Sunday, September 11, 2011
Remembering September 11th
No matter how much time passes, we will never forget.
We will tell our children about the patriots who died.
We will tell them of how an entire nation cried.
They'll learn that there was no left or right.
Only a nation united, coping with strife.
We'll teach them no one wins in a world filled with hate.
We'll teach them now, before it's too late.
Friday, September 9, 2011
Book Spotlight: Chronicles of the Apocalypse: Revenge, Everything is Nothing by Zachary Richardson
When you sacrifice the lives of your wife and children to prevent the world’s most powerful clan of assassins from unleashing the Apocalypse, what does that make you? And what do you do when you learn that it was all in vain? For Jin Sakai, that sacrifice turned him into a mere shell of a man, filled only with guilt and hatred. When he learns that it was a sacrifice made in vain, he instantly sets out on a violent one-man war to tear the assassins’ clan down around their ears. After all, who better to destroy them than the man who brought them together?
Things soon turn down a darker path as Jin uncovers the disturbing truth behind his family’s sacrifice; a truth he was never meant to learn. Undone by the revelation, Jin is consumed by doubt and confusion and very nearly loses his life. It is only later when he meets Leah Lawson, a woman with a past almost as dark as his own, that his doubt and confusion vanish and he begins to see a path that will not only lead him to his revenge, but to his redemption. Unfortunately, there is far more going on behind the scenes than Jin realizes. Forces are at play that have been manipulating the course of his life ever since he was born. By setting out on his quest for vengeance, Jin unknowingly cements his destiny as one of the key warriors in the apocalyptic war that’s brewing just beneath the surface.
Book Information
Title of Book: Chronicles of the Apocalypse: Revenge, Everything is Nothing.
ISBN: 978-0-578-02176-8
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Publisher: Self-Published
Publication Date: April 20th, 2009
# of Pages: 291
Zachery Richardson, casually Zach, was born in Seattle WA on August 8th, 1989, and was raised in Lake Oswego, OR. It is perhaps the greatest irony of all that his chosen career is that of an author when as a child, his second least favorite subject in school was writing. Math was number one, and their relationship remains strained to this day.
However, the switch was flipped in middle school when his teacher assigned a creative writing project. Having finally been given a productive outlet for his wildly active imagination, Zach dove headfirst into the world of author-dom and never looked back. By his freshman year of high school, he’d completed his first “book”; a 300 page fanfiction set in the Mobile Suit Gundam universe. Afterwards, he turned his attention to a series of wholly original works that would become Chronicles of the Apocalypse in the subsequent year.
While Chronicles of the Apocalypse (or COTA as he likes to call it) remains his central focus, Zach has also begun work on several other projects in the Young Adult and High Fantasy genres. He currently lives in Wilsonville, OR.
You can visit Zach’s website at http://www.theauthorphoenix.com/
Thursday, September 8, 2011
Book Spotlight: The Queen's Gamble by Barbara Kyle
Isabel Thornleigh has returned to London from the New World with her Spanish husband, Carlos Valverde, and their young son. Ever the queen’s loyal servant, Isabel is recruited to smuggle money to the Scottish rebels. Yet Elizabeth’s trust only goes so far—Isabel’s son will be the queen’s pampered hostage until she completes her mission. Matters grow worse when Isabel’s husband is engaged as military advisor to the French, putting the couple on opposite sides in a deadly cold war.
Set against a lush, vibrant backdrop peopled with unforgettable characters and historical figures, The Queen’s Gamble is a story of courage, greed, passion, and the high price of loyalty…
Read an excerpt!
Chapter One
Isabel Valverde was coming home. The brief, terrible letter from her brother had brought her across five thousand miles of ocean, from the New World to the Old, and during the long voyage she thought she had prepared herself for the worst. But now that London lay just beyond the next bend of the River Thames, she dreaded what awaited her. The not knowing – that was the hardest. Would she find her mother still a prisoner awaiting execution? Horrifying though that was, Isabel could at least hope to see her one last time. Or had her mother already been hanged?
The ship was Spanish, the San Juan Bautista, the cabin snug and warm, its elegant teak paneling a cocoon that almost muffled the brutal beat of England’s winter rain on the deck above. Isabel stood by the berth, buttoning her cloak, steeling herself. The captain had said they were less than an hour from London’s customs wharf and she would soon have to prepare to disembark. Everything was packed; three trunks sat waiting by the open door, and behind her she could hear her servant, sixteen-year-old Pedro, closing the lid of the fourth and last one. She listened to the rain’s faint drumbeat, knowing that she heard it in a way the Spanish passengers could not – heard it as a call, connecting her to her past, to her family’s roots. The Spaniards would not understand. England meant nothing to them other than a market for their goods, and she had to admit it was a backward place compared to the magnificence of their empire. The gold and silver of the New World flowed back to the Old like a river with the treasure fleets that sailed twice a year from Peru and Mexico, making Philip of Spain the richest and most powerful monarch in Europe. Isabel felt the tug of both worlds, for a part of her lived in each, her young self in the Old, her adult self in the New. She had left England at twenty with her Spanish husband and almost nothing else, but he had done well in Peru, and after five years among its wealthy Spaniards, Isabel was one of them. Money, she thought. It’s how the world turns.
Can it turn Mother’s fate? She had clung to that hope for the voyage, and now, listening to the English rain, she was seized by a panicky need to have the gold in her hands. She heard her servant clicking a key into the lock of the last trunk. She whirled around.
“Pedro, my gold,” she said. She grabbed his arm to stop him turning the key. “Where is it?”
He looked at her, puzzled. “Señora?”
“The gold I set aside. In the blue leather pouch.” She snatched the ring of keys from him and unlocked the trunk. She rummaged among her gowns, searching for the pouch. The soft silks and velvets slid through her hands. She dug down into the layers of linen smocks and stockings and night-dresses. No pouch. Abandoning the rucked-up clothes, she unlocked another trunk and pawed through her husband’s things, his doublets and breeches and capes and boots. The pouch was not here either. “Open that one,” she said, tossing the keys to Pedro. “We have to find it.” She went to the brocade satchel that lay at the foot of the berth and flipped its clasps and dug inside.
“Señora, it’s not in there. Just papers.”
“Look for it!” she ordered.
He flinched at her tone, and she felt like a tyrant. Not for the first time. He was a Peruvian with the small build of his Indian people which made him look more like a child than a lad of sixteen. He had the placid nature of his people, too, and a deference to authority that had been bred into his ancestors by the rigid Inca culture. When the Spaniards had invaded thirty years ago they had exploited that deference, easily making the Indians their slaves and themselves rich. Isabel hated slavery. Pedro was her servant, but a free person nonetheless. English justice said so. But his docile ways sometimes sparked her impatience, goading her to take the tone of his Spanish overlords, and when she did so she hated herself.
“Take out everything,” she told him, less sharply. “Look at the bottom.”
“Si, Señora,” he said, obeying.
His native tongue was Quechua. Isabel’s was English. Neither of them knew the other’s language. They spoke in Spanish.
Read the reviews!
“Action-packed adventure that expertly blends fiction with history.”
–Publishers Weekly on The Queen’s Gamble “Beyond Her Book” blog
"WOW! Barbara Kyle is highly talented and INSTANTLY transported me to the Tudor Era from page one and kept me there, among the Kings, Queens, and the newly evolving England. Absolutely LOVED LOVED LOVED the pages of this novel."
--Reviews by Molly on The Queen's Gamble
“Unfurls a complex and fast-paced plot, mixing history with vibrant characters.”
–Publishers Weekly on The King’s Daughter
“Kyle is adept at layering her tale with colorful descriptions, accurate details and exciting twists within a fast-paced plot designed to keep readers’ attention.”
–Romantic Times on The Queen’s Captive
“Riveting, heady, glorious, inspired.”
–Susan Wiggs on The Queen’s Lady
Barbara previously won acclaim for her contemporary novels under pen name ‘Stephen Kyle’, including Beyond Recall (a Literary Guild Selection), After Shock and The Experiment. Over 400,000 copies of her books have been sold.
Barbara has taught courses for writers at the University of Toronto School of Continuing Studies, and is known for her dynamic workshops for many writers organizations. Her popular series of video workshops “Writing Fiction That Sells” is available through her website. Before becoming an author, Barbara enjoyed a twenty-year acting career in television, film, and stage productions in Canada and the U.S.
Visit www.BarbaraKyle.com.
Wednesday, September 7, 2011
Movie Review: The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian (2008)
The movie opens with Peter (William Moseley) in the middle of a fight. He's frustrated they haven't been called back to Narnia. While it's only been a year in their world, hundreds of years have passed in Narnia. During that time, Aslan has left. The Telmarines have risen to power, led by Miraz (Sergio Castellitto), and a newborn heir to the throne means that Prince Caspian's (Ben Barnes) life is in danger. He blows on the horn belonging to Susan (Anna Poppelwell), calling the kings and queens of old to return to Narnia.
The Pevensies aren't prepared for what they find. The Narnians had been attacked, and they now hide underground. The Telmarines have spread the word that the Narnians are extinct. When the Narnians care for Prince Caspian, who was injured while trying to escape Miraz's soldiers, he decides to help them take back what is theirs, with a promise of peace to follow. This puts him at odds with Peter, who upon learning what has happened to Narnia, plans to lead the charge.
Again, I went to the reviews on Amazon of this movie to see what people who had read the books said about The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian. Amazingly, I already agreed with them even though I had no idea these things were different between the movie and the books. Out of the three movies, Caspian is my least favorite. They turned Peter into an egotistical jerk. Suddenly, he has a big head and expects to be treated like a king outside of Narnia. He picks a fight with a guy who bumped him because the guy expected him to apologize. We find out this is a regular thing for him lately when Susan asks, "What was it this time?" The practical Susan says they need to realize that it's possible they will never return to Narnia.
Prince Caspian blowing on Susan's horn calls them back to the magical world of Narnia. Though the Narnians had pledged their swords and lives to Caspian, Peter decides to take charge. While this creates necessary conflict for the film, I didn't enjoy seeing him at odds with Caspian. We now realize why they had to make him an egotistical jerk.
Lucy spies Aslan, but no one believes her; especially Trumpkin (Peter Dinklage), a sullen, sarcastic dwarf whose life they save soon after entering Narnia. He feels betrayed by Aslan's disappearance and all he allowed to happen to the Narnians. Lucy, played by the talented Georgie Henley, delivers another winning performance. The youngest Pevensie sibling, her insight and opinions are often disregarded. It is her strong faith in Aslan that allows her to see him; though Aslan does give her what's for when they finally meet. She tells him she wanted to come to him earlier, but the others didn't believe her. He asks, "And why would that stop you from coming to me?"
Edmund, played by Skandar Keynes, has changed since his first visit to Narnia. He seems to have grown up more than his older brother. Though the sibling rivalry is still there between the boys, it's Peter's actions that dictate the moments of tension between them.
The other thing I wasn't keen on is the romantic element between Susan and Caspian. It led to some serious looks and a humorous moment at the end, but overall, it seemed an unnecessary part of the film.
The stunning setting and superb special effects make The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian an amazing film, even if the content left a bit to be desired. My Christian friends have been disappointed in how the books have been brought to life on the big screen, but I can't imagine Hollywood producing this movie without stripping away some of the Christian elements. It's a shame that's the case, but if a viewer hadn't read the books, then they would take the movie at face value. I still wish the rating on this movie (and the first) would have been PG-13. The violent battles warrant it. Though the books are geared toward a younger audience, this movie is even darker than the first, and should be rated as such.
DVD Product Details:
Actors: Ben Barnes, Georgie Henley, Anna Popplewell, William Moseley, Skandar Keynes
Directors: Andrew Adamson
Format: Color, DVD, NTSC, Widescreen
Language: Unknown (Dolby Digital 5.1 EX), English (Dolby Digital 5.1), French (Dolby Digital 5.1), Spanish (Dolby Digital 5.1)
Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
Aspect Ratio: 2.40:1
Number of discs: 1
Rated: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Studio: WALT DISNEY VIDEO
DVD Release Date: December 2, 2008
Run Time: 149 minutes
ASIN: B00005JPH2
SRP: $19.99
Interview: Joseph Schneller, Author of Your Average Joe Unplugged
Joining us today is Joseph Schneller, author of Your Average Joe Unplugged
. Joe served as a captain in the U.S. Marine Corps and holds a Psychology degree from Whitworth. He is an alumnus of the Christian Writers Guild. His publishing credits include Focus on the Family’s Thriving Family, Clubhouse, and Focus on the Family; LifeWay’s Stand Firm; and Walk Thru the Bible’s Indeed. He writes nonfiction and humor for adults, and fiction for children, youth, and adults. He and his wife, Kippi, live in Colorado with their two young boys.Welcome to my blog, Joe. It's wonderful to have you with us. When did you begin writing?
In the third grade, I wrote a series of short stories on “Super Pickle,” a superhero vegetable who (I’m assuming now) went around doing heroic things in the plant kingdom. The class loved it when I read new installments to them—at least that’s how I remember it. Our teacher, Mrs. Baseman, was very encouraging about my writing. I think I’ll break out those old stories some day and see if there are any publishable concepts, maybe a Vlasic-meets-VeggieTales theme. Oh, I got it: VlasicTales.
Sometime in elementary school, I also wrote a story entitled “Dead Men Don’t Eat Quiche.” So you can see that most of my early writing centered around food.
What is this book about?
Your Average Joe: Unplugged is a Christian devotional and humor book. It takes a gritty, honest approach to issues such as employment, unemployment, trial, fear, and the Word of God. It also includes Dave Barry/Erma Bombeck-style humor articles about married life.
The Christian life is no easy gig, but for some harebrained reason Christians can think that we’re supposed to have it all together, that life should be smooth and prosperous. That’s unbiblical nonsense. This book takes a what-the-Bible-says-even-if-I-don’t-like-it approach, including transparent renderings of my personal experience. I hope readers find it liberating.
Early reader feedback includes accolades for tear-jerking honesty, an easy and “conversational” writing style, and laugh-out-loud humor. I’ve been hearing the “lovin’ it” phrase, which of course makes me think of McDonald’s. But there I go about food again.
I spent 9 ½ months unemployed/underemployed, and this with a wife and toddler at home and a second child on the way. To a minor extent, I felt like the Biblical character Job (pronounced “Jobe”), who lost nearly everything he had and spent much time grappling with loss and with his faith in God. Like I said, the faith walk is no cake walk.
I knew that this life is but a womb for the next, that God uses it to prepare us for service here and for life in heaven. But, in the midst of my desert—a most difficult time in my marriage, a most difficult time for me personally—I asked God if it’s really worth it. Is Kingdom-work on earth and preparation for heaven really worth all this heartache, all this headache, all this loss?
During most of that time, I ran a website and posted articles about my pilgrimage. At one point I read an email about the impact the website had on a woman. It struck her to the core, and was one of the things that helped her return to the Lord. As I finished reading that email, instinctively I said aloud, “This makes it all worth it.”
So, my deep hope is that God would use this book to draw people closer to Him. And yeah, if I’m able to help someone because of the low places I’ve seen, then it’s all worth it.
Where can readers purchase a copy of your book?
The book can be purchased from the publisher (http://www.nordskogpublishing.com/), from Amazon, or (if you want an autograph and possibly some leftover pickle) directly from me (http://www.josephschneller.com/). Because I’m a first-time book author, it may take a little while to get on the bookstore shelves. But I think you may be able to order it through your local bookstore as well.
What is up next for you?
First off, I need to take a shower. I smell like a yak. Secondly, I have a completed young adult novel which I’m pitching to publishers. I’m also interested in further nonfiction for adults, and have a couple more novels rumbling around in my head. I’m also considering the children’s market. Of course, there are always the magazine articles (I’ve written for Focus on the Family’s Thriving Family, Clubhouse and Focus on the Family magazine; LifeWay’s Stand Firm; Walk Thru the Bible’s Indeed, Wesleyan Publishing House’s Vista; etc.). So, I’m currently in the cool place of having more potential opportunities than I have time.
Thanks for spending time with us today, Joe. We wish you continued success.
Monday, September 5, 2011
Book Review: Your Average Joe Unplugged by Joe Schneller
In this funny and insightful devotional, Schneller takes readers through 30 days in the life of an average Christian. Though told from a man's point of view with a decidedly male image on the front cover, I believe any man or woman would enjoy reading this book.
Some of the issues Schneller addresses are:
- job dissatisfaction
- a crisis of faith
- using our gifts to honor the Lord
- how marriage changes your life
- daily Bible reading
- coping with fear
Having made the tough decision to leave his job while his wife was pregnant with their second child, Schneller remained unemployed for some time. His writing produced a bit of money, but this former U.S. Marine captain with a degree in Psychology, was thrilled to find an entry level job paying minimum wage. While he knew that God has never been wrong, Schneller wasn't too happy about his job situation. As he considered God's infinite perfection (Day 1), he was able to relate to his Lord in Genesis 6:5-6 when God was, "grieved that He had made man on the earth, and His heart was filled with pain." Schneller goes on to discuss on Day 2 how much of our lives are spent working and wondering why that is. He brings us through the reasons for job dissatisfaction on Day 3. We live in a fallen, sinful world, but God wishes us to live with thankful hearts--even in the workplace. Schneller states that thankfulness is like a muscle--it needs exercise.
By the time you're done with all Schneller has to share on the subject, you're thinking, "Wow! He's right."
Each day ends with the Bread for Your Soul section that includes a portion of Scripture, Today's Encouragement, and a prayer.
Your Average Joe Unplugged by Joe Schneller is the perfect blend of humorous and insightful, playful and profound, light and deep. I recommend it to the everyday Christian who is eager to devote more time to the Lord.
Title: Your Average Joe Unplugged
Author: Joseph Schneller
Publisher: Nordskog Publishing
ISBN-10: 0983195714
ISBN-13: 978-0983195719
SRP: $11.95
The author's publicist paid me to promote this book with a virtual book tour through Pump Up Your Book. That fee did not include a review. I received no compensation of any kind to provide my honest opinions.
Sunday, September 4, 2011
Book Spotlight: Trees Cry for Rain by Dr. Jeri Fink
Five hundred years earlier, Rozas, a Marrano or Secret Jew, is betrayed. She’s anonymously reported to the Spanish Holy Office of The Inquisition. Dragged into an underground dungeon, Rozas is tortured, forced to “confess” crimes against the church, and convicted of heresy.
The Inquisitors demand that she reveal the fate of her three daughters. She refuses. Rozas is burned alive at the stake; the secret dies with her.
The story jumps seamlessly in time, connecting Rozas, the man with fiery eyes, and characters that amble across Bryant Park’s Great Lawn. Suddenly three women find each other.
Time freezes. The man is ready. Something unthinkable is about to happen.
Read an excerpt!
Spain, 1492
Someone bangs on my door.
A deep, paralyzing fear invades me, numbing my hands and feet, making my heart race, blurring the images in my mind into bloody streaks. We stare at one another – my husband and three daughters.
We know what it means.
We have been betrayed.
Lucas takes a deep breath and stands away from the table. He’s a big man, with long thin legs and the round belly of middle age. The girls huddle around me, their eyes wide with terror. The meat is ash in my stomach, swelling until it feels like stones splitting me from within.
Lucas squares his shoulders.
“Don’t say anything,” he commands in a whisper.
“Don’t answer it,” I hiss. My arms feel like raw meat, cold and bloodless.
Lucas smiles sadly, his beard shimmering in the dim light. “I have to. We have nowhere to go.”
“They’ll kill us,” the words rip through my throat like the knife that sliced the meat in our bowls.
Slowly, Lucas shakes his head; his dark, green-flecked eyes fill with grief.
“You’re my husband,” I beg. “You have to listen.”
There’s a tiny pause; time jolts to a halt. I hold my breath. Zara, my youngest and most insightful – the one that seems in touch with old spirits – senses that something ominous is approaching. Nine years of life still hasn’t taught her how to contain fear. She cries, soft wails renting the air. I pull her close, rubbing her back, whispering soothing words I don’t feel, and pressing her head into my breast to stifle the sound.
“Nooooo,” I plead, matching the cries of my child.
Lucas gently touches my shoulder, runs his thick, stubby fingers up my neck, and kisses my daughter’s head. “There’s no choice,” he whispers, more to himself than any of us. He backs away from the table, his legs heavy, moving as if in a swamp. Suddenly he pauses and in a moment that lasts a lifetime, Lucas memorizes the sight of us together.
It will be the last time.
New York City, Present
Shira smiled. Bryant Park was like a window in time, moving in its own jagged frames. It was the perfect place to write, to follow Emma and Mason’s bizarre romance, and when needed, look into faces to provide description and dialogue. What did the intruder look like? How did Emma’s fear play on her face? Mason’s arrogance?
She scanned the faces in the park. There was a dark-skinned man with a fashionably ragged red t-shirt printed with Nweke’s Art, selling beaded bracelets and earrings on a pegboard, near the steps on 42nd Street. An old couple sat on the Upper Library Terrace, beneath a green and white umbrella stamped with Bryant Park, and next to a concrete pot of purple flowers. They held hands and watched the world before them, their silver hair shimmering in the summer sun, sharing the terrace with concrete garlands, urns, and ram’s heads.
For a moment their eyes met.
The old couple smiled and Shira quickly turned away, embarrassed.
Maybe she could find a Mason Portsmith look-alike at the park – a man dressed in expensive clothes with a lithe body and hazel eyes that broadcasted insight, caring, and power? Shira smiled.
In my dreams.
Literally. In her thirty-two years, she had always known that the people and plots conjured in her writer’s mind were far more fascinating than reality.
That’s what kept her running.
Read the reviews!
"...anyone who loves historical pieces will be sure to enjoy this."
--One Day at a Time
"This novel has all of the components of an epic success - strong characters, engrossing plot, and gripping themes."
--Book Nook Club
"A fantastic story with interesting and believable characters. This is a must read!"
--Bookguru
To find out more about Dr. Fink http://www.drjerifink.com
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