My Mameleh: A Memoir

It was late, dark and cold. The little band of travelers were huddled together on the bench of an old train hoping to escape the tightening Nazi noose. Suddenly, they heard the conductor’s loud voice, “Vos papiers, s'il vous plaît!” (Papers, please!). My mother’s identity card had been stamped not once, but twice with the word, “Juif.” She knew that her life and that of her friends now rested in the palms of a stranger, a government official whose job it was to hand them over to the Germans. 

This is one of the many miraculous escapes found throughout this book. It is a story of survival, not just from the Holocaust, but from old world poverty, broken love and a tenuous peace in order to finally achieve the “American Dream.” 

New Horizons

With the coming of the new school year and twice as many, Braidenhurst Academy finds they need to increase their staff. Among them you will meet Miranda and Otter who come from different backgrounds and challenges. Some of the students have their own problems and must adapt to their new environment. A friend returns with a quest to find and rescue children who have been taken by slavers. This will stretch Tam Slickery’s network of informants to the max. The adventure never stops, and you won’t want to miss any of it. Open this book and start reading.

No Borders for Truth

Two disparate souls, a young Iranian woman with a promising nursing career, and an American collegiate athlete seeking a career in the intelligence field, meet by happenstance. Realizing their mutual passion to serve others, the two connect intellectually and romantically, not knowing they are both connected to secrets that will force their worlds to collide and reveal truths unknown to not only both of them, but also the world. 

No Borders for Truth explores love and loss within family and country, and the richness of the great people of the enduring nations of Iran and America. Through the characters of Richard Holmes and Shideh Ghasemi, the reader peers through a window of real people sharing human commonalities despite culture differences, transcending current stereotypes and biased cultural assumptions. 

On a Pilgrimage with Augustine’s Confessions

In his ground-breaking work The Confessions, Augustine of Hippo (AD 343-430), a prominent theologian and philosopher of early Christianity, paved the way for self-disclosure and the art of writing one’s life story. In On a Pilgrimage with Augustine’s Confessions, Dr. Blom delves into Augustine’s role as both protagonist and reflective narrator, portraying him as Christianity’s original existential hero.

Blom draws parallels between Augustine’s journey and that of the wanton prodigal son, viewing Augustine’s address to God as the voice of an ‘everyday man’ struggling to find his way home – a spiritual homecoming. By masterfully weaving together Jungian archetypal psychology, mythology, biblical interpretations, and autobiography, Blom invites the reader to embark on a captivating journey that bridges the gap between Augustine’s musings and meditations from the fifth century and the present day.

On a Pilgrimage with Augustine’s Confessions offers a fresh perspective on a timeless classic, making it an essential read for anyone seeking to explore the depths of the human soul and the enduring relevance of Augustine’s wisdom.

Opelika Opiate

“Opiate” – to induce sleep; to stupefy; to hijack the brain and change its normal function.

Opelika, Alabama – where cars, men, and race collide to unhinge the life of a young woman. Piecing it back together will require figuring out the role she played, and who she really is – or wants to be.  

P is for Pickelhaube

Broken trust. Broken promises. Shame, confusion, and guilt. Unimaginable violence. Then the War came, and the cycle started anew. This is the story of Kurt, a Bavarian infantryman serving somewhere on the Western Front during the First World War. He is like many of his comrades and not a few of his enemies: he fights a war within a war, a singular combat against what he knows of love, hate, sex, addiction, and abuse. A combat against monsters both real and otherwise. Combat in the First World War was a dehumanizing experience.

Gone was glory and individual heroics. Gone too were the fluttering flags and colorful uniforms. Gone was color altogether.

In this alien world death came from afar, the enemy hidden from view. New and terrifying technologies elevated killing to previously unheard-of industrial levels and rendered battlefields into lifeless moonscapes.

Yet while surrounded by this maelstrom Kurt faces an enemy that is still very much human - himself. Which combat will prove more deadly? In war, when men are wounded, they are called casualties. But what are men called when they are wounded before their fight begins?

Pins and Roses

Autumn Seeley’s debut collection of poetry, Pins and Roses, is a deeply moving and heartfelt work that captures the raw and intense emotions of the human experience. With a deft touch, Seeley explores themes of triumph and understanding, evoking powerful feelings of connection and empathy in her readers. Whether you are a longtime fan of poetry or simply looking for a powerful and inspiring read, Pins and Roses is a must-read for anyone seeking to explore the complex emotions that define our lives. With its breathtakingly beautiful language and profound insights into the human heart, this collection is sure to resonate with readers from all walks of life.

Planet Zero

Scott, a young boy, lives with his mother, father, and Cody, their Alaskan Husky, in rural Texas. Scott and Cody often went fishing nearby their house; Scott was a great fisherman, and his dog was always with him. Cody protected Scotty whenever trouble occurred; he often turned bulls or cows away from Scotty. But on this particular afternoon, Cody could not fight off the extra-terrestrial being that surrounded them when they were returning home after having caught an enormous fish!

A huge spaceship appeared right behind them, and they were quickly abducted by several beings! They went missing for several weeks and the authorities had searched everywhere for Scotty and Cody. There was no clue as to what was behind their disappearance!

After their return, his parents had a tough time believing Cody’s story; he landed at a psychiatrist’s office. This was very disturbing for Cody, but much to his mother’s surprise, months later, she found a very strange looking map which was well hidden in Scotty’s drawers. It was finally revealed that the abduction had really taken place!

Plesia

Exhausted from the day’s trials, Nath collapses into sleep in his New York apartment, only to awaken in the extraordinary world of Plesia. This planet, hailed as the most splendid in the cosmos, is home to 740 eternally youthful inhabitants who, though appearing to be mere eight-year-olds, have thrived on Plesia for millennia. Governed by a benevolent king from a neighboring realm, Plesia is a utopia where every need is seamlessly met.

Amidst this perfection, Nath discovers his heritage as a royal prince of Plesia and that his arrival is serendipitously timed. The peaceful planet faces a grave threat, and it is Nath whom the king and the Plesians need. As Nath joins forces with the king and a valiant group of Plesian allies, he must confront perils and navigate the pernicious disease known as Peur et Haine. His journey is one of courage, friendship, and destiny as he rises to defend the idyllic world that is now his home.

Poems on Eternity, the Endless Universe, and Me

Watterson’s musings press the limits of expression. Planck’s ultimately small 10^-35 meters expands to the Sufi mystic’s Nothingness. Feelings expand from Issa’s compassion for the fleas on his deathbed to a glimpse of God’s anguish at [having to permit] the Holocaust, the price of Israel.

In one vignette, Watterson pictures the cosmos, endless universes, as dust particles at 30,000 feet disappear in the troposphere.

What is the effect? The effect, he says, is something like finding a long-lost reference. Or of having stumbled on the right person just now to tell about a rare instance of moral bravery in his youth.

The effect might be that just now innumerable originals of Beethoven are dipping their quills in ink and starting the seventh symphony. One need only imagine and listen.

Poetsy II

If I knew how to draw a picture of how I feel, I would pick up a pencil and paper and begin sketching.

If I were capable of sculpting a solid figure of my thoughts, I would grab a hammer, some stone or granite, and start chiseling away.

If I could choreograph a dance or even a fight explaining what I want to say, I would rise, do some warmup exercises, and start moving.

Since I am able do none of these things, but I can write in a way that happens to have a rhyme and rhythm to it, that’s exactly what I do.This is to place into the world the love, despair, and everything in between that would otherwise stay hidden inside, where it would do very little good. I believe everyone can find such an outlet, a medium or forum that allows us to feel freedom.

Pride and Prejudice Among the Stars

Earth’s first contact with extra-terrestrials, requesting permission to land on Antarctica to repair one of their three ships, proves to be a potential extinction event for the human race. When a nuke, and missiles, prove to be futile against alien defensive screens, Earth’s last hope is put in the hands of a six-man Navy Seal team. Cody Hawke leads his team to the site, and they damage the annihilator weapon as it is fired, but the team and much of Earth’s population is wiped out. Twenty-five years later, another alien ship arrives with damage caused by an attack from Horde ships, from another galaxy.

Setting down near the three Zirralonian war ships, they discover the damage done to the planet, whose existence is new to them. Reptilian scientists use regeneration transference to animate three earthlings whose bodies are frozen in the ice. Though the bodies are supposed to be temporary shells without awareness, used for scientific study, they prove to be much more. Is it possible for a technologically-challenged Earth to help advanced friendlies defeat the even greater tech of another galaxy?