book reviews |
book reviews |
Debut author, Helen Ferrara introduces us to her book, “Creativity Stepping Into Wholeness”: ... I'm allowing myself to transform in ways that nurture my creativity, so that in essence I'm also effortlessly and spontaneously celebrating creativity, which again brings feelings of unbidden joy. We are all inherently creative beings. From a very early age, however, we are influenced by the hierarchical values of society; we are taught to focus on following the rules and striving for success by measurable standards, with very little importance placed on creative expression. Creativity: Stepping into Wholeness sheds light on this rigid way of life. Combining personal experience with extensive scholarly research, Dr Helen Ferrara leads us away from the stifling rules of always 'colouring in within the lines' towards a reunion with our own creativity, our own unique beingness. By embracing and nurturing our innate creativity, we become truly free to lead more fulfilling, joyful lives. Celebrating creativity is when you let go of everything that's been holding you back and you start dancing again to your own inner music - the music of your heart. I learned so much about creativity that I had never thought about before. This book is refreshing about a topic that could have been dull and dry. I loved the scholarly personal narrative format. That is the key factor here and that writing style held my attention quite well. I am looking at creativity in a new way. We all are creative individuals and can express our creativity in unique ways. Creative expression is subject to many factors some of which are beyond our personal control. Creative expression can be a source of great personal satisfaction. You can buy this book:
https://www.amazon.com/Creativity-Stepping-Wholeness-Helen-Ferrara https://www.angusrobertson.com.au/creativity-stepping-into-wholeness-helen-ferrara https://www.goodreads.com/-creativity-stepping-into-wholeness https://www.barnesandnoble.com/creativity-stepping-into-wholeness-helen-ferrara You can follow the author: https://www.helenferrara.com https://www.facebook.com/DrHelenFerrara https://www.instagram.com/dr_helen_ferrara https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-helen-ferrara https://twitter.com/DrHelenFerrara Copyright @ 2023 Mark L. Schultz except for the author’s introduction
51 Comments
Multi-genre, multi-volume author Paul Thornton introduces us to his third volume about cruising, “The Joy of Cruising Again”: The Joy of Cruising was published in March 2019 shortly after a wonderful family cruise over Christmas 2018 which was briefly discussed in the culminating chapter, "Holidays." However, The Joy of Cruising was not about me and my family's cruising adventures but rather is a paean to the legion of passionate ocean cruisers worldwide. It just happened to be conceived of and written coinciding with the planning of my family's Christmas reunion cruise on the Royal Caribbean Anthem of the Seas. Nor is it a cruising guide—rather, a compendium of fun, informative cruising narratives, and profiles of cruisers who are passionate, have interesting stories and perspectives and embody the joy of cruising. Some are well-known, even celebrities—a Grammy Winner, TV Star, UK's first non-Royal, non-star performer Cruise Ship Godmother, a Poker Hall of Fame—many are "ordinary cruisers with extraordinary stories." I long to cruise as much as these people, or to the amazing locales, or on the unique vessels as the fascinating individuals, couples, and entrepreneurs I wrote about in The Joy of Cruising. In the meantime, I got to experience cruising vicariously through them by telling their stories. I found the experience both exhilarating and humbling, and incredibly fun. Coupled with the encouragement from reader feedback, I set out to write a follow-up, More Joy of Cruising. By March 2020, interviews of another group of amazing cruisers had been done and research and writing for More Joy of Cruising was half complete when the world changed and cruising came to a virtual sudden stop. The COVID-19 pandemic was upon us, and the cruise lockdown began. Writing More Joy of Cruising was halted; joy of any kind was in short supply in early 2020 as people were stricken, and died, and COVID-19 overwhelmed healthcare systems. After several months I restarted what had been More Joy of Cruising, renaming it Cruising Interrupted. Interspersed among the stories of fascinating cruisers were a few sagas involving cruisers who were on the ocean at the time the lockdown began; their cruise ships were directly impacted by COVID-19, and their return home was long-delayed and dramatic. "A ghost ship," said one. Cruising Interrupted was published in January 2021 at the height of the global cruising lockdown. The Joy of Cruising Again celebrates the return of cruising from the brink. It is the end of a trilogy that marvels at the spirit of people worldwide who enjoy this wonderful pastime and persevered in the face of the pandemic that threatened to steal the collective joy of the cruise community. I have never been on a cruise but after reading this I am ready! Paul makes it seem so easy and fun. Though, during the Covid shutdown cruising was not happening for a long time! Paul does an excellent job of addressing the Covid-elephant in the room and how many avid cruisers and cruise employees survived as they held their collective breath during the shutdown. So many great stories, Paul has done an excellent job of translating the stories into an interesting narrative intermixed with insightful interviews with people in the industry and those who blog about cruising. The Joy of Cruising Again gets 4.8 stars. You should read this especially if you have never been on a cruise. Who knew there were so many different types of cruising? You can buy this book:
https://www.amazon.com/Joy-Cruising-Again-Paul-Thornton https://www.goodreads.com/-the-joy-of-cruising-again https://www.barnesandnoble.com/the-joy-of-cruising-again-paul-c-thornton You can follow the author: https://twitter.com/joyofcruising http://www.thejoyofcruising.net http://www.facebook.com/TheJoyOfCruising/ http://www.instagram.com/thejoyofcruising/ http://www.amazon.com/author/paulthornton I reviewed the first book here: https://www.wordrefiner.com/book-reviews/the-joy-of-cruising I reviewed the second book here: https://www.wordrefiner.com/book-reviews/cruising-interrupted Copyright © 2023 Mark L. Schultz except for the author’s introduction Multi-volume, multi-genre author, Maurice Barkley introduces us to the first volume in the “Lost and Forgotten” series, “Discovery”: THE PAST IS NEVER DEAD, IT ONLY HIDES Where did it begin? Could it have been just days ago when a piece of advanced electronic equipment disappeared? Or was it in 1945 when a huge aircraft vanished, somewhere in Egypt? Or maybe the start was five thousand years ago when a great flood altered the future of an ancient society? Or possibly an event so far in the past that the only witness would have been something not quite man? And how do you pick up a trail not known to exist? Things do change quite a bit every thousand years or so. You may carefully mark a path through the deep woods, but if one of the marks disappears, as in time this surely must happen, you are in trouble. And how do you decide to set aside your daily affairs to follow you know not what to you know not where? A faint shadow that at any moment may dissolve and leave you alone in an extremely distant place. The FBI came looking, but the electronic device had vanished without a trace. Luckily someone high up remembered a man with unusual talents. Retired Army Ranger JIM CAGNEY feels stranded on the beach of retirement after his exciting career as an Army Ranger, but everything changes when two young FBI agents come looking for him. The memory and talents of this older man prove to be of great value in their search for the missing piece of sophisticated electronics. The will-o-the-wisp they chase is more the age of Mr. Cagney and is employing methods and devices of a bygone era to function and cover his tracks. For Jim it is simply a matter of perspective, experience and a penchant for puzzles. He did not hesitate and started a journey beyond his wildest dreams. I was unsure what to expect, it seemed like a time-travel story, my favorite sub-genre in science fiction. I looked forward to reading the story. I missed the hints about all of the cloak-and-dagger stuff because I was caught up in the time-travel aspects. I loved the story completely! I loved the thoughtful attitude of Jim Cagney, his words were few most of the time but very impactful. He had some decent jokes also. All of the main characters were pretty real and added a lot to my enjoyment. The foreign settings brought a nice texture to the story also. I can't say more without revealing any spoilers. I would love to see a series about Jim when he was still an Army Ranger. All in all a fun and exciting read. 4.8 stars from me! You can buy this book:
https://www.amazon.com/LOST-FORGOTTEN-Book-One-Discovery-ebook https://www.goodreads.com/-discovery-lost-and-forgotten https://www.barnesandnoble.com/lost-and-forgotten-discovery-maurice-barkley You can follow the author: https://twitter.com/MauriceBarkley https://www.facebook.com/Maurice Barkley The author has many other books in multiple series. My review of the second book in the series: www.wordrefiner.com/book-reviews/the-secret-path My review of the third book: www.wordrefiner.com/book-reviews/enigma My review of the fourth book: www.wordrefiner.com/book-reviews/toward-the-unknown-region teleportation, galaxies, Nazis, aliens, quest, adventure, AI, artificial intelligence Copyright @ 2023 Mark L. Schultz except for the author’s introduction. |
Who am I?An avid reader, typobuster, and the Hyper-Speller. I am a husband, father, and grandfather. Archives
October 2024
Categories |
|
"I'm very pleased with all your efforts. Twitter promotion and proofreading were beyond what I expected with a book review. Your suggestions throughout the process of refining both books helped me immensely. I look forward to working with you again." A.E.H Veenman “Dial QR for Murder” and “Prepped for the Kill”
|