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February 2024 MBR The Biography Shelf
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Midwest Book Review
Feb 21, 2024, 7:24:29 AMFeb 21
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The Biography Shelf
King of Diamonds
Ronald Winston, author
William Stadiem, author
Skyhorse Publishing, Inc.
www.skyhorsepublishing.com
9781510775602, $28.99, HC, 400pp
https://www.amazon.com/King-Diamonds-Flawless-World-Winston/dp/1510775609
Synopsis: Few American success stories rival that of Harry Winston.
Born Harry Weinstein, he came from humble roots. His parents were poor Jewish immigrants who left Ukraine around 1890 for New York, where they settled and started a small jewelry business. His genius for spotting priceless gems emerged young. When Harry was twelve years old, he recognized a two-carat emerald in a pawn shop and bought it for 25 cents, selling it two days later for $800 - a massive sum in the early 1900s. From that moment on, Harry became obsessed with gems, especially diamonds.
A compact, unassuming man with no formal education, but unlimited drive and ambition, Harry Weinstein transformed himself into Harry Winston, the enigmatic figure who created the world's most prestigious luxury brand.
Harry Winston built his empire while the Depression raged, World War II reshaped the world, and America entered its post-war period of prosperity. "King of Diamonds: Harry Winston, the Definitive Biography of an American Icon"is a riveting life story whose readers get a bird's eye view of the dangers of the diamond trade and the lengths men would go to get their hands on the best of the "rough."
There's also a glimpse into the lives of the rich and famous, who clamored for Winston's gems.
Although he traveled the world doing business with kings, queens, and movie stars, Winston remained a devoted family man, whose chief wish was that his sons carry on the legacy he had built.
Harry's older son Ronald Winston worked alongside his father for decades. After Harry's death, Ron grew the company into the international brand that is still revered today. He ran it expertly, until he was forced to sell the company, due to his younger brother's maligning litigation. "King Diamond" is also the story of a family business that survived and thrived for more than a century, until it was undone by one, bitter family member.
Critique: Fascinating, detailed, candid, and compelling read from start to finish, "King of Diamonds: Harry Winston, the Definitive Biography of an American Icon", and written with the professional assistance of biographer and author William Stadiem, is especially and unreservedly recommended pick for community and college/university library American Biography collections. It should also be noted for the personal reading lists of anyone with an interest in the jewelry business and the biographies of the rich and famous, that "King of Diamonds" is also readily available in a digital book format (Kindle, $17.99).
Editorial Note #1: Ronald Winston, the eldest son of Harry and Edna Winston, was born in New York City in 1941 and raised in Westchester, New York. As an undergraduate at Harvard University, he was twice recognized by the American Rocket Society for research in solid propellants. He graduated from Harvard in 1963 with a degree in chemistry, then worked at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and New York University developing rocket propulsion technologies. In his late twenties, at the request of his father, he joined the executive team at Harry Winston, Inc. When his father passed away in 1978, Ron assumed leadership of the company, turning it into the global luxury brand that is revered today. He left the company in 2013 and returned to his first love, science. Winston holds many science patents and is currently working in biotech on developing a cure for cancer.
Editorial Note #2: William Stadiem is the author of "Mr. S: My Life with Frank Sinatra", "Marilyn Monroe Confidential", and "Dear Senator: A Memoir by the Daughter of Strom Thurmond". He has contributed to Vanity Fair and Town & Country and was the Hollywood columnist for Andy Warhol's Interview and the restaurant critic for Los Angeles Magazine. Stadiem is also a screenwriter whose credits include Elizabeth Taylor's last starring vehicle, Franco Zeffirelli's Young Toscanini, and the television series L.A. Law.
The Great Survivor of the Tudor Age
Alex Anglesey
Pen & Sword Books
c/o Casemate (US distribution)
www.casematepublishers.com
https://www.penandswordbooks.com
9781399035095, $39.95, HC, 256pp
https://www.amazon.com/Great-Survivor-Tudor-Age-William/dp/1399035096
Synopsis: Like Cromwell and Wolsey before him, William Paget (1506 - 9 June 1563) came from nowhere to become one of Henry VIII's most powerful 'new men'. After serving as ambassador to the Court of Francis I of France, he became Henry's most influential foreign policy advisor and developed a close relationship with Emperor Charles V. He had the king's ear in Henry's later years, was the key player in drafting his will (was it a forgery?) and in enabling Somerset to become Lord Protector in the reign of the boy king, Edward VI. For a while, he was Somerset's 'right-hand man'.
When Somerset fell, Paget was imprisoned in the Tower and nearly executed. But he survived and regained power. He had a major role in delivering the Crown to the Catholic queen, Mary, and in arranging her marriage to Philip II of Spain, whom he then advised on English politics. He kept in with the Protestant princess Elizabeth and survived to have influence when she came to the throne.
William was also the founder of the aristocratic Paget family - Barons of Beaudesert, Earls of Uxbridge and Marquesses of Anglesey.
From records of the mansion that he built on a site next to today's Heathrow Airport, a picture has been created of how life was actually lived in a Tudor household at the personal family level.
William' story is partly told from previously unexamined family letters. It is an exciting narrative of dramatic ups and downs: from rags to riches, plague to plenty, and prison to peerage. Court intrigues, conspiracies, rebellions and coups, follow one after the other. William is usually in the thick of it, the power behind the throne.
Critique: An inherently fascinating and informative read from start to finish, "The Great Survivor of the Tudor Age: The Life and Times of Lord William Paget" is a masterpiece of biographical scholarship and a critically important contribution to our understanding of 16th Century British history. Significantly enhanced for the benefit of the reader with the inclusion of an Appendix (A Family Epilogue), thirteen pages of Notes, a three page listing of Sources & Bibliography, and a three page Index, "The Great Survivor of the Tudor Age: The Life and Times of Lord William Paget" is an extraordinary and expressly recommended contribution to personal, professional, community, and college/university library 16th Century British History collections and supplemental curriculum studies lists. It should be noted for students, academia, historian, and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject that "The Great Survivor of the Tudor Age: The Life and Times of Lord William Paget" is also available in a digital book format (Kindle, $25.00).
Editorial Note: Alex Anglesey is the 8th Marquess of Anglesey, descendant of Lord William, founder of the Paget family. He grew up in the family home, Plas Newydd on Anglesey, which is now part of the National Trust. After doing a PhD in 20th century British history, working in book publishing, and co-founding and running a successful business retailing and publishing posters, he now works most of the time as an artist, mainly of landscapes in oils, under the name Alex Uxbridge.
Favourite of Fortune: Captain John Quilliam Trafalgar Hero
Andrew Lambert, Andrew Bond, and Frank Cowin
Seaforth Publishing
c/o Naval Institute Press
www.nip.org
9781399012706, $44.95, HC, 256pp
https://www.amazon.com/Favourite-Fortune-Captain-Quilliam-Trafalgar/dp/1399012703
Synopsis: Born on the Isle of Man two hundred fifty years ago, Captain John Quilliam (29 September 1771 - 10 October 1829) has, until now, evaded detailed study of his extraordinary life. While celebrated as a Manx hero, in the wider world beyond the Island one of the most important men on the quarter deck of HMS Victory at the Battle of Trafalgar remains largely unrecognized.
Trafalgar, however, was not even the high point of Quilliam's professional journey. From the lowest rung of the ladder in the dockyard at Portsmouth he climbed to become Victory's First Lieutenant, having already survived two of the bloodiest sea-battles of the era at Camperdown and Copenhagen. In the process he won a share in undreamed of wealth through the seizure of one of the largest hauls of Spanish gold ever taken by the Georgian navy.
Promoted post-Captain, Quilliam reached the apogee of his profession, commanding frigates in the Baltic and on the Newfoundland station in the War of 1812. There, in a bizarre twist worthy of a novel by O'Brian or Forester, he defeated an accusation of shirking an engagement with the American super-frigate President in a court-martial brought by his own First Lieutenant.
Critique: Rescued from an undeserved obscurity by the team of Andrew Lambert (who is Professor of Naval History at King's College, London), Manx Antiqurarian Andrew Bond,, and biographer Andrew Bond, "Favourite of Fortune: Captain John Quilliam Trafalgar Hero" from Seaforth Publishing is impressively informative, exceptionally well written, expertly organized and thoroughly 'reader friendly' in presentation. Enhanced for the readers benefit with the inclusion of Illustrations, Notes, Glossary, Bibliography, and an Index, "Favourite of Fortune" is recommended as a key addition to personal, professional, community, and college/university library War of 1812 Naval History and English Naval Biography collections and supplemental curriculum studies lists. It should be noted for students, academia, and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject that "Favourite of Fortune" is also available in a paperback edition (9781399016957, $19.95).
Editorial Note: Andrew Lambert is Laughton Professor of Naval History in the Department of War Studies at King's College, London. He provided the political and strategic context to the detailed biographical research by Andrew Bond, a retired engineering journalist, while Frank Cowin, a prominent Manx antiquarian, dealt with Quilliam's background and reputation on the Island.
Luck or Miracle: A World War II POW's Survival Story
Reginald Bollich, author
James Bollich, narrator
Modern History Press
https://www.modernhistorypress.com
9781615997787, $34.95, HC, 122pp
https://www.amazon.com/Luck-Miracle-World-Survival-Story/dp/1615997784
Synopsis: With the publication of "Luck or Miracle: A World War II POW's Survival Story", author Reginald Bollich presents the true story of Jim Bollich, a 102-year-old World War II soldier, who offers a first-person account of courage, fortitude and the will to survive three years of frost-bitten captivity as a POW in Manchuria, enduring the Bataan Death March, thirst, starvation, diseases, a 32-day sea voyage (crammed into the hold of a Japanese hell ship) and aerial bombings.
After liberation, the transport ship to take him home hit a mine and lost power. A violent typhoon ensued and he had to lash himself to a bulkhead above deck to survive.
Jim survived because he strengthened his mind to confront evil and overcome fear in the face of danger, beatings and pain. Daily prayer strengthened his will to live.
Critique: An invaluable memoir offering genuine perspective and information about life as a POW in the Pacific Theatre of World War II, "Luck or Miracle: A World War II POW's Survival Story" is a testament to the resilience of the human spirit throughout the the Japanese atrocities that were the hallmark of that conflict. "Luck of Miracle" is especially and unreservedly recommended for personal, community, and college/university library World War II History/Biography collections. It should be noted that "Luck of Miracle" is also readily available in both a paperback edition (9781615997770, $19.95) and a digital book format (Kindle, $6.95).
Editorial Note #1: Reggie Bollich is a retired physicist, amateur biblical archaeologist, and ordained Catholic deacon. He worked on NASA's Apollo project, for the oil/gas industry in the USA, Saudi Arabia, France, London, Singapore and the UAE. He unearthed ancient sites in the Middle East and is president of a non-profit organization that supports Sarnelli orphanage in Thailand.
Editorial Note #2: James Bollich is a 102-year-old World War II US Army veteran. He survived the Bataan Death March, numerous diseases, starvation, a thirty-two-day sea voyage crammed into the hold of a Japanese hell-ship, and a three-and-one-half year frost-bitten sojourn as a POW in a Manchuria prison camp. He went on to earn a degree under the G.I. Bill and had a successful career as a geologist in Lafayette Louisiana where he lives today.
Dale L. Morgan
Richard L. Saunders
The University of Utah Press
https://uofupress.lib.utah.edu
9781647691202, $95.00, HC, 536pp
https://www.amazon.com/Dale-L-Morgan-Histories-Transition/dp/1647691206
Synopsis: "Dale L. Morgan: Mormon and Western Histories in Transition" by Richard L. Saunders is the first biography of Dale L. Morgan (December 18, 1914 - March 30, 1971) who was preeminent Western historian of the fur trade, historic trails, and the Latter Day Saint movement.
This comprehensive biography explores how, despite personal struggles, Morgan committed his life to tracking down sources and interpreting the past on the strength of documentary evidence. Connecting Morgan's life with some of the broad cultural changes that shaped his experiences, this biography engages with methodological shifts in the historical profession, the mid-twentieth-century collision of interpretations within Latter Day Saint history, and the development of a descriptive, scholarly approach to that history.
Morgan's body of work and commitment to serious scholarship signaled the start of new ways of understanding, studying, and retelling history, and he motivated a generation of historians from the 1930s to the 1970s to transform their historical approaches. Sounding board, mentor, and close friend to Nels Anderson, Fawn Brodie, Juanita Brooks, Bernard DeVoto, Wallace Stegner, and Leonard Arrington, Dale Morgan is the common factor linking this influential generation of mid-twentieth-century historians of western America.
Critique: Enhanced for the reader with the inclusion of a 24 page Dale L. Morgan Bibliography, 58 pages of Notes, a 20 page listing of Works Cited, and a 14 page Index, this University of Utah Press edition of academic librarian and biographer Richard L. Saunders' detailed and documented historical study, "Dale L. Morgan: Mormon and Western Histories in Transition" is a seminal work of impressively meticulous scholarship and is especially, unreservedly recommended addition to personal, professional, community, and college/university library American Biography collections. It should be noted for students, academia, and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject that "Dale L. Morgan: Mormon and Western Histories in Transition" is also available in a paperback edition (9781647691219, $34.95).
Editorial Note: Richard L. Saunders is a librarian at Southern Utah University. He is also the author of Eloquence from a Silent World: A Descriptive Bibliography of the Published Writings of Dale L. Morgan, and editor of Morgan's writing in Shoshonean Peoples and the Overland Trails: Frontiers of the Utah Superintendency of Indian Affairs, 1849 - 1869.
A Dangerous Country: An American Elegy
Ron Kovic
Akashic Books
www.akashicbooks.com
9781636141664, $27.95, HC, 264pp
https://www.amazon.com/Dangerous-Country-American-Elegy/dp/1636141668
Synopsis: When 18 year old Ronald Lawrence Kovic enlisted in the United States Marine Corps in 1964, he couldn't foresee that he would return from Vietnam paralyzed and in a wheelchair for the rest of his life.
His best-selling 1976 memoir "Born on the Fourth of July" became an antiwar classic and was adapted into an Oscar-winning film starring Tom Cruise as Kovic. His follow-up, "Hurricane Street", chronicled his advocacy for Vietnam veterans' rights. "A Dangerous Country: An American Elegy" completes Kovic's Vietnam Trilogy, delving deep into his long and often agonizing journey home from war and eventual healing, forgiveness, and spiritual redemption.
"A Dangerous Country" opens with Kovic's never-before-revealed Vietnam diary (July 7, 1967 - July 26, 1968). His entries from this period portray a patriotic young soldier with a strong moral and religious conscience. Kovic then recalls his political awakening after his return from Vietnam confined to a wheelchair following his horrific injury. He also chronicles the tremendous guilt he feels over his accidental killing of a fellow Marine while on patrol. This killing psychologically torments him as much as his severe disability.
After years of social, political, and sexual turmoil (and on the brink of suicide) Kovic experiences a powerful epiphany that gives him a reason and purpose to live; a renewed faith and strength to carry on. Although his trauma is severe, his third memoir is ultimately the inspirational story of a survivor finding a way to rise above his depression and despair, forgiving his enemies and himself, and growing deeply committed to a new life.
Critique: A compelling, emotionally resonating, and thought-provoking read from start to finish, this third and final memoir by Ron Kovic, and published by Akashic Books, "A Dangerous Country: An American Elegy" is of special and particular value and appeal to readers with an interest in Vietnam War, social/political anti-war activist, and disability biographies and memoirs, While especially and unreservedly recommended for community and college/university library American Biography/Memoir collections, it should be noted for personal reading lists that "A Dangerous Country" is also available in a digital book format (Kindle, $14.99).
Editorial Note: Ron Kovic (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ron_Kovic) served two tours of duty during the Vietnam War. He was paralyzed from his chest down in combat in 1968 and has been in a wheelchair ever since. Along with Oliver Stone, Kovic was the co-screenwriter of the 1989 Academy Award - winning film based on Kovic's best-selling memoir Born on the Fourth of July (starring Tom Cruise as Kovic). Hurricane Street (2016) detailed Kovic's efforts to organize the American Veterans Movement in 1974, fighting for better treatment of injured and disabled veterans.
A Surgeon and a Maverick
Simon Pearson, author
Fiona Gorman, author
American University in Cairo Press
www.aucpress.com
9781649031969, $29.95, HC, 446pp
https://www.amazon.com/Surgeon-Maverick-Pioneering-Magdi-Yacoub/dp/1649031963
Synopsis: With the publication of "A Surgeon and a Maverick: The Life and Pioneering Work of Magdi Yacoub", co- authors and veteran journalists Simon Pearson and Fiona Gorman follow the remarkable life of heart surgeon Magdi Yacoub from his formative years in Egypt, through spectacular success at Cairo University, to his long and distinguished career in Britain.
Although at times he clashed with the medical establishment in London, Yacoub pioneered great advances in heart surgery. He was knighted in 1992, and in 2014, he was awarded the highest honor in the gift of the Queen, the Order of Merit.
Written with unprecedented access and drawing on extensive interviews and research, this deftly crafted biography recounts how Yacoub transformed the treatment of children with congenital heart disease. He performed some of the first heart transplants in Britain and the first heart-lung transplants in Europe. At London's Harefield Hospital, he created the greatest heart transplant center in the world. Among his patients are men and women who are still thriving more than thirty-five years after he gave them new hope.
"A Surgeon and a Maverick: The Life and Pioneering Work of Magdi Yacoub" is also about the advances of medical science, the development of new medical techniques, and a deeper understanding of how the human body works.
Today, at an age when most people have long since retired, Yacoub is still pushing the boundaries of scientific understanding and surgical know-how. He is also taking heart surgery to places that until now have had little access to cardiac treatment, developing centers of excellence across Africa, including in Egypt, where his hospital in Aswan has an international reputation, and a new center is rising in Cairo.
Yacoub's life is one of triumph and tragedy, success and failure, fierce criticism and high praise -- it is also an enthralling journey through the worlds of scientific research and medical politics and ethics at the highest levels.
Critique: An inherently fascinating read from start to finish, "A Surgeon and a Maverick: The Life and Pioneering Work of Magdi Yacoub" is the extraordinary life story of an extraordinary man of medicine and will prove to be of immense value to readers with an interest in organ transplant surgery. "A Surgeon and a Maverick: The Life and Pioneering Work of Magdi Yacoub" is especially and unreservedly recommended for personal, professional, community, and college/university library Contemporary Biography and Medical History collections. It should be noted that "A Surgeon and a Maverick: The Life and Pioneering Work of Magdi Yacoub" is also readily available in a digital book format (Kindle, $14.99).
Editorial Note #1: Fiona Gorman worked for The Times newspaper in London for more than thirty years. She has written on a range of subjects including mental health.
Editorial Note #2: Mary Archer is a British scientist specializing in solar power conversion. In 2012, she was appointed Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) for her services to the National Health Service.
My American Dream: A Journey from Fascism to Freedom
Barbara Sommer Feigin
https://www.barbarafeigin.com
Five Star Press
9798988626107, $26.95, HC, 276pp
https://www.amazon.com/My-American-Dream-Journey-Fascism/dp/B0CLX3JZN6
Synopsis: On August 4, 1940, the Seattle Times featured a photo of a toddler sitting on a dock, surrounded by suitcases and looking dazed. After a harrowing journey with her parents, she'd just stepped off a boat and into her new life in America. Barbara Sommer Feigin was that little girl.
Over seventy years later, Feigin made a stunning discovery: her Jewish father had kept a detailed journal that chronicled their family's escape from Nazi Germany. Her parents had never spoken of it, and she remembered nothing of their terrifying, death-defying passage three-quarters of the way around the world-from Berlin to Seattle by way of Lithuania, Russia, China, Korea, and Japan before crossing the Pacific.
Featuring three intertwining narratives, "My American Dream: A Journey from Fascism to Freedom" is a compelling memoir of resilience, grit, and grace.
Feigin tells of her life as a young German-speaking refugee living in a small Washington town and yearning to become an "authentic" American. She details how she became a trailblazing executive in the advertising business in New York City-a completely male-dominated business in the 1960s-rising from the ranks and ultimately securing a seat in the executive boardroom. A devoted wife and mom of three sons (including one set of twins), she spent twenty-five years as a caregiver for her husband, who suffered two serious strokes, and remained fiercely committed to building strong family bonds during turbulent times.
Critique: Eloquent, articulate, informative, fascinating, memorable, "My American Dream: A Journey from Fascism to Freedom" from Five Star Press will be of immense appeal to readers with an interest in Jewish Biographies/Memoirs, the experiences of women in business, and personal life stories with such universal themes as the American Dream motivating men and women from around the world to seek refuge and a new life as migrants to American. While also readily available in a paperback edition (9798988626114, $16.95) and in a digital book format (Kindle, $7.99), "My American Dream: A Journey from Fascism to Freedom" is a prized pick for personal reading lists, as well as community and college/university library collections.
Editorial Note: Barbara Sommer Feigin (https://www.barbarafeigin.com) earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science, before completing a graduate program in business run jointly by Harvard Business School and Radcliffe Graduate School. Feigin found success in a completely male-dominated business (advertising) when career-building opportunities for women were virtually nonexistent. In her illustrious thirty-year career at Grey Advertising (now the Grey Global Group), she solidified her reputation as a visionary thinker. In all her years as a senior advertising executive and a corporate director, she was more often than not the only woman in the room. In 2017, Feigin was named one of the century's Legendary Pioneers by Grey.
The Unknown Face
Gregory Duncan
New Origins Publishers
9798988860228, $24.99, HC, 262pp
https://www.amazon.com/Face-memoir-marriage-mental-illness-ebook/dp/B0CML34HXB
Synopsis: A marriage with an imperfect love story goes tragically wrong one summer in a small college town in Virginia, and the husband is left picking up the pieces of pain and regret. How did it end in suicide instead of divorce?
What he discovers six months later is both heartbreaking and astonishing.
In a time when extreme events and behavior are more prevalent, "The Unknown Face: A memoir of marriage, mental illness, and the search for why" by Gregory Duncan offers in-depth psychological account of a seemingly normal relationship describes how things kept hidden underneath provide one's greatest downfall, and shows what one can learn from loss after the walls come tumbling down.
Critique: Deftly written, impressively candid, inherently fascinating, exceptionally thoughtful and thought provoking, Gregory Duncan's deeply personal memoir, "The Unknown Face" will prove especially appreciated by readers with an interest in marriage, mental illness, and the search for why when tragedy suddenly occurs. While especially and unreservedly recommended for community and college/university library American Biography/Memoir collections. It should be noted for the personal reading lists of jazz enthusiasts and addressing the issue of marriage and suicide, "The Unknown Face" is also available in a digital book format (Kindle, $4.99, Amazon).
Editorial Note: Gregory Duncan is a writer, musician, and educator, currently living in Philadelphia, after stops in Seattle, Chicago, Texas, Virginia, and Spain. When not taking care of his two compassionate, energetic dogs, he is usually playing the trumpet, reading, or writing. He is currently a member of the Pacific Northwest Writers Association. Duncan has previously published in the online publication "Psych Central" and for the mental health organization NAMI. After twenty years in the music business and touring the world, he has released four jazz recordings, all of which have received radio play throughout the country and the world.
Swinging Away: A Celebration
Victor Pearn, author
George M. Eberhart, editor
Pearn and Associates
https://pearnandassociates.wordpress.com
9781735773193, $17.00, PB, 226pp
https://www.amazon.com/Swinging-Away-Celebration-Victor-Pearn/dp/1735773190
Synopsis: "Swinging Away: A Celebration" is Victor Pearn's testament to poetry, friendship, and faith. The story of his life from ranging from joining the Marines in 1969 to becoming a professional publisher is told with his innate gift for description that captures the personalities and quirks of his colleagues and the literary luminaries that he happens to meet.
For Pearn, becoming a poet was an ongoing series of adventures that took place from Illinois to Colorado and from Mexico to China, where he taught English. The narrative is peppered with poetry samples and musings on the natural world, academia, and spirituality.
Sports fans will especially appreciate Pearn's tales of the 1969 Wyoming Cowboys football team and the 1957 season of the high-school basketball team, the Ashland (Illinois) Panthers. Book buffs will enjoy his take on reading and the great works of literature.
Film buffs will relish his adventure as an extra in a Hollywood movie.
Service members will be entertained by his stories of life in the Marines. Whatever life offered him,
Victor Pearn keeps swinging away to make sure he comes out on top-and manages to put it into a poet's perspective.
Critique: An exceptionally interesting memoir of an exceptionally interesting man, "Swinging Away: A Celebration" will have a very special appeal to readers with an interest in baseball, basketball, and life as a Marine in the 70s. While especially and unreservedly recommended for community and college/university library American Biography/Memoir collections, it should be noted for personal reading lists that "Swinging Away: A Celebration" is also readily available in a digital book format (Kindle, $9.99).
Editorial Note: Senior Editor of "American Libraries" magazine (retired) and a noted bibliographer, Victor Pearn was invited to be Poet-in-Residence at Quincy University, in Illinois. In 2005 he established Pearn and Associates, a book publishing company which has published 61 titles by award winning authors. His poems have been published in more than 300 publications. His poem "Living Inside Confucius Wall," was translated into Mandarin and published by Jining University in China. His poems have also been published in Swansea, Wales, Canada, and the Virgin Islands. Swinging Away: A Celebration is his 15th book.
Paris for Life
Barry Frangipane
Savory Adventures Publishing
https://barryfrangipane.substack.com
9780983614142, $28.95, HC, 224pp
https://www.amazon.com/Paris-Life-Notes-Lifetime-out/dp/0983614148
Synopsis: When a chance friendship offered him the trip of a lifetime, a twenty-one-year-old Barry Frangipane swapped the familiar beaches of Florida for the passion of 1970's Paris.
What followed was a year of learning the language, showering in the kitchen (you read that right), escaping a terrorist bombing, and working on the frontlines of the burgeoning personal tech industry. All while slowly falling for the girl who'd invited him there -- a love that was to remain entwined with Paris forever.
"Paris for Life: Notes from a Lifetime in and out of Paris" is warmly nostalgic and sharply witty memoir, Barry weaves surprising historical insights through his fondest memories (past and present) of the City of Light. From the pastries to the politics, the cafes to the cathedrals, "Paris for Life" is an examination of what it means to be wholly captivated by a city and eternally changed by its lessons.
Critique: Part memoir, part travelogue, and a complete celebration of the famed City of Lights, "Paris for Life: Notes from a Lifetime in and out of Paris " by Barry Frangipane is a memorable and entertaining read from start to finish. Exceptionally well written, organized and presented, "Paris for Life" is a deftly crafted and unreservedly recommended pick for community and college/university library American Biography/Memoir and Paris Travelogue & Guide collections. It should be noted for readers who aspire to one day visit Paris themselves that "Paris for Life" is also readily available in a paperback edition (9780983614135, $17.95) and in a digital book format (Kindle, $9.99).
Editorial Note: Barry Frangipane doesn't so much write books as simply putting pen to paper and letting his life (and sense of humor) spill onto the page. Born in New Jersey, USA, Barry became infected with wanderlust in his youth and has failed to find a cure ever since. He has travelled extensively, operated an exclusive European tour company, and eaten more crêpes than he cares to mention. Most recently he found himself captivated by Liguria, Italy, and is now retired there with his wife. Barry claims to know French, Italian, English and the names of several other languages.
Nuff Said
Tyrus, author
Post Hill Press
www.posthillpress.com
9781637589052, $28.99, HC, 256pp
https://www.amazon.com/Nuff-Said-Tyrus/dp/1637589050
Synopsis: "Nuff Said" is the sequel to "Just Tyrus: A Memoir". We continue to follow the live and times of Tyrus by delving further into his extraordinary life experiences and see how they connect with the most pressing social, political, and cultural issues of our time including immigration, crime, bullying, athletics, politics, China, parenting, respect, and more.
A combination personal life story and acutely insightful social commentary, Tyrus's articular commentaries comprising "Nuff Said" have the power take and hold the reader's total attention from start to finish.
Critique: Written with a distinctive conversational style that will be particular appreciate by readers with an interest in the world of professional athletes, political observations delivered with humor, and the unique life story of a remarkable and memorable man, "Nuff Said" is especially and unreservedly recommended for community and college/university library Contemporary American Biography collections. It should be noted that for personal reading lists that "Nuff Said" is also available in a digital book format (Kindle, $14.99).
Editorial Note: A 6'8", 350-pound behemoth, Tyrus is an affable, hardworking entertainer with a sly sense of humor. Following his initial calling to football, he became a bouncer at numerous establishments in Los Angeles where he caught the attention of Snoop Dogg and became his bodyguard. That drew the attention of the WWE where he went on to enjoy success as "Brodus Clay," and later, "The Funkasaurus," which led to his starring in Mattel commercials and appearing in WWE videogames. Along with working as an actor in film and television, he recently captured the NWA World Heavyweight Championship and is a co-host of American's number one late-night comedy, The Greg Gutfeld Show.
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James A. Cox, Editor-in-Chief
Midwest Book Review
King of Diamonds
Ronald Winston, author
William Stadiem, author
Skyhorse Publishing, Inc.
www.skyhorsepublishing.com
9781510775602, $28.99, HC, 400pp
https://www.amazon.com/King-Diamonds-Flawless-World-Winston/dp/1510775609
Synopsis: Few American success stories rival that of Harry Winston.
Born Harry Weinstein, he came from humble roots. His parents were poor Jewish immigrants who left Ukraine around 1890 for New York, where they settled and started a small jewelry business. His genius for spotting priceless gems emerged young. When Harry was twelve years old, he recognized a two-carat emerald in a pawn shop and bought it for 25 cents, selling it two days later for $800 - a massive sum in the early 1900s. From that moment on, Harry became obsessed with gems, especially diamonds.
A compact, unassuming man with no formal education, but unlimited drive and ambition, Harry Weinstein transformed himself into Harry Winston, the enigmatic figure who created the world's most prestigious luxury brand.
Harry Winston built his empire while the Depression raged, World War II reshaped the world, and America entered its post-war period of prosperity. "King of Diamonds: Harry Winston, the Definitive Biography of an American Icon"is a riveting life story whose readers get a bird's eye view of the dangers of the diamond trade and the lengths men would go to get their hands on the best of the "rough."
There's also a glimpse into the lives of the rich and famous, who clamored for Winston's gems.
Although he traveled the world doing business with kings, queens, and movie stars, Winston remained a devoted family man, whose chief wish was that his sons carry on the legacy he had built.
Harry's older son Ronald Winston worked alongside his father for decades. After Harry's death, Ron grew the company into the international brand that is still revered today. He ran it expertly, until he was forced to sell the company, due to his younger brother's maligning litigation. "King Diamond" is also the story of a family business that survived and thrived for more than a century, until it was undone by one, bitter family member.
Critique: Fascinating, detailed, candid, and compelling read from start to finish, "King of Diamonds: Harry Winston, the Definitive Biography of an American Icon", and written with the professional assistance of biographer and author William Stadiem, is especially and unreservedly recommended pick for community and college/university library American Biography collections. It should also be noted for the personal reading lists of anyone with an interest in the jewelry business and the biographies of the rich and famous, that "King of Diamonds" is also readily available in a digital book format (Kindle, $17.99).
Editorial Note #1: Ronald Winston, the eldest son of Harry and Edna Winston, was born in New York City in 1941 and raised in Westchester, New York. As an undergraduate at Harvard University, he was twice recognized by the American Rocket Society for research in solid propellants. He graduated from Harvard in 1963 with a degree in chemistry, then worked at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and New York University developing rocket propulsion technologies. In his late twenties, at the request of his father, he joined the executive team at Harry Winston, Inc. When his father passed away in 1978, Ron assumed leadership of the company, turning it into the global luxury brand that is revered today. He left the company in 2013 and returned to his first love, science. Winston holds many science patents and is currently working in biotech on developing a cure for cancer.
Editorial Note #2: William Stadiem is the author of "Mr. S: My Life with Frank Sinatra", "Marilyn Monroe Confidential", and "Dear Senator: A Memoir by the Daughter of Strom Thurmond". He has contributed to Vanity Fair and Town & Country and was the Hollywood columnist for Andy Warhol's Interview and the restaurant critic for Los Angeles Magazine. Stadiem is also a screenwriter whose credits include Elizabeth Taylor's last starring vehicle, Franco Zeffirelli's Young Toscanini, and the television series L.A. Law.
The Great Survivor of the Tudor Age
Alex Anglesey
Pen & Sword Books
c/o Casemate (US distribution)
www.casematepublishers.com
https://www.penandswordbooks.com
9781399035095, $39.95, HC, 256pp
https://www.amazon.com/Great-Survivor-Tudor-Age-William/dp/1399035096
Synopsis: Like Cromwell and Wolsey before him, William Paget (1506 - 9 June 1563) came from nowhere to become one of Henry VIII's most powerful 'new men'. After serving as ambassador to the Court of Francis I of France, he became Henry's most influential foreign policy advisor and developed a close relationship with Emperor Charles V. He had the king's ear in Henry's later years, was the key player in drafting his will (was it a forgery?) and in enabling Somerset to become Lord Protector in the reign of the boy king, Edward VI. For a while, he was Somerset's 'right-hand man'.
When Somerset fell, Paget was imprisoned in the Tower and nearly executed. But he survived and regained power. He had a major role in delivering the Crown to the Catholic queen, Mary, and in arranging her marriage to Philip II of Spain, whom he then advised on English politics. He kept in with the Protestant princess Elizabeth and survived to have influence when she came to the throne.
William was also the founder of the aristocratic Paget family - Barons of Beaudesert, Earls of Uxbridge and Marquesses of Anglesey.
From records of the mansion that he built on a site next to today's Heathrow Airport, a picture has been created of how life was actually lived in a Tudor household at the personal family level.
William' story is partly told from previously unexamined family letters. It is an exciting narrative of dramatic ups and downs: from rags to riches, plague to plenty, and prison to peerage. Court intrigues, conspiracies, rebellions and coups, follow one after the other. William is usually in the thick of it, the power behind the throne.
Critique: An inherently fascinating and informative read from start to finish, "The Great Survivor of the Tudor Age: The Life and Times of Lord William Paget" is a masterpiece of biographical scholarship and a critically important contribution to our understanding of 16th Century British history. Significantly enhanced for the benefit of the reader with the inclusion of an Appendix (A Family Epilogue), thirteen pages of Notes, a three page listing of Sources & Bibliography, and a three page Index, "The Great Survivor of the Tudor Age: The Life and Times of Lord William Paget" is an extraordinary and expressly recommended contribution to personal, professional, community, and college/university library 16th Century British History collections and supplemental curriculum studies lists. It should be noted for students, academia, historian, and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject that "The Great Survivor of the Tudor Age: The Life and Times of Lord William Paget" is also available in a digital book format (Kindle, $25.00).
Editorial Note: Alex Anglesey is the 8th Marquess of Anglesey, descendant of Lord William, founder of the Paget family. He grew up in the family home, Plas Newydd on Anglesey, which is now part of the National Trust. After doing a PhD in 20th century British history, working in book publishing, and co-founding and running a successful business retailing and publishing posters, he now works most of the time as an artist, mainly of landscapes in oils, under the name Alex Uxbridge.
Favourite of Fortune: Captain John Quilliam Trafalgar Hero
Andrew Lambert, Andrew Bond, and Frank Cowin
Seaforth Publishing
c/o Naval Institute Press
www.nip.org
9781399012706, $44.95, HC, 256pp
https://www.amazon.com/Favourite-Fortune-Captain-Quilliam-Trafalgar/dp/1399012703
Synopsis: Born on the Isle of Man two hundred fifty years ago, Captain John Quilliam (29 September 1771 - 10 October 1829) has, until now, evaded detailed study of his extraordinary life. While celebrated as a Manx hero, in the wider world beyond the Island one of the most important men on the quarter deck of HMS Victory at the Battle of Trafalgar remains largely unrecognized.
Trafalgar, however, was not even the high point of Quilliam's professional journey. From the lowest rung of the ladder in the dockyard at Portsmouth he climbed to become Victory's First Lieutenant, having already survived two of the bloodiest sea-battles of the era at Camperdown and Copenhagen. In the process he won a share in undreamed of wealth through the seizure of one of the largest hauls of Spanish gold ever taken by the Georgian navy.
Promoted post-Captain, Quilliam reached the apogee of his profession, commanding frigates in the Baltic and on the Newfoundland station in the War of 1812. There, in a bizarre twist worthy of a novel by O'Brian or Forester, he defeated an accusation of shirking an engagement with the American super-frigate President in a court-martial brought by his own First Lieutenant.
Critique: Rescued from an undeserved obscurity by the team of Andrew Lambert (who is Professor of Naval History at King's College, London), Manx Antiqurarian Andrew Bond,, and biographer Andrew Bond, "Favourite of Fortune: Captain John Quilliam Trafalgar Hero" from Seaforth Publishing is impressively informative, exceptionally well written, expertly organized and thoroughly 'reader friendly' in presentation. Enhanced for the readers benefit with the inclusion of Illustrations, Notes, Glossary, Bibliography, and an Index, "Favourite of Fortune" is recommended as a key addition to personal, professional, community, and college/university library War of 1812 Naval History and English Naval Biography collections and supplemental curriculum studies lists. It should be noted for students, academia, and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject that "Favourite of Fortune" is also available in a paperback edition (9781399016957, $19.95).
Editorial Note: Andrew Lambert is Laughton Professor of Naval History in the Department of War Studies at King's College, London. He provided the political and strategic context to the detailed biographical research by Andrew Bond, a retired engineering journalist, while Frank Cowin, a prominent Manx antiquarian, dealt with Quilliam's background and reputation on the Island.
Luck or Miracle: A World War II POW's Survival Story
Reginald Bollich, author
James Bollich, narrator
Modern History Press
https://www.modernhistorypress.com
9781615997787, $34.95, HC, 122pp
https://www.amazon.com/Luck-Miracle-World-Survival-Story/dp/1615997784
Synopsis: With the publication of "Luck or Miracle: A World War II POW's Survival Story", author Reginald Bollich presents the true story of Jim Bollich, a 102-year-old World War II soldier, who offers a first-person account of courage, fortitude and the will to survive three years of frost-bitten captivity as a POW in Manchuria, enduring the Bataan Death March, thirst, starvation, diseases, a 32-day sea voyage (crammed into the hold of a Japanese hell ship) and aerial bombings.
After liberation, the transport ship to take him home hit a mine and lost power. A violent typhoon ensued and he had to lash himself to a bulkhead above deck to survive.
Jim survived because he strengthened his mind to confront evil and overcome fear in the face of danger, beatings and pain. Daily prayer strengthened his will to live.
Critique: An invaluable memoir offering genuine perspective and information about life as a POW in the Pacific Theatre of World War II, "Luck or Miracle: A World War II POW's Survival Story" is a testament to the resilience of the human spirit throughout the the Japanese atrocities that were the hallmark of that conflict. "Luck of Miracle" is especially and unreservedly recommended for personal, community, and college/university library World War II History/Biography collections. It should be noted that "Luck of Miracle" is also readily available in both a paperback edition (9781615997770, $19.95) and a digital book format (Kindle, $6.95).
Editorial Note #1: Reggie Bollich is a retired physicist, amateur biblical archaeologist, and ordained Catholic deacon. He worked on NASA's Apollo project, for the oil/gas industry in the USA, Saudi Arabia, France, London, Singapore and the UAE. He unearthed ancient sites in the Middle East and is president of a non-profit organization that supports Sarnelli orphanage in Thailand.
Editorial Note #2: James Bollich is a 102-year-old World War II US Army veteran. He survived the Bataan Death March, numerous diseases, starvation, a thirty-two-day sea voyage crammed into the hold of a Japanese hell-ship, and a three-and-one-half year frost-bitten sojourn as a POW in a Manchuria prison camp. He went on to earn a degree under the G.I. Bill and had a successful career as a geologist in Lafayette Louisiana where he lives today.
Dale L. Morgan
Richard L. Saunders
The University of Utah Press
https://uofupress.lib.utah.edu
9781647691202, $95.00, HC, 536pp
https://www.amazon.com/Dale-L-Morgan-Histories-Transition/dp/1647691206
Synopsis: "Dale L. Morgan: Mormon and Western Histories in Transition" by Richard L. Saunders is the first biography of Dale L. Morgan (December 18, 1914 - March 30, 1971) who was preeminent Western historian of the fur trade, historic trails, and the Latter Day Saint movement.
This comprehensive biography explores how, despite personal struggles, Morgan committed his life to tracking down sources and interpreting the past on the strength of documentary evidence. Connecting Morgan's life with some of the broad cultural changes that shaped his experiences, this biography engages with methodological shifts in the historical profession, the mid-twentieth-century collision of interpretations within Latter Day Saint history, and the development of a descriptive, scholarly approach to that history.
Morgan's body of work and commitment to serious scholarship signaled the start of new ways of understanding, studying, and retelling history, and he motivated a generation of historians from the 1930s to the 1970s to transform their historical approaches. Sounding board, mentor, and close friend to Nels Anderson, Fawn Brodie, Juanita Brooks, Bernard DeVoto, Wallace Stegner, and Leonard Arrington, Dale Morgan is the common factor linking this influential generation of mid-twentieth-century historians of western America.
Critique: Enhanced for the reader with the inclusion of a 24 page Dale L. Morgan Bibliography, 58 pages of Notes, a 20 page listing of Works Cited, and a 14 page Index, this University of Utah Press edition of academic librarian and biographer Richard L. Saunders' detailed and documented historical study, "Dale L. Morgan: Mormon and Western Histories in Transition" is a seminal work of impressively meticulous scholarship and is especially, unreservedly recommended addition to personal, professional, community, and college/university library American Biography collections. It should be noted for students, academia, and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject that "Dale L. Morgan: Mormon and Western Histories in Transition" is also available in a paperback edition (9781647691219, $34.95).
Editorial Note: Richard L. Saunders is a librarian at Southern Utah University. He is also the author of Eloquence from a Silent World: A Descriptive Bibliography of the Published Writings of Dale L. Morgan, and editor of Morgan's writing in Shoshonean Peoples and the Overland Trails: Frontiers of the Utah Superintendency of Indian Affairs, 1849 - 1869.
A Dangerous Country: An American Elegy
Ron Kovic
Akashic Books
www.akashicbooks.com
9781636141664, $27.95, HC, 264pp
https://www.amazon.com/Dangerous-Country-American-Elegy/dp/1636141668
Synopsis: When 18 year old Ronald Lawrence Kovic enlisted in the United States Marine Corps in 1964, he couldn't foresee that he would return from Vietnam paralyzed and in a wheelchair for the rest of his life.
His best-selling 1976 memoir "Born on the Fourth of July" became an antiwar classic and was adapted into an Oscar-winning film starring Tom Cruise as Kovic. His follow-up, "Hurricane Street", chronicled his advocacy for Vietnam veterans' rights. "A Dangerous Country: An American Elegy" completes Kovic's Vietnam Trilogy, delving deep into his long and often agonizing journey home from war and eventual healing, forgiveness, and spiritual redemption.
"A Dangerous Country" opens with Kovic's never-before-revealed Vietnam diary (July 7, 1967 - July 26, 1968). His entries from this period portray a patriotic young soldier with a strong moral and religious conscience. Kovic then recalls his political awakening after his return from Vietnam confined to a wheelchair following his horrific injury. He also chronicles the tremendous guilt he feels over his accidental killing of a fellow Marine while on patrol. This killing psychologically torments him as much as his severe disability.
After years of social, political, and sexual turmoil (and on the brink of suicide) Kovic experiences a powerful epiphany that gives him a reason and purpose to live; a renewed faith and strength to carry on. Although his trauma is severe, his third memoir is ultimately the inspirational story of a survivor finding a way to rise above his depression and despair, forgiving his enemies and himself, and growing deeply committed to a new life.
Critique: A compelling, emotionally resonating, and thought-provoking read from start to finish, this third and final memoir by Ron Kovic, and published by Akashic Books, "A Dangerous Country: An American Elegy" is of special and particular value and appeal to readers with an interest in Vietnam War, social/political anti-war activist, and disability biographies and memoirs, While especially and unreservedly recommended for community and college/university library American Biography/Memoir collections, it should be noted for personal reading lists that "A Dangerous Country" is also available in a digital book format (Kindle, $14.99).
Editorial Note: Ron Kovic (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ron_Kovic) served two tours of duty during the Vietnam War. He was paralyzed from his chest down in combat in 1968 and has been in a wheelchair ever since. Along with Oliver Stone, Kovic was the co-screenwriter of the 1989 Academy Award - winning film based on Kovic's best-selling memoir Born on the Fourth of July (starring Tom Cruise as Kovic). Hurricane Street (2016) detailed Kovic's efforts to organize the American Veterans Movement in 1974, fighting for better treatment of injured and disabled veterans.
A Surgeon and a Maverick
Simon Pearson, author
Fiona Gorman, author
American University in Cairo Press
www.aucpress.com
9781649031969, $29.95, HC, 446pp
https://www.amazon.com/Surgeon-Maverick-Pioneering-Magdi-Yacoub/dp/1649031963
Synopsis: With the publication of "A Surgeon and a Maverick: The Life and Pioneering Work of Magdi Yacoub", co- authors and veteran journalists Simon Pearson and Fiona Gorman follow the remarkable life of heart surgeon Magdi Yacoub from his formative years in Egypt, through spectacular success at Cairo University, to his long and distinguished career in Britain.
Although at times he clashed with the medical establishment in London, Yacoub pioneered great advances in heart surgery. He was knighted in 1992, and in 2014, he was awarded the highest honor in the gift of the Queen, the Order of Merit.
Written with unprecedented access and drawing on extensive interviews and research, this deftly crafted biography recounts how Yacoub transformed the treatment of children with congenital heart disease. He performed some of the first heart transplants in Britain and the first heart-lung transplants in Europe. At London's Harefield Hospital, he created the greatest heart transplant center in the world. Among his patients are men and women who are still thriving more than thirty-five years after he gave them new hope.
"A Surgeon and a Maverick: The Life and Pioneering Work of Magdi Yacoub" is also about the advances of medical science, the development of new medical techniques, and a deeper understanding of how the human body works.
Today, at an age when most people have long since retired, Yacoub is still pushing the boundaries of scientific understanding and surgical know-how. He is also taking heart surgery to places that until now have had little access to cardiac treatment, developing centers of excellence across Africa, including in Egypt, where his hospital in Aswan has an international reputation, and a new center is rising in Cairo.
Yacoub's life is one of triumph and tragedy, success and failure, fierce criticism and high praise -- it is also an enthralling journey through the worlds of scientific research and medical politics and ethics at the highest levels.
Critique: An inherently fascinating read from start to finish, "A Surgeon and a Maverick: The Life and Pioneering Work of Magdi Yacoub" is the extraordinary life story of an extraordinary man of medicine and will prove to be of immense value to readers with an interest in organ transplant surgery. "A Surgeon and a Maverick: The Life and Pioneering Work of Magdi Yacoub" is especially and unreservedly recommended for personal, professional, community, and college/university library Contemporary Biography and Medical History collections. It should be noted that "A Surgeon and a Maverick: The Life and Pioneering Work of Magdi Yacoub" is also readily available in a digital book format (Kindle, $14.99).
Editorial Note #1: Fiona Gorman worked for The Times newspaper in London for more than thirty years. She has written on a range of subjects including mental health.
Editorial Note #2: Mary Archer is a British scientist specializing in solar power conversion. In 2012, she was appointed Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) for her services to the National Health Service.
My American Dream: A Journey from Fascism to Freedom
Barbara Sommer Feigin
https://www.barbarafeigin.com
Five Star Press
9798988626107, $26.95, HC, 276pp
https://www.amazon.com/My-American-Dream-Journey-Fascism/dp/B0CLX3JZN6
Synopsis: On August 4, 1940, the Seattle Times featured a photo of a toddler sitting on a dock, surrounded by suitcases and looking dazed. After a harrowing journey with her parents, she'd just stepped off a boat and into her new life in America. Barbara Sommer Feigin was that little girl.
Over seventy years later, Feigin made a stunning discovery: her Jewish father had kept a detailed journal that chronicled their family's escape from Nazi Germany. Her parents had never spoken of it, and she remembered nothing of their terrifying, death-defying passage three-quarters of the way around the world-from Berlin to Seattle by way of Lithuania, Russia, China, Korea, and Japan before crossing the Pacific.
Featuring three intertwining narratives, "My American Dream: A Journey from Fascism to Freedom" is a compelling memoir of resilience, grit, and grace.
Feigin tells of her life as a young German-speaking refugee living in a small Washington town and yearning to become an "authentic" American. She details how she became a trailblazing executive in the advertising business in New York City-a completely male-dominated business in the 1960s-rising from the ranks and ultimately securing a seat in the executive boardroom. A devoted wife and mom of three sons (including one set of twins), she spent twenty-five years as a caregiver for her husband, who suffered two serious strokes, and remained fiercely committed to building strong family bonds during turbulent times.
Critique: Eloquent, articulate, informative, fascinating, memorable, "My American Dream: A Journey from Fascism to Freedom" from Five Star Press will be of immense appeal to readers with an interest in Jewish Biographies/Memoirs, the experiences of women in business, and personal life stories with such universal themes as the American Dream motivating men and women from around the world to seek refuge and a new life as migrants to American. While also readily available in a paperback edition (9798988626114, $16.95) and in a digital book format (Kindle, $7.99), "My American Dream: A Journey from Fascism to Freedom" is a prized pick for personal reading lists, as well as community and college/university library collections.
Editorial Note: Barbara Sommer Feigin (https://www.barbarafeigin.com) earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science, before completing a graduate program in business run jointly by Harvard Business School and Radcliffe Graduate School. Feigin found success in a completely male-dominated business (advertising) when career-building opportunities for women were virtually nonexistent. In her illustrious thirty-year career at Grey Advertising (now the Grey Global Group), she solidified her reputation as a visionary thinker. In all her years as a senior advertising executive and a corporate director, she was more often than not the only woman in the room. In 2017, Feigin was named one of the century's Legendary Pioneers by Grey.
The Unknown Face
Gregory Duncan
New Origins Publishers
9798988860228, $24.99, HC, 262pp
https://www.amazon.com/Face-memoir-marriage-mental-illness-ebook/dp/B0CML34HXB
Synopsis: A marriage with an imperfect love story goes tragically wrong one summer in a small college town in Virginia, and the husband is left picking up the pieces of pain and regret. How did it end in suicide instead of divorce?
What he discovers six months later is both heartbreaking and astonishing.
In a time when extreme events and behavior are more prevalent, "The Unknown Face: A memoir of marriage, mental illness, and the search for why" by Gregory Duncan offers in-depth psychological account of a seemingly normal relationship describes how things kept hidden underneath provide one's greatest downfall, and shows what one can learn from loss after the walls come tumbling down.
Critique: Deftly written, impressively candid, inherently fascinating, exceptionally thoughtful and thought provoking, Gregory Duncan's deeply personal memoir, "The Unknown Face" will prove especially appreciated by readers with an interest in marriage, mental illness, and the search for why when tragedy suddenly occurs. While especially and unreservedly recommended for community and college/university library American Biography/Memoir collections. It should be noted for the personal reading lists of jazz enthusiasts and addressing the issue of marriage and suicide, "The Unknown Face" is also available in a digital book format (Kindle, $4.99, Amazon).
Editorial Note: Gregory Duncan is a writer, musician, and educator, currently living in Philadelphia, after stops in Seattle, Chicago, Texas, Virginia, and Spain. When not taking care of his two compassionate, energetic dogs, he is usually playing the trumpet, reading, or writing. He is currently a member of the Pacific Northwest Writers Association. Duncan has previously published in the online publication "Psych Central" and for the mental health organization NAMI. After twenty years in the music business and touring the world, he has released four jazz recordings, all of which have received radio play throughout the country and the world.
Swinging Away: A Celebration
Victor Pearn, author
George M. Eberhart, editor
Pearn and Associates
https://pearnandassociates.wordpress.com
9781735773193, $17.00, PB, 226pp
https://www.amazon.com/Swinging-Away-Celebration-Victor-Pearn/dp/1735773190
Synopsis: "Swinging Away: A Celebration" is Victor Pearn's testament to poetry, friendship, and faith. The story of his life from ranging from joining the Marines in 1969 to becoming a professional publisher is told with his innate gift for description that captures the personalities and quirks of his colleagues and the literary luminaries that he happens to meet.
For Pearn, becoming a poet was an ongoing series of adventures that took place from Illinois to Colorado and from Mexico to China, where he taught English. The narrative is peppered with poetry samples and musings on the natural world, academia, and spirituality.
Sports fans will especially appreciate Pearn's tales of the 1969 Wyoming Cowboys football team and the 1957 season of the high-school basketball team, the Ashland (Illinois) Panthers. Book buffs will enjoy his take on reading and the great works of literature.
Film buffs will relish his adventure as an extra in a Hollywood movie.
Service members will be entertained by his stories of life in the Marines. Whatever life offered him,
Victor Pearn keeps swinging away to make sure he comes out on top-and manages to put it into a poet's perspective.
Critique: An exceptionally interesting memoir of an exceptionally interesting man, "Swinging Away: A Celebration" will have a very special appeal to readers with an interest in baseball, basketball, and life as a Marine in the 70s. While especially and unreservedly recommended for community and college/university library American Biography/Memoir collections, it should be noted for personal reading lists that "Swinging Away: A Celebration" is also readily available in a digital book format (Kindle, $9.99).
Editorial Note: Senior Editor of "American Libraries" magazine (retired) and a noted bibliographer, Victor Pearn was invited to be Poet-in-Residence at Quincy University, in Illinois. In 2005 he established Pearn and Associates, a book publishing company which has published 61 titles by award winning authors. His poems have been published in more than 300 publications. His poem "Living Inside Confucius Wall," was translated into Mandarin and published by Jining University in China. His poems have also been published in Swansea, Wales, Canada, and the Virgin Islands. Swinging Away: A Celebration is his 15th book.
Paris for Life
Barry Frangipane
Savory Adventures Publishing
https://barryfrangipane.substack.com
9780983614142, $28.95, HC, 224pp
https://www.amazon.com/Paris-Life-Notes-Lifetime-out/dp/0983614148
Synopsis: When a chance friendship offered him the trip of a lifetime, a twenty-one-year-old Barry Frangipane swapped the familiar beaches of Florida for the passion of 1970's Paris.
What followed was a year of learning the language, showering in the kitchen (you read that right), escaping a terrorist bombing, and working on the frontlines of the burgeoning personal tech industry. All while slowly falling for the girl who'd invited him there -- a love that was to remain entwined with Paris forever.
"Paris for Life: Notes from a Lifetime in and out of Paris" is warmly nostalgic and sharply witty memoir, Barry weaves surprising historical insights through his fondest memories (past and present) of the City of Light. From the pastries to the politics, the cafes to the cathedrals, "Paris for Life" is an examination of what it means to be wholly captivated by a city and eternally changed by its lessons.
Critique: Part memoir, part travelogue, and a complete celebration of the famed City of Lights, "Paris for Life: Notes from a Lifetime in and out of Paris " by Barry Frangipane is a memorable and entertaining read from start to finish. Exceptionally well written, organized and presented, "Paris for Life" is a deftly crafted and unreservedly recommended pick for community and college/university library American Biography/Memoir and Paris Travelogue & Guide collections. It should be noted for readers who aspire to one day visit Paris themselves that "Paris for Life" is also readily available in a paperback edition (9780983614135, $17.95) and in a digital book format (Kindle, $9.99).
Editorial Note: Barry Frangipane doesn't so much write books as simply putting pen to paper and letting his life (and sense of humor) spill onto the page. Born in New Jersey, USA, Barry became infected with wanderlust in his youth and has failed to find a cure ever since. He has travelled extensively, operated an exclusive European tour company, and eaten more crêpes than he cares to mention. Most recently he found himself captivated by Liguria, Italy, and is now retired there with his wife. Barry claims to know French, Italian, English and the names of several other languages.
Nuff Said
Tyrus, author
Post Hill Press
www.posthillpress.com
9781637589052, $28.99, HC, 256pp
https://www.amazon.com/Nuff-Said-Tyrus/dp/1637589050
Synopsis: "Nuff Said" is the sequel to "Just Tyrus: A Memoir". We continue to follow the live and times of Tyrus by delving further into his extraordinary life experiences and see how they connect with the most pressing social, political, and cultural issues of our time including immigration, crime, bullying, athletics, politics, China, parenting, respect, and more.
A combination personal life story and acutely insightful social commentary, Tyrus's articular commentaries comprising "Nuff Said" have the power take and hold the reader's total attention from start to finish.
Critique: Written with a distinctive conversational style that will be particular appreciate by readers with an interest in the world of professional athletes, political observations delivered with humor, and the unique life story of a remarkable and memorable man, "Nuff Said" is especially and unreservedly recommended for community and college/university library Contemporary American Biography collections. It should be noted that for personal reading lists that "Nuff Said" is also available in a digital book format (Kindle, $14.99).
Editorial Note: A 6'8", 350-pound behemoth, Tyrus is an affable, hardworking entertainer with a sly sense of humor. Following his initial calling to football, he became a bouncer at numerous establishments in Los Angeles where he caught the attention of Snoop Dogg and became his bodyguard. That drew the attention of the WWE where he went on to enjoy success as "Brodus Clay," and later, "The Funkasaurus," which led to his starring in Mattel commercials and appearing in WWE videogames. Along with working as an actor in film and television, he recently captured the NWA World Heavyweight Championship and is a co-host of American's number one late-night comedy, The Greg Gutfeld Show.
EDITOR'S NOTE:
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