psychological Astrology and its more modern forms. While recognizing the value of the various twists, turns, and innovations, he also takes out the razor of discrimination to point out where things veer off course.

Although the material is philosophical and historic, Landwehr’s writing is clear and concise, and this makes the book very accessible and a pleasure to read. I read, reread, put it down, and took it up again many times, and presumethis is the way many of us will read it—taking time to think is part of the process.

Later in the book, the author presents an example of the astropoetic approach via an empirical exploration of decades of Vesta transits in his personal chart (actually, Vesta returns rather than transits). This more intimate approach works well to show us how astrological understanding develops as a blend of accepted knowledge with personal experience (although he never really stops addressing historical material).

Rather than resting on rigid principles in a mock-scientific formula, we are encouraged to move around freely within the parameters described by our art. This section of the book is sure to appeal to many astrologers, and it serves as a balance to the more philosophical material. Indeed, Landwehr talks about the balance between yin and yang approaches, or the hermeneutics of faith and suspicion.

It is a common endeavor among astrologers to try to situate astrology within the contemporary world, a world which is—as Landwehr points out—simultaneously hostile to astrology and fascinated by it, depending on what sector of society you fathom on the issue. Generally, I have found that authors on the subject wish to convince the greater world of astrology’s value, or at least generate a group effort to step outside of the dominant paradigm together. There’s often a tightness in these arguments, a plea of “don’t leave me hanging out here by myself.” By contrast, Joe Landwehr offers his insights with an open hand. Once you read Astrology in the Age of Uncertainty, you’ll understand far more about how astrology works, how it fits into contemporary culture, and how you can use it for your personal development as well as for your clients. It would make great summer reading for any and all astrologers, with endless opportunities to chew on the ideas presented.

MORE ABOUT THE REVIEWER: Armand Diaz is a professional astrologer and a frequent speaker at conferences and workshops.  He is currently the president of the National Council for Geocosmic Research.  You can read more about his work at armanddiaz.com. 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR WHOSE BOOK IS BEING REVIEWED:  Joe Landwehr is an astrologer of 50+ years experience, seeking an eclectic integration of astrology, spiritual psychology and ancient wisdom teachings. He is the author of five books and numerous articles for The Mountain Astrologer and other publications. He is Director of The Astropoetic School of Soul-Discovery, which offers individualized correspondence courses, webinar classes and workshops built around the correlation of astrological cycles with actual life experience. He has taught and lectured at ISAR conferences, the Midwest Astrology Conference, and online at International Academy of Astrology. More information about his work can be found at joelandwehr.com.

Author Advocate Terry Whalin Lauds The Frugal Book Promoter

 

Dear Subscribers and Visitors: 

I am sharing this review with special thank you. It is for the flagship book in my HowToDoItFrugally Series of books for writers, it’s 3^rd edition after serving writes for over three decades. It’s also an opportunity to do regular contributors to this blog to follow him. With over 180,000 X/Twitter followers, over 14,900 LinkedIN connections and over 4900 Facebook friends, no one should miss out on his experience and wisdom. He is a model for the magic that reviews can be in the marketing campaigns of authors of books—any book, any genre!

Best, 
Carolyn

 Reviewed byTerry Whalin, originally for Amazon and Goodreads

1 of 5 stars2 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars[ 5 of 5 stars ]

The Frugal Book Promoter

3rd Edition

Subtitle: How to get nearly free publicity on your own or by partnering with your publisher

by Carolyn Howard-Johnson (Goodreads Author)

Publisher: Modern History Press

Available as e-book, paperback and hardcover on Amazon’s Series Page

it was amazing

Every Author Needs This Resource

There are over 11,000 new books which enter the marketplace every day. This truth is daunting for every author. If you aren’t telling others about your book or need some innovative and experienced ideas to reach new readers, you need THE FRUGAL PROMOTER. Carolyn Howard-Johnson has some unique background as a retailer and promoter of other books as well as her own. Read this book and act on the ideas which will help your book succeed where others fail.

In the early pages, Howard-Johnson writes, “This book is for authors who want their books to soar and do not want their careers to languish. It is structured so authors can select chapters that address aspects of their marketing plan most needed at any given time…THE FRUGAL PROMOTER is not a textbook. It contains opinions—some as black and white as the page you find them on. It is me talking to you, sharing with you.” (Page vi)

This resource is an idea cornucopia and I highly recommend every author use it often and make their pages dogeared.

MORE ABOUT TODAY’S REVIEWER TERRY WHALIN 

W. Terry Whalin is an editor and the author of more than 60 books including his recent 10 Publishing Myths, Insights Every Author NEEDS. He is an author advocate, and avid reviewer as well as a prolific author.

 

MORE ABOUT #THENEWBOOKREVIEW BLOG

 The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. Authors, readers, publishers, and reviewers may republish their favorite reviews of books they want to share with others. 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 and love. Please see submission guidelines in a tab at the top of this blog's home page or go directly to the submission guidelines at http://bit.ly/ThePlacetoRecycleBookReviews or to the guideline tab at the top of the home page of this blog. 

 Authors and publishers who do not yet have reviews or want more may use Lois W. Stern's #AuthorsHelpingAuthors service for requesting reviews. Find her guidelines in the right column of this blog home page (a silver and gold badge and threee silver-gray circles beneath it. Carolyn Wilhelm is our IT expert, an award-winning author and veteran educator, she also contributes reviews and posts on other topics related to books. Reviews, interviews, and articles on this blog are indexed by genre, reviewers' names, and review sites so #TheNewBookReview may be used as a resource for most anyone in the publishing industry. As an example, writers will find this blog's 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. 

#TheFrugalbookPromoter, #CarolynHowardJohnson, #TheNewBookReview, #TheFrugalEditor, #SharingwithWriters, #reading #BookReviews #GreatBkReviews #BookMarketing HowToDoItFrugally http://bit.ly/ThePlacetoRecycleBookReviews. Pre-format the post editor for each new post. Cancel Save Post published

Review of OF ASHES AND DUST, Finalist for the 2023 Chanticleer International Book Award (CIBA) for Global Thrillers

TITLE OF YOUR BOOK: OF ASHES AND DUST, Finalist for the 2023 Chanticleer International Book Award (CIBA) for Global Thrillers

AUTHOR OF BOOK: Ron Roman

AUTHOR'S EMAIL ADDRESS: ron_g_roman@hotmail.com 

AUTHOR'S FAVORITE LINKS: www.writerronroman.com

ASSURANCE TO SATISFY COPYRIGHT LAW: 

 _X_ Yes, I have received permission from the reviewer to reprint their review in its entirety. 

REVIEWER: Meryl Danziger

Meryl Danziger

REVIEWER’S BYLINE: Meryl Danziger author of Sing It!  A Biography of Pete Singer (2016 Seven Stories Press).  Cf. Her website: www.meryldanziger 

REVIEW:

Reviewed in the United States on June 23, 2024

What a cool, wild adventure!

"This story, with its many moving parts, has an expertly-constructed arc that draws you in, holds you there and makes it easy to keep track of what’s what and who’s who. A gifted writer, the author uses his mastery of the language to make it seem as though he’s just chatting with the reader. I found myself quite liking the crusty, vulnerable, self-effacing protagonist. The author's hilarious, painfully accurate portrayal of stodgy college professors is just one of the many quirky side paths that keep this book highly entertaining."

MORE ABOUT THE REVIEWER: 

Meryl Danziger, AKA “The Music Genie,” is the Founder and Director of Music House. A published author, Meryl’s book Sing It! A Biography of Pete Seeger (Seven Stories Press, 2016) is the first biography of Pete Seeger for young readers. Meryl’s career has reached into every corner of music from performance to education to writing. A published songwriter, her original songs, stories and plays are regularly performed by children of all ages, and her articles on education and music education have appeared in NEA Today as well as in Homeschooling journals nationwide.

 Her book, Music House: Liberating the Music Lesson, will be available shortly.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR OF THE BOOK BEING REVIEWED: 

Ron Roman retired as Associate Professor from the University of Maryland Global Campus (UMGC-Asia) in 2020.  He has written extensive travel, academic, and political articles for regional, national, and international publications. He studied writing (both fiction and creative) for his third graduate degree (Humanities) from Wesleyan University/Connecticut.  Currently he resides in South Korea with his wife where he works on US military installations assisting US military retirees and dependents.  He continues to write and has acted in numerous Korean TV dramas and motion pictures like Operation Chromite portraying Admiral Forrest Sherman opposite Liam Neeson as General Douglas MacArthur.  His alternate-history apocalyptic doomsday thriller Of Ashes and Dust was a November 2022 release by Histria Books.