Letter from Scott Turow: Grim News

From Scott Turow, President of the Author's Guild to the members:

Dear member,

Yesterday’s report that the Justice Department may be near filing an antitrust lawsuit against five large trade book publishers and Apple is grim news for everyone who cherishes a rich literary culture. 

You can read the rest of the article on the Author's Guild site.

Arizona Senate Rejects Bill on Amazon Sales Tax Duty

Sigh.... the big mega-online retailer, that just happens to have a distribution center in Arizona(!!!) wins out against in-state retailers.  Where's your backbone, State Senators????   Read the full article here.

Justice Department May Sue Apple, Five Major Houses

Interesting article in Publishers Weekly about the DOJ going after several publishers for adopting the agency pricing model (price fixing).  You can read the article here.

Book Review - The Man From Primrose Lane

The Man From Primrose Lane

By: James Renner
Publisher: Farrar, Strauss and Giroux
Publishing Date: February 2012
ISBN: 978-0-374-20095-4
Reviewed By: Mary Lignor
Review Date: March 8, 2012

This novel covers some weird images and, to this reader, a very involved plot that takes a lot of thought to follow to the end. For those who do, however, they will find some extremely interesting characters and an intriguing ending.

The beginning takes the reader to a house on Primrose Lane where an elderly man, somewhat reclusive, has been murdered. He had no friends to speak of and no family. Whenever he did go out, it was noticed by the citizens that he always wore mittens, winter and summer, and always a different pair. Subsequently, when he was older he hired a certain family to bring him his groceries, magazines, and newspapers and stopped going out altogether. And, on a nice, clear summer day, the police were called and the Man from Primrose Lane was found dead in his house.

The first part of this book introduces us to David Neff, who is a published author of true-crime novels. The narrative tells about David and his wife, Elizabeth, how they met at college, their marriage and also the murder case that he solves and later writes about. David has obsessed about this case and has never written another book.

David is devastated by his wife’s suicide that no one can seem to explain on the day that they brought their new baby son, Tanner, home from the hospital. David and Tanner live a very reclusive life that keeps everyone at arm’s length but. Eventually, David gets a visit from his agent, telling him the story of the Man from Primrose Lane. This has always been a strange mystery as no one ever solved the case and David’s agent thinks that this would be a good way to pull David out of his depression over his wife’s death by giving him a puzzle to solve. At this point in the story, it has been four years since David’s wife’s death and David eventually decides that he will try and find out who the Man from Primrose Lane was and how he died. After starting his investigation he finds that this murder has a connection with his wife’s death and also the kidnapping of her sister many years ago.

The first part of the book is perfect crime fiction although some parts might be too graphic for more sensitive readers. The final part of the novel is pure imaginative Sci-Fi. It seems that this sudden change into another world has everything to do with the story but at the same time, it was a bit confusing. It was difficult to keep the characters straight and the way the plot jumped from present to past was tough to read without a program. The author has written two true-crime books so he knows his subject well and he was also clearly able to deal with the Sci-Fi plots. I surely give him a lot of credit for his writing.

Quill says: An extremely dark story that was very well-written, if a bit confusing in parts.

Book Review - Travels of the Mind

Travels of the Mind

By: Ettore Grillo
Publisher: Eloquent Books
Publication Date: September 2009
ISBN: 978-1-60860-657-3
Reviewed by: Amy Lignor
Review Date: March 2012

Writing has long been a coping mechanism. Whether ‘speaking’ to readers in a fictional sense by introducing distant locations and mystical beings; or, by taking the reader’s hand and entering a very real world made up of negatives, a writer gives themselves and others the ability to cope, enjoy life, and find reason in a world that’s chaotic.

In this brilliantly written book, Ettore Grillo finds a way to overcome the paranoia and extreme phobias that were causing him to live a life that felt as if it were an impossible feat. This autobiography offers a writer who tells the truth, and finds a way to show that paranoid schizophrenia is far more than a medical term - it’s a harsh condition that isolates a human from all others. He lived inside a ‘cavern’ that brought him nothing but conflict and anxiety, yet when he began his spiritual quest life, once again, became not only possible - but worth living.

The very first look at Ettore is one of his earliest remembrances. He was a five-year-old child living in an amazingly grey world. You must understand that this was the 1940’s and uniformed men were marching around his neighborhood. The scene was nothing but a wasteland, as almost everything around him had been destroyed by the bombings in WWII. But a story that he overhead his parents talking about - a pair of young murderers - was what truly sank into the child’s mind. He became frightened beyond belief of those particular killers, and when Ettore saw the prison where they were being held, his paranoia grew.
The fear of death is something that a great many people feel to their very core. They want answers; they look for a spiritual side to all of this destruction and work to uncover a way to go on in the ‘real’ world, not trusting the fact that there is ‘another place’ that will someday receive them.

Ettore was privy to many stories told from a group called The Circle of Noblemen, a group that his Uncle Salvatore was a part of. Conversations were held between members - from Lorenzo, who was a teacher of literature, to a rich landowner by the name of Mario, who had his own tale to weave. Each one of these men spoke about their travels and how their journeys to various locations, and what they found there - romance, horror, greed, etc. - became a part of them. Ettore used these journeys as a way to restore his energy, peace, and his own inner-strength.

Readers will be so mesmerized by the in-depth and colorful images they’ll actually ‘feel’ as if they’re standing by Mario in a Paravati courtroom with another of the Noblemen, or beside his Uncle Salvatore when he finds himself in Africa. Through two more journeys, readers will also be immersed in all facets of the spiritual world - from Christianity to Buddhism. This author has taken his own trials and turned them into a book that will not only entertain and aid other people in their own quests, but offer a better understanding of how the mind works.

Quill Says: This is a truly memorable journey of the mind, heart and soul!

To learn more about Travels of the Mind, please visit the author's website at: www.ettoregrillo.com

Book Review - Ghost Train to Freedom

Ghost Train to Freedom (An Adventure on the Underground Railroad)

By: Faith Reese Martin
Publisher: American Literary Publishing
Publication Date: June 2012
ISBN: 978-1-60800-014-2
Reviewed by: Amy Lignor
Review Date: March 2012

From page one this amazing historical YA offers everything to the reader. From the paranormal aspect of time traveling to the 1850’s and the world of slavery, this plot offers something for everyone - teen and adult.

There is an organization called the JMP History Mystery Detective Agency made up of Jinx - a great girl who has a very important gift; her best friend, Max, who has the gift as well but is still learning all the ins-and-outs of time travel; a dog named Petey, and a cat named Poppy, whose thoughts can be heard by the teenagers. Together, this quartet has the ability to be ‘called’ back in time to solve mysteries of all kinds.
In this first novel of the series Jinx has a dream, a frightening dream about two boys who are sold by their “Master” in order to settle a gambling debt he owes. The boys will be taken away from their beloved father, down to the Deep South, where they will work as house slaves in Georgia. The father and uncle of the boys are beyond hurt and frightened, yet determined to do whatever they can to get these boys back. Enter…Jinx.

On her Aunt Merry’s farm in Pennsylvania, Jinx and Max are on a vacation of sorts. They are sitting out in the field under the starlight with their dog and cat, listening to the crickets. There is, however, one sound that shouldn’t be heard - a train whistle in the distance. A whistle that calls out to them for help.
When Jinx and Max travel back in time, they find themselves still on Aunt Merry’s farm - but in the 1850’s when it was owned by a nice married couple named John and Mary, and was a stop on the Underground Railroad. Jinx and Max meet up with the father and uncle on the run from Jinx’s vision, and they promise to do whatever they can to rescue the boys who were sent away.

As their adventure continues, they run into some amazing characters from history, and follow the ‘ghost train’ backwards in order to head into the Deep South. Using a quilt, a vision and each other - Max and Jinx find themselves on the ultimate adventure that involves famous people who helped others gain their freedom at all costs, including the amazing Ellen Craft, who actually disguised herself as an invalid white man traveling with her servant in order to gain freedom for herself and her husband. From the slave ships that sold men, women and children like cattle to the ultimate fighters who sacrificed a great deal and lost their lives in the fight for freedom - this author has not missed a thing.

Not only is this story exciting, and a true lesson in how faith and beauty can come from the depths of sadness and inequality, but the book also adds maps, historical backgrounds, and a beautiful quilt with explanations and pictures that truly tells the tale of slavery, and the hardships humans had to go through in order to get what was rightfully theirs. Another fantastic fact? There will be more JMP adventures to come!

Quill says: A great YA that hopefully will grow a large audience. All children (and adults) should follow Jinx and Max on their truly amazing adventure.

How To Build A List Of Readers

Here's a helpful article for those who are about to, or are thinking of, publishing a book.  How do you build a list of readers?   How To Build A List Of Readers For Your Next Book Launch