Willey and Shelley’s Adventure Downunder

This is the second book in a three-part series where Willey and Shelley embark on an extraordinary adventure in the magical land of Australia. While many of us have seen movies or documentaries about this fascinating country, this story offers a fresh perspective.

When Willey transforms into a koala bear and Shelley becomes a kangaroo, they experience the breathtaking countryside and its unique wildlife from an entirely new viewpoint. Through their journey, they learn the importance of understanding others, helping those in need, and looking out for one another.

This story invites you and your children to explore Australia’s vibrant landscapes and encounter its remarkable animals in a fun and imaginative way. Hopefully, it will inspire you to embrace new friendships and see life through the eyes of others.

I hope you enjoy reading this book as much as I enjoyed writing it. Stay curious and forever young.

The Beauty of Words

Life experience has a unique way of inspiring words and thoughts. It allows us to revisit moments, trends, and milestones that shape who we are. The sights we’ve seen, the people we’ve met – these complete our inner selves. A lifetime of such memories can spill out into beautiful words.

From a special friendship to the birth of a child, or a love you never expected, these are the things that stir the heart and deserve to be written about. I hope to evoke genuine emotions in those who read my work. Writing wasn’t something I planned; it unfolded in a way that even I found surprising, revealing truths I didn’t know I had to share.

Within these pages are smiles and tears, crafted to make you think, reminisce on days gone by, or dream of what’s yet to come.

I do not seek to make history or gain fame. My words are simple, yet thoughtful, with meaning to uncover. So, enjoy the rhymes, reflect on the truths, and immerse yourself in the heartfelt works within.

Pondside Park

Step into the charming world of Pondside Park Stories, set in the idyllic expanse of Pondside Park, nestled in the heart of ‘Every Town USA.’ This beloved park is a hub of activity, where children converge after school for playtime and families unite for festive holiday gatherings. The surrounding community boasts a diverse array of residences, from single-family homes and apartments to a few condos.

The children of this town each have their own unique tales to tell, resonating with experiences that mirror our own. Meet characters like Anna with her extraordinary life, Francis grappling with his name, and Eddie, whose fun is dampened by rain. Discover Barack’s proud self-identity, and join Cari and Donna in their enduring friendship, among many others.

But the surprises of Pondside Park don’t end there. The local wildlife, including squirrels, goldfish, and ducks, not only share in similar challenges but also demonstrate remarkable problem-solving through reasoning, understanding, and acceptance. Delight in stories like ‘Sammy the Unhappy Duck,’ ‘Hazel and Harry’s New Home,’ and ‘Lisa and Louis’ Lesson in True Friendship.’ And don’t miss the intriguing tale of ‘The Trouble with Ginger,’ a companion dog.

Pondside Park is a collection brimming with heartwarming narratives, each as enjoyable and enlightening as the last.

Human Adjacent

What makes someone human? What makes them inhuman? What do you do when those lines are much more blurred than they at first seem to be? How do you reconcile with realizing that you might have more in common with the monster of the story? What do you do when you realize that the monster probably isn’t a monster at all? That many of the things you were taught to you aren’t true at all?

Human Adjacent emphasizes human nature by telling the stories of things that are non-human, of shared experiences, and stories that resonate with what it means to be human without actually being so. Follow nine different stories as they all try to paint a wide picture of humanity in uncommon places, each one set in a unique world with diverse characters all trying to navigate their very different, outlandish circumstances that may or may not be similar to your own.

Shugart: The Candy-Eating Dragon

Too much candy

Won’t be fun,

And the holiday season

Has just begun.

‘What to do with the excess?’

Grown-ups might ask.

This book has the answer:

(hint): A dragon’s up to the task!

“‘Twas the night before Halloween and all through the house,

a creature was stirring, but it wasn’t a mouse…”

The Way It Ought to Be

The Way It Ought to Be is based on the idea that life does not always happen the way we want it to and that the only things that are important are the relationships we experience along the way – those we can’t get away from, those we want but can’t have, and the one we hold with ourselves.

Winifred Simone is in love with the life she had as a young girl and with the people from that life: her lone, childhood friend, Casey, and her ever-present mother, Maggie. Winifred and Casey spend their days in the small, rural town of Hickory in 1940s Pennsylvania; free to roam the nearby woods and isolating themselves from the rest of the world. But what seems idyllic to Winifred was anything but for Casey, a boy who always felt unloved and unlovable, despite Winifred’s boundless adoration.

Neither one could perceive the events that take away their innocent outlook and, without a word, Casey leaves Hickory, shattering their bond. This propels Winifred on a six-year search to find her friend and love far beyond the comfort of her hometown. As the story moves from the canopied safety of the Pennsylvania woods to the exposed rawness of the California desert, Winifred continually relies on the wrong people in an attempt to find the life she is convinced she is supposed to have.

That is, until she meets two very different families, the Hixsons and the Quinns. With their help, she learns to accept and be grateful for the life she is actually living.

Drinks with God

Drinks With God is what you might get if you blended the wit of George Carlin, the satire of Jonathan Swift, and the quirky imagination of Kurt Vonnegut. In this irreverent and humorous narrative, the Supreme Being himself confesses to being a celestial klutz, making cosmic blunders from the dawn of time to the present day. From accidentally creating an upright squirrel in a jockstrap in his attempt to make the first human, to sending a swarm of hummingbirds instead of locusts to plague the Egyptians, this God is far from the omnipotent figure we know from the Bible.

Within the pages of Drinks With God, the reader is treated to an unconventional take on familiar biblical figures. From his ‘weirdo’ son Jesus, the amorous Holy Ghost, and the entrepreneurial Noah, to the not-so-virginal Virgin Mary, a sassy Judas Iscariot, and a chef Satan who has a flair for spicy cuisine – these characters are reimagined in a way you’ve never seen before. And where does God divulge these surprising insights? Not in a heavenly realm, but in the more earthly locales of New York City’s bars, coffee houses, and parks, revealing a deity who enjoys a good drink.

Reading Drinks With God might not sway your religious beliefs, but it’s guaranteed to leave you in stitches. Prepare for a hilarious, blasphemous, and utterly unique exploration of divinity like no other.

“Drinks With God has reopened my eyes to the truth that humor, maybe even blasphemous humor, is the only way to make sense of this distracted, click-happy, self-infatuated world.”
– Cornelius Walters, author of Fairy Snow.

“OMG! Millman’s latest book is divine – a heaven-sent blessing for atheists, unbelievers, heretics, and anyone who still has a fully-functioning funny bone.”
– Gary Allen, author of Galloping Gourmand.

“A round of hilarious irreverence from a unique writer!”
– Jim Christy, author of The Rough Road to the North and Scalawags.

The Way of Undoing

The Way of Undoing: Capitalism, Trauma, and the Return of Wonder is an intimate personal exploration of possibility and discovery through stories and adventures great and small.

The author’s search for reconciliation with a war-traumatised father traces the origins of transgenerational trauma from capitalist roots to today’s internet, where data, information, and misinformation streams have taken the place of dialogue and storytelling. Climate change and pandemics have thrust Western culture upon an emotionally stuck world and challenge the collective human story that we, and the author, are writing as we live.

Raised by Children

Raised by Children is a story about the impact of childhood trauma and PTSD, and a young woman’s resilience as she finds her voice and carves her own path.

Stepping beyond the suffocating backyard of her factory town in Kentucky, she discovers just how vast the world can be.

The Entrepreneur in France, 1756-1816

The Entrepreneur in France, 1756-1816 offers historians and students a compelling examination of the rise of the entrepreneur in France during a transformative era. This study explores how leaders of enterprise accumulated capital, refined management skills, and shaped the foundations of modern economic practices. With a focus on the insights of the influential Physiocrats and the contributions of A. J. R. Turgot, who served as both intendant and minister, this work reveals how economic thought and policy responded to and influenced the burgeoning spirit of entrepreneurship.

Harmony

This book offers both an introduction to the theory of Western music, focusing on the period from 1650 to 1900, and a scientific exploration of the acoustical principles behind its production.

Readers will be guided through fundamental concepts such as chords, tonality, modulation, and chromaticism, with particular emphasis on the role of harmonics in musical sound. By the end of the book, they will have gained a valuable set of tools to deepen their understanding of music theory and composition, enabling them to create meaningful and innovative music for the listeners of tomorrow.

Film Festival Junkie

As an astute reporter of the film festival scene, Laszlo Kriston sheds light on the making and unmaking of Harvey Weinstein (he first heard rumors about him back in 2004); charts the rise of the festival goodie bags and the Oscar gift bags; looks back at the day during the Toronto Film Festival when the attack on the Twin Towers unfolded; chronicles the biggest scandals of Cannes when films were roundly booed; narrates the closure of the Cannes Film Festival during the 1968 student riots; looks back on the Mubarak years that served as a backdrop to the Cairo Film Festival; chronicles the biggest biddings wars—for distribution rights—that studios engaged in; examines the closing day blues (a common festival malady); muses about a pee stain on Nick Nolte’s pajamas (his garment for the interview); and reveals how Bill Murray traumatized a young Scarlett Johansson on the set of Lost in Translation.

Film festivals are vanity fairs and highly competitive, ego-driven showbiz events, and Laszlo Kriston chronicles them with a healthy dose of humor – it’s an often hilarious, tongue-in-cheek book.