Leaving Patriarchy Behind

Can we fight, and win, against an ideology that has been established and practiced for decades? In Leaving Patriarchy Behind, Leticia recounts her father’s disappointment at the birth of each daughter: “After each birth, Papa would turn to Mama and ask, ‘Mama, es un niño?’ But, out of 18 babies, Mama only had four boys.” With some challenging years behind her, Leticia considers the culture that informed her parents’ principles, those she knew she could not accept as her own. She realized from childhood that she was not one to follow the disparate rules set for boys and girls.

In these short vignettes, Leticia Aguilar recalls her life as a child in Mexico in the 1960s and as an adult in America in the ‘70s and beyond. Looking back, she reflects on her struggles as a girl, then a young woman, and the men who told her what she could and could not do. Instead, Leticia turned away from Mexican patriarchy, even as she was criticized and warned of her shortcomings in being independent. In a small mountain community in California where Leticia raised her family, she joined a variety of local organizations where she provided young women with a career, education, and family resources. Leticia’s memoir inspires others to rise above misogyny and racism.

Legacy of Ages: Book One

The sun was streaming through the window of the attic, highlighting the small dust particles as they floated to the floor. Ron climbed the last couple of steps to his grandfather’s sanctuary. He looked around the almost-hallowed space before reaching the top. The entire attic was an open workspace of the house on the cliff that was built in the mid-1800s, overlooking the Atlantic Ocean of Eastern North America. The look of the attic and the memory of his grandfather came rushing back to him. Ron had no idea what would transpire over the next few weeks as he uncovered his grandfather’s secrets.
Secrets that led to ancient mysteries and the hall of knowledge buried in Egypt thousands of years ago to preserve it for the time when it would be needed.
That time has come.

Legends of Cydrisia

The dark titan, Cephius, and five of his six children, the demon princess of Shivar have been sealed in their fiery realm by the gods of the realm. This leaves the gods weak, too weak to continue the fight against the darkness. So they retreat into the heavens to the celestial palace where they will recover.

Mankind must continue the fight against prince Gregormere, the soul eater, and his dark legions, but with the retreat of their gods, many lose hope. The races retreat and hide, all but one. They will stay and fight to death. They will revolt against the darkness like a pillar of light in the storm. They will be led by a man, a warrior, who will be named the champion of the son god valor. He will unite the races of mankind and show the seed that will bring about the end of the soul eater’s reign. An end to the darkness seeking to devour the realm.

Les Appels du Vide

Les Appels du Vide is a collection of short poems honouring the jarring, shocking and thought provoking nature of grief. Grief intrudes the stitching of the fabrics that make up our lives.

These thoughts provoked within us are as revolutionary to our characters as they are shocking, and instinctively we repress them.

This book honours them and brings them into the light instead. 

Lessons from Starfish

Lessons from Starfish is the story of a teacher who didn’t really plan to be a teacher – and the children who taught her the most about teaching and learning. The author shares this about her book: “I hope that my starfish stories are an invitation to practitioners and parents – and all those who work with children – to take the journey with our students that can lead to the heart of teaching and learning. I also hope that through these stories, parent readers, educators and community will gain insight into the many ways that we are all important educational partners who play significant roles in our children’s educational lives.”

In this memoir, you will meet seven children who inspired their teacher to “make a difference” – not just for the seven – but for all the children she taught.

Let Me Tell You a Story

Storytelling has been an art and form of entertainment for many cultures for thousands of years. Every family has their special stories. In this way culture is created and passed down to future generations. The stories in this collection represent five generations of our family. Our family would sit around a dinner table or a campfire and tell and retell these stories from the past. Our family loved the sharing of humor through this special communication. In this way we also shared each other’s lives. My family has asked that I record these so that they will be passed on to future generations so that they might enjoy them as well. All of the stories elicit laughter because of the humor. The stories are organized around themes. The one thing that is constant about the stories is that they are all “true stories”.

Let the Music Play On

Are you someone who revels in the resonance of melodies, whose heart beats to the rhythm of tunes? Embark on a young man’s odyssey through love, tragedy, and the enlivening world of music, underscoring the eternal bond between human emotions and musical notes. This narrative underscores the quintessence of music—it’s not just an art, but a heartbeat that continues to echo through the chambers of our lives, forever.

Discover the profound connection a musician shares with his instrument, akin to a confidant, a companion in joy, and solace in sorrow. As a teenager, our protagonist finds his heartstrings attuned to the chords of a violin accompanist, who not only complements his music but also completes his world. However, fate orchestrates a melancholy melody as he loses her, plunging him into a realm of despondence, detaching him from the music that once defined his existence.

Now adrift in a ‘free-floating’ reality, devoid of the musical notes that colored his world, he confronts the silence that ensues. The narrative strikes a chord, illustrating his journey back to the world, back to the essence of music that once cradled his soul. His path is arduous, but will the crescendo of life play a tune of hope, or will it fade into an adagio of despair? The finale holds an unexpected cadence, leaving you earnestly rooting for the young maestro to rekindle his love for music and share the eloquence of his violin with the world once more.

Stephen’s favourite saying was “When music is played, we all dance together; when music is played, we all listen as one.”

Let's Have a Parade

The countdown begins, and the band strikes to play! Those famous words are announced: "Let's have a parade!" From the lead stars, the highly popular high-kicking Rockettes, and of course, the big guy in red, Santa Claus, we kick off the holiday season down 6th Avenue as people gather in the streets of New York City to give thanks at the infamous Thanksgiving Day Parade!

Let's Move! Let's Talk! Let's Go!

Why this book now? Children sit too much. They sit in silence, hunched over a cell phone, iPad, Kindle, or computer. Their fingers are the only body part moving, and only in repetitive motions—for hours on end. Technology has contributed to children moving their bodies and using their voices less and less. Let’s Move! Let’s Talk! Let’s Go! is an antidote for these current trends and describes games supported by original poetry and illustrations. This book provides easy-to-follow guidelines for the caregiver and child.

Who is qualified to be a leader of the games? Everyone! The game leader does not need to have any special training. The leader can be a teacher, parent, sibling, or babysitter.

Where can the games be played? Everywhere! All the games can be played without any special space or equipment requirements. A living room, basement, recreation room, classroom, or backyard are all useable spaces for playing the games.

Praise for Let’s MOVE! Let’s TALK! Let’s GO!

“This is a welcome book to the children’s market. The integration between movement in body and voice to convey expression is wonderfully accessible. Many texts deal with speech and movement separately; here we are presented with the fullness of both. And, as we are more fragmented via computer technology, this book gives budding learners a chance for clear communication and action.”

– Cheryl Clark, CMA, BMC®, RSME/T, Senior Faculty member at the Laban Institute of Movement Studies, NYC, and on the faculty at the College for Performing Arts at The New School.

“This book is a terrific resource for dance teachers, classroom teachers, music teachers, and families. It is a creative and practical book that provides ideas, teacher prompts, imagery and rhymes to introduce young children to the building blocks of expressive dance and dance-making through the lens of Laban Movement Analysis. Early childhood is a pivotal time for brain and body development and this book is a wonderful addition to the field of dance in early childhood.”

– Deborah Damast MA, Director and Clinical Associate Professor of Dance Education at NYU Steinhardt.

“This book is a useful tool to any pediatric occupational therapy practice. The book captures ways to teach clinicians, parents, and caregivers how to inspire and grow a child’s human potential through the connection to their bodies and emotions. The book’s poetry, games and fundamental use of breath are creative and playful additions to an occupational therapist’s sensory integration toolkit.”

– Carol Battistone, M.A., OTR/L, 29 years in private practice, NYC.

Letters to My Daughter

He feared escaping the daily terror of drug dealing and violence would overwhelm him, as it had so many other young men of color growing up in the housing projects. His life, and their lives, seemed destined to become more cruel statistics of the ghetto’s unforgiving reality.

Licorice and Black Jack

This fable is about Licorice and Black Jack, twin seafaring cats that lived on the Clipper Ship “The Fair Winds” during the mid-1700s. These brother cats were famous for catching rats throughout the Seven Seas. One night, they were kidnapped by a dishonest, disgruntled crew member who sold them to a witch. After ridding the old harridan’s hut of rats, there was nothing left for them to eat, so they snuck off seeking freedom, food, and hopefully their ship. They then had the misfortune to be discovered by a disreputable merchant who sold them for their beautiful pelts. Their troubles took a turn for the worst from that moment on.

Lies, Love, Blood

Lies, Love, Blood is living proof of duplicity craving wrath. Heed this cautionary tale as we track rascal and scholar Daiga, his loyal, faithful bride-in-waiting Mungwi, and his duped and deserted wife Monica in their three-ring circus of intrigue, passion and despair along Cameroon and Germany’s cultural crossroads.

It drives home with a vengeance this timeless truth of war and wedlock:

“We must love one another or die.”

W.H. Auden