The New Book Review

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 Fav 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.

Thursday, June 1, 2023

Review of The Best Laid Traps

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TITLE OF YOUR BOOK: THE BEST LAID TRAPS


AUTHOR: YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS: PHILIP LACROIX


YOUR FAVORITE LINKS: 


https://a.co/d/3yFEIZJ


https://www.facebook.com/Philip.Lacroix06 


https://www.instagram.com/philip.lacroix_/


ASSURANCE TO SATISFY COPYRIGHT LAW: 

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


REVIEWER’S BYLINE:

BlueInk Review, founded by respected literary agent Patricia Moosbrugger and award-winning former book review editor of the Rocky Mountain News, Patti Thorn, BlueInk is the gold standard in book reviews.


MORE ABOUT THE REVIEWER: 

While fee-based, all BlueInk reviews are honest appraisals, written by professionals drawn largely from mainstream media outlets or editors who have worked at well-respected publishing houses. As our critics discover worthy titles, we celebrate the finest of these books — featuring them in high profile positions on our web page and vigorously promoting them on social media and other venues.


ABOUT THE AUTHOR: 

Philip La Croix is a thirty-three-year-old Knight at Medieval Times In Scottsdale, Arizona, and is looking to expand his talent beyond his use of the sword and lance. He graduated from California State University Fullerton with a BA in theatre and has been a performer all his life. He is channeling his many experiences into telling new tales. The Best Laid Traps is the first of hopefully many books to be sent out into the world.



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Sunday, May 21, 2023

Announcing the FREE Tales2Inspire Short Story Contest 2023

ENTER CONTEST

Created by a former teacher motivated to help other aspiring authors on their individual paths to discovery, Tales2Inspire® fulfills its promises and much, much more.

Great Reviews For Tales2Inspire ~ The Ruby Collection



TITLE OF BOOK: 

Tales2Inspire ~ The Ruby Collection (Gifts of Compassion)

  ISBN-10: 149594008X

  ISBN-13: 978-1495940088


ANTHOLOGY BY AUTHOR/EDITOR:

LOIS W. STERN


FAVORITE LINKS:

https:/www.tales2inspire.com

/twitter.com/tales2inspire2

/youtube.com/winningtales 


ASSURANCE TO SATISFY COPYRIGHT LAW: 

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



CELEBRATING THESE GREAT REVIEWS FOR 

TALES2INSPIRE ~ THE RUBY COLLECTION



TRUE STORIES OF INSPIRATION, COMPASSION AND LOVE

By Gail Sobotkin 



I have read each story and can honestly say I don't have a favorite. Each and every story touched my heart deeply. If you ever wondered what it would be like to live in a world where people and animals are treated with compassion, kindness and love, where the human spirit rises up again and again to meet seemingly impossible challenges, where faith triumphs over despair, where young children and abused animals teach adult humans life lessons, where the homeless are treated with respect and compassion, you must read The Ruby Collection, an amazing anthology of 14 true stories that will inspire you to live your own life with an open heart--- despite, or perhaps because of, whatever difficulties you may face.

Compassion is a gift that keeps on giving; it changes the giver, recipient, and all those who witness the compassionate act. It makes the world a better, kinder place and when delivered with love, has the power to transform the globe one person, one animal at a time.

The Ruby Collection makes a great gift for children and adults. Treat yourself to a copy and buy one for your friends, colleagues and relatives. Ask them to read the book then pass it on to an institution such as a library, hospital or school so that the stories will be spread far and wide, planting seeds of inspiration, compassion and love.


INSPIRING 

By Shauna L Bowling

Freelance Writer/Copy Editor



. . . a book of inspiration that uplifts the reader with each story. From human/animal spiritual connections to human/human connections, these true stories of courage, love, and strength are proof that good exists in the world. We can and do overcome the odds each and every day. If you have any doubts about the power of love, read this book. All it takes is one person to reach out to make positive changes in someone's life.

I highly recommend this book to readers of all ages. It just may change your life!



ANOTHER CHICKEN SOUP FOR THE SOUL

By Bani Sodermark

Reviewer for Book Pleasures and Amazon Vine Voice Reviewer



This is a feel good book documenting a collection of true stories that involve genuine empathy and kindness to other living beings including oneself. It arose out of a writing contest by an organization called "Authors Helping Author" and includes the best contributions that were submitted. The result is a very readable and well written book enshrined in the symbol of the ruby which stands for kindness and compassion.

That which is most appealing about this collection of stories is that the kindness shown at one instance of time is nearly always repaid in some way or other, forging deep and lasting bonds as the protagonists walk their life paths in tandem with one another. In some cases, they may experience a total reversal of a bodily malfunction as in the case of the first story, in which a man took care of a wounded eagle, unable to fly and nursed it to wellness. Later on, he was afflicted with cancer and he is convinced that dream conversations with his pet eagle, supplemented with chemo, was the cause of his total recovery.

A second story documents the success of a program called "Labs`n Life" in which dysfunctional children with learning and other problems are made to train Labradors. The interaction with these intelligent and loving animals, miraculously opens up these children and helps them integrate into the mainstream.

The theme of working with animals continues with the rehabilitation stories of Dusty the horse and Rae the dog who are restored to their playful selves and fulfil memorable relationships with their caregivers.

A few of the stories will touch you deep down inside. There is the erstwhile convict, Ray, who after years of confrontation with the bullying and sadistic warden of the penitentiary that he had occupied since his late teens, helped set fire to it. The warden was changed to one who had a record of successfully rehabilitating dreaded inmates and the whole atmosphere of the place changed as the convicts applied their energies to study and vocational training. There were no more incidents of arson or otherwise and our friend, Ray, after he was released was able to successfully land a job, get married and raise a family.

There is the holocaust survivor, who neutralized the actions of local politicians by going out with his own message of peaceful coexistence, ultimately reaching out to millions.

Another story that I will find difficult to forget is the story of a young African American black belt karate champion on the karate circuit, who it seems always acted rough if he or his team lost. It turned out that he had dedicated his life to saving children in the roughest quarters of Miami from a life of crime, by loading as many as possible into a van that was to take them to the tournament. If he did not win, he would have to borrow the money for the gas home.

There is the story of a former citizen of Rwanda, who returned to his homeland after the genocide and helped many people work their way out of poverty using his engineering skills and thus finding the way to his true calling. . . . 

Other inspiring stories include that of a young woman who appeared in the Guinness Book of Records after running seven marathons in seven continents. There is also the unusual story of window cleaners outside a hospital dressing up as children's heroes, e.g. Batman to cheer up children suffering from debilitating diseases.

The length of the manuscript is optimal, not too long, not too short.

This book, in my opinion, the best so far, in the Tales 2 Inspire series, created by Editor, Lois W. Stern. The storytelling is chiseled and evocative. . . .  One can never read too many of such stories, of seeing the way love and spirit redefine priorities and guide the human race out of black holes of its own making.

Saturday, May 13, 2023

Want a New Review for Your Book? List Your Review Request Here.

  This is your how-to page for authors to submit a query for

 Lois W. Stern to help you find reviews for your book.

(Kindly use the form below.)

Lois W. Stern, author advocate and associate of TheNewBookReview, offers readers who are authors a path to getting free and ethical reviews for their books. No kidding! Lois explains how to do it below and you'll learn more about her other "Authors Helping Authors" projects in her biography below those guidelines. Please feel free to let those in the publishing industry know about this service. 
Welcome!
Carolyn Howard-Johnson
Your  #TheNewBookReview blogger


"Marketing is a huge part of a book's success, and getting reviews is a huge part 
of marketing a book or any other business. 
If you don't believe it, ask a plumber who has had poor reviews on Yelp!"

~Quote from Page 18 of How to Get Great Book Reviews Frugally and Ethically by Carolyn Howard-Johnson
__________________________________


How to Let Lois W. Stern Match Authors and Book Reviewers 

Get your review request (it's like a mini query for reviews!) listed here on this The New Book Review blog at no charge Send your request to Lois at tales2Inspire2@gmail.com with REVIEW WANTED in the subject line. If you need help writing a query, see Carolyn Howard-Johnson's The Frugal Editor(Check the Appendix for sample letters and the Index for help within the body of the book.) 

Note: Please be sure the book you want to offer for review is already available for sale at Amazon.com or another online site where books are sold and include that link in your query. 

All of this blog's services are free, including this "Learn How to Use Our Free Book Review Service."

________________________________

Be sure to submit the exact information below in the email you sent to Lois. 
Put QUERY FOR LOIS'S REVIEW SERVICE in the subject line of the email and send it to tales2inspire2@gmail.com

AUTHOR's NAME: 

AUTHOR'S E-MAIL: Contact information for person submitting (be it author, reviewer, reader reviewer, or publisher.)

TITLE OF BOOK: 

SUBTITLE OF BOOK (if any):

GENRE:

BOOK DESCRIPTION: (100 words max) - Make your description pop to entice others to want to read your book! Hint: Use strong, present tense verbs! This is not a review, but a logline or tease like you see on movies posters--something to entice a reader to want to read your book. Usually two lines. Something like, "When so and so does this....then this presents a problem." You don't reveal the ending.

NUMBER OF PAGES: 

AGE/INTEREST LEVEL:

AMAZON OR OTHER ONLINE BOOKSTORE URL: 
Kindly send full link (NOT shortened link, as they do not seem to be working on Google sheets).

* BOOK FORMAT(S) YOU ARE OFFERING FOR REVIEW:  
(Please note: Paper books are more likely to get review offers than e-books.) 
Paperback or hard copy books - Yes or No 
Electronic versions of your e-book such as Kindle, pdf - Yes or No

How Authors Handle the Review Requests They Receive

When you get a request from a fellow author who wishes to review your book, send a review copy directly to your volunteer reviewer in whatever format you have offered, along with any promotional material you wish to share that might be helpful to the reviewer. The reviewer will then give your book an honest and fair review. Those interested in maximizing their efforts to get and use reviews to market their books will find Carolyn's How To Get Great Book Reviews Frugally and Ethically a big help.  

Disclaimers: 
1. In the spirit of Authors Helping Authors, Lois is happy to provide her 
review-getting service to her fellow authors at no cost, b
ut 
cannot guarantee that your listing will attract a reviewer. 

2. Due to conflict of interest concerns, Lois does not review the books listed on her review-request page herself. Nor does The New Book Review employ reviewers. All reviewers are subscribers or visitors to the blog who volunteer their services because they love to read, want to support the publishing industry, and may want a little extra online exposure for their own projects.

_______________________

Helpful Hint For Attracting Reviewers

 
Authors are more likely to find new reader-reviewers for their books if they promote (network) the link on the web--everywhere from website to blog to social media likeTwitter and Facebook! Lois will help guide you through that process upon request.

In Carolyn Howard-Johnson's book, The Frugal Book Promotershe says 
"For promotions to work, ya' gotta promote the promotion." 
We at #TheNewBookReview do a lot of that promotion for your book, too!  

__________________________
 

  MORE ABOUT YOUR REVIEW COORDINATOR



Tales2inspire® 
was a kernel of an idea I started in 2012, which has grown to proportions even I didn’t dare to envision. My innate curiosity about potentially fascinating human interest stories was the spark that ignited this idea, but it was the confused state of traditional publishing that propelled me forward. You see, in my heart I am all about authors-helping-authors and Tales2inspire® is another of those projects. It delivers exactly what it promises as both a project and a contest. Free to enter, this competition is open to talented newbies and seasoned authors alike who are willing to listen to their fellow author's critiques to better their work. Learn more here

A multi-award-winning author, Lois's work has been featured in The New York TimesNewsday (Act 2)and Long Island Press, on Local Access TV, and in live presentations in a multitude of venues. She has now published ten Tales2Inspire® books of her contest winners' stories. Fans of Chicken Soup for the Soul are particularly enamored with Tales2Inspire® books because, aside from their inspirational themes, they are filled with original photos to enhance the power of each story. Lois invites interested readers to get a free Tales2Inspire® sampler book click here. 

To learn more about entering Lois's next Tales2Inspire® contest, click here.

Spend some media marketing time with Lois at:


More About This 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 use this link to take you there.  Or you can use Lois W. Stern's "Authors Helping Authors" plan for requesting reviews. Just scroll up on this page to find her guidelines for getting reviews for your book or books!

Reviews, interviews, and articles on this blog are indexed by genre, reviewer names, and review sites so #TheNewBookReview may be used as a resource for most anyone in the publishing industry. 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.

Badges, Banners and Illustrations on this blog are provided by Carolyn Wilhelm. She tweets @jamsandbooks and offers educational aids on Pinterest as well. You'll also find her book and study guides by going to https://sharingwithwriters.blogspot.com 's  handy search engine. Or just subscribe! We'd love to have you!

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 a tab at the top of the home page, too. Carolyn Wilhelm is our IT expert, an award-winning author, a veteran educator and 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

Discover Great New Books to Read and Review

Hi there,

 It's Lois W. Stern, your #NewBookReview Review Acquisition Coordinator, back again to help you promote yourself with a beautiful handcrafted banner - when you lend a helping hand to a fellow author. 

Our #AuthorsHelpingAuthors Project

Step one: Discover a book in your Fav genre by clicking on its genre badge (or icon) below. 

Step two: Contact that author to get a copy of their book. (You will see all author info when you click on any badge listed below.)

Step three: When your review copy arrives, write a review for that book and post it on any of the credible online book review sites. (Remember, keep it honest and sincere. If it doesn't deserve at least 3 stars, decline to review it tactfully.)

Step four: Email the link to your posted review to tales2Inspire2@gmail.com with the words "TNBR Link to Posted Review" in the subject line. Once we receive it, we will create a beautiful personal banner just for you - free for you to use for all your platform-building efforts.

Send Us Your Fav Book Review


Hi, it's Lois W. Stern here, your #NewBookReview Review Coordinator, with another idea to help you get more eyeballs focused on your book. We all know that reviews help sell books, so how about sending me your FAV REVIEW and I'll get it posted here. 

HOW TO GET THIS FREE MARKETING TOOL FOR YOUR BOOK AND FOR YOUR REVIEWER:  Did your book get one fabulous review that you wish you could share with the world? Well wish no more. Now you can. Just send it to me  (Lois!) @tales2Inspire2gmail.com/ WITH "My fav book review" in the subject line using the format below,  and I'll post it for you on TheNewBookReview blog. And that’s a big deal ‘cause this blog gets tons of readers. 

Note: Please get permission from your reviewer to republish their review. 


HOW TO SUBMIT YOUR FAV REVIEW: To make the submission process easier, first copy and paste the template below to help you gather all your data.  Then I will post it for FREE at: https://thenewbookreview.blogspot.com/


TITLE OF YOUR BOOK:


AUTHOR OF BOOK's NAME:


AUTHOR'S EMAIL ADDRESS We don't publish this! 


AUTHOR'S FAVORITE LINKS: (website, amazon, blog, etc.)


ADD THIS ASSURANCE TO SATISFY COPYRIGHT LAW: 

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


REVIEWER’S BYLINE: (i.e. John Doe, author of, Group leader of , originally published at xxxx. )


INCLUDE THE THE REVIEW ITSELF, of course!


MORE ABOUT THE REVIEWER: (100 words or less) You may include the reviewer's links to website, blog, book's buy page or whatever the reviewer would like to use that is book related or might serve as a resource by #TheNewBookReview's audience--visitors or subscribers. Include the reviewer's social network addresses. It may include:
REVIEWER'S TWITTER MONIKER (Strongly preferred but not required.)

ABOUT THE AUTHOR WHOSE BOOK IS BEING REVIEWED:  (Don't be shy. This is a golden opportunity to brag a bit about yourself so include any links, photo, and where #TheNewBookReviews visitors and learn more that author.)  It may include:

REVIEWER'S TWITTER MONIKER (Strongly preferred but not required.)

ABOUT THE REVIEWER BIO (OPTIONAL): This may include information on the reviewer's book if they are also authors or information on their favorite writer-oriented project. (We do not accept information that includes selling book reviews.) You may include the reviewer's links to website, blog, book's buy page or whatever the reviewer would like to use that is book related or might serve as a resource by #TheNewBookReview's audience--visitors or subscribers. Include the reviewer's social network addresses. It may include  It may include:

REVIEWER'S TWITTER MONIKER (Strongly preferred but not required.)


INCLUDE ANY OF THE  FOLLOWING IMAGES WITH YOUR EMAIL: 

AUTHOR'S IMAGES: Author headshot and Author's book cover image

REVIEWER'S IMAGES: Reviewer headshot, Reviewer's book cover image (if they are  also a published author). We will use these images to create a free personal banner for the unrestricted use of both author and reviewer. 

E-MAIL YOUR REVIEW TO ME AT: tales2inspire2@gmail.com. Write NEWBOOKREVIEW BEST REVIEW" in the subject line of your e-mail.

AND HERE’S THE BEST PART:

Place a Tweet about your review on Twitter, (YOU ARE ON TWITTER, RIGHT?), and tag both Carolyn Howard-Johnson @frugalbookpromo and me @tales2inspire2 and we will retweet your review to our over forty-six thousand Twitter followers. 


Now how's that for some great additional exposure for you, 

your reviewer and your books!


Your NewBookReview Acquisition Coordinator

Lois W. Stern


Lois W. Stern is a multi award winning author whose work has been featured in the New York Times, Newsday, Long Island Press, Barnard Magazine, on Local Access TV and in live presentations in many varied venues. She has now published twelve Tales2Inspire® treasured anthologies of her contest winners' stories. As TheNewBookReview review coordinator, Lois serves as an outreach to help authors on their paths to discovery.


Lois created her Tales2Inspire® ‘Authors Helping Authors’ project in 2012, helping hundreds of talented newbies and seasoned authors alike enhance their visibility. Click here to learn more about entering her annual no fee Tales2Inspire contestThat’s right, it’s free! What emerges from these annual contests are highly professional anthologies of inspirational memoirs. Fans of Chicken Soup for the Soul are particularly enamored of Tales2Inspire® books because, aside from being expertly crafted inspirational memoirs, they are filled with original photos to further enhance the power of each story. Lois invites interested readers to get a FREE Tales2Inspire® sampler book at: www.tales2inspire.com/gifts and visit Lois at these Media Marketing sites: 

Website: https://www.tales2Inspire.com 


Spend some media marketing time with Lois at: 

Facebook: www.facebook.com/tales2inspire

Twitter: www.twitter.com/tales2inspire2


Thursday, May 11, 2023




TITLE: Subterranean Address—New & Selected Poems

AUTHOR: Judith Skillman

PUBLISHER: Deerbrook Editions

ISBN 979-8-9865052-2-0

$21.00

176 pp

Available on AMAZON.

 

 

BLURB: 

"A collection that begins with a turnip and ends with a young seal shows the surprise and originality of an award-winning poet in tune with nature and herself. An amazing compilation to enjoy in wonder and delight."~ Carol Smallwood


ABOUT THE REVIEWER

 

Carol Smallwood received the Albert Nelson Marquis Lifetime Achievement Award. She is the author of books of poetry, nonfiction.

 

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 t 


Authors and publishers who do not yet have reviews or want more may use Lois W. Stern's #AuthorsHelpingAuthors service for requesting reviews. Her guidelines are being reworked. Subscribe to this blog in the right column to find her guidelines when they become available.


  Carolyn Wilhelm is our IT expert, an award-winning author and veteran educator she 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