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Small Press Bookwatch

Volume 3, Number 2 February 2004 Home | SPBW Index

Table of Contents

Reviewer's Choice Business Shelf Self-Help Shelf
Health/Medicine Shelf Fiction Shelf Social Issues Shelf
Human Sexuality Shelf Parenting Shelf Education Shelf
Metaphysical Shelf Fantasy/Sci-Fi Shelf  


Reviewer's Choice

Voices Of Healing
Icy Smith, editor
East West Discovery Press
PO Box 2393, Gardena, CA 90247
0970165420 $24.95 www.eastwestdiscovery.com

A project specially assembled and presented by the Organization of Chinese Americans, Voices Of Healing: Spirit And Unity After 9/11 In The Asian American And Pacific Islander Community is a profound and impressive tribute to those who perished in the September 11th attacks, including civilians, firefighters, police officers, and emergency rescue workers. Color photography, history, testimonials, and a moving observation of how the attacks and their aftermath changed America forever, as well as the up swell of strength and community that came in response to help the victims and survivors, distinguish this moving memorial account. Most pages have a sidebar flap that can be lifted to reveal an additional piece of insight. Highly recommended.

Sun Tzu's The Art Of War Plus Its Amazing Secrets
Gary Gagliardi
Clearbridge Publishing
Booth Media Group (publicity)
PO Box 7055, Shoreline, WA 98133
1929194072 $15.95 www.clearbridge.com

Sun Tzu's The Art Of War Plus Its Amazing Secrets is the second volume of an outstanding three-book series by Gary Gaglardi about internalizing and mastering the ancient wisdom of Chinese military strategist Sun Tzu. The first book, Sun Tzu's The Art Of War Plus The Ancient Chinese Revealed dissected the formula-like Chinese idiograms with which the original classic was written; Sun Tzu's The Art Of War Plus Its Amazing Secrets goes further to unlock hidden secrets of each stanza, along with key concepts carefully explained for readers of all skill and experience levels. Each two-page spread offers a passage from the complete, English-translated version of The Art Of War on the left-side page, and insights into how the secrets apply to modern problems in business and in life on the right-side page. Very highly recommended reading.

Natural Puerto Rico
Alfonso Silva Lee
Pangaea
226 Wheeler Street South, Saint Paul, MN 55105
096301806X $18.95 www.pangaea.org

Featuring beautiful color photography and a bilingual text in both Spanish and English, Natural Puerto Rico by Alfonso Silva Lee takes the reader on a fascinating tour of the wondrous types of life forms that can be found in Puerto Rico, from fungi to spiders and insects to frogs, lizards, snakes, bats, birds, and more. A fascinating exploration of wild beauty and marvels, Natural Puerto Rico is very highly recommended for armchair travelers and nature lovers alike.

Empowered English
Mira Panajotovic Vukelich
Graphics Management Press
10520 Ohio Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90024
1882383192 $39.95 1-310-475-2988 GMBOOKS.com

Empowered English is an "user friendly" interactive CD program by 20-year veteran English teacher Mira Panajotovic Vukelich, a woman who earned her Master's Degree in English and linguistics from UCLA and has been featured in the Who's Who Among America's Teachers. Teaching shortcuts, tips, tricks, and memory techniques to mastering English grammar (including its basic guidelines and the exceptions or "booby traps" which both native and English as a second language speakers grapple with), Empowered English is a superb self-teaching tool and a very highly recommended supplementary resource for anyone seeking to learn English either as their primary or secondary language.

Papa Mike's Cook Islands Handbook
Mike Hollywood
iUniverse.com, Inc.
2021 Pine Lake Road, #100, Lincoln, NE 68512
0595294006 $15.95 www.iuniverse.com

Papa Mike's Cook Islands Handbook is a fun and informative resource for vacationers and business travelers seeking to take advantage of all thirteen occupied islands in pursuit of what the Cook Islands chain has to offer. From complete trip planning (whether luxury to budget style), to a complete inter-island flight schedule, 40 maps and pictures, coverage on popular activities on each island including diving, fishing, snorkeling, horseback riding, surfing, tours, cultural events and more, Papa Mike's Cook Islands Handbook excellent and recommended guide for trip planning.

Sunsets Romantico (And Other Scenery)
Cecile Marlowe
Prelude Press
PO Box 4035, Lantana, FL 33465-4035
0974496308 $24.95 www.amazon.com

Sunsets Romantico (And Other Scenery) by educator, entrepreneur, and gifted photographer Cecile Marlowe is a stunningly beautiful photography book featuring romantic island scenery, lush botanical gardens, exciting horse race tracks, and much more. Classic quotes enhance the breathtaking imagery that perfectly captures the mood of paradise abroad in this wonderfully visual treasury.

Pulp Fictioneers
John Locke, editor
Adventure House
914 Laredo Road, Silver Spring, MD 20901
1886937834 $20.00 www.adventurehouse.com

Compiled and deftly edited by John Locke, Pulp Fictioneers: Adventures In The Storytelling Business is a unique and riveting anthology of true tales taken directly from the personal and professional lives of pulp fiction authors. Directly in the words from the men and women who set pen to paper and created the lively romance, horror, western, and science fiction tales during the "Golden Age" of pulp fiction magazines, Pulp Fictioneers tells it like it is -- from Arthur J. Burks' warning that a freelance writer who doesn't have a stable job is at the miserable mercy of the low-paying publishing industry bureaucracy, to Leo Marguilies' take on the changes in the pulps in postwar years Pulp Fictioneers is avidly enjoyable and enthusiastically recommended reading, with insights directly applicable to aspiring free-lance writers today.

Single Over Thirty
John D. Husband
Talywain Press
3416 Janet Road, Silver Spring, MD 20906-4048
0974194298 $19.95 www.singleover30.com

Single Over Thirty is an impressive compilation of author John D. Husband's "Single Over Thirty" newspaper column, in which he offers wry, petit, and engagingly humorous anecdotes and insights into the daily lives and travails of single people in their 30s, 40s, and 50s. Each witty story is engagingly told with easy friendliness, making Single Over Thirty a chuckle-inducing joy to page through, all at once or a little at a time!

One More Horizon
Scott Zamek
Castellated Press
PO Box 4406, Warren, NJ 07059-4406
097464160X $15.95 www.castellatedpress.com

One More Horizon: Ohio To Hong Kong The Long Way is author Scott Zamek's personal reminiscence of his 20,000 mile journey around the world by bicycle. Spanning 35 countries and two years, the bicycle odyssey was not an easy one - the author survived being taken prisoner by the Syrian Secret Police, was stranded in a Pakistani immigration camp, and suffered a hepatitis affliction in China among his several trip-related traumas. Yet Zamek also achieved an immeasurable breadth and depth of experience in people, customs, cultures, and the chance to see the truly majestic beauty of nature, whether in the Sahara and Gobi deserts, or while traversing the two largest mountain chains in the world. One More Horizon is a powerful and involving testimonial for armchair travelers or especially those contemplating actually setting out to see the world the hard way.

Through The Rapids
Charles William Hitz
Sitka 2 Publishing
PO Box 2604, Kirkland, WA 98083-2604
0972025502 $19.95 1-888-346-4218 www.hitzcomm.tv

Through The Rapids: The History Of Princess Louisa Inlet by history buff Charles William Hitz is an engaging and informative chronicle of British Columbia's Princess Louisiana Inlet which is part of the beautiful fjord country of Canada's west coast. From the inlet's formation; to the story behind its name; to famous individuals who have lived in the inlet; to the tale of Tom Hamilton and the Malibu Club that he built, and much more, Through The Rapids is a most enjoyable and fact-filled compilation of Canadian regional history.


The Business Shelf

The Creative Sales Person
Ralph Monti
Special Interest Media, Inc.
72 Hyde Road, Bloomfield, NJ 07003
1884490727 $12.95 1-973-338-4447 www.mediaconsults.com

The Creative Sales Person: How To Develop Your Creativity Into An Effective Sales Tool by management consultant Ralph Monti is an expert guidebook for using one's creativity to become a better salesperson, especially in the constantly changing 21st century where the spread of information technology has made today's consumers sharp and savvy. From learning to let go of the fear that curtails creative impulses; to brainstorming for fun and results; to learning from children who have yet to form too many hard and fast preconceptions of the world, and a great deal more, The Creative Sales Person is an excellent supplementary resource for anyone involved in or pursuing a professional sales career.

Career Compass For Women
Ann Mah
MaroCom Publishing Company
PO Box 9492, Tyler, TX 75711-9492
0970459262 $14.95 www.MaroCom.com

Career Compass For Women combines diverse tips, tricks, techniques, strategies, and insights contributed by fourteen female experts in business and forging one's own business career. From finding job satisfaction through personal priorities; to the importance of getting and staying organized; to the keys of smart hiring to avoid the heavy costs of having poor staff or high employee turnover; and so much more, Career Compass For Women is in fact a universally useful guide offering a wealth of wisdom that is directly applicable to the career needs and issues of women in an often discriminatory and male dominated business community.

Quantitative Methods In Project Management
John C. Goodpasture, PMP
J. Ross Publishing, Inc.
6501 Park of Commerce Blvd., Suite 200, Boca Raton, FL 33487
1932159150 $64.95 1-561-869-3900 www.jrosspub.com

Quantitative Methods In Project Management by John C. Goodpasture (President and Founder of Square Peg Consulting, a consulting firm specializing in the field of project management) is a straightforward business guide to calculating project values and using basic metrics to measure success. Written especially for corporate and governmental project workers who are not necessarily advanced students of mathematical theory, Quantitative Methods In Project Management carefully , clearly, and comprehensively walks the reader through its mathematical formulas and principles, and is a great resource for learning how to quickly and accurately access the worth of a project goal.

Business Security
T. A. Brown
Crary Publications
PO Box 42422, Las Vegas, NV 89116-42422
0974343897 $29.95 www.BusinessSecurity.org

Business Security: Protect Your Business Against Threats Internally & Externally is a comprehensive and explicit manual which focuses upon personal safety measures ranging from threat of physical attack to carefully screen one's employees to protecting one's network against computer viruses. While much of the physical safety advice comprising Business Security is especially appropriate for high-profile corporate VIPs who may be subject to kidnaping, attacks, or other dangers simply because of their wealth and status (whether at home or while traveling abroad), the more general self-defense guidelines for personal physical welfare, the security of computers and computer data, and the guarding against fraud or theft are directly applicable to all business owners and management personnel. Business Security is an absolute "must-read" for businessmen and businesswomen everywhere.

Fallback Position
John E. Arnold
Exurba Publishing, LLC
6021 SW 29th St., Suite A #267, Topeka, KS 66614
0972977619 $19.95 www.exurba.com

Fallback Position: Preparing A Contingency Plan For The Worst Case Scenario is an absolute, unequivocal, "must-read" for anyone trying to prosper in today's constantly changing and increasingly difficult job market. Financial and management author John E. Arnold offers straightforward advice for preparing oneself for the worst, whether it's making sure one can always afford health insurance or cultivating plans and options in case cutbacks claim one's current job to important professional or personal things one should do right away when fired. Fallback Position is a very highly recommended economic survival tool -- especially for anyone facing the possibility of corporate downsizing.


The Self-Help Shelf

Paint The Sky And Dance
Jeri Castronova, Ph.D.
Infinity Publishing.com
Author Services (publicity)
519 West Lancaster Avenue, Haverford, PA 194041-1413
0741414538 $14.95 www.amazon.com

Jeri Castronova's Paint The Sky And Dance: Women And The New Myths Wookbook is a workbook companion to Paint The Sky And Dance: Women And The New Myths. Presented to aid women in the exploration of their personal myths, this consumable resource offers questions to ponder and write about, in the voyage to understand one's spirit guides and guardian angels, how to transform oneself for the better, be the Hero in one's own life, and harness the power of personal myths to set and pursue positive goals. For example, the first step suggested to free one's Inner Child is "Give your imagination permission to express itself by imagining your Inner Child coming out. What feelings and sensations do you feel?" Paint The Sky And Dance is an excellent and recommended self-discovery tool.

Keeping Your Sanity (In An Insane Word)
Edward A. Dreyfus, Ph.D.
Xlibris Corporation
436 Walnut Street, 11th floor, Philadelphia, PA 19106
0738822078 $21.99 www.xlibris.com

Now in its second edition, Keeping Your Sanity (In An Insane Word) is an assemblage of essays designed to help people come to terms with the difficulties of everyday life. Expertly written by Edward A. Dreyfus (a private practice clinical psychologist, divorce mediator, and life coach), Keeping Your Sanity offers down-to-earth expert wisdom about grappling with compulsive behaviors from overzealous perfectionism to serious substance abuse, dealing with the balancing game that is relationships, learning how to take charge of and tweak one's life, and much more. A motivational and life-enhancing read. Also very highly recommended by Edward Dreyfus is Someone Right For You (1413420907, $21.99).

How To Plan A Great Second Life
Gordon Burgett
Communication Unlimited
PO Box 6405, Santa Maria, CA 93456
0970862148 $17.95 1-800-563-1454 www.super-second-life.com

How To Plan A Great Second Life: Why Not Live Fully Every Day Of Your Extra 30 Years by Gordon Burgett is an innovative guidebook to planning out and taking full advantage of all the years of one's life through the post-retirement and elder years. From the importance of keeping up physical and mental health; to writing out ideas, listing goals and devising a system to achieve them; and enhanced with some 200 activities and a variety of consumable worksheets designed to put the readers in touch with their long-term needs and desires, How To Plan A Great Second Life is confidently recommended for anyone who counts on making the most of their years past the age of retirement.

Dream It Do It
Sharon Cook & Graciela Sholander
Planning Communications
7215 Oak Avenue, River Forest, IL 60305
1884587305 $16.95 http://planningcommunications.com

The expert and collaborative effort of Sharon Cook and Garciela Sholander, Dream It Do It: Inspiring Stories Of Dreams Come True is a thoroughly "user friendly" self-help guidebook to rebuilding confidence, unleashing creativity, awakening our passions, and learning to take risks while keeping responsibilities in mind -- all the better to pursue our personal dreams and goals in life. A motivational instructional to help one take control and steer one's life toward the future one desires, Dream It Do It combines testimonials with solid advice for making things happen, instead of just letting things happen.

The Mother Of All Minds
Dudley Lynch
Brain Technologies Press
PO Box 260886, Plano, TX 75026
0945822065 $24.50 www.braintechnologies.com

Highly recommended for any personal or community library Self-Help/Self-Improvement reading list or reference collection, The Mother Of All Minds by Dudly Lynch (President of Brain Technologies Corporation, Plano, Texas) is thoughtful and thought-provoking self-help guidebook to improving personal thinking skills. Offering effective and practical strategies to combine and take full advantage of the Alpha mind (that which is fixated on helping one survive), and the Beta mind (the more recent evolution that strives to cope with new complexities, technologies, and social forms), The Mother Of All Minds is a life and adventure-affirming guide to better understanding will and the power of harnessing one's own thoughts.


The Health/Medicine Shelf

Your Right To Be Beautiful
Tonya Zavasta
BR Publishing
PO Box 623, Cordova, TN 38088
097424340X $19.95 www.BeautifulOnRaw.com

Your Right To Be Beautiful: How To Halt The Train Of Aging & Meet The Most Beautiful You by Tonya Zavasta is a compendium of health beauty secrets written especially for women as they approach and cross the threshold of age 40. Individual chapters expertly address dietary concerns, procedures for smoothing wrinkles, the value of self-confidence and self-esteem, and the importance of cultivating one's natural beauty without relying on expensive products. Your Right To Be Beautiful is an excellent and recommended guide to bringing out any woman's latent potentials and to enhance any woman's physical health and personal beauty.

The Health Seeker's Handbook
Bob Merberg
Well Lit Books
8677 Millcreek Drive, East Amherst, NY 14051
0974376248 $14.95 www.WellLitBooks.com

Written by the founder of The Center for Personal Health Coaching, The Health Seeker's Handbook is a guidebook to taking charge of the quality of one's physical and emotional health alike. From the importance of building on one's strengths; to common perils and pitfalls to avoid when blazing a new course; to learning how to get fit and eat healthy while staving off common problems of boredom and cravings, Bob Merberg's The Health Seeker's Handbook is an excellent and recommended self-improvement resource.

Give It To Me Straight!
Kim Dalzell, Ph.D., R.D., L.D.
NutriQuest, Inc.
PO Box 874, Round Lake, IL 60073
0971255822 $12.95 1-888-913-9284 www.challengecancer.com

Impressively written by Kim Dalzell (an award-winning author and doctor with advanced degrees in clinical and holistic nutrition), Give It To Me Straight!: Questions & Answers For No-Nonsense Nutrition is a thoroughly "reader friendly" question-and-answer book that directly addresses common consumer confusion concerning soy products, which foods are or aren't helpful for reducing the risk of cancer, why some sprouts can cause food poisoning and how to best prepare them if one is going to eat them, the inherent problems of various fad diets, and much more. An excellent quick-browse supplement to any nutrition resource shelf, Give It To Me Straight! is a simply excellent fact-filled introductory guide which is especially appropriate for the non-specialist general reader.


The Fiction Shelf

Younger
Judith Sulzberger
Apple Trees Productions, LLC
PO Box 280, New York, NY 10032
Over The River Public Relations (publicity)
0970002769 $24.95 1-201-503-1321, Rachel@otrpr.com

Expertly written by Judith Sulzberger (a practicing medical doctor), Younger is a thoughtful novel about two researchers, Connie and Peter, devoted to the study of the aging process - and as their studies lead to a collaborative breakthrough, they become attracted and to one another. Save for one difficult problem - Connie is more than ten years Peter's senior. Pragmatically told from Connie's point of view, Younger grapples with both social and scientific issues on a personal level within the context of an original and highly entertaining story.

Memoirs Of A Midget
Walter de la Mare
Paul Dry Books, Inc.
117 South 17th Street, Suite 1102, Philadelphia, PA 19103
1589880129 $14.95 www.pauldrybooks.com

Memoirs Of A Midget by Walter de la Mare is a fictional memoir of Miss M, a diminutive young woman (exactly how diminutive is left up to the reader's interpretation!), who grows up in an orphanage and eventually falls in love with a full-sized woman even as she is courted by a male dwarf. The daily travails of Miss M, with the unique obstacles presented by her size difference, lead to her resolve to claim independence by offering herself as a spectacle in a circus. An engagingly told, wry yet witty read, Memoirs Of A Midget is a unique and inherently fascinating novel from beginning to end.

No Revenge So Complete
Sarah Foulger
Brook Street Press
200 Plantation Chase, Suite 11, Saint Simons Island, GA 31522
0972429514 $21.95 1-912-638-0264 www.amazon.com

Sarah Foulger's wonderfully written debut novel, No Revenge So Complete, is a "reader engaging" drama of family life, filled with betrayal, disappointment, heartbreak, and the long and painful road to forgiveness. An empathic tale of human fallibility, No Revenge So Complete offers quiet introspection into the dysfunction that can lace unhappy relationships and malcontent lives. Also very highly recommended reading is Sarah Foulger's anthology of original short stories, Yards Of Purple (United Church Press; 0829813128; $13.00).

All The Lonely People
David B. Silva
Delirium Books
PO Box 338, North Webster, IN 46555
1929653573 $45.00 www.deliriumbooks.com

All The Lonely People by David B. Silva is the horrific tale of a stranger who comes to an ordinary bar with a simple rosewood box, which was once used to trap spirits. The stranger opens the box... and everything starts to go to hell. Bizarre and terrible occurrences follow the bar's owner, who is subject to memory lapses and eroding sanity, until he finally learns the terrible truth of the box and must make a harrowing choice of life or death. In All The Lonely People, David Silva has carefully crafted, imaginatively gripping, authentically original, and very highly recommended tale of all-too-human ruthlessness.

Annihilating Distance
David Vigoda
Collioure Books
21 Aviation Road, Albany, NY 12205
0972825053 $15.95 www.amazon.com

Deftly written by NEA Fellowship winner David Vigoda, Annihilating Distance is an impressive anthology of original short stories focused upon the inevitable ups and downs of the human condition. Ranging from cruelty and betrayal, to perseverance and lasting love, the tales comprising this multi-faceted literary treasury (with each new tale unlocking another layer of psychological complexity) are enthusiastically recommended to the literate reader.

Bum Rap In Branson
J. R. Ripley
Beachfront Publishing
National Book Network, dist.
POB 811922, Boca Raton, FL 33481
1892339897 $25.00 www.amazon.com

J. R. Ripley's Bum Rap In Branson is an exciting mystery novel featuring Tony Kozol and Rock Bottom, who is drawn into a bizarre recurrence of Kewpie dolls and murders, their interconnection unknown. The latest entry in a genuinely thrilling series, Bum Rap In Branson complicates Tony's desire to just get by, have fun, and earn a few bucks playing the guitar by saddling him with a murder accusation - he has to clear his name fast to avoid singing in jail! A viciously delightful read for mystery/suspense enthusiasts!

To Forgive Divine
Melissa Lea Leedom
iUniverse.com, Inc.
2021 Pine Lake Road, #100, Lincoln, NE 68512
0595294952 $16.95 www.iuniverse.com

To Forgive Divine by Melissa Lea Leedom is a superbly written love story about lasting bitterness that can leave poison that cripples relationships and life itself, in contrast to the healing power of forgiveness. Presenting the irony of a man and a woman who witness the transforming power of the love and forgiveness of Jesus, and must come to terms with their own Christianity despite their lingering grudges held against each other, To Forgive Divine is original, inspirational, emotional, and highly recommended reading.


The Social Issues Shelf

Ending Entrenched Power
Curtis L. Harris
iUniverse.com, Inc.
Phenix & Phenix (publicity)
2021 Pine Lake Road, #100, Lincoln, NE 68512
0595268412 $15.95 www.iuniverse.com

Strongly recommended reading, Ending Entrenched Power: Spiritual Renewal, Political Change, And America's Destiny is a manifesto by Curtis L. Harris putting forth the opinion that America is at grave risk for decline, and that the key to renewal lies in using the institutions of religion, government, and commerce side by side. Warning that the process of separating religion from government entirely only serves to turn governments into power-obsessed beauracracies, Ending Entrenched Power may be a stark contradiction to the principle of separation of church and state, yet it does bring to light serious and troubling social issues with respect to the aftermath of tearing those two social institutions apart from one another.

Justice At The City Gate
Susan G. Neisuler
iUniverse.com, Inc.
Author Services (publicity)
2021 Pine Lake Road, #100, Lincoln, NE 68512
0595269508 $21.95 www.iuniverse.com

History teacher and attorney Susan G. Neisuler draws on her many years of experience in the Boston Juvenile Court (as well as the problems that riddle social service agencies), to write Justice At The City Gate: Social Policy, Social Services, And The Law. Offering keen insights into the poverty that plagues American families and children; the failures of social service agencies in their mission to bring succor to those who most need it; how the system has degenerated into its current state; as well as case analysis, relevant law and research, and proposed solutions to social ills, dramatically distinguish this profound and meaningful wake-up call showcasing and illustrating the need for significant and pervasive social service and community services reforms.


The Human Sexuality Shelf

Peace Between The Sheets
Marnia Robinson
Frog, Ltd.
1435 Fourth St., Berkeley, CA 94710
1583940871 $15.95 1-800-337-2665

Peace Between The Sheets: Healing With Sexual Relationships by Marnia Robinson is a candid guide to improving and sustaining the quality of one's sex life. Practical advice concerning the profound and sometimes negative impact biology has on sexual and love lives; straight talk about female orgasms; practical wisdom concerning the importance of seeking balance; user friendly checklists and activities for fourteen "ecstatic exchanges" to rejuvenate oneself and one's passion; and so much more fill the pages of this practical, common-sense, informative, and strongly recommended resource.

Virgin Sex
Darcy Luadzers, Ph.D.
Palmetto Tree Press
821 Calhoun Street, Columbia, SC 29201
0974253278 $18.99 1-800-247-6553

Written by certified sex therapist Darcy Luadzers, Virgin Sex is an informed and informative guide written especially for women and which deals honestly and intelligently with the hard questions of sex. Virgin Sex directly addresses issues that particularly concern young virgins, such as "how will I know when I am ready/not ready?", as well as how to make one's first experience a memory to cherish. Virgin Sex is also filled from cover to cover with solid advice appropriate for women of all ages including how to recognize men who are only interested in sex -- not a relationship; how to prevent and avoid rape; how to make sex pleasurable, not painful; and more. Very highly recommended for Human Sexuality reading lists and library collections.

Someone Right For You
Edward A. Dreyfus, Ph.D.
Xlibris Corporation
436 Walnut Street, 11th floor, Philadelphia, PA 19106
1413420907 $21.99 www.xlibris.com

Someone Right For You: 21st Century Strategies For Finding Your Special Someone by licensed psychologist, sex therapist, marriage and family therapist Edward A. Dreyfus, is a "reader friendly", no-nonsense guide to taking charge of one's life and one's pursuit of a lifelong mate. Stressing that better understanding oneself (while important and often necessary to breaking free of dysfunctional or ineffective relationship patterns), is not sufficient in and of itself - that action must be taken - Someone Right For You encourages people to make direct changes in their lives by actively seeking their mates in environments most conducive to the qualities they are truly looking for, rather than the same old singles bars. Someone Right For You features both expert advice for spouse-searchers of both sexes and insightful case studies - from the "party girl" who was putting out the wrong image to lure in husband material, to the domineering playboy who couldn't handle the types of women he thought he wanted, to the career-devoted woman who didn't truly desire marriage but felt pressured into the search by her mother and other influences, and whose breakthrough allowed her to acknowledge that all she truly wanted was occasional male companionship, not the demands of marriage. A must-read for anyone in the dating game, Someone Right For You is a much appreciated contribution to Human Sexuality reading lists and reference collections.


The Parenting Shelf

The Stork Didn't Leave Instructions
Gregory P. Young
Infinity Publishing.com
519 West Lancaster Avenue, Haverford, PA 194041-1413
0741418282 $14.95 www.amazon.com

The Stork Didn't Leave Instructions: How To Raise Children With Healthy Self-Esteem by Gregory P. Young is a simple, practical, and straightforward collection of tips and advice for parents on how to raise well-adjusted children with healthy self-esteem. Individual chapters give sound insights on the importance of quality time, respecting a child's right to privacy, understanding differences in human behavior, issues of human sexuality, taking time for oneself, and being able to allow (not encourage, but allow) children to fail on their own and learn from their own mistakes, and so much more. A highly accessible and reader-friendly guide, The Stork Didn't Leave Instructions is enthusiastically recommended for all parents.


The Education Shelf

Building Assets Is Elementary
Search Institute
615 First Avenue Northeast, Suite 125, Minneapolis, MN 55413
1574828363 $26.95 1-800-888-7828 www.search-institute.org

Building Assets Is Elementary: Group Activities For Helping Kids Ages 8-12 Succeed is a great resource for elementary or middle school teachers, community or religious youth workers, and anyone else with a responsibility for planning activities for children in ages 8-12 (grades 4-6). Simple, educational, and fun group activities that foster positive traits in a wide variety of venues in daily life include role-playing an imaginary talk radio show, supervising a "senior story hour" in which children read aloud to older adults, having a "manners marathon" to reinforce good manners and behavior, and much more. Each of 50 activities is carefully presented with explict guidelines and kid-friendly activity sheets that can be photocopied. Building Assets Is Elementary is a highly recommended supplemental resource for both traditional classroom and home schooling curriculums.

The Balanced Reading Program
Susan M. Blair-Larsen and Kathryn A. Williams, editors
Reading Association
800 Barksdale Road, PO Box 8139, Newark, Delaware 19714-8139
0872072525 $22.95 www.reading.org

Knowledgeably compiled and expertly edited by Susan M. Blair-Larsen (Associate Professor, The College of New Jersey, Ewing, New Jersey) and Kathryn A. Williams (Associated Professor, Langston University, Langston, Oklahoma), The Balanced Reading Program: Helping All Students Achieve Success is an assembly of essays by diverse learned authors concerning the balanced approach to teaching students literacy and literature in the classroom. Presenting guidelines for a balanced instructional program, as well as views on vocabulary instruction, comprehension instruction, assessment, exposure to classical works, and how to integrate all these factors into an educational whole, The Balanced Reading Program is an excellent and accessible resource for grade school teachers and home schoolers alike.

Goal Setting For Students
John Bishop
Accent on Success
29 Benton Place, St. Louis, MO 63104
0974370002 $7.95 www.AccentOnSuccess.com

Goal Setting For Students is an effective educational tool for teaching young people how to focus on specific goals in order to increase their chances of academic success. Ideal for any school curriculum, as well as home-school instructors and/or self-study, this consumable workbook is filled from cover to cover with diverse activities to reinforce its message of working for whatever needs to be achieved. From learning how to set realistic goals; to measuring academic progress; to walk-through examples, and more, Goal Setting For Students is an ideal motivational tool for any student regardless of academic subject matter.


The Metaphysical Studies Shelf

Paranormality!
Karyn Easton
Swamp Gas Book Company
837 E Independence, Jacksonville, IL 62650
0972860525 $14.95 www.swampgasbooks.com

Compiled and deftly presented by paranormal expert Karyn Easton, Paranormality!: From Angels To Zombies 4000 BC To 2023 AD is a straightforward timeline and glossary of occult events and terms which ranges from Ancient Anomalies to the Zenner Cards designed to test ESP skills. A handy reference filled with brief, factual, no-nonsense definitions, Paranormality! will prove to be an addition of seminal and enduring value as an addition to any personal, academic, or professional occult studies shelf.

Firestorm
Ann Druffel
Wild Flower Press
c/o Granite Publishing
PO Box 1429, Columbus NC 28722
0926524585 $34.00 www.5thworld.com

Firestorm: Dr. James E. McDonald's Fight For UFO Science is the amazing biography by Ann Druffel of a man who crusaded and nearly accomplished the critical scrutiny of UFOs through the eyes of mainstream scientific inquiry. Delving into the world of political manipulations and trade-off deals, as well as outlining the immense effort involved in getting people merely to take notice, Firestorm is a fascinating life study which is most especially recommended reading for any UFO Studies enthusiast.

Begin Your Psychic Journey
Rebecca Bloom
iUniverse.com, Inc.
2021 Pine Lake Road, #100, Lincoln, NE 68512
0595292836 $13.95 www.iuniverse.com

Informatively written by Rebecca Bloom (a gifted teacher of metaphysical subjects with eighteen years' experience), Begin Your Psychic Journey: Discovering The Path To Your Intuitive Gifts is a unique self-help guideline to unlocking one's psychic abilities to reduce stress, unify body, mind, and spirit, improve optimism, find inner peace, and more. Packed from cover to cover with exercises to encourage growth, advice for protecting oneself from negative energies, and pathways to wisdom that has transcended generations, Begin Your Psychic Journey is an excellent introductory guide and highly recommended for novice Metaphysical Studies students.


The Fantasy/Sci-Fi Shelf

Mystic Warrior
Edwin Harkness Spina
Higher Dimensions Publishing, Inc.
210 S. Federal Highway, #209, Deerfield Beach, FL 33441
0974587109 $19.95 www.amazon.com www.mysticwarrior.us

Edwin Harkness Spina original and highly recommended science fiction novel, Mystic Warrior, is a deftly written thriller that takes place in a world where psychic abilities and spiritual powers are commonly used, whether by ordinary people or those in the highest levels of government. An intriguing science fiction mystery of political intrigue with a harsh nuclear threat underneath unfolds, Mystic Warrior is a twining, suspenseful, and fully unique saga from start to finish.

Child Of The Flame
Colleen Helme
Bedside Books
c/o American Books Publishing
PO Box 65624, Salt Lake City, UT 84165
1589821378 $22.00 www.american-book.com

The debut fantasy adventure novel of Colleen Helme, Child Of The Flame is the exciting fantasy featuring Callista, a young heroine who, thrust from her home, must take up her father's sword, which a powerful artifact which holds the key to protecting an entire nation. A dramatic tale of discovery and betrayal, alongside a mysterious man whose fate is intertwined with hers, Child Of The Flame culminates in a confrontation with the evil behind a silent secret. An empowering and engaging adventure, Child Of The Flame documents Helme as an author of considerable talent who will leave her readers looking eagerly toward her next effort.


James A. Cox
Editor-in-Chief
Midwest Book Review
278 Orchard Drive
Oregon, WI 53575-1129
phone: 1-608-835-7937
e-mail: mbr@execpc.com
e-mail: mwbookrevw@aol.com
http://www.midwestbookreview.com


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