A Whisper can Rip your Guts out by Elliott Zaff is a realistic novel based on the author's life and his interactions with a brilliant 74-year-old professor. Canadian-born Elliott does not have a happy childhood and he comes to California as a young man...

Shocked Silent by Judith Driscoll is the perfect psychological thriller, making this a really good story from the very beginning until the last page. Susan is a social worker in a psychiatric hospital, helping as many people as she can; feeling their pain and trying...

Sakura Self-Destruct by Simon Rooney is an urban fiction novel that will leave you pondering. But more than this, it's the personal odyssey of Jason Colbach, a depressed Englishman who seemingly has nothing going for himself and can't understand what his life is all about....

Gus had two friends with the same name, Duck, but they were different from each other. While Duck enjoyed imitating machines, animals, and opera singers, the other Duck was quiet and thought a lot. The three of them - Gus, Duck, and Duck - were...

Husky is an Alaskan husky who dreams of running (and winning) the famous Iditarod trail sled dog race. He has a passion to run fast. Juneau is an orphaned snow wolf, lonely, hungry, and afraid. Tied up outside, Husky is also alone, at least most...

“The individual letters to a town called Stars Hollow hang what appears to be in midair, high enough to sit in the first colors of sunset. It is like magic and art all in one. It makes my jaw drop just looking at them.” In...

In Sin Eater by Amanda Denham, Jayde was only eighteen when she first discovered her gift of being able to erase painful memories. Just two years ago, Jayde thought she was acting out of kindness by eliminating a disturbing incident from the memory of her...

Moon-Force 1 by Janelle M. Adams is a magical story about Mesa White and her journey to her home planet of Satellite. Mesa lost her memory, and she did not even realize it. When she meets Ethan, a boy with magical powers, he claims to...

Does This Make Sense? A Jump Start on Your Self-Help Journey by Erin Battle is a non-fiction book in which the author shares her own stories so that we might be able to explore our own, and find a bit of footing on unstable personal...

Gaining Altitude: Retirement and Beyond by Rebecca Milliken is a wonderful memoir. The author gives us an honest and comprehensive account of what retirement meant to her, did to her, and how she felt. We can all learn from her moving experience and make our...

Most recently, I have immersed myself in self-help and personal development books and each of them brings a lot of wisdom, but Awakening Your Soul's Truth: A Powerful Guide for Transformation, Healing, and Consciousness Growth by Anya Goode took me by surprise and I must...

Do Not Wish for a Birthday Unicorn!, written by Sarina Siebenaler and illustrated by Gabby Correia, is a children's picture book that revolves around a young girl named Kat who is about to celebrate her birthday. Her invitations make it clear that this one is...

In Extreme Vetting by Roxana Arama, violence begins with a camera and ends with a gunshot. After crossing the US border in 1998, Emilio Ramirez's past catches up with him in the hallway of his sons' high school when ICE arrests him for illegal immigration....

Squeak Smiles! is a children's picture book written and illustrated by Terri Rosa Fox. It tells the story of Little Squeak, who has always been happy and never had a reason to be mad. His parents love him, and he gets to sing and play...

In Moon Spirit by Fred Gracely, we are introduced to Max Berger, a boy without a past whose present is rather awful. Life in Helpren Municipal Orphanage is hopeless and dreary and, in addition to being prey to bullies, he's also plagued by bizarre waking...

Do you know who you are? Have you ever wondered? In Grandma Bonnie’s Who? a young boy explores who he is. He wonders if he’s the eyes through which he sees. Or perhaps he’s the ears through which he hears. He wonders about his arms...

A Miracle for Micah is a biblical story. Young Reuben is burdened with problems in life and he feels weary. He wishes that his miserable life is over. He plans to end his life by jumping into the Sea of Galilee. But he is saved...

Dark Heirloom, by J.D. Brown, begins with a young woman thrust into a world of which she knows nothing and has no idea whom she can trust. Essentially whisked from a Chicago street after a violent attack by vampires, Ema wakes up in a medieval...

In Julie & Kishore by author Carol Jackson, we find ourselves in the middle of an interracial and inter-cultural love connection, that between Julie and Kishore, our titular characters. Julie, a red haired, freckle faced Kiwi, always thought of herself as plain and not very...

When was the last time you set out to accomplish a goal? Chances are you’ve probably set a number of different goals for yourself. It may be losing five pounds or saving money or anything at all. The important thing, however, is getting started on...