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Small Press Bookwatch

Volume 2, Number 11 November 2003 Home | SPBW Index

Table of Contents

Reviewer's Choice Fiction Shelf  


Reviewer's Choice

The Origins Of The Messianic Ideal
Robert Wolfe
J-Rep
179-54 80th Road, Jamaica, NY 11432
0964246538 $12.00 jeyrep@compuserve.com

The Origins Of The Messianic Ideal by Robert Wolfe is a secular analysis of how and why the idea of the "Messiah" became to be so pervasively crucial in Jewish and Christian cultures. Taking the standpoint that the Messianic ideal was not a concept that fell from the sky, but rather an evolving belief that grew out of Jewish hopes and needs several thousand years ago, The Origins Of The Messianic Ideal is a scholarly, inherently interesting, and thought-provoking study that is confidently recommended for theology students and non-specialist general readers with an interest in Judaic Studies and/or Christian Studies.

Living With Stuttering
Kenneth O. St. Louis
Populore Publishing Company
3411 University Avenue, Morgantown, WV 26505
0965269949 $19.95 www.populore.com

Compiled by Kenneth O. St. Louis, Living With Stuttering: Stories, Basics, Resources And Hope is comprised of twenty-five true stories of people who live with stuttering and enhanced with a wealth of thematically appropriate resources. Information about the basics of stuttering, what is known about its causes and treatments, and a great deal more fill the pages of this excellent and enthusiastically recommended resource for people who stutter, as well as those who work or live with stutterers.

There Was A Young Girl From Verona
Max Gutmann, author & Jerry Seltzer, illustrator
Doggerel Daze
c/o Poetic Vision Press
10144 Riedel Place, Cupertino, CA 95014
0972282009 $8.95 www.ddaze.com

Max Gutmann's There Was A Young Girl From Verona: A Limerick Cycle Based On The Complete Dramatic Works Of Shakespeare is a collection of humorous limericks (some of which are sufficiently violent or raunchy to be unsuitable for children) based upon the works of William Shakespeare. Whimsical black-and-white illustrations by Jerry Seltzer add a wry touch to these amusing and lighthearted rhymes. Hamlet: Here's The question: to be or to not?/Is it nobler to suffer or rot?/For time's whips and time's scorn/Are too great to be born./On the other hand, death's not so hot.

A Life Full Of Days
Chalmers Dale
1st Books Library
Gulotta Communications (publicity)
2595 West Vernal Pike, Bloomington, IN 47404-2782
141072607X $23.50 1-800-839-8640, www.1stbooks.com

A Life Full Of Days is the personal memoir of Emmy award-winning CBS news producer Chalmers (Chum) Dale, and entails the globe-spanning journalism that brought him face-to-face with distinguished citizens ranging from Martin Luther King Jr. to Bob Hope. Recounting his life from a confused childhood to his adult determination to seek out evidence of the human condition for all to see, A Life Full Of Days is an absorbing read and a highly recommended addition to community library American Biography collections.

Financially Focused Project Management
Thomas M. Cappels
J. Ross Publishing
6501 Park of Commerce Blvd., Suite 200, Boca Raton, FL 33487
1932159096 $64.95 www.jrosspub.com

Financially Focused Project Management by Thomas M. Cappels is a straightforward business guide to saving hundreds of millions of corporate dollars by learning from the best practices of hundreds of successful companies. Individual chapters address accurately and comprehensively assess aspects of project risks, management strategies for the changing technology of the 21st century, proposals and pricing, and more. A solidly presented guide Financially Focused Project Management is filled from cover to cover with practical, applicable, insightful, "hit-the-ground-running", goal-oriented corporate financial management advice.

Rocket Mom!
Carolina Fernandez
FourQ Press
PO Box 569, Ridgefield, CT 06877
0974418706 $19.95 www.fourqpress.com

Rocket Mom! 7 Strategies To Blast You Into Brilliance by Carolina Fernandez is an unusually accessible parenting guide that emphasizes creativity and celebration in the task of budgeting one's time and energy to take care of both one's children and oneself. From making time for personal exercise as well as seeing that one's children enjoy activity; to instilling musical appreciation; nurturing talents; organizing family home life, and more, Rocket Mom! is an upbeat and positive-thinking guide which is most especially recommended for concerned parents and dedicated child caretakers.


The Fiction Shelf

Crystal Meth Cowboys
John Knoerle
Blue Steel Press
1648 W. Bloomingdale Avenue, Chicago, IL 60622
0974319902 $12.95 1-773-252-6480

Crystal Meth Cowboys is a brutal and shocking novel of drug use and reckless violence. Candid, direct language and explicit description mark this savage yet darkly compelling tale. The prevalence of deadly drugs makes for a chilling core theme. Not just another police procedural, John Knoerle is here documented as an outstandingly gifted writer with a keen and wicked since of humor, a superbly crafted storyteller timing, and distinctive originality.

The Head Of All Creation
Chris Hanley
Atlanta Suburban Publishers
3588 Hwy 138 SE PMB 310, Stockbridge, GA 30281-4171
0974147605 $27.95 www.atlantasuburbanpublishers.net

The Head Of All Creation by Chris Hanley is an involved and complex work of superbly written fiction, combining elements of the mystery and a tangled web of complex characters and adult situations. Dark desires, cruel savagery, sexual abuse, and the long, hard road to learning to accept past pain and transform oneself distinguish this original and involving tale of sisters striving to help one another. Highly recommended for a sophisticated and literate readership.

Kings Of Albion
Julian Rathbone
Welcome Rain Publishers
23 West 26th Street, NY, NY 10010
1566492378 $26.95 1-212-989-3200

Set in 1460 England during the Wars of the Roses, Kings Of Albion by Julian Rathbone is a superbly crafted and highly recommended novel that follows visitors from the civilized empire of South India, who observe the horrific slaughter in England as rivals show little or no mercy in their blood-drenched power struggle. A dramatic and compelling saga, Kings Of Albion is the sequel to Julian Rathbone's early historical fiction: The Last English King.

The Dogwood Tree
Mary Allen Redd
Cascade Books
4271 Vintage Drive, Provo, UT 84604
0963654845 $12.00 1-801-222-9990 www.thedogwoodtreenovel.com

The Dogwood Tree is an intriguing novel by Mary Allen Redd and tells the story of a happy couple, and the events surrounding their unfortunate separation, as seen through the eyes of the lady's beloved feline pet. A distinctive observation of relationships and the inexplicable conflicts that seem to obstruct mutual happiness, at least among human beings, The Dogwood Tree is original, entertaining, engaging, and at times down right thought-provoking.


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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