The Book Stacks

Human beings are designed for teamwork, and teamwork is the only way to make seemingly impossible dreams and bold visions come true.

Lance Armstrong won the Tour de France seven consecutive times, not by himself, but with the backing of his coaches, mechanic, and teammates. Charles Lindbergh may have been called “the Lone Eagle” because of his 1927 solo flight across the Atlantic, but he assembled a first-rate team to make his dream possible.

In his new book, Extreme Dreams Depend on Teams (Center Street, July 22, 2009), Orlando Magic co-founder and Senior Vice President Pat Williams says that teamwork is the key to making extreme dreams a reality.

Named one of the 50 most influential people in the NBA (National Basketball Association) after following his dream and helping to build the Orlando Magic from the ground up, Williams gives inspiring accounts of the power of teamwork—many of them personal—in a book that leadership guru Patrick Lencioni calls “the most comprehensive and interesting collection of wisdom on teamwork I have ever read.”

In Extreme Dreams Depend on Teams, Williams points out that extreme dreams are only fulfilled when teams are led with characteristics like respect, empowerment, commitment, trust and passion. “Once you put teamwork into practice in your organization, these principles will begin transforming everything.

They will transform how you view the world, including our society and its problems, and the political and environmental issues we face…you’ll begin seeing the world through a lens of extreme dreams, extreme possibilities, and the power of teamwork,” says Williams.

About the Author

Pat Williams is the senior vice president of the NBA’s Orlando Magic. He is a popular motivational speaker averaging over 150 appearances a year. Williams has spent 45 years in professional baseball and basketball as a player and executive. He served as general manager of the 1983 world champion Philadelphia 76ers and managed the Chicago Bulls and Atlanta Hawks.

Williams is the author of 55 books. He and his wife, Ruth, are the parents of 19 children, including 14 adopted from four nations. He and his family have been featured in such diverse publications as Sports Illustrated, Reader’s Digest, Good Housekeeping, The Wall Street Journal, and Focus on the Family as well as all the major TV networks.

Pat and Ruth recently received an award from the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute for their efforts in adoption. To learn more about Pat Williams, visit www.PatWilliamsMotivate.com.

Giddy sugarplum or calculating bitch? Pretty Konstanze aroused strong feelings among her contemporaries. Her in-law’s loathed her. Mozart’s friends, more than forty years after his death remained eager to gossip about her “failures” as wife to the world’s first superstar. Maturing from child to wife to hard-headed widow, Konstanze would pay Mozart’s debts, provide for their children and relentlessly market and mythologize her brilliant husband.

Mozart’s letters attest to his affection for Konstanze as well as to their powerful sexual bond. Nevertheless, prominent among the mysteries surrounding the composer’s untimely death: why did his “best beloved little wife” never mark his grave?

About the Author

Juliet Waldron was educated in the U.S., England, and the West Indies. She has a B.A. in English, and has worked in the financial and brokerage industries. Now retired, she’s published several novels. Mozarts Wife won the First Independent e-Book Award (The VA Festival of the Book) and is currently available in audio, “e” and print at Amazon, B&N and Hardshell.com.

www.julietwaldron.com
www.mozartswife.com

“Waldron’s writing is humorous, erotic, and fluid. Her beautiful use of words reveals the delicate, volatile intimacy inherent in marriage. In the antagonist, Waldron characterizes a woman’s quiet (and sometimes not so quiet) struggle to remain the dutiful wife while also protecting her children and herself from her husband’s self-destructive behavior. Mozart’s Wife is a consuming piece that reminds us that all humans, regardless of talent or skill, are within the boundaries of fault and outside the lines of perfection. I highly recommend this wonderful book.”

— Melissa Levine
In the Library Reviews

FOR RELEASE ON FEBRUARY 3, 2009

Contact: Staton Rabin
E-Mail: Cutebunion@aol.com

On 50th Anniversary of “The Day The Music Died”, New Book about Rock Icon Buddy Holly Introduces the Geeky-Looking Genius to a New Generation

IRVINGTON, NY – February 3, 2009 - Buddy Holly and the Crickets, the world’s first, self-contained rock ‘n’ roll band, were known to every hip teen who “bopped” to the revolutionary new sound. Hits like “That’ll Be the Day”, “It’s So Easy”, “Oh Boy!”, “Rave On”, “Peggy Sue”, and “Everyday”, made Texas-born Buddy an international star by the time he was 21. But on February 3, l959, while Buddy was on his way to a Moorhead, Minnesota concert date, fate took an unexpected turn that not only stunned his friends and family, but left its mark on Buddy’s young fans all over the world.

It was the plane crash heard round the world– that ended the lives of three young rising stars: 22-year-old Buddy Holly, 17-year-old Ritchie Valens (“La Bamba”), and The Big Bopper (J.P. Richardson, age 28; “Chantilly Lace”), and was later immortalized by songwriter Don McLean as “the day the music died.”

Buddy’s music influenced every rock musician who came after him. Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, the Stones and the Beatles, to name just a few, all acknowledge their enormous debt to Holly. As Bruce Springsteen told “Rolling Stone”: “I play Buddy Holly every night before I go on, that keeps me honest.”

In the decades since that tragic night, there have been countless tributes to Buddy: movies, songs (McLean’s “American Pie” and Weezer’s “Buddy Holly”), Holly “impersonators” (or “tribute artists”, as they prefer to be called), a musical play about his life that’s been seen by 20 million people worldwide, a museum in Buddy’s home town of Lubbock– even a U.S. Postage stamp. Recently, “Rolling Stone” named him one of the l00 Greatest Singers of All Time; and the Omega watch Buddy was wearing on the night of his death sold at auction for $l55,000.

But, incredibly, in the 50 years since l959, nobody has written a complete, full-length biography about Buddy Holly aimed primarily at young people. Until now.

OH BOY! The Life and Music of Rock ‘N’ Roll Pioneer Buddy Holly, is the passion project of “teen author” Staton Rabin, whose other books have been printed in l4 languages by Simon & Schuster, Viking, and other major publishers. Aware that many teens today have never heard of Buddy Holly, Rabin realized the versatile musical genius with the big black horn-rimmed eyeglasses (who was legally blind) was in danger of being forgotten, except for the occasional Holly song on a movie soundtrack (e.g., “Dearest” in “Juno”), or a male model wearing Buddy Holly-style specs in a GQ fashion layout.

Buddy had made geekdom cool long before Bill Gates or Napoleon Dynamite did– and Rabin was determined to make sure that Buddy’s incredible music, which ranged from hard-charging rockabilly to lush, romantic ballads, was passed down to the next generation.

The book took her nearly two years to write, and she also had to negotiate for permission to use some of Buddy Holly’s song lyrics in her book, as well as excerpts from rare, classic interviews with Buddy’s family and friends. To research the project, she read books about Buddy, consulted experts, watched documentary films, studied the CAB report on the plane crash, listened to Buddy’s records and went over his sheet music, and bought herself a Fender Stratocaster guitar– like Buddy’s.

She also attended the Westchester Broadway Theatre’s great production of the musical, “Buddy- The Buddy Holly Story”– starring the brilliant Pat McRoberts as Buddy (in Elmsford, NY). The show, which originated on the West End in London, is now touring the world with various actor-singers playing Buddy.

There are many memorial events planned to honor Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, J.P. Richardson (and the plane’s pilot, Roger Peterson) in the week leading up to February 3, 2009, including a concert performance by the surviving members of Buddy’s band, the Crickets, and other stars of rock ‘n’ roll, at the Surf Ballroom in Clear Lake, Iowa– site of Buddy’s final concert. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is also involved. The Surf Ballroom show will later air on PBS-TV.

OH BOY! by Staton Rabin, released by Van Winkle Publishing, has been published as a special 50th anniversary tribute to Buddy Holly— and is available now, exclusively at the Kindle Store at Amazon.com. You can hear free MP3 samples of Buddy Holly’s original recordings at Staton Rabin’s web page: www.myspace.com/statonrabin. Click on the arrow inside the rectangle at the center of the web page.

Fans of fluffy romance novels and that all-too-familiar, over-hyped, edge-of-the-seat crap should steer clear. This is life at its most jaded. Offense Mechanisms is proud to present Bleach | Blackout by David S. Grant, two novels about drugs, sex, revenge, the corporate crunch, and the inevitable unpleasantness of life and death.

You can visit David’s website at www.davidsgrant.com/ to read an excerpt!

About the Author

David S. Grant is the author of Corporate Porn, published by Silverthought Press in 2006. David’s first novel Bleach and sequel titled Blackout are now available through Offense Mechanisms, an imprint of Silverthought Press. Also, newly published in 2008 the novel The Last Breakfast and short story collection Emotionless Souls through Brown Paper Publishing. David lives and works in New York City.

Follow David’s Virtual Tour!

Join David S. Grant, author of the literary fiction dual novel, Bleach/Blackout (Offense Mechanisms, May ‘08), as he virtually tours the blogosphere in December on his third virtual book tour with Pump Up Your Book Promotion!

You have the chance to win…

THE BLEACH/BLACKOUT VIRTUAL BOOK TOUR ‘08 will officially begin on December 1st and end on December 23rd. You can visit David’s blog stops at www.virtualbooktours.wordpress.com/ in December to find out more about his latest book!

As a special promotion for all our authors, Pump Up Your Book Promotion is giving away a FREE virtual book tour to a published author or a $50 Amazon gift certificate to those not published who comments on our authors’ blog stops. More prizes will be announced as they become available. The winner will be announced on December 23rd!

Shandell “Blackbird” Bird has everything going for him, or so he thinks. Recently selected number two overall in the NBA draft, the six foot eight, 250-pound superstar has a gleaming new ride and a salary and athletic shoe contract that make him an instant millionaire. What he doesn’t have, is the ability to bury secrets from his past.

When Shandell is found shot to death midcourt, his best friend and college teammate Damion Madrid sets out to find the killer. Damion is well-meaning but naïve; luckily his godfather is gumshoe CJ Floyd. Floyd and his partner, Flora Jean Benson, are there to watch his back as Damion stumbles down a shadowy trail that leads to Shandell’s purported peddling of steroids and big-game point shaving.

When he discovers a “Blackbird” he never knew and is able to put a face on Shandell’s killer, Damion finds himself in over his head. Will CJ be there in time to preven this godson from joining Shandell? Featuring the vivid characters and streetwise dialogue that have made the CJ Floyd series a critical and commercial success, Blackbird, Farewell is a punch-packing whodunit that exposes the dark side of the pro-athlete good life.

About the Author:

Robert is a native of Columbus, Ohio, who spent his formative years in the steel mill town of Gary, Indiana. He graduated from Miami University at Oxford, Ohio, in 1965 with a Bachelor of Arts degree and subsequently earned degrees in dentistry, medicine and pathology from Howard University and Boston University. He is a professor of pathology, medicine, surgery, and dentistry at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center where he specializes in head and neck pathology and cancer research.

He also holds a masters degree in Creative Writing from Boston University and an Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from Miami University, his alma mater. Greer has lived in Denver for thirty years. In 1986 he founded The High Plains Literary Review and continues to serve as its editor-in-chief. He is the author or co-author of three medical textbooks and over 125 scientific articles. His short stories have appeared in dozens of national literary magazines and his short story collection, ISOLATION AND OTHER STORIES, published in 2000 by The Davies Group Publishers, sold out its hardback printings and is now in trade paperback.

Greer has been involved in cancer research at the University of Colorado Health Science Center for more than thirty years. In 1983 his research group was the first in the world to report a synergistic link between smokeless tobacco use and human papillomaviruses in certain cancers of the mouth. That research foundation is the basis for the plot of THE DEVIL’S HATBAND.

In addition to writing, medicine, and research, Greer reviews books for a Denver National Public Radio affiliate, KUVO, and raises cattle on his ranch near Steamboat Springs, Colorado.

You can visit Robert on the web at www.robertgreerbooks.com

Win Prizes!

FAREWELL, BLACKBIRD VIRTUAL BOOK TOUR ‘08 will officially begin on November 3 and end on November 26. You can visit Robert’s blog stops at www.virtualbooktours.wordpress.com in November to find out more about her latest book!

As a special promotion for all our authors, Pump Up Your Book Promotion is giving away a FREE virtual book tour to a published author or a $50 Amazon gift certificate to those not published who comments on our authors’ blog stops. More prizes will be announced as they become available. The winner(s) will be announced on November 30!

Dr. Kenneth Gentry, Jr. received degrees from both the Reformed Theological Seminary and Whitefield Theological Seminary. He pastored for twenty-five years in both the Presbyterian Church in America and the Orthodox Presbyterian Church. He now serves as Director of NiceneCouncil.com and the executive director of GoodBirth Ministries. Both organizations are dedicated to advancing serious Christian education, scholarship and apologetics. Dr. Gentry is the author and co-author of over 20 books.

About the book:

This book is for serious Christians following the Biblical encouragement to “be a good servant of Jesus Christ, constantly nourished on the words of the faith and of sound doctrine” (1 Tim. 4:6). Dr. Kenneth l. Gentry, Jr. provides a banquet of nourishing entrees too seldom found on the menu of the modern evangelical church, to help hungry believers grow in understanding.

You can visit his publisher’s website at www.nordskogpublishing.com/

WIN PRIZES!

NOURISHMENT FROM THE WORD VIRTUAL BOOK TOUR ‘08 will officially begin on November 3 and end on November 26. You can visit Dr. Gentry’s blog stops at http://www.virtualbooktours.wordpress.com/ in November to find out more about his latest book!

As a special promotion for all our authors, Pump Up Your Book Promotion is giving away a FREE virtual book tour to a published author or a $50 Amazon gift certificate to those not published who comments on our authors’ blog stops. More prizes will be announced as they become available. The winner will be announced on November 30!

If you would like your book to be spotlighted on The Book Stacks, contact me by using the ‘contact me’ button under the site description on the right.

Bits and Ash were children when the kidnapping of their younger sister, Alena—an incident for which Ash blames himself—caused an irreparable family rift.

Thirteen years later, Ash is living as an Orthodox Jew in Israel, cutting himself off from his mother, Ellie, and his wild-child sister, Bits. But soon he may have to face them again; Alena’s remains have finally been uncovered. Now Bits is traveling across the world in a bold and desperate attempt to bring her brother home and salvage what’s left of their family.

Sharp and captivating, Who by Fire deftly explores what happens when people try to rescue one another.

About the Author:

I decided a few years ago that I really wanted a hobby. It had occurred to me that I didn’t do much besides write and hang out with my friends and family, and I thought a hobby would make me more of a Renaissance woman, or would fulfill me in some other unspecified way. I considered singing. I asked two actor friends of mine to give me a singing lesson.

They told me to pick a song I was passionate about and sing it and they would coach me on it. I sang “Castle on a Cloud” from Les Miserables, which I’ve never seen. I was in the back seat of a car with my friend Kate, and the two actors were in the front seat, and everyone was alarmed. They covered their ears with the palms of their hands. Next I became a jewelry-maker. I approached the hobby with an enthusiasm that bordered on creepy, and spent hundreds of dollars on beads.

I made jewelry for my friends and put them all in the awkward position of having to tell me when I asked, “How’s the necklace/bracelet/earrings/wineglass charms?” that the necklace/bracelet/earrings/wine glass charms were broken. Recently, I’ve been attempting salsa dancing, but it’s going badly. I have been scuba diving since I was seventeen, and I do Bikram yoga every day. I suppose those are hobbies.

Mostly, I just like to write and hang out with my friends and family.

Find all kinds of fun and interesting things on Diana Spechler’s website!

Dean Kilmer is the preaching minister for the College Street Church of Christ in Waxahachie, Texas. He has served in churches throughout Texas and Oklahoma.

He has conducted seminars on Church Growth, Leadership, and Teacher Training in 17 states. Dean has also been a guest speaker at Christian Universities across the nation.

Dean earned his undergraduate degree in Bible at Harding University and a master’s in Biblical Studies from Abilene Christian University.

He has authored the “Mastering the Word” Bible study, and has just recently written a book entitled Igniting the Moral Courage of America.

Dean has been married to his wife Karen for 37 years and they have two children and three grandchildren.

You can visit his website at www.moralcourage.net.

The moral landscape of America is eroding. The values of “The Greatest Generation” have been replaced by greed, selfishness, and a widespread disdain for the traditional moral values on which this great nation was founded.

Dean Kilmer, author of Igniting the Moral Courage of America, challenges individual Americans to take action to reverse the tidal wave of negative values that is destroying the greatness of America. It must begin with a personal commitment to integrity. “Integrity, however, cannot become the norm in our nation’s people until good people become courageous people.”

When individual Americans commit to becoming courageous people of integrity, they will intentionally spread that commitment to their families, schools, communities, and ultimately to our nation as a whole.

It is not too late to reverse the tidal wave of negative values that has been robbing America of its moral strength for half a century. It is not too late to restore this great country’s commitment to traditional moral values. That restoration will happen when America, one person at a time, steps forward with renewed moral courage to make it happen.

Will you accept the challenge?

______________________________________________

IGNITING THE MORAL COURAGE OF AMERICA VIRTUAL BOOK TOUR ‘08 will officially begin on October 1 and end on October 30. You can visit Dean’s blog stops at www.virtualbooktoursforauthors.wordpress.com in October to find out more about his latest book!

As a special promotion for all our authors, Pump Up Your Book Promotion is giving away a FREE virtual book tour to a published author or a $50 Amazon gift certificate to those not published who comments on our authors’ blog stops. More prizes will be announced as they become available. The winner(s) will be announced on our main blog at www.pumpupyourbookpromotion.wordpress.com on October 30!

Join ChaChanna Simpson, author of the nonfiction, Life After College: What Your Parents and Professors Never Taught You (Booklocker, Apr. ‘08), as she virtually tours the blogosphere in August on her first virtual book tour with Pump Up Your Book Promotion!

ChaChanna Simpson is an editor, professional speaker, syndicated columnist with The Connecticut Post online (www.connpost.com) and author of her first book Life After College: What Your Parents and Professors Never Taught You. She has been featured in The Stamford Advocate, NewsTime180.com, Power 104.1fm’s radio show, What’s Good Hartford? and 89.5fm’s radio show, Black Prospectives, empowering twentysomethings with real, no holds barred advice on successfully transitioning into life after college. Her favorite quote is “You may be disappointed if you fail, but you are doomed if you don’t try.”-Beverly Sills

Her website Twentity.com, is an Internet magazine dedicated to advising recent college grads on their next steps after graduation. This idea came to her when she walked into her own apartment for the first time and was hit with the realization that she was the one who was supposed to get the light and cable turned on. “Don’t they come with the apartment?”

Realizing she wasn’t the only recent college grad who had no clue of how to do anything, she created Twentity.com, a website dedicated to providing answers to questions such as: how to find an apartment, what is life insurance and why do twentysomethings need it now, how to meet people after college and many more questions. The response was overwhelming and as a result of this need, ChaChanna recently began visiting college campuses working with students on “real world preparation” skills and successfully transitioning into the work world.

ChaChanna is a strong believer of helping out in the community and spends her “free time” volunteering at Recording for the Blind and Dyslexic, E-mentoring on icouldbe.org, and preparing meals for St. Luke’s Lifeworks community center once a month. She has been known to say: “I believe that we are all on this planet for a purpose: to help others. I refuse to believe we are on this planet to just wander around and only care about ourselves. Yes, we are born alone but we don’t exist alone.”

A graduate of The College of New Rochelle, NY, this Norwalk, CT resident is an active member of Give ‘N Take Network, Stamford Chamber of Commerce, The Urban Professionals Network and Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc.

You can visit her website at www.twentity.com.
____________________________________________

About the Book:

Don’t know what your next step is now that college is over?

You’ve been in college for four years and finally it’s time for you to go out on your own into the real world. Now that you’ve graduated from college or are about to graduate, you are no doubt wondering:

“I’ve graduated from college, now what do I do?”

“How do I adjust to moving back home with my family?”

“Why is it taking so long for me to find a job?”

“How do I focus on what I want to do rather than what my parents want me to do?”

“How do I manage my finances?”

“What’s a 401k?”

“How do I get an apartment?”

And those questions are just the beginning. Life After College: What Your Parents and Professors Never Taught You answers these questions and provides solutions you can immediately use to help make your transition from college life into the real world easier. This informative no nonsense guide covers diverse topics from moving back home to money management to job etiquette to searching for your first apartment. Also included are stories and tips from recent college grads sharing their wisdom and experiences so you know you are not alone in trying to make it in the real world.

____________________________________________

LIFE AFTER COLLEGE VIRTUAL BOOK TOUR ‘08 officially began on August 4 and ends on August 29. You can visit ChaChanna’s tour stops at www.virtualbooktours.wordpress.com in August to find out more about her and her book!

As a special promotion for all our authors, Pump Up Your Book Promotion is giving away a FREE virtual book tour to a published author with a recent release or a $50 Amazon gift certificate to those not published who comments on our authors’ blog stops. More prizes will be announced as they become available. The winner will be announced on our main blog at www.pumpupyourbookpromotion.wordpress.com on August 31!

ChaChanna’s virtual book tour is being brought to you by Pump Up Your Book Promotion and choreographed by Dorothy Thompson.

Join Eliezer Sobel, author of the memoir, The 99th Monkey: A Spiritual Journalist’s Misadventures with Gurus, Messiahs, Sex, Psychedelics, and Other Consciousness-Raising Adventures (Santa Monica Press, Feb. ‘08), as he virtually tours the blogosphere in August on his first virtual book tour with Pump Up Your Book Promotion.

Eliezer is also the author of Minyan: Ten Jewish Men in a World That is Heartbroken, which was the winner of the Peter Taylor Prize for the Novel, and Wild Heart Dancing. His short story, Mordecai’s Book, won New Millennium’s First Prize for Fiction, and his articles and stories have appeared in the Village Voice, Tikkun Magazine, Quest Magazine, Yoga Journal, New Age Journal, and numerous other publications.

Sobel was the Editor-in-Chief of The New Sun magazine in the 70s and was Publisher and Editor of the Wild Heart Journal more recently. He has led intensive creativity workshops and retreats at the Esalen Institute in Big Sur, California, the Open Center in New York City, the Lama Foundation in New Mexico, and Elat Chayyim Jewish Retreat Center in Falls Village, Connecticut. Sobel lives in Richmond, Virginia with his wife, Shari Cordon, and three cats: Squarcialupi, Peanut and Plum.

About the Book:

The 99th Monkey is the story of one man’s utter failure to get enlightened, despite over 30 years of trying. Eliezer Sobel invites readers along on what is both a hilarious and astounding journey through the spiritual, New Age and Human Potential movements of the last 35 years, providing an insider’s view that is at once eye-opening, deeply moving, and completely entertaining.

From encounters with enlightened beings, saints and madmen, to ingesting a powerful shamantic brew in the forests of Brazil at all-night ceremonies; from 40-days alone on a mountaintop, to 60 hours in hotel ballrooms at crash courses in consciousness; from the ashrams and gurus of India to the rebbes in Jerusalem and a ten-day Zen retreat at Auschwitz, there were very few extremes to which Sobel did not go in his life-long quest for self-realization. (”Don’t even ask about the ‘Tush Push,’ which was a partner exercise I did during a Human Sexuality Workshop. Or the very obese female therapist who sat on my head for twenty-five minutes at Esalen Institute so I could re-experience being smothered by my mother.”

Although he claims to come out at the end feeling pretty much like the same guy as when he started, and while he suggests that bookstores create a new category for his book alongside the Self-Help section to be called “No Help Whatsoever,” The 99th Monkey is actually a modern-day hero’s journey that contains its own unique blend of wisdom and insight into what it really means to be a human being.

_________________________________________________

THE 99TH MONKEY VIRTUAL BOOK TOUR ‘08 will officially begin on August 4, 2008 and continue all month. You can visit Eliezer’s tour stops at www.virtualbooktours.wordpress.com in August!

As a special promotion for all our authors, Pump Up Your Book Promotion is giving away a FREE virtual book tour to a published author with a recent release or a $25 Amazon gift certificate to those not published who comments on our authors’ blog stops. More prizes will be announced as they come available. The winners will be announced on this blog on August 31!

Eliezer’s virtual book tour is being brought to you by Pump Up Your Book Promotion and choreographed by Dorothy Thompson.

Join Paul Kiritsis, author of the literary collection, Hermetica: Myths, Legends, Poems (iUniverse, Sept. ‘07), as he virtually tours the blogosphere in August on his first virtual book tour with Pump Up Your Book Promotion!

The son of Greek immigrants, Paul was born in Melbourne, Australia, in 1979. He has completed degrees in both the behavioral sciences and professional writing and currently works for drug safety services in the inner city region. His keen interest in mythology and literature began in childhood and later sprung into a full-fledged investigation into folklore and poetics. Many of his poems have appeared in periodic anthologies.

He is the author of the books Origin: Poems from the Crack of Dawn (2006) and Hermetica: Myths, Legends, Poems (2007), the latter having won a literary award very recently. The release of his next book, a memoir of his many travels through Greece, is tentatively scheduled for late 2008. He regards travel, reading and fitness as his greatest passions.

You can visit his website at www.paulkiritsis.com.

____________________________________________

About the Book:

Hermetica: Myths, Legends, Poems (September, 2007) is a homeric journey into the night where the world of dreams and symbols has sculpted our mythological past.

Using the language of alchemy, astrology and magic this tome seeks to reconstruct the lost bonds between old myths contained in the oral folklore of Ancient Egypt; stories which once served as the backbone of a religion centred around Osirian ritual - the cosmic cycles of death, dismemberment and resurrection.

It also contains a sequel to the popular Middle Egyptian tale, The Story of the Shipwrecked Sailor; a visual and dramatic interpretation of the passion of Osiris; an astrological allegory of the war between the heavenly bodies and a hermetic saga between a white witch and her mirror. The accompanying collection of poetry is a homage to the alchemy of love.

_______________________________________________________

HERMETICA VIRTUAL BOOK TOUR ‘08 will officially begin on August 4 and end on August 29. You can visit Paul’s tour stops at www.virtualbooktours.wordpress.com in August to find out more about him and his book!

As a special promotion for all our authors, Pump Up Your Book Promotion is giving away a FREE virtual book tour to a published author with a recent release or a $50 Amazon gift certificate to those not published who comments on our authors’ blog stops. More prizes will be announced as they become available. The winner will be announced on our main blog at www.pumpupyourbookpromotion.wordpress.com on August 31!

Paul’s virtual book tour is being brought to you by Pump Up Your Book Promotion and choreographed by Dorothy Thompson in conjunction with Rebecca’s Reads.

Join Suzanne Woods Fisher, author of the historical fiction novel, Copper Fire (Vintage Inspirations, June ‘08), as she virtually tours the blogosphere in August on her first virtual book tour with Pump Up Your Book Promotion.
About the Book:

On a summer day in 1945, Louisa Gordon receives a telegram from the International Red Cross Tracing Service. Her young cousin, Elisabeth, has just been released from Dachau, a concentration camp, and Louisa is her only remaining relative.

Determined to go to war-torn Germany to retrieve her cousin, Louisa is also on a mission to discover the whereabouts of Friedrich Mueller, a Nazi sympathizer who fled Copper Springs, Arizona. What Louisa never expected was to meet the man she had once loved. And now hated.

_____________________________________________

COPPER FIRE VIRTUAL BOOK TOUR ‘08 will officially begin on August 4, 2008 and continue all month. You can visit Suzanne’s tour stops at www.virtualbooktours.wordpress.com in August to find out more about her and her book!

As a special promotion for all our authors, Pump Up Your Book Promotion is giving away a FREE virtual book tour to a published author with a recent release or a $25 Amazon gift certificate to those not published who comments on our authors’ blog stops. More prizes will be announced as they come available. The winners will be announced on this blog on August 31!

Her tour schedule is as follows:

5/08/08 - The Writer’s Life - http://www.thewriterslife.blogspot.com/
6/08/08 - Just Me - http://jenerahealy.blogspot.com/2008/07/copper-fire-by-suzanne-woods-fisher.html
7/08/08 - The Book Stacks - http://www.thebookstacks.com
8/08/08 - Book Excerpts from Bestselling Authors - http://bookexcerpts.wordpress.com
11/08/08 - The Book Connection - http://www.thebookconnectionccm.blogspot.com/
12/08/08 - Mama Bear Reads - http://bookwormsballroom.blogspot.com/
13/08/08 - The Book Tiger - http://www.thebooktiger.co.uk/
14/08/08 - Michy’s Book Reviews - http://michys-book-reviews.blogspot.com/
15/08/08 - Fiction Scribe - http://www.fictionscribe.com
18/08/08 - Amateur de Livre - www.amateurdelivre.wordpress.com
18/08/08 - Tristi Pinkston - http://www.tristipinkston.blogspot.com
19/08/08 - Tristi Pinkston - http://www.tristipinkston.blogspot.com
19/08/08 - Paperback Writer - http://rebecca2007.wordpress.com/
20/08/08 - Reading Outside the Box - http://readingoutsidethebox.blogspot.com
21/08/08 - The Plot - http://theplotline.wordpress.com
22/08/08 - The Plot - http://theplotline.wordpress.com
25/08/08 - Book Foolery - http://bookfoolery.blogspot.com/
26/08/08 - In the Pages - http://inthepages.blogspot.com
27/08/08 - The Writers Well - http://www.writerswell.org
28/08/08 - Historical Novel Reviews - http://historicalnovelreview.blogspot.com/
29/08/08 - The Book Stacks - http://www.thebookstacks.com

Suzanne’s virtual book tour is being brought to you by Pump Up Your Book Promotion.

Join Dana Dorfman, author of the spirit/new age novel, The Pink Forest: A Woman’s Intimate Confessions (Banderae Publishing, Apr. ‘08), as she virtually tours the blogosphere in July on her first virtual book tour with Pump Up Your Book Promotion!

Dana Dorfman is an author who gravitates to the signs of life. In tune to the emotions surrounding her, she insists she can still see the first star she wished upon. Dorfman was raised as an only child and has been writing since the age of four. She graduated from the University of Southern California and considers herself a “life writer” who is able to tap into the blush of the earth. She resides in Los Angeles with her mystical spirit. You can visit her website at http://www.danadorfman.com/.

The Pink Forest Synopsis:

In the netted light, a face very recognizable stares out at me. I do my best to look casual. I gaze at her chiseled outline. Her high cheekbones are distinctly familiar. As the figure slowly disappears her delicate shadings pause in a pinkish glow. “You can be absolutely infuriating at times. I cannot take the subject seriously.” She half-smiles and then vanishes in the curls of her breaths.

A woman tries to teach her conscience about love.

The pink forest is her story.

This biography is about a woman who wants to throw a pillow at her conscience for trying to run her life. Set in the vividness of a kiss this courageous feminine read goes far beyond bug-jeweled sandals and striped pumps and applauds an ordinary woman in her super-hero moments.

For every woman who has ever wanted to stop her life and let her conscience hop out at the curb, you will welcome the power you gain in The Pink Forest.

Dorfman writes about the hunted soul. The part of us that we travel through from a distance, the part of us that cannot slip away untold. There are few authors that can catch the soul of a story like Dorfman. Her charm lies not just in her artistry but in the way she leads your presence on to the written page. If you would like the author to unpack the pages of your life visit her at SoulBiographer.com DanaDorfman.com, The Lollipop Chronicle and the Here And There Gazette.

Join Tom Samuels, author of the satire/humor book, Stop Making Music Workbook, as he virtually tours the blogosphere in July on his first virtual book tour with Pump Up Your Book Promotion!

Tom was born in Allentown, PA, twenty-two years ago, and attends West Chester University where he will graduate this year with a B.A. in Communication. He plans to study the field of Creativity in graduate school. He has a comprehensive library on the history of American music, including biographies, recordings and sheet music. He plays the guitar and ukulele. He strives to find a good balance in his life through meditation, eating well, learning and creating.

Tom Samuels has published his second book, Stop Making Music, based on a character he created who is guaranteed to provoke a response with the reader. The book contains 136 essays written in the voice of an arrogant nitwit who wrestles with “evil” musicians, songwriters and producers. He developed this persona through essays he wrote on a blog, http://www.last.fm/user/bigsexyshaq/. Two years ago he published a book called Talm Psalms: The Complete First Season. It is a collection of futuristic, silly stories that incorporate humor and philosophy.

About the Book:

Tom Samuels’ book, Stop Making Music, contains 136 essays that deliver contrary opinions on the music business. They are written in the voice of an arrogant nitwit who wrestles with “evil” musicians, songwriters and producers. Read each essay carefully because you will be asked if you “agree” or “disagree.” No one goes unscathed…not even the beloved Beatles.

Where else could you find an Off-Broadway play based on the life of KoRn? You will be required to actually think about the current state of the music industry. Reading this book is an illuminating journey that will help you to understand why you are a music fan. There is a lesson to be learned in each chapter…a satirical, funny lesson that you will never forget.

Hello and happy Tuesday everyone. Today I’m going to do something a little different and share with you an excerpt from a book. I’m hoping to make excerpts a regular thing here at The Book Stacks. I hope you like it.

Excerpt from…

The Texas Rangers: Wearing the Cinco Peso, 1821-1900
(Forge, 2008) by Mike Cox

On the second day of his journey along the Colorado, he heard a loud Indian war whoop. Startled back to reality, Austin reined his horse. A tall Indian, followed by fourteen warriors, emerged from the high, thick Arundinaria (bamboo cane) along the river and walked slowly toward the American horsemen.

“These Indians were well formed and apparently very active and athletic men,�? Austin later noted. Each warrior, his body smeared with alligator grease to ward off mosquitoes, carried a cedar bow nearly as long as he stood tall. Austin saw that the deerskin quivers hanging from the Indians’ muscled shoulders bristled with arrows. Signing friendship, the Indian in the lead moved toward Austin and his party.

Telling his men to get ready to fight, Austin nudged his horse with his boots and rode about twenty yards ahead to meet the Indians. He had never fought Indians hand to hand, but as an officer in the Missouri militia during the War of 1812, Austin had learned something of military strategy and tactics. A show of determination, he knew, could be as effective as resorting to arms. Talk would come before gunfire.

In Spanish, the chief asked Austin where he was from and where he was going. Austin explained that he was an American with permission from Spain to bring families to settle between the Colorado and Brazos rivers. Accepting that, the chief identified himself as a Coco, which Austin knew to be a branch of the feared Karankawas. Wary of the chief’s invitation to follow the Indians to their camp, Austin refused. Holding his flintlock rifle across his chest, the young American warned the Indians not to come closer.

Visit the author at
www.mikecoxonline.com
www.lonestarbooks.blogspot.com
www.saddlebagbooksonline.com