New Gift book, Passing Shadows, features color photos and haiku poems 
Passing Shadows, a collection of poignant three-line haiku poems, each illustrated with surprising photos and watercolor paintings, is the third of a series of joy-centered books by author and artist Mary O’Connor. Reflective and at times amusing, this latest book illustrates how to uncover unexpected moments of calmness through musings on ordinary, everyday objects. 
Finding a measure of quietude is what this book is all about. Full-color photographic as well as painted images, including four pet portraits, are offered as meditative stopping points, reasons to pause and to think of the subject’s lure. Accompanying each visual image is a verbal reflection expressed in the ancient Japanese poetic haiku format. 
Haikus use the barest minimum of words, structured in three lines of five-seven-five syllables, to depict a single moment in time through colorful mental imagery and natural world reference. Hallmark of a haiku is its delivery in just one breath of an unexpected sense of illumination. It is this ability to inspire fresh thought, to provide moments of ahhh, that the author delivers in Passing Shadows. 
O’Connor lives along the Connecticut shoreline, the source of inspiration for much of her creative work, which typically turns to nature for vision. As throughout the book’s content, she has a way offinding sunlight in the ordinary and drawing it out in surprising, thought-provoking observations. 
Take for example, the 15-word haiku “Birth.” Illustrated with the warm pink petal of a tulip lit by a shaft of sunlight, she simply writes, “life gives birth to spring/little trace of winter stress/just stretch marks of light.” 
Or, with a wry sense of humor, she shows a seagull pecking at a broken clam shell and comments, “the half-eaten dish/to be served tomorrow/blessed leftovers.” Or, when she catches the stare of a bad-humored grackle, she chides, “blinded by temper/ability to laugh gone/better to calm down.” 
It is such a focus on finding the lessons of the commonplace and expressing them in words that deliver insight, amusement, peace and calm that defines this book. 
All proceeds from the sale of Passing Shadows will be donated to the nonprofit Warrior Expeditions (www.warriorexpeditions.org) in support of its therapeutic programs that help veterans transition from their wartime experiences through long distance outdoor expeditions.

Passing Shadows: Images and Words of Inspiration

Literature & Fiction

O'Connor, Mary

Poetry

Station Square Media

Updraft: The Aerodynamics of Great Leadership

Speaking directly to business owners and executives, Updraft  asks, “Are you leading your organization to new heights — or is your company stuck on the ground?” So many leaders are exhausted and frustrated – they are expending far too much energy — and in the wrong places. Updraft seeks to change readers’ understanding of leadership, emphasizing its connection to and impact on organizational performance.    In the same way that geese in a v-formation support each other and the progress of the entire flock with the updraft that comes off their wingtips, leadership can create its own updraft by inspiring the passion, coordination and teamwork that leads to stellar performance on both the individual and organizational levels. Thought-provoking and engaging, Updraft combines fresh perspectives, real-life examples and practical advice on how you can transform your own organization, inspiring you to take it to new heights.

Business & Money

Jacquelyn S. Freedman

Business Culture

Are you struggling to turn your great idea into an even better novel? Learn how to craft a compelling story right from the start. 
Is your dream of writing a novel sitting in a desk drawer or in a forgotten folder of your computer? Have you spent countless hours on endless draft revisions without making much progress? Have you given up hope of writing a manuscript you can truly be proud of? Today’s the day to take charge of your writing career. Let veteran book editor Diane O’Connell show you how. 
Drawing on her years of experience working with novelists for a major publishing house, O’Connell’s guide is a must-read if you want to improve your storytelling. While most books on writing are written by authors, the award-winning The Novel-Maker’s Handbook is different. Experienced editors know that successful books aren’t just about technique. You need to create a compelling story arc and pitch it in a way that gets noticed. O’Connell’s gem is the only book that provides first-time novelists with a proven system for writing a book in less time while improving all facets of your storytelling. In The Novel-Maker’s Handbook, you’ll discover: <ul>
<li>How to write your novel with ease to get your book right the first time</li>
<li>How to fully understand the techniques needed to polish your novel into a must-read</li>
<li>How to draw from the tactics of bestselling authors to write your own page-turners</li>
<li>How to identify your weak spots and exactly what to do to fix them</li>
<li>How to build life-long skills as a writer, and much, much more! </li>
</ul>
Whether you want to prepare for National Novel Writing Month or simply try to improve your craft, The Novel-Maker’s Handbook will help you grow in your quest to become a published novelist. If you like straightforward, insightful, and razor-sharp writing guides, then you’ll love Diane O’Connell’s career-changing book. 
Buy The Novel-Maker’s Handbook to start building your great novel today!

The Novel-Maker's Handbook: the no-nonsense guide to crafting a marketable story

Reference

O'Connell, Diane

Writing, Research & Publishing Guides

Matthew O¿Connell¿s intriguing and compelling mystery, Spirit of the Fox, draws on the culture and history of Japan. 
Meiko, whose parents, David and Chieko, are divorced, doesn¿t feel like she fits in¿either in San Diego, where she grew up with her father, or in Japan, where she¿s teaching English and learning about her mother¿s homeland. 
After years of painful separation, Meiko and her mother start to rebuild their relationship. But then, Meiko takes a trip to Kyoto and disappears. When Meiko¿s picture is found with a businessman who jumped out of a window, her parents work to figure out who is behind her disappearance, and why she is being connected to suicides. 
In the course of their investigation, they learn about the historical significance of foxes in Japanese culture. Chieko¿s mother, Aiko, becomes convinced that Meiko¿s involvement with various businessmen isn¿t a coincidence, but is instead connected to Japanese folklore about fox possession. Elsewhere, Meiko struggles to remember who she is before her alter ego, Hana, takes over entirely.

Spirit of the Fox

O'Connell, Matthew

Genre Fiction

Become a master of the “now what?” moment. As a leader, you know that complexity, responsibility, change, and uncertainty come with the job. How you manage uncertainty sends a big ripple through your organization. Learning how “to be” when the answer is unclear may be the most important leadership muscle you need to build. Leadership expert Brenda Reynolds equips you with information, strategies, and real-life examples that will grow your confidence and hone your leadership skills. TBD will help you find power and clarity in the midst of any change. Discover how to: -Lead others through the challenges of change and emotions of transition -Navigate “Transition Fog” and transform uncertainty into opportunity -Exercise powerful options for times when you feel powerless

TBD-To Be Determined: Leading With Clarity and Confidence in Uncertain Times

Reynolds, Brenda Kline

5 FROGS Transformation Journal

Self-Help

Journal Writing

As China began to embrace the modern world in the 1980s, one man found the courage to claim his future.For as long as he could remember, Cape Cod native Andrew Singer had been drawn to the rich culture and time-honored tradition of the mysterious land on the other side of the world. In the decade after the communist government reopened its borders to Americans, Singer follows his childhood dreams to the streets, alleys, and byways of the one-billion strong People’s Republic of China. But the college junior soon finds himself paralyzed with culture shock and a staggering language barrier. All around him, a nascent economic revolution holds the potential of ushering in an age of stability and prosperity after more than a century of suffering and stagnation. In the midst of China’s seismic growing pains, Singer faces unexpected difficulties and obstacles with the heart of a traveler. Through new friendships, new love, and breathtaking expeditions from the majestic Great Wall to Confucius’ final resting place, he undergoes his own transformation. Before closing the book on his study abroad, Singer must discover the courage to live his own life without boundaries. In China Sings to Me: A Journey into the Middle Kingdom and Myself, you’ll discover: - Firsthand accounts of the seismic cultural and economic shifts rocking China in the mid-1980s- Panoramic descriptions of the fascinating places he visited including Inner Mongolia, Shanghai, and the Sichuan region- A brief history of the cultural and economic movements of the era and their lasting impact - Unexpected difficulties and obstacles Andrew faced with local bureaucracy - Personal reflections on the transformational power the experience had on his life, and much, much more!China Sings to Me: A Journey into the Middle Kingdom and Myself is a coming-of-age memoir about the power of finding your true self in a foreign land. If you like Chinese culture, journeys of self-discovery, and on-the-ground accounts of historical change, then you’ll love Andrew Singer’s Asian adventure. Buy China Sings to Me to explore a man and a country's soul-searching journey today!

China Sings to Me: A Journey into the Middle Kingdom and Myself

Biographies & Memoirs

Singer, Andrew

Community & Culture

Honey Spy

Lowe, Gerald

Growing up in an oil “camp” in Saudi Arabia provided lots of exotic experiences, round-the-world travel, and, yet, somehow, a recognizable American childhood.On a steamy August day in 1953, Rick Snedeker, then just three years old, stepped off an Arabian American Oil Co. (Aramco) company airliner with his family into a life as different from what they left behind as sandpaper is to silk.It was to prove fabulously exotic and at the same time just like “home” in many ways.In his charming memoir — 3,001 Arabian Days: Growing up in an American Oil Camp in Saudi Arabia (1953-1962) — author Snedeker describes via a series of vignettes his fond and strange remembrances of living for nearly a decade in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia. Aramco, then the fledgling national oil company, was in those years run by several American oil giants including Standard Oil, and was hastily hiring American experts to develop the far-flung Saudi oil fields. To ease life for the new residents, Aramco built comfortable communities, some aspects of which were reminiscent of how families lived in the States.While a child, Snedeker considered the camels, endless sand dunes and kindly Saudis that filled his childhood in the desert as nothing unusual. Kids enjoyed the live Nativity pageants at King’s Road baseball field; Santa’s arrival on a camel or by helicopter at Christmas; the crowded, boisterous annual tri-camp desert fairs; Pep Flakes cereal, powdered whole milk, and chocolate milkshakes churned in his dad’s new-fangled Waring blender; the Dining Hall’s culinary delights. Then, too, Aramcons occasionally had to confront dangerous diseases, some unknown in America (polio, for example, ravaged Dhahran children in the fifties). But everywhere, watchful eyes looked out for the kids, creating an enveloping sense of safety and security and, Snedeker recalls, a great deal of happiness.Aramco provided generous biannual “long vacations,” allowing round-the-world travel to visit the planet’s most glittering metropolises, unusual getaways and remote hideaways. London. Hong Kong. Zurich. Honolulu. Asmara. Bangkok. Venice. Hofuf. Bahrain. New York City.Being raised in the unique, exotic environment of oil-camp Dhahran made the kids who grew up there different from other American children. When the expatriate Aramco dependents returned to the U.S., they were often seen as “other” by their untraveled peers. But it all turned out fine, as the entertaining read of 3,001 Arabian Days makes clear.

3,001 Arabian Days: Growing Up in an American Oil Camp in Saudi Arabia (1953-1962) A Memoir

Snedeker, Rick

A brief historial account of how Christianity became so embedded in American culture from the colonial era to day that most Americans are hardly aware of its ubiquity and socio-political influence. The nonfiction book examines how because the first decades of settlementin the New World brought mostly European Protestant Christians, their faith and cultural ways spread rapidly in the new country, and remained dominant into the 21st century. This historical reality has resulted in a society of unconscious Christian privilege and persistent efforts to embed the faith ever deeper into the nation's public square and governmental politics. The Constitution, however, as the Founding Fathers intended, prohibits faith's coercive influence on government. There is a rational way to right this ship of state, but it won't be politically easy.

Holy Smoke: How Christianity Smothered the American Dream

Religion & Spirituality

Atheism

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