Me, Myself & I Remember Decatur (and Beyond)

This fun, engaging memoir is about a clever, strong-willed, mischievous, creative gutsy gal who was always out of the box. She proclaims she never saw that silly box! She has always questioned societal norms and injustices, insisting life should make more sense. This resulted in interesting, amusing experiences with fascinating people from diverse walks of life and cultures. For seventy-seven years when the world said ‘No’ she persevered with a resounding ‘YES!’

She has retained a childlike wonder and delight for life that is bold and entertaining. She has tried to make her planet kinder, especially for the downtrodden. Difficult setbacks only made her more determined to enjoy life to the fullest with meaningful lifelong relationships. Often, she’s had to pick herself up and dust herself off! Shunning bitterness, clinging to faith, she has showed the world real love. An encourager gifted at teaching, she has quick wit and is great fun.

Meant for Each Other

In the ’30s and ’40s, and throughout the ’80s, our country depended on news sources with no political spin. Without social media, people spoke face-to-face or by telephone. These were kinder times when the values of honesty and integrity were expected. WWII was soon followed by the Korean and Vietnam wars and, with Selective Service, all eligible males were subject to serving. Running concurrently with these “hot” wars was the long Cold War, which affected millions of Americans and our loyal allies. The world seemed to be teetering on the brink of a devastating nuclear war. Former enemies became our trusted allies, and our Western allies remained close. Life became less localized, and people who never expected to travel beyond a few states were suddenly seeing the world. Times were rapidly changing, and the simple life was fast fading.

One thing did not change however—people still found ways to meet and fall in love.

In this entertaining story spanning eighty years, two people, in countries separated by 4,000 miles of land and ocean, could never have imagined God’s plan for the series of seemingly random events in their lives that would someday bring them together. They would meet, fall in love, and together overcome obstacles and share a life of growing faith and continuous adventure.

Memoirs of a Lost Child

While wetting the bed was normal for the other five-years-olds, my experience almost cost me my life. I was sleeping soundly at about 2:00 am when my foster sister began shouting, “Momma, she wet the bed!” In seconds, my foster mother stormed downstairs only to yank me out the bed. She was screaming at me to take off the sheets and put them in a tub of water to wash. I was exhausted and terrified. All I knew was I had to do what she said no matter how frightened I was. I pushed the sheets into the water, again and again, still half-asleep. I felt a firm grip on the back of my head, and in seconds she was thrashing my head in and out of the water like I did the sheets only moments ago. I had barely enough time to get a breath in. All I could hear was the splash of water and my foster mother yelling the words, “You will never pee in the bed again!” I truly thought I was going to die then, but like any other five-year-old, I was told to go back to bed afterward.

Men in Pink Collars

What is it like to work in a sometimes literal ‘no man’s land’?

For decades, countless books, theses, and articles have explored what happens when women bravely cross gender lines in employment, taking on roles as lawyers, firefighters, or coal miners. But what about men who venture into traditionally ‘pink collar’ jobs?

Inspired by Studs Terkel’s seminal oral history Working, Men in Pink Collars delves into the lives of men who have embraced so-called ‘women’s work.’ This fascinating collection of interviews features male nurses, social workers, librarians, flight attendants, early childhood educators, stay-at-home dads, office workers, dental hygienists, nannies, midwives, interior designers, and musicians who play stereotypically ‘feminine’ instruments. It also highlights male cheerleaders, baton twirlers, synchronized swimmers, and even two men who could only publish their romance novels under female pen names.

The book examines why these men chose their careers, how they navigate their professional spaces, and the challenges they face from stereotypes and assumptions, both on and off the job. It also explores the unique advantages and limitations their gender brings, offering a compelling look at the dynamics of gender, work, and identity.

Mettle and Metal

The Steel Orchestra is Trinidad and Tobago’s musical gift to the world. This is the story of how steelpan music was made possible out of the fire deep within the belly and bowels of those who lived it passionately. The whole world has now been gripped by the power of this distinctive and powerful musical form.

Mikey Speaks Out

On the day of my birth, my mother had already decided that she wanted to give me away. She had made this decision even though she had not yet known the extent of the problems that would confront me. As it turned out, there were many, including the fact that I was not born a beautiful baby.

Actually, I was considered to be quite ugly, disfigured by a cleft lip and palate that left a gaping hole in the middle of my face. In addition, I was born deaf, covered with bruises, and showed signs of haemophilia, an ancient life-threatening hereditary bleeding disorder.

I longed to be hugged, kissed, and cuddled in my mother’s arms, but that was not about to happen. Instead, I spent months in a hospital crib, as I recovered from complicated facial surgery. Following the surgery, I was placed in a dark room of a foster home, and left to languish in loneliness for several months.

On a dark snowy night, shortly before Christmas, a man and woman arrived at the home of my foster parents. They had driven five hundred miles through a blizzard, and requested to see me… see me! No one had ever before asked to see me! My only previous visits away from the foster home were trips to the hospital for painful medical procedures.

Mind of a Mixed State

Have you or anyone you’ve known suffered through the depth of depression or mania? What about both at the same time? Mind of a Mixed State follows the thoughts and emotional tribulations of a young woman riding the waves of a severe Bipolar mixed episode with psychotic features. Take a journey through the mind of someone struggling to find their voice as they navigate the nation-wide issues that plagues many of us: mental illness.

Miss Sweetblack's Cupcakes

In the 1950s, the cupcake was a very fashionable cake made by housewives to celebrate family events. Despite its success at the time and its incredible cuteness, the cupcake has gone largely underappreciated. It has come to be seen as a simple household pastry. And although it is finally integrated into certain establishments specializing in cake design, unfortunately it still suffers from a rather bad reputation. It is certainly considered aesthetic — cute, even — but also too fatty, too sweet, and without real taste, sophistication, or refinement.

Here is a book that will deconstruct all your received ideas about the cupcake and make you see and appreciate them like real pastries; those you like to see in French patisseries or restaurants, presented in lovely and delicates plates. Yes, the time has come finally to elevate cupcakes as integral part of pastries thanks to the recipes of the one and only pin-up pastry chef, Miss Sweetblack!

Modern-Day Palmistry

Palmistry can tell you many things about yourself, others, and the world around you.

Discover:

• - if you will marry
• - how many kids will you have
• - what kind of person would suit you as a partner
• - your career path
• - what kind of work would give you the most satisfaction
• - how to get the most happiness and success out of your life.

All of this and more inside of Modern-Day Palmistry!

More Than Just Bird Poop on my Windshield

More Than Just Bird Poop on my Windshield tells the powerful story of one woman’s journey through darkness and into the light of God’s love and healing. If you’re struggling with feelings of shame, rejection, depression, or any other hindrance to your freedom in Christ, this book is for you. Through her own testimony, the author shows how God can overcome any obstacle and bring you into wholeness and joy. Don’t lose hope, dear reader. God is faithful and will deliver you. Allow this book to be a source of encouragement and inspiration on your own journey towards healing and freedom.

More than Just Caregivers

More than Just Caregivers shows how the interplay of early childhood champions and stakeholders makes the field stronger to secure the infinite future for the youngest members of Guyanese society. As a memoir-documentary, it captures the how and why of specialised training needed to raise the professional status of the Guyanese early childhood workforce. Key takeaways include illustrations about how successful outcomes hinge on dedication, collaboration, and willpower, and why sustainability becomes possible with public buy-in, funding, and support.

Mourning Bands On

Mourning Bands On is an accessible journey into the hypersensitive world of today’s American law enforcement. The reader is brought into the law enforcement world through an introduction to the history, function, and development of the American police model. With an understanding of policing’s role in American society, the reader is then immersed into the raucous and contentious cultural upheaval which American policing is currently experiencing.

Using well-known examples, the reader is challenged to consider how American culture is affected by critical incidents and the portrayal of those events in our media intensive world. The reader will review the cases in the deaths of Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown, Breonna Taylor, and George Floyd, as well as others. The cases are presented as a narrative of events supported by the findings and legal conclusions of the U.S. Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Investigation. Each incident is reviewed with a view of how the incident effected American society and brought change to American culture and thus policing.

The reader will experience how American policing has changed through legislative, societal, and cultural pressure resulting from the reviewed critical incidents. With an appetite for more, the reader is encouraged to further explore the relationship between societal norms and American policing.

The work concludes with a final challenge to the reader. How do we, as a society, reform American policing to move forward after this unprecedented period of cultural change? The author offers several possible reforms to enact, what can you add to the conversation?