The Education of a Musician's Daughter

Attending college in the late 60s and early 70s was a challenge, but for Susan (now known as Sonya), it was also a blessing. Despite suffering an identity crisis during her sophomore year and navigating the pitfalls of the drug culture, Susan ultimately benefited from the open-minded spirit of the era.

This book, however, starts at the beginning of Susan’s education, during her kindergarten year, where she flourished in a magical world shared with her best friend. This idyllic time abruptly ended when her father uprooted the family from their Queens apartment to Schenectady for a job teaching music in public schools. The transition was difficult, and it took years for Susan to thrive in her new environment. Her awkward growth spurt alienated her from peers, and an encounter with a bully left her traumatized. Yet, the most challenging relationship was with her mother.

Fortunately, Susan was guided by a series of role models. Her father, a soulful musician, remained devoted and his love shone through the darkest times. Her Hebrew School principal, a Holocaust survivor, inspired her with his faith and New Age vision of the future. Two public school teachers believed in her, fostering her self-confidence. Under the wings of her Aunt Sonia, a disabled woman with an infectious positive attitude, Susan thrived. Aunt Sonia’s captivating stories also illuminated their fascinating family history.

The Enemies of Excellence

Excellence is the ultimate human power and the source of our greatest inventions, most successful businesses, deepest insights, furthest explorations, best performances, and most profound art.

Yet some people and companies fear, hate, or are otherwise opposed to excellence. Why?

In this book George Adams answers the question based on his many years of experience as a CPA, MBA, small business owner, and survivor of countless difficult life experiences.

The Gift of God's Heart

The Gift of God’s Heart is a continuation of the ‘The Gift…’ series, which began with The Gift of God’s Word. 

This new collection of inspirational poetry contains 41 spiritual poems, inspired and realized from scripture in the books of Genesis, Exodus, Matthew, John, 1st John and Revelation.

It takes us on an intriguing, revealing, and challenging poetic journey to find and explore through God’s Biblical treasure map the beguiling and rich trove of God’s heart. Once found and opened, we are richly blessed to discover, know, and receive the abundance of God on a deeply personal level at the core of His heart.

We, then, are better equipped to understand and receive His deep, passionate love for us and, thus, share it more abundantly with others. The journey to find The Gift of God’s Heart is an extremely powerful, motivational, and devotional trek through God’s Word to find God’s heart.

The Gift of God's Word

“Oh, Lord, tell me!

How was His body when He ascended to Your heavenly center?

Was He brightly magnificent in holiness prepared to heaven enter?

Was He clothed in purity and devotion, though stripped by our sin?

Was He wearing goodness and sanctity as He entered therein?”

From the poem “His Body,” the eminently spiritual poetic verse from the pen of D. Ferris Arfaa contains the meaning and effect for which so many people are searching today.

Guided by the intent of divine inspiration, the author’s collection of verse, The Gift of God’s Word, is just that: a magnificent gift!

Realized from scripture, this book contains poems that reflect on the teachings and life of Jesus Christ as revealed in the gospels of Luke and Matthew.

They are invented to uplift, educate, and illuminate God’s love and the power of faith, while establishing and understanding the way toward salvation. And that’s the best gift of all!

The Gift of Hope

Life as a survivor is far more than just cancer and treatment, life or death.

It is a battle for your sanity, a search for power, a dedication to hope, and an attempt to live whatever time ends up being allotted without succumbing to fear.

The Gift of Hope is the intersection of that survival with what it means to be a mother and doctor in these challenging and ever-changing times.

Within that journey lies the meaning of perseverance, the worthiness of the fight, and the difference that love makes.

The Golden Hour

How did the old Chinese restaurants become so ubiquitous in American culture? Prior to the 1980s, over 40,000 Chinese-American restaurants supplied the USA with dishes like Egg Foo Young, Sweet and Sour Pork, Chicken Chow Mein, and Moo Goo Gai Pan. All these iconic dishes were Americanized versions of Cantonese foods. This book describes how this phenomenon took place and contains over 150 recipes so that you can replicate the dishes of The Golden Hour Restaurant.

The Golden Hour is representative of these historic restaurants which not only prospered in large cities like New York, San Francisco, Chicago, Los Angeles, Seattle, and Dallas, but also in small towns like Turlock, where The Golden Hour was located in California’s agricultural Central Valley. These old Americanized Chinese restaurants have largely been replaced by more authentic Chinese cuisines. These older dishes and restaurants are on the verge of extinction as the subsequent generations growing up in these restaurants sought other professions. This book presents the culture, stories, and the recipes of this phenomenon.

The Gospel According to Me II

The author’s exploration uncovers writings about the remarkable ingenuity and creativity of God, who devised a means to disclose Himself to humankind. For despite extensive searching, the author found no rational alternative explanations. Moreover, prevailing concepts contradict scientific knowledge and lived experience – matter is not perpetual, and inanimate systems cannot create conscious beings capable of appreciation and intentionality.

So who then instilled consciousness, if not a Grand Designer? Seeking this elusive truth proves challenging indeed. Yet God simplified humanity’s hunt by establishing contact and even entering our world in person. To prepare people for His arrival, prophecies circulated foretelling the extraordinary events to come.

And upon appearing among us, God asked of us only one thing: “Constantly seek the truth. Do not let blinders be put on your eyes. And remember that you will not find the truth without love.”

The Grocer

Ever pondered the art of acquiring a business, or the knack of seamlessly accumulating rental properties? Delve into this riveting narrative that not only educates but also captivates.

Journey with Antoine ‘Tony’ Ferducci as he steps into the bustling world of a local grocery store half a century ago. Starting as a humble 16-year-old employee under the mentorship of three Italian entrepreneurs, Tony’s ambition quickly becomes evident. Even before his high school graduation, he is determined to immerse himself full-time in the grocery trade.

Witness Tony’s business acumen in action as he transforms from a young shop boy to a business magnate. His empire expands to include not just the original grocery store, but three more, alongside six ‘Gas & Goes’, a major construction company, twin liquor stores, a pair of used car outlets, multiple hair salons, duo of restaurants, a bustling shopping center, a dedicated dry cleaner, and an impressive portfolio of nearly 200 rental units.

Dive into The Grocer and discover the exhilarating world of enterprise, growth, and the relentless spirit of ambition.

The Human Mind

Delve into a transformative read that offers more than just words: it offers a path to understanding. This book provides invaluable guidance on achieving health and longevity while also exploring the deep-seated roots of our environmental dilemmas. Venture on a journey of self-discovery and grasp a more profound understanding of your essence. Beyond the personal, uncover the core reasons behind humanity's persistent divisions and the recurring battles they incite. A must-read, this work is a compass for anyone seeking clarity in our complex world.

The Judas Kiss

Embark on an epic journey that defies genre, seamlessly blending elements of dystopian and historical fiction while traversing time, from Eden’s ancient gardens to the enduring enclaves of the USSR, and even further, to celestial chambers scattered among the stars.

The Judas Kiss offers you a spellbinding odyssey that navigates through epochs and landscapes, unified by the presence of a mysterious child. Could he be an Armenian boy orphaned by the Spitak earthquake, a Yazidi warrior lost in a maze of time, or even an angel on a divine mission?

Witness the biblical wanderings of Moses and the poignant tribulations of a Soviet émigré. Explore clandestine labs and remote Central Asian villages suspended in the mountains. Meet a cast of eccentric scientists and cryptic sorcerers, each wielding enigmatic powers. As the narrative unfolds, humanity faces existential threats: a virulent virus and cosmic rifts that could annihilate the world.

Set against a backdrop that is both hauntingly recognizable and captivatingly otherworldly, The Judas Kiss invites you to confront the boundaries of loyalty and betrayal in a cosmos as awe-inspiring as it is perilous.

The Macau Maverick

Working as a Christian doctor in a place controlled by the Macau Mafia, Dr. Bill Swan was in constant danger of being discovered as an underground Christian missionary. Using Macau as a base, he smuggled Bibles into China and slipped through the net of the Chinese Communist government. He established medical clinics and staffed them with Christian nurses, doctors, and teachers who set up underground churches. They were always in danger of being discovered. Some actually were. People disappeared, and lives were lost. The story is true, and the life he lived is an inspiration to those who are called to take the story of Christ to a world that has never heard it. As one of his converts asked, “This is good news. Why haven’t we heard this story before?”

The Mechanic's Guide to the Human Psyche

This book outlines the basic structures that make up the human mind and provides guidance on how a person can achieve greater freedom in managing their perception of reality, regulating their emotions, and making choices. It emphasizes that reality, in many ways, is a personal construct rather than something imposed from without. The book considers personal, social, and societal influences, offering an opportunity to examine their effects. It covers topics related to self-acceptance, needs, beliefs, values, emotions, temporal orientation, and dreams. Exercises are suggested to help the reader better comprehend how each topic relates to them personally and how to take steps toward making changes. The book has a spiritual orientation only insofar as it assumes the existence of a higher power and the continuity of consciousness through life and death. It is non-denominational and does not promote any particular religious beliefs.