Blog Archives
Sorrow to Shero: Pain, Power, and Peace – Book Trailer
The National Coalition Against Domestic Violence (NCADV) defines psychological abuse as trauma to the victim caused by verbal abuse, acts, threats of acts, or coercive tactics
In “Sorrow to Shero,” Dr. Jeannita Bussle gives an honest look inside her experiences.
When the unimaginable occurs, she shares how she was able to forgive and heal.
Additionally, Dr. Bussle discusses the hard life lessons she has learned as a result of tragedy.
Although “Sorrow to Shero” shines a light on psychological abuse and the importance of mental health, it is also a vivid reminder that God always makes a way out of no way.
Into War Games, Into Community, Into the Army
![Into war games, into community, into the army (HEARING OTHERS’ VOICES Book 26) by [Christophe Finnegan]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51p2DoCXpiL.jpg)
Into War Games, Into Community, Into the Army by Christophe Finnegan is an introspective memoir about how his love for board games in the war/military genre led to the author enlisting in the army. This reflective memoir explores how war games can shape a persons way of thinking, in beneficial ways if one joins the army, but also in other aspects of critical thinking and planning. This book has certainly gave me a different perspective of war games and I see them now as much more than simple games. They create a mindset and fosters skills that include observation, analysis, interpretation, reflection, evaluation, problem solving and decision making. Readers are also treated to a robust description of the community surrounding these war games.
Into War Games, Into Community, Into the Army opens like a novel in the thriller genre, or a suspense story; but when the authors stop arrives, it quickly changes its pacing into a more fun and casual narrative that is equally engaging.
What I enjoyed most about this book was how prevalent the authors passion about the subject is. It is semi-biographical, semi-informational, but completely absorbing. We get to learn about author Christophe Finnegan, what led to him joining the military, his time in the military, the war games community and gaming culture. All this packed within a book that is less than one hundred pages.
The book is packed with information and I found most of it to be very interesting, most of it new to me, but still accessible. I think the reason for the memoirs success is the way in which Christophe Finnegan is able to relate the games community to his own life experiences. It’s in this relationship that this book shines. Christophe Finnegan without war games would not be the same Christophe Finnegan. This is what I take away from this sharp and revealing book.
Into War Games, Into Community, Into the Army is an exceptional memoir of a unique man, living a unique life, that is relatable and thoroughly absorbing.
Pages: 67 | ASIN: B088ZR2B7L
The 86-Year-Old Orphan
Tessie always knew that getting old was part of life. What she didn’t expect was how quickly it happened. Or that she would be spending her golden years in Desert Twilights, the assisted living facility in Arizona, across the country from her home, her family, and everything she had ever known. As her 86th birthday approached, Tessie seemed to spend more and more time reflecting on the life that had led her here, even as those around her were often doing the same. She was comforted by memories of what was, as much as she was haunted by thoughts of what could have been.
The 86 Year Old Orphan by Caterine Bellizzi is a heartfelt, and sometimes heartbreaking, look at aging. It explores how hard this natural process can be to face, the different attitudes people take toward it, and the different paths that lead people to what is, eventually, the same place. When we’re introduced to Tessie, she has been at Desert Twilights for three years already, but faced with her upcoming birthday, falls into a bout of nostalgia that is stronger than usual. Via frequent flashbacks, Tessie’s life is shaped, from her tumultuous childhood as the daughter of immigrants, through her early hopes and ambitions, on to the expected role of housewife and mother. While Tessie expresses very little regret for her life’s decisions, she naturally wonders how things might have been different if her choices had taken other routes and different points. Her fellow residents at Desert Twilights are similarly introduced, both in their current situations and earlier years, and although they have all followed drastically different paths, they have all ended up spending the ends of their lives together.
The 86 Year Old Orphan touches on a variety of themes, ultimately focusing on acceptance, and the fact that life experience isn’t so much what happens to you, but your reaction to those events. Over the course of the story, Tessie has a renewed sense of self discovery, and comes to realize that the best way to live the last years of your life is to be as happy with the present as you were in the past, despite the gulf of differences that might exist between the two.
The 86 Year Old Orphan began a little slowly, and as a result I wasn’t sure if it would be very interesting, but it gained steam quickly and before long I was completely invested in Tessie’s life, wondering where it would go from here. I cried more than once as well! Bellizzi has written a beautiful story that will make reflect on your own life, past, present, and future.
Pages: 194 | ASIN: B0898K76SM
They Walk Alone
They Walk Alone by Bob Kern is a memoir detailing his experiences caring for several loved ones with dementia. This is a personal story that will undoubtedly leave you on the edge of tears, if not crying. So be warned, this story is deeply emotional, but within these pages Bob Kern is also able to inform and educate others that are caring for a loved one with dementia.
They Walk Alone is striking in it’s ability to vividly paint the picture of Mamaw. I felt as if I was with the family, living the moments of joy and heartache. I don’t have a loved one with dementia, but this novel was able to enlighten me and now I am able to appreciate the difficulties one faces when caring for someone with this terrible disease.
Dementia transforms the person you knew. Bob Kern captures that slow transformation eloquently and with warm sentiment. I could feel the love and I could feel the pain, and I appreciated how open and honest this book was. The stories shared throughout the book were stories we could all relate to, they were of people we all probably know, and this is what makes the book so sad. We can see in Mamaw our own grandmother.
They Walk Alone is a touching story about Bob Kern’s journey tending to loved ones diagnosed with dementia. He even details the loss of someone suffering from dementia. Readers get a personal account of Bob’s life as he moves through the different stages of dementia. If you enjoy true, honest, and impassioned stories that are also informative then this book is perfect for you.
Pages: 141 | ASIN: B06XDX1XCV
With Curiosity and Wide Eyes
Lesley Mooney Author Interview
Cooking in a Teacup recounts your experiences in a kitchen in the Australian outback in 1952. What was the inspiration that made you want to capture this time in a book?
The main reason was to let my family of five girls and their families, understand how my life had been and what it was like then in the outback. They might find much of it monotonous as I tend to talk too much about myself. My coming from a religious boarding college life when aged fourteen which was restricting in certain ways, then going out into the bush for some years afterwards,, presented many profound changes for both me and my brother then.( Only partially going to grade ten was not a hindrance for finding a job later when in Darwin and it did not enter my mind then..)
I am so pleased you liked the story regardless of how it was written. I know I went through that life accepting whatever came along with curiosity and wide eyes, yet I followed orders with the knowledge that those people out there also accepted whatever occurred was part of their normal daily.
I enjoyed the humorous but honest recounts of your past. What is one experience from that time that you remember more clearly than the others?
Well, besides the worst one- that one of almost disappearing into the “big hole in the ground” , and the other one of nearly running a large truck off the road at night when driving home from Julia Creek—The main benefits were the new education I had received much earlier
from the young age of fifteen; and then the blessings of accepting and being able to live through those experiences. Truely, altogether it was the entire new living that life experiences, and having the patience and ability to watch, listen, absorb, and try to relax. Yet take part in the unknown chores of daily life, and admire the workers while learning so much from all those wonderful people I met. Enjoying their conversations and their natures, regardless of them carrying out their working jobs, which I often took part in.
When writing this book did you have to interview anyone or dig up any old photos to spark your memory?
No, all these details were always present in my memory with some never forgotten. I do have photos from most places I lived at.
I found your book to be ultimately inspiring. What do you hope readers take away from your story?
I would like to hope they actually do read some of the narrative without throwing it away in disgust and boredom.
Author Links: Amazon | GoodReads | Shashwords
This story relates to my own individual, genuine experiences which occurred, and I added others including the details of some years before from early 1945 and after, to explain my circumstances as they were then.
Just turning twenty one in 1952, my father wrote and asked me an odd question, which was to take on a job as a cook on a cattle station, up in North Queensland. Though ‘totally inexperienced’, this position sounded interesting and intriguing. New adventures lay ahead for me on that unknown part of the Australian outback. I doubt if my father even considered my lack of capabilities for this position at all. Later on this job also offered another one, with the bush nurse asking for me to come and nurse, care and cook for an elderly man at McKinley Qld, again my being absolutely inexperienced. These parts of my story included meeting new people, and happenings that occurred in my life, then and in the future.
As this is real life over periods of years, it also contains personal details of the author and family’s lives, and that of others.
This is not a cooking book and there are no recipes given, though a sense of humour would be appreciated.
When Life Was like a Cucumber
![When Life Was like a Cucumber by [Greg Wyss]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51ABODU8J4L.jpg)
At a young age, Jeffrey Hese was coming off a divorce and could not wait to explore his true self. At a time when the human race was getting introduced to the 70s after the tumultuous 60s, Jeffrey was in for a ride. He found himself thrust in different cultures and cities from Amsterdam to Boston. He goes through the paces of experiencing the underbelly of life with the help of Isadora. And how different it was from his apartment in Oneonta. So much to see. So much to do. So much to experience. His journey will be one of enlightenment and perhaps a second meeting with God.
Greg Wyss has crafted an engrossing tale of one man’s journey through life in the wake of the wild 60s. He has written a story so intriguing and appropriately sculpted that a reader of any age will relate and enjoy the book. The scenes are described in vivid detail leaving the reader thrust deep into the vortex of Jeffrey’s life at that time as well as the general lifestyle back then. The story teeters on the edge of humorous and poignant. It is a brilliant mix of serious and casual. With alternating moments of sympathy and loud belly laughs.
The characters in this book are well developed. Although the dimensions of character development may seem a bit foggy at times. This does not get in the way of recognition of common qualities. Jeffrey is doing something that many people would want to do before they are too old or too busy to do it. He is as new to this journey as most of us are. This may therefore either inspire you to go on your own journey of self-discovery. Or it may allow you to live vicariously through him. There is so much depth to this book. It will take the utmost attention and focus to peel through all the layers and get to the bottom of the true meaning of the story. Laden with thematic consistency and careful handling of the reader, this book is exactly what you need when you find yourself angling for an enjoyable escape. What better place to escape than a different time you may not have lived in? Those who did live in this era will enjoy the various references to music and popular behaviors of that time.
You will enjoy the plot. You will enjoy the characters. You will enjoy the flurry of activity. It may not be crass but this book will have you red-faced on occasion. Nothing like a good trip back in time.
Pages: 557 | ASIN: B07QN1VK36
Cooking In A Teacup Before & After
If you’re picking up this book in the hopes that it provides you with recipes for cooking in a teacup, you’ve picked up the wrong book. However, if you’re looking for a charming, self-reflective exploration of not only a life in food but an era, as well as a commentary on the societal experiences to be had within that era, then Cooking In A Teacup Before and After: An Autobiographical True Tale is here for you.
Nowadays, it seems hard to believe that a 21-year-old with no cooking experience (or even much life experience) would be left to her own devices in a kitchen in the Australian outback. But in 1952, that’s just what happened to Lesley J Mooney. Thankfully (for both Mooney and us, the reader of her autobiographical tale), she accepted the opportunity, acknowledging it, even subconsciously, for what it was: really interesting. So, here we are, in 2020, unpacking a book which lays out the experiences which unfolded before and after.
Mooney is really funny, and writes with a wry tone that makes each phase of her life joyful to hear about. While using the phrase “Ignorance is bliss” isn’t usually employed when it comes to the skill of cooking, and one book entitled “Country Woman’s Cookery Book” isn’t considered the overarching manual when it comes to culinary mastery, they certainly facilitated an hilarious starting point for Mooney’s attitude when taking on the challenge set out by her father to take the cooking job.
The structure of Mooney’s cooking experiences make a strong backbone to what, at the fleshy center, is a heart-warming autobiography of her life and becoming a woman in a conservative time in history. Having this structure in place gives the book good pace, and contextualizes the elements of experience and storytelling well.
Though perhaps a mild spoiler – it all goes well enough that Mooney thinks it appropriate to write about it all these years on. Even at the expense of a few bandaged up thumbs along the way…
Pages: 120 | ISBN: 1925959317
Her World: A Compilation of Women’s Works From Around The World
Women in literature shape both poetry and prose in unique ways. The experiences they bring with them and the depth to which they feel and are able to express are unmatched. Within the pages of Her World: A Compilation of Women’s Works From Around The World, you will find a vast array of literature, compiled in one anthology and ready for consumption by eager readers the world over. If it is inspiration you seek, Her World delivers. If you are looking for someone who shares your story, there is no doubt the authors within have a shoulder for you.
Her World: A Compilation of Women’s Works From Around The World, an anthology of various types of reading complete with artwork and photography, packs a powerful punch. From the first pages of Her World, readers are taken on journeys of self-discovery and introduced to reflections on trauma and how those events have shaped the writers’ lives. In addition, readers find themselves immersed in a world of strength and advocacy where the very voices of the writers carry weight.
I was most impressed by the variety of text within the anthology; it captures readers’ interest from the beginning and never wavers throughout. Each and every voice, no matter the length or type of writing, stands out as bold and resilient. From stories of traumatic childhood events to cancer diagnoses and seizure disorders, each and every author and poet stands tall in the end as an individual with a story and voice worthy of being heard.
Much can be learned from the journeys of each of these women. While not every poem and story is necessarily autobiographical, there is an intense feeling of life experience that emanates from each. Relating to the authors’ works will be unavoidable. They are all of us.
There is a sense of empowerment that rises from each and every selection. While some can be triggering for readers, the authors’ intent is clear, and the cathartic effects are strong. I recommend Her World: A Compilation of Women’s Works From Around The World to anyone looking for a different take on empowering women. Looking at the journey of women via their own life experiences, their prose and poetry, and their artwork is as enlightening as it is powerful. This is a collection of artists that should not be missed.
Pages: 186 | ISBN-10: 173457044X
LITERARY TITAN 