The Really OK, Not OK Book

I'm Not OK, You're Not OK, But That's OK With God: Finding the Humor and Healing in Life
By Shelley Hussey
ISBN 9780615199368
Publisher: Harper Ink


Reviewed By Carolyn Howard-Johnson, an Amazon Vine Voice


Prospective readers of "I'm Not OK" should know, I am not an officianado of inspirational self-help books. I have read enough of them to know that most are not written by writers--especially the ones on the bestselling lists--thus I don't seek them out. Usually one can't detect a voice or personality behind the advice. Thus, it's difficult to related to those giving the advice and certainly they aren't much fun to read.

"I'm Not OK" is different. It is full of humor. One would expect that from the subtitle. But it's also full of heart and, yes, one can detect a real person--and I'm thinking writer, too--behind the chapters and paragraphs.

Find the chapters titled "From Band-Aid Soup to Nuts." Find "The Fleeting Peace of Mind Zip Code" and "Fred Goes to the Not OK Corral." Here is a book that is full of anecdote, personal experience (read that "trusted experience") and, yep! Inspiration.
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Reviewed by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, multi award-winning novelist, poet and author of the HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers and retailers.




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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.
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Birts Write Illustrate Book for Kids

Title: Ian Wakes Up
Author: Pat Birt
Publisher's Book Store :
http://www.authorhouse.com/Bookstore/ItemDetail.aspx?bookid=64737
Illustrator : Rob Birt

Genre : Childrens Color Picture/Easy Reader
ISBN : 9781449012137

Reviewed by Julie Rugh for Amazon

Supports teaching morning routine,

Ian Wakes Up is about a child's morning routine from climbing out of bed,to dressing, eating breakfast etc...all the things we do before leaving the house to start our day. The illustrations are bright, colorful and cheery...while simple and easy for the child to understand prior to being able to read the words. A wonderful tool for reinforcing those morning steps to a pre-schooler as they learn to do for themselves.

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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.
And while you're at it, as a courtesy to the author, please retweet this post:

Poodle and Doodle and Fun Story for Kids

Poodle & DoodleTitle: Poodle and Doodle
Written by: Donna J. Shepherd
Illustrated by: Jack Foster
Soft cover: 20 pages
Ages: up to 12 years
Publisher: Guardian Angel Publishing
Print ISBN: 978-1-61633-017-0 ; 6161330171
Ebook ISBN: 978-1-61633-018-7 ; 161633018-X
Price: $10.95 – Soft cover
$9.95 – E-book CD
$5.00 – PDF or Flip Zipped E-book

Reviewed by Donna M. McDine

The balance of friendship can be a difficult one to understand. At times one may feel they are overshadowed by a friend and become frustrated. Poodle and Doodle by Donna J. Shepherd explores an unexpected friendship in this delightful rhyming story of two distinctly different dogs.

What comes forth through the eyes of one fancy poodle pup, Angel, is her own insecurities of having another dog around. When Scruffy, a cross between Poodle and Labrador is brought home by their owner, Leah, havoc ensues wherever Scruffy goes. His less than stellar manners appall Angel until the “ah-ha” moment that Scruffy is not so bad and is actually fun to have around.

Shepherd wonderfully brings to life real life issues all humans contend with in finding their place with friends. Most of all, we are all individuals whether canine or human and should appreciate the positives in all we meet.

Illustrator, Jack Foster brings the canine characters to life with their young owner, Leah, making it an adventure to read over and over again.

To learn more about author Donna J. Shepherd visit: http://www.donnajshepherd.com and http://www.poodleanddoodle.blogspot.com.

Visit and explore Jack Foster’s colorful world at: http://www.jacktoon.blogspot.com.

Reviewer Donna M. McDine will help you post your media releases? Contact: Dynamic Media Release Services: http://www.donnamcdine.com/dynamicmediareleases.html Find her at: http://www.donnamcdine.com and her Write What Inspires You Blog: http://www.donna-mcdine.blogspot.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.
And while you're at it, as a courtesy to the author, please retweet this post:

Memoir Serves As Self Help, Too!

Book: The Therapist's New Clothes
By: Judith D. Schwartz
Blog: http://litadventuresinpod.blogspot.com
Genre: Memoir
ISBN/UPC: 9781605710341
Publisher: Shires Press


Reviewed by Carla Cantor for Amazon.com


In The Therapist's New Clothes, Judith D. Schwartz takes us on a journey of self-discovery. Haunted by her grandmother's suicide, the author has spent most of her adult years trying to resolve emotional problems with her for as long as she can remember. But despite years of self-analysis and psychotherapy, she is unable to hold onto happiness. Her quest to conquer her demons takes on an even greater urgency once she marries and has a child. Desperate for answers, Schwartz seeks out a string of clinicians with whom she forges close, symbiotic relationships as they struggle to piece together the puzzle of her childhood. At the same time, she decides to
become a therapist herself.

Schwartz's pursuit of a tranquil psyche unfolds like a detective story, from New York to Chicago to Vermont and back and forth in time. The author moves deftly between early years and present-day life and provides an uncommon peek into the private worlds of therapy sessions and clinician training.

A "good patient" and a caring, astute beginning therapist, Schwartz
understands the ins and outs of concepts like transference and projection.
She clings to a personal narrative that includes guilt and parental blame
for a case of childhood mumps that may that (or may not) have caused her
brother's vision problems. Schwartz views emptiness and self-loathing, her
constant companions, as "old" feelings dredged up in therapy, to be worked
out in therapy - preventing her from realizing that the therapy itself has
become addiction that is keeping her from discovering a better way.

We root for this intelligent, insightful woman to unlock the key to her
misery and stop beating herself up, which she eventually does, sort of. One
gets the feeling at the end of the book that there are more chapters to be
written, new narratives and aha moments for the analytic Schwartz - but
that's okay. We can look forward to them.

In the meantime, Schwartz's cautionary tale will be inspiring to others and
make readers think. Aside from sharing a moving personal tale, Schwartz
broaches important questions - about the relationship between mind and body,self and biochemistry, and the meaning of happiness. Her story challenges us to take a look at own narratives and how they influence our perception of who we are in the world.

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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.
And while you're at it, as a courtesy to the author, please retweet this post:

Polishing up Your Media Releases with "The Frugal Book Promoter"

The Frugal Book Promoter
By Carolyn Howard-Johnson
ISBN 193299310X
Star Publish
Pages 282 Includes Index
Winner USA Book News Best Book Award, and Book Publicists of Southern California's Irwin Award


Reviewed by Author and Radio Host Constance M. Gotsch

As the program director for a public radio station, thrice-published author, and publicist for a couple of arts organizations in my home town, I deal with releases all the time. Some of the people who send me stuff should read The Frugal Book Promoter. Carolyn Howard-Johnson is full of ideas on how to focus promotions, and how to make them attractive to any medium--radio, TV, the net, print, and more. To grasp all the information she's managed to pack into 243 pages, counting the index, would take multiple readings.

Though aimed mostly at authors The Frugal Book Promoter can be useful to anyone doing publicity. Ms. Howard-Johnson's ideas adapt as well to the Red Cross as they do to a hot romance to read in the airport.

The Frugal Book Promoter will be a dog-eared reference on my writer's shelf both at work and at home until it falls apart from over work, and I have to spring for a new copy.
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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.
And while you're at it, as a courtesy to the author, please retweet this post:

Dialect and Poetry: Relections on Cultures

Sozaboy: A Novel in Rotten EnglishA Collection of Verse
By Eliza Earsman
Genre: Poetry/politcal
ISBN: 9780955624810

Reviewed by Carolyn Howard-Johnson

In spite of the generic title, this collection of poems by Eliza Earsman is creative, experimental and unique.

I can't remember who said it recently--one of our US state's poet laureates, I think--that poets need to roam afar from the personal more often. Earsman does that, though the personal is always there.

For one thing her passion is evident. I think students of poetry might also study her use of dialect. It is especially interesting because she supplies a glossary of terms at the end of her poems to help the unitiated.

A book that Eliza and her readers might also find interesting (though they should not consider the title a reflection on Eliza's writing!) is [[ASIN:0393329607 Rotten English: A Literary Anthology]] by Dohra Ahmad. She is an academic who has done a fine job of showing why books like Eliza's are important. It's namesake, Rotten English [[ASIN:9782460028 Sozaboy: A Novel in Rotten English]] may also be of interest. Language is an amazing mirror to culture as these books and Eliza's demonstrate.

Eliza's book deserves five stars for its daring, both politcally and poetically.

The reviewer is the author of poetry chapbooks Cherished Pulse, She Wore Emerald Then and Tracings.

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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.
And while you're at it, as a courtesy to the author, please retweet this post:

Title: Fatal Gamble: A Novel
Author: JP O'Donnell
Website: www.jpodonnell.com
Genre: Fiction: Mystery/Thriller
ISBN:
Publisher: iUniverse
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
ISBN: 978-0595504756 (hc)
ISBN: 978-0595514090 (pbk)
ISBN: 978-0595618873 (e-book)

Reviewed by Will Gabbett of the Feathered Quill ww.featheredquill.com


It’s just another mundane day in the life of Dr. Jonathan Becker. He gets up, readies himself for work, kisses his lovely wife and then heads out the door for work. Getting in his car and tuning the radio to his favorite talk show, it’s a quick drive to the medical building where he runs a thriving pediatric practice. Arriving at his office, he sits in his car for a few minutes to listen to the end of the radio show and boom! Dr. Becker is shot dead. In just two short pages, Fatal Gamble grabs the reader and begs the question, who shot Dr. Becker?

The police are quickly on the scene of the deadly crime but have few leads in the murder. When another doctor from the same building is murdered, the wife of Dr. Becker seeks out a private investigator, Daniel Gallagher, to find the person, or persons, responsible for her husband’s death. The police, particularly the lead investigator, Jack Hoskins, are not fond of Gallagher, an ex-cop, and are not willing to share crucial information on the case with the private investigator. Through his own cunning and expertise, Gallagher must shift through a series of clues and false leads to find the killer.

After a third doctor from the same office complex is found dead, it becomes clear to Gallagher that the connection the three murder victims share is their partnership in the ownership of the medical building. When the police arrest a suspect and declare the case solved, Gallagher is the only one to question the arrest. With detective work that would make Perry Mason proud, Gallagher continues to search for the assailant. His investigation leads him to Washington , DC , Las Vegas , NV and his own backyard. Will he be able to find the killer before another doctor is murdered?

Fatal Gamble is a quick reading thriller with crisp, easy writing that takes the reader directly into Gallagher’s world. There are several unexpected twists and turns in the story that keep both Gallagher and the reader guessing. O’Donnell expertly guides the reader into the underworld dealings in both Washington and Las Vegas while avoiding all

the dry, dull irrelevant background text that many authors incorporate into their stories. With short, concise chapters, it is tempting to “read just one more chapter” before putting the book down for the night. Alas, for this reviewer, that “one more chapter” became two, then three, and then ten or twenty more chapters. It was a hard book to put down.

Quill says: If you’re looking for a great “who dun it?” book, pick up Fatal Gamble.


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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.
And while you're at it, as a courtesy to the author, please retweet this post: