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“Spare Time:” New Book Suggest Solutions to Important World Crises

Posted on June 27, 2012 by Bobby Bernshausen | 0 Comments

Fictional events and characters create possible solutions to the problems the real world and the United States face today in the novel Spare Time, by Michael Murphy.

Turmoil in the Middle East. Economic crisis in Europe. Violations to the Constitution in the United States. Division, fear, entitlements and class envy are tearing the nation apart. Starting to sound familiar? In this novel, efforts are finally made to change the direction of the nation, but to what lengths will people go to stop these new ideas, what might others do to save them...and how could it all end?

Murphy strives to bring to light the potential resolutions to the troubles placed upon the world governments and their citizens, foremost the United States, all while creating an enjoyable and fictitious read for his audience rich with perceptive characters and a clutching plot.

Michael Murphy lives on the plains in a log house built with his bare hands, bustling with tradition. He is a retired airline pilot, is active in the alpaca industry, and operates a Bed & Breakfast right out of his rustic home.

Spare Time is available in softcover (ISBN 978-0-9856747-1-7) hardcover (ISBN 978-0-9856747-2-4) and eBook (ISBN 978-0-9856747-0-0) from Virtualbookworm.com, Amazon.com, and Barnesandnoble.com. This book can also be ordered from most bookstores around the United States and United Kingdom. More information can be found at the author’s website, www.michaelmurphybooks.com.

Posted in Authors and the Media, Press Releases

New Book, “Fons of War and Death,” Breaks Through Societal Boundaries

Posted on June 26, 2012 by Bobby Bernshausen | 0 Comments

In Ben Kuah’s new novel, Fons of War and Death, three unlikely heroes set out on a journey that will put their lives in balance.

Kintari was summoned to death by his parents due to a congenital defect, believed by the town to be a “ghost.” However, due to a sympathetic childless midwife, his life was spared. Raising him up closer to lions than humans, the midwife planned for the day Kintari would be discovered.

Melalia and Sahinda were two girls from diverse backgrounds. One is a princess with a deathly curse, the other Kintari’s twin sister uninformed of her other half. After the discovery and return of Kintari, events will unfold that bring the three characters together.

Ben Kuah lived a fun childhood, but struggled with the limitations of his homeland as an adult. Because of his experiences, Kuah speaks out against people who threaten the freedom of others. He is the host of a weekly program called “The Ben Kuah Show,” focusing on the stealth maintenance of the French Colonial Empire in Africa. He is also the Editor of AbakwaTimes.com.

Fons of War and Death is available in softcover (ISBN 978-1-62137-064-2) and eBook (ISBN 978-1-62137-065-9) from Virtualbookworm.com, Amazon.com, and Barnesandnoble.com. This book can also be ordered from most bookstores around the United States and United Kingdom.  More information can be found at the author’s website, www.fonsofwar.com.

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New Book Brings Shakespeare Alive

Posted on May 31, 2012 by Bobby Bernshausen | 0 Comments

The Shakespeare Guru’s Guide to Getting Shakespeare Alive! is a great tool for teachers, students and actors working with Shakespeare’s plays. The guide blows the dust off the 16^th century language, providing useful tips, strategies and on-your-feet exercises for breaking past any “ShakesFEAR.” The manual also comes with a 60-minutes script of “Romeo and Juliet,” which provides a shortened, 100% Shakespeare text and offers additional staging annotations —suggestions meant to spark the reader’s vision of staging the play’s action. Martha Mendenhall has spent over 20 years working with Shakespeare plays as an actor, director, writer and teaching artist, most notably with The American Shakespeare Center in Staunton, Virginia, and The North Carolina Shakespeare Festival (NCSF).  For the NSCF she created and directed  a touring company of six actors that tours North Carolina schools and offers 60-minute versions of Shakespeare’s most popular plays. Mendenhall has also created and led workshops on Shakespeare for teachers and students of all ages. She spent 10 years as a high school English teacher and currently lives in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, where she offers workshops on Shakespeare for teachers and students throughout the state.

“The Shakespeare Guru’s Guide to Getting Shakespeare Alive!” (ISBN: 978-1-62137-035-2) is available in softcover from Virtualbookworm.com, Amazon.com, Barnesandnoble.com and numerous other online sites. More information can be found at the books official website, www.shakespeareguru.com. She can be emailed at author@shakespeareguru.com.

Posted in Authors and the Media, Press Releases

“The Rancid Walnut” Tackles Prostate Cancer with Humor, Poetry

Posted on May 29, 2012 by Bobby Bernshausen | 0 Comments

There are certain topics one tends to avoid in “polite conversation.” Few men are willing to bring up the fact they are battling prostate cancer; the emotional roller coaster that ensues following one’s diagnosis is a difficult path to navigate, and sharing those emotions with others is often traumatic. But retired psychologist R. Steven Heaps addresses the topic head-on with humor, prostate cancer information and even poetry in his new book, “The Rancid Walnut.”

As an ultra-marathon runner (known by the handle “Skookumtumtum”), Heaps was determined to continue his active lifestyle after his diagnosis, despite the compound problem of cardiac arrhythmias and other heart conditions. So he used cognitive-behavioral psychology and therapeutic writing to tackle his fears and, in turn, provide men with a window into the emotional labyrinth he was forced to navigate. The result was “The Rancid Walnut,” which frankly confronts issues such as incontinence and erectile dysfunction with self-deprecating (and often bawdy) humor and keen, first-person insight.   Heaps taught at Gonzaga University and the University of Manitoba before spending 28 years in private practice. He has run more than 60 races of 31 to 100 miles in length. “The Rancid Walnut” was sparked by his membership in “Write From the Heart,” a group that uses poetry to deal with life events.

“The Rancid Walnut” is available in softcover (ISBN 978-1-60264-994-1) and e-book (ISBN 978-1-62137-008-6) from Virtualbookworm.com, Amazon.com, and Barnesandnoble.com.  This book can also be ordered from most bookstores around the United States and United Kingdom.  More information can be found at the author’s website, www.rancidwalnut.com.

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All Because He Read The Newspaper…

Posted on May 29, 2012 by Bobby Bernshausen | 0 Comments

“Out of the crowd there came forward, like a young Moses in the midst of his people, the warm and personable Peter Opeka.” So describes Cardinal Franc Rode in the foreword of Jesús María Silveyra’s new book, Padre Pedro: Apostle of Hope, from Virtualbookworm.com Publishing. This work is a tribute to the life and ministry of Father Peter Opeka, known to the people of Madagascar as Padre Pedro.

Silveyra begins by recalling the day he first read the name of Father Opeka in a newspaper article. The priest was being recognized for his efforts to reduce poverty in his country; the headline credited him with “[Rescuing] 17,000 Africans from the streets.” This caught Silveyra’s attention, so he continued to read. Having only recently published a novel about a political figure who endeavored to accomplish a very similar goal, the author was especially excited to read that the priest would be visiting Argentina. He determined to extend Opeka an invitation to be a guest on the weekly radio show hosted by the Silveyra family. At the time, Silveyra had no idea of the impact that this “man with a beard and curly hair” would have upon his own life.

Within 314 pages, Jesús María Silveyra provides a look at the lives of not only Father Opeka, but the priest’s parents as well, detailing a handful of the events that led the man to become called to a life of sacrifice through his ministry. He also shares his firsthand experiences from a visit to Father Opeka’s country in which he was fortunate enough to take part in the priest’s work.

Opeka has received numerous awards from churches, governments and various organizations, including the Kiwanis World Service Medal. Compared with Mother Teresa and nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize, his nominations are strongly supported by such diverse personalities as Vatican’s Cardinal Franc Rode, Albert II of Monaco and American astronaut and author Dr. Jerry Linenger.

“Padre Pedro: Apostle of Hope” is available in softcover (ISBN 978-1-60264-986-6) from Virtualbookworm.com, Amazon.com, and Barnesandnoble.com. This book can also be ordered from most bookstores around the United States, Australia and the United Kingdom. More information can be found at the book’s official U.S. website, www.padrepedro.net.

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Story of ''The First Jew of Texas'' Told in New Book

Posted on May 29, 2012 by Bobby Bernshausen | 0 Comments

Jim Novy may not be a familiar name to many, but his story is truly one that surpasses that of most who arrived in the United States during the peak of the Eastern European Jewish immigration wave. The remarkable tale of this formerly unsung figure in Texas history is laid out in great detail in a new book from Virtualbookworm.com Publishing entitled “The First Jew of Texas: The Life of Jim Novy,” edited by David Chapin. Narrowly escaping his small Polish village to land in Galveston, Texas with his brothers in 1913, Jim Novy's first few years in America involved numerous attempts to make a start in the business industry. As a teenage immigrant in a strange new world, one can assume he had no idea as to the outstanding and prosperous future that awaited him on this nation's shores. Ultimately becoming the owner of an Austin-based scrap metal business, which would grow exponentially as the economy called for a higher demand of his product, Novy achieved a wealth greater than he could have imagined upon leaving Europe. Although not literally the first Jew to arrive in the State of Texas, he received the title "First Jew of the State of Texas" from the editors of the Texas Jewish Press in 1942 after they released a series of articles telling his life's story. From here, his success would grow even further, extending to links within the White House and a personal friendship with President Lyndon B. Johnson. David Chapin compiled parts of this work from the archives of Elaine Shapiro, but the text also includes information culled through a wide variety of sources, from the LBJ presidential library to interviews with the Novy family to the oral and written history of the Congregation Agudas Achim (the synagogue to which Jim Novy belonged during his lifetime). These accounts of Novy's life and endeavors come together to form a compelling success story that will leave readers with a desire to strive for excellence in their own lives.

"The First Jew of Texas: The Life of Jim Novy" is available in softcover (ISBN 978-1-60264-991-0), hardcover (ISBN 978-1-60264-992-7), and ebook (ISBN 978-1-60264-993-4) from Virtualbookworm.com, Amazon.com, and Barnesandnoble.com. This book can also be ordered from most bookstores around the United States, Australia and the United Kingdom. More information can be found at www.jimnovy.com .

Posted in Authors and the Media, Press Releases