Shelf Unbound October/November 2015

OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2015

GLOBAL 1 what to read next in independent publishing SEPTEMBER 2010

From Author William Diebold

A thrilling tale of love and devotion as four Chicago friends search for an ancient treasure.

The exciting Sequel to Thap Cham

A

n ancient Queen from Southeast Asia, fleeing a falling empire leaves behind the remaining wealth and heritage of that kingdom hidden in a cave near Thap Cham (pronounced “Top Chom”), Vietnam. A Vietnam War photographer and three of his friends in Chicago become entangled in a story of intrigue, love and betrayal as they find a surprising connection to the ancient queen and her treasure. Their quest leads them straight into the arms of an evil despot who seeks to control and rule this ancient land and they discover that appearances are often deceiving. What happens next, and the love and loyalty between these friends is what this story is all about.

“The detailed fictional characters made me care about their situations as well as their back stories, a rare experience in the suspense genre. However, this novel doesn’t really fit into any narrow genre - its wide ranging locations and time periods take it into “epic” territory.

Recommended highly. ” —Dk Mercer

www.debold.com www.thapcham.com

Available at

F

or thousands of years the earth has held a secret that promised prosperity and power to whom it is revealed. Civilizations have come and gone and mankind has contrived ever more intelligent ways to prey on each other. Yet the secret remained until recently. A professor of archeological studies discovered a link to that secret and it led him to Siem Kulea where Jack and Mai have settled. The bond of love between Jack and Mai is never tested but the peace of their valley is as evil adversaries seek the means to open the magnificent and mysterious door hidden below the White Palace. It becomes a surprising and thrilling contest that takes them around the world to see who finds the answer first in this all-or-nothing contest.

staff

Margaret Brown fo u n d e r a n d p u b l i sh e r Anna Nair edito r i n ch i e f Christina Davidson c re a t i ve d i re c tor Ben Minton circ u l a t i on ma n a g e r Patricia McClain c o py e d i to r Marc Schuster c o n t r i b u t i n g e d i tor Morgan Siem c on su l ta n t , soc i a l me d i a

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Kasia Piasecka so c i a l me d i a ma n a g e r Jane Miller ac c o u n t i n g ma n a g e r For a dve r tising inqu ir ie s: c al l 2 14.704.4182 or e- mail m a rga ret@ s he l fm e di agrou p.c om For editor ial inqu ir ie s: e- mail m a rga ret@ s he l fm e di agrou p.c om or write to Shelf U nbou nd, P O B ox 852321 R ich ard s on, TX 75085

Photograph: from The One Before by Juan JosĂŠ Saer, translated from the Spanish by Roanne L. Kantor, Open Letter Books, openletterbooks.org.

what to read next in independent publishing

october/november

contents

DEPARTMENTS

8

translated from the Spanish The Things We Don’t Do interview with Andrés Neuman

14

translated from the French Captive interview with Claudine Dumont and translater David Scott Hamilton

30

The World Between Two Covers: Reading the Globe interview with Ann Morgan

62

best translated book award a survey of the 2015 fiction finalists

4

a note from the publisher

6

shelf media podcast

20

recommended reading

76

my self-publishing journey

78

dystopian fangirl

80

poetry

82

on our shelf

84

small press reviews

86

last words

87 contributors On the cover: photo by Denis Lincoln www.redcentphotography.com

Artwork: Street of Thieves by Mathias Énard translated from the French by Charlotte Mandell, France, Open Letter Books Granma Nineteen and the Soviet’s Secret

by Ondjaki, translated from the Portuguese by Stephen Henighan, Angola, Biblioasis

www.ericjlarge.com

This book is an intriguing expose of the difficult relationship of First Nation peoples of Canada and

benefits of Treaty. Former Chief Eric John Large of

Large contributes to a vibrant debate when he criticizes the Canadian government’s position toward natives like himself, who lived through the Indian Residential School experience.

Saddle Lake Cree Nation chronicles his views of

—BlueInk Review

the Canadian State, government legislation, court decisions, policies, and practices that affect First Nation’s inherent rights, Treaty relationship, and

Indigenous identity, relationship to the land, court decisions affecting First Nation’s rights and interests in health, education, and the misguided federal Indian policy of control and assimilation through Indian residential schools. Former Chief Large discusses challenges resulting from the strained First Nation and Canada relationship that makes reconciliation very difficult for his peoples.

Large’s expertise, compassion… and credibility, make Selected Contemporary Native Issues in Canada an invaluable addition to the library of any person or institution interested in…Canadian First Nations issues….

—Clarion Review

a word from the

publisher

W

READ GLOBAL

e live in a global world. This magazine is read in more than 70 countries. Through the website Fiverr, I recently contracted with a woman in Bosnia to do some sound editing on the Shelf Media Podcast. We just closed the entry period for our annual writing competition for best indie book (winners and finalists in the next issue!), and we’ve received books from Israel, Ireland, France, and more. And, of course, every day in the news we read about and try to understand events all around the world.

And yet, just three percent of the books published in this country every year are translated from other languages. Three Percent, a website from the University of Rochester (rochester.edu), publishes and promotes books in translation. In their words: “In this age of globalization, one of the best ways to preserve the uniqueness of cultures is through the translation and appreciation of international literary works.”

Three Percent is a great resource for finding books in translation; they also host one of my favorite podcasts: Three Percent Podcast. Another place to start your global reading journey is Ann Morgan’s The World Between Two Covers: Reading the Globe, recounting the year she spent reading a book from every United Nations-recognized country. In our interview with Morgan, she talks about realizing she was a “literary xenophobe.” “World literature can sometimes, erroneously, seem like a strange subset of literature that is a bit daunting or perhaps not as good as our homegrown works,” she says. “In my case, I remember worrying that I wouldn’t have the cultural awareness to understand books from other places fully, which is a shame because there’s so much richness and wonder out there.”

If you have yet to discover the richness and wonder of reading global, I encourage you to pick out a book in this issue and start your journey.

Margaret Brown publisher

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OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2015

Photograph: Belinda Baldwin

It’s a Sin to Be Boring is a

biographical-historical fiction that unravels the complexity of a family, where the actions of one touch the lives of others. The main character, Rebelle Palatine, born in Ohio, marries her high school sweetheart during World War II. While she yearns for the war to be over, she achieves her perfect job—modeling at a major department store in New York City. Only one thing throws a roadblock to her happiness—specifically the Battle of the Bulge. The contemporary political influences that constrain and mold the environment burrow like worms into the everyday workings of life. The family story unfolds. The Progressive movement, a political cancer that eats away at the American dream of liberty and freedom, runs parallel to the actions of those individuals who understand and protect the Constitution. Through the shadows of destruction rises a life of success, self-reliance, responsibility, and love. It’s a Sin to Be Boring opens a window on history and a reminder that actions have consequences.

www.NancySingletaryAuthor.com

Now Available on

In the first Shelf Media Podcast, publisher

Margaret Brown talks to author Matt Bell about his three books and about writing, teaching the craft of writing, and his

forthcoming novel. She also talks to book reviewers David Rice and Michele Filgate about Bell’s most recent novel, In the House Upon the Dirt Between the Lake and the Woods.

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OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2015

N

ear the top of Mount Everest, on 10 May 1996, eight climbers died. It was the worst tragedy in the mountain’s history.

Lou Kasischke was there.

Now he tells the harrowing story of what went wrong, as it has never been told before—including why the climbers were desperately late and out of time. His personal story, captured in the title After The Wind, tells about intense moments near the top. The moments that revealed the love story that saved his life.

“A vivid, intimate memoir that, with great clarity and attention to detail, tells an unforgettable survival story.”

Kirkus Reviews (starred review) Kirkus’Indie Books of the Month Selection

“A thorough analysis of the 1996 Everest disaster…and the best preparation for my Everest ascent.”

Jean Pavillard, IFMGA Swiss Mountain Guide

“After The Wind is a thoughtful, well-written love story of Kasischke’s dedication to his wife and anchor Sandy and his passion for climbing. It delivers an edge-ofyour-seat description of navigating and mountaineering Everest and is punctuated with beautiful illustrations nestled in each chapter.

Those new to the story, as well as anyone hooked on Krakauer’s original tale, will find After The Wind an engrossing read.”

BlueInk Reviews (starred review)

Available at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and at local bookstores in hardcover, ebook, and soft cover (international edition only) formats.

WWW.AFTERTHEWIND.COM

feature

interview

Neuman wryly explores the human condition in this taut collection of short stories.

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OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2015

by AndrĂŠs Neuman Open Letter Books openletterbooks.org

Photography: Marcelo Pedroza

Shelf Unbound: What is your process for creating a story such as “Barefoot,” about a man’s father dying, which is rich with narrative and meaning and emotion but spans barely more than a page?

Andrés Neuman: To start with, I’ve always been fascinated by the expressive possibilities of the brevity to convey complex conflicts. Perhaps something brief is not the same as— and might actually be the opposite of—something short. While a brief text ends just in time, a short one stops too early. That nuance has obsessed me since I started writing poetry when I was a child.

Secondly, I feel that, in certain radical circumstances, both in life and writing, silence can be quite more persuasive that emphasis. I’m not sure that pain admits much rhetoric. In every ellipsis, a tragedy can be told with precision and respect. In other words, as long as it is worked poetically, a gap is a potential source of shock.

Last but not least, there was a

personal experience hidden (and transformed) behind that short story.

When I was very young, almost an adolescent, my father had to have an operation to save his life. While that surgery was being performed some nurse, not quite delicately, brought me a black plastic bag (one of those typically used for garbage) with my father’s shoes. Holding it, perplexed, I immediately felt how that garbage bag had just changed my life.

Shelf Unbound: One of my favorite stories in the book is “How to Swim with Her,” about a boy impulsively embarking on a long, dangerous swim with the slightly older, beautiful Anabela. What was your starting point for that story and how did it develop?

Neuman: To my eyes, a beach is a place of desire but, above all, an interesting stage for everything that does not happen to us. Many people have spent their summers and grown up on some beach, spying on unattainable bodies and pleading

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9

with time to run faster. That is why a beach is something of an immense blank page.

I remember, one summer, that an older girl that I had fallen in love with entered the sea. I ran after her and, without being noticed, started to imitate her movements in the water. If she lifted one arm, I would lift mine. If she spun round, I spun round too. Like some choreography at a distance. We swam that way, accidentally together, until a tiny green stain came to me through the waves. It was much more than a fish: It was the upper half of a bikini. I turned towards my imaginary love and I found her searching in all directions, with a displeased grimace on her face. I quickly hid that lightness inside my swimming suit and swam back to the shore. A while later I saw her emerging, covering her chest with both hands and laughing for someone else...This old anecdote is not the short story in the book, but that tiny fetish somehow summarizes the particular mixture between desire and loss, presence

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OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2015

and absence, of what we call fiction.

While in the short story Anabela is older than the narrator and certainly a brave girl, I find very interesting the poetical mechanism through which readers tend to picture her as a beautiful girl as well, even though almost no physical description is actually provided in the text. That unmatchable capacity of suggestion of the written word is one of the reasons why I need literature more than anything. At least as I read her, Anabela’s character works at once as an improbable goal for the younger kid, as well as a dreamy phantasy and perhaps as a sort of Jamesian ghost. I mean, is she really right there with him, swimming at his side as he had always fancied? Have they entered the sea together at all? Only Anabela knows.

Shelf Unbound: And how about “Monologue of the Monster,� in which a man who shot and killed a child unemotionally discusses his impulse to shoot. Where did that character come from?

Neuman: What interests me the most about monologues is that, as a moral-linguistic resource, they allow you to come out temporarily from your own beliefs and ways of representing them. In other words, a fictional monologue is a powerful method of transporting from Myself to the Other. This is something that theatre has been doing from the very beginning: the voice as a transformation project.

That text you mention was particularly hard to write. Not because of the prose, but because of its point of view. Instead of condemning from the outside an obviously condemnable fact, I was trying to imagine for a minute what someone able to commit such an atrocity might actually say to himself. Would he justify himself in some unpredictable way? Would he claim that everything was a terrible misunderstanding? Would he try to put the blame on someone else? I thought that by exploring the reasoning of a person like that I might detect some logic that we

all—fortunately in a much smaller and less harmful scale—tend to use in order to absolve ourselves of our worst acts. Therefore in this text, paradoxically, brevity was also a mode of exaggeration.

Shelf Unbound: You end the book with “bonus tracks: dodecalogues from a storyteller.” The first one is “To tell a short story is to know how to keep a secret.” What do you mean by that?

Neuman: Those four dodecalogues at the end of the book don’t intend, of course, to be rules or anything close to prescriptive. They are rather personal observations about the writing process. Each set contains twelve points precisely to avoid the pretentious, legendary perfection of ten. My dodecalogues would like to be, in few words, a playful way of reflecting on short forms.

That particular point you mention, “To tell a short story is to know how to keep a secret,” belongs to the first of the dodecalogues,

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11

which basically tries to condense some of the features of the classical short story. That tradition, we could say, which goes from Chekhov to Carver with Hemingway in between. Not necessarily my favorite tradition to write nowadays, after being studied and imitated in so many workshops, but obviously a very relevant one. For this elliptical approach to the narration, the main goal doesn’t seem to be unveiling some mystery, but rather protecting that mystery. And therefore, very wisely, it avoids putting all the weight on the ending, which tends to leave some untouched secret in the reader’s mind. To tell or not to tell— the worried skull mumbles.

Shelf Unbound: This book was translated from the Spanish

by Nick Caistor and Lorenza Garcia. To what degree were you involved in the translation process and how did that work?

Neuman: I am lucky enough to have a close relationship with my usual translators, who are by

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OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2015

the way very nice people. Being an occasional translator myself (I translate mostly poetry from English and French), I find that link extremely enriching. They normally allow me to have a look to the first draft when it is ready, and then we spend an intense couple of months exchanging all kind of remarks, queries and nuances about both texts. There can easily be about a thousand comments in total. That process, I suspect, is as exhausting and exciting for them as it is for me.

I love (and fear) so much that period when your whole book is being literally rewritten in another language, that I often end up retranslating the original itself from its English version, whenever I find some of my translators’ solutions particularly interesting. In other words, I become the translator of my translators, who are simultaneously turned into the original authors. So we could say that, every time a book gets translated, not only its multiple senses but even its original text are happily modified.

You’ll rest in peace when we tell you, you can.

The End

is John Crawley’s 15th novel: this one truly deals with life and death.

Your final act in life is to ask your estranged brother—your only next of kin—to do one last thing for you—let you die in peace. But he refuses. He can’t, fulfill your requests because God and the Catholic Church are standing in the way. He is a priest and his faith and duty to his calling won’t allow it. And you do not share his theology. And he doesn’t approve your lifestyle. After all, you are lesbian and he is God’s pious servant.

You haven’t talked in twenty years.

And here it is on your deathbed he holds all the power over you. Death with Dignity is the premise of John Crawley’s 15th novel, The End.

w w w.johncrawleybooks.com Available at Amazon, iBooks.com, BarnesandNoble.com, and Lulu

feature

interview

A can’t-put-it-down existential thriller from debut novelist Claudine Dumont.

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OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2015

by Claudine Dumont translated from the French

by David Scott Hamilton House of Anansi houseofanansi.com

Shelf Unbound: In Captive, a young woman with a dull job who has isolated herself from friends and family and drinks herself to sleep each night is captured from her apartment and wakes up in a sealed room.

The setup is a contemporary spin on Sartre’s No Exit, and Captive likewise explores existential themes. What brought you to the idea of placing Emma in her concrete box?

Claudine Dumont: I put Emma in the box because I wanted to have full control over what happened to her; it was easier to imagine what could be done to accomplish the end game (life rehabilitation) with that setting.

And it was also a good way to bring the strength of adaptation that could sometimes be misconstrued for weakness or apathy.

Shelf Unbound: Emma eventually begins to adapt, running laps around the

small room, doing push-ups, drawing on the wall. Her life seems fuller than it was before she was captured. Do you think she has a conscious awareness of this difference?

Dumont: Emma is not aware of what this capability of adaptation has done to her life. I wanted to explore the fact that once we adapt to a situation, we don’t see the unacceptable in it anymore. If the empty box permits her to obtain a kind of fuller life, it may be because when you get rid of everything superficial, it leaves space for the necessary.

Shelf Unbound: The ending of the book is a shock, and I won’t give it away. But did you plan that ending from the start and if so did you ever consider going in a different direction with the ending?

Dumont: The ending was decided from the start. I was reading A Million Little Pieces by James Frey, and at the beginning, when

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15

he contemplates another stay in a rehabilitation facility for his drug and alcohol addictions, I grimly thought: There should be facilities that provide rehabilitation for people who are simply wasting their life away without any kind of addiction, just by letting time slip by without doing anything meaningful for themselves. And that was the ending right there.

Shelf Unbound: You’re a portrait photographer as well.

What do you find similar about taking a portrait of a person and writing a portrait of a character?

Dumont: I think that photography is the faster, easier, and more interactive way to paint a character.

But I use words the same way I use digital pixels: to create (hopefully) emotional responses.

My second novel was released in French on September 17. It is called La petite fille qui aimait Stephen King (The little girl who loved Stephen King). It’s the story of two

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OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2015

sisters and to what extreme their love for one another can go to. It’s also an homage to my favorite writer. I sure hope this one will be translated

by David too!

An Interview with the Translator, David Scott Hamilton Shelf Unbound: You’ve translated female authors in the past. What do you particularly pay attention to when translating women to make sure that you keep whatever is feminine in their voice?

David Scott Hamilton: For me the goal is always authenticity, regardless of the gender of the author, narrator or character. I simply don’t accept the feminist argument that my “male gaze” constrains my ability to render a feminine voice accurately and evocatively. Fiction is a work of imagination which demands a deep identification with the world and translating a feminine

THE PETE DELOHERY AWARD FOR BEST SPORTS BOOK UNBOUND FOURTH ANNUAL WFOR RITING CBEST ONTEST CATAGORY THE PETESHELF DELOHERY AWARD SPORTS BOOK

SHELF UNBOUND FOURTH ANNUAL WRITING CONTEST CATEGORY

Lamb to the Slaughter written by Lamb o the Slaughter wa ritten Pete Dtelohery is a novel bout by Pete elohery is a snin ovel about love aDnd courage, and love and courage, sin and redemption. redemption.

“Set against the vividly rendered backdrop of professional boxing, “Set against the vividly rendered Pete Delohery’s hard-bitten yet backdrop of professional boxing, generous-spirited novel focuses Pete Delohery’s hard-bitten yet on three men at a moral crossroad generous-spirited novel focuses in on their lives. three men at a moral crossroad in

Available on Amazon, B&N and Available on Amazon, &N and petedelohery.com in eBbook, petedelohery.com in ebook, paperback and hardback. paperback and hardback.

ALSO in Spanish: El cordero al

their lives.portrait is created of the A moving men, each damaged by a brutal A moving portrait is created of the world, who flee from personal men, each damaged by a brutal demons toward the only imperfect world, who flee from personal redemption available to them, victory demons toward the only imperfect in a fight.” redemption available to them, victory in a fight.”

“This heartfelt tale makes a powerful emotional impact.

“This heartfelt tale” makes a powerful emotional ” Review —Blue Inkimpact.

Starred —Blue Ink Starred Review “If you love boxing, you’ll love this book. If you

ALSO in Spanish: El cordero al

matadero

don’t you’lllove lovethis thebook. storiesIf and “If youlove love boxing, boxing, you’ll you characters. “ don’t love boxing, you’ll love the stories and

matadero

characters.

—Karsun “ —Karsun

THE PETE DELOHERY AWARD FOR BEST SPORTS BOOK SHELF UNBOUND FOURTH ANNUAL WRITING CONTEST CATEGORY

voice demands that type of deep identification.

Shelf Unbound: Dumont’s writing is very stylized—lots of short phrases. Does the experience of reading these short phrases feel different in French than in English (which by its nature is more concise)?

Hamilton: I don’t think so.

Dumont’s prose is so stripped down, free of artifice and embellishment that it achieves a similar concision in the French, which transfers into English quite closely.

Shelf Unbound: I believe you find great joy in translating.

What is the joy of it for you?

Hamilton: You’re absolutely right.

I derive an exquisite pleasure from this work. I think it’s because literary translation is, at its core, a slow and meticulous performance art, much akin to the performance of a long and complex musical score. I was once an aspiring young musician, but I abandoned those dreams

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OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2015

because I could never “get it right.”

The beauty of performing a literary text is watching your interpretation of the composer’s work unfold before you, but most importantly, having the time to get it right.

Shelf Unbound: What have you learned about the art of writing through translating other writer’s works?

Hamilton: Humility. As a writer, translating the work of others puts me in an interesting situation. The work I produce is mine but it’s not mine, and my authorship will remain invisible to most readers, as it arguably should. What I can claim as mine is the integrity of the English text, which demands a mastery of all the elements of style that comprise that text. In a sense, a literary translation is an exercise in pure style and, more than anything, writing through the eyes and voices of other writers has allowed me to convey the tone, colour and rhythm of a given text with greater confidence.

FROM AUTHOR NLB HORTON

WHEN CAMELS FLY When archaeologist Grace Madison’s adult daughter is kidnapped in Israel, Grace knows she’ll have to break almost all Ten Commandments to bring her home alive.

“A superbly crafted combination of romance and suspense, When Camels Fly is a riveting read from first page to last. Very highly recommended for personal reading lists and community library collections.”

—Small Press Bookwatch, a division of Midwest Book Review

“Page-turning international suspense—this writer is on her way up.”

—DiAnn Mills, Christie Award winning author 2015 Readers’ Favorite winner, General Christian Fiction

THE BROTHERS’ KEEPERS When a dear friend disappears without warning, archaeologist Grace Madison exposes his deadly deception—only to realize that it endangers everything she cherishes.

“Exceptionally developed characters, vividly described locales, pedal-to-the-metal pacing, and nonstop action and adventure—all powered by a subtle spiritual undertone— make The Brothers’ Keepers a page-turner of the highest order.

Like 007 breaking The Da Vinci Code.”

—Kirkus Reviews 2014 LYRA Award (second place winner)

WWW.NLBHORTON.COM

excerpts

SHELF UNBOUND’S

RECOMMENDED

READING Take a bite from your next favorite book.

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION 20

OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2015

House of the Last Man on Earth

by Robert B. Marcus, Jr. and Ryan B. Marcus www.rbmarcusjr.com

I

’ve had better Wednesdays.

On Wednesdays, I’m supposed to awaken with the blaring of my alarm clock at seven. I get up, dress quickly, dash to campus, stare at Mrs. Jacklyn in set theory class, fall asleep in Mechanics 1, eat lunch, and study in the afternoon, before ending the day at band practice.

For me, that was enough excitement on Wednesdays.

On the seventh Wednesday of the fall term my alarm clock didn’t go off, probably because I had thrown it across the room the day before in a fit of anger.

I was late to my first class. Ordinarily, being late to set theory would not have posed much of a problem, but when I arrived Mrs. Jacklyn was collecting a pop quiz. I hadn’t done very well on her last quiz and I wasn’t

likely to do much better on this one.

I slunk into the class.

With nothing important to do for a few seconds after finishing the quiz, everyone had time to turn and gawk at me. I wanted to whirl and run, but somehow I found the courage to shrivel into a seat in the back row. What continually cycled through my mind as I tried to disappear was how embarrassing it would be to flunk math, since it was the class in which I wanted to do well. Not because I liked set theory. I hated it, and it wasn’t even required for my major. No, I was in the class for one reason: I was mesmerized

by Mrs. Jacklyn, and I had no trouble explaining why.

Since reaching puberty, I had always adored tall women, and Mrs. Jacklyn was tall; she’d played volleyball in college, according to rumor, and

was an expert in martial arts and weapons. Her slender body, lithe and graceful as a pine tree, was at least an inch taller than my six feet two inches.

Her hair was black, as were her eyes, and every time she looked at me with those bottomless eyes I was captured. All she had to do was ask and I would give her anything.

Unfortunately, the only thing she ever asked for were my tests, and I was too intimidated to ever speak to her.

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION 21

Longevity by Laurel Blossom

www.laurelblossom.com | www.fourwaybooks.com THE LONGEVITY OF BONE 1.

And the waitress said, girls, grits is like grace.

You don’t order it, it just comes.

Me and my sister Margaret.

Sun took us out of purple shade into yellow noon.

Gaggle of turquoise-breasted children waddling by.

Ocean flat as fresh-pressed cotton, palm trees quiet in the August heat, pelicans I love and live with diving blue from sky to sea.

Far from the ground of my snow-bound childhood.

My sister looks beautiful.

Orange shift shimmering in sleeveless breeze.

Fashion, in its extreme ephemerality, escapes from Time almost as completely as the eternal and the Absolute.

The present. The body. Its extreme ephemerality.

In my family we think everything to do with the body is in the mind.

In my family we think the mind is all that matters.

Meantime, the stock market went right back up again.

The Longevity of Bone from Longevity Š2015 by Laurel Blossom. Appears with permission of Four Way Books. All rights reserved.

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION 22

OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2015

Our Real Life in Christ by M. Alberto Zelaya Aragon www.ourreallifeinchrist.com

“A

way, our God is always active in seeking the lost with the attractiveness we find in the love of Christ on one end, and the Father’s forgiveness and mercy on the other. Thus, we are drawn by these poles of His love and grace, which we know is undeserved. We also find that His pardon and compassion are wholly irresistible and motivate us to respond in love and submissiveness.

Once we connect to the symmetry of these captivating qualities of the Godhead, consisting of the Father’s love for us, the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross for us, and the wooing of His Spirit, then our mind, heart, and will, as those iron filaments, also align and reorganize around His plans and Will. It is here then, as that baby mentioned above, when we personally start to experience His love, promises, and design for the lives of His children as outlined in His Word. Once you get to this place, it’s

absolutely impossible to even contemplate a departure from the faith or to have the desire to be apart from Him, much less find any value in, or the time to play the religious game. It was from this strategic high ground that the first-century church was more than sufficient and able to conquer the Roman world for Christ, unlike the weakened, irrelevant, and sterile church of today, as currently viewed by this world.”

Our Real Life in Christ

by M. Alberto Zelaya Aragon.

Reprinted with permission.

RELIGION / SPIRITUALITY

It is only when we skip the middle man of religion, as Jesus insisted in His time, that we can grasp the full impact of what God is saying to each believer today. This guide, written after thirty-seven years of study, shares the insights clearly implied in His Word when we take that step.

With the advent of the marvelous power of today’s computers, we can single out any word in the Bible and provide its original meaning, whether be it in Hebrew or Greek. This allows us to comprehend the original message as it was given at the time. As we absorb the complete interpretation of what has been written, God’s message takes on a clearer meaning. Such study opens a channel that has been clogged by religious misinformation, allowing the Holy Spirit within us to teach us to understand the precise spiritual meaning and depth of each passage. Thus, the Bible can now offer us instruction that is by far richer in context and significance, giving us insight and better understanding of many obscure subjects.

Our Real Life in Christ

M. A l b e r t o Z e l a y a A r a g o n

Our Real Life in Christ seeks to help those who are experiencing that gnawing sensation that there is much more to God’s Word than what is being offered by those weekly sermons in churches today.

M. Alberto Zelaya Aragon was born and raised in Central America, and saw firsthand the indomitable faith of his mother, who raised fourteen successful children against all odds. Now retired, he lives with his wife near Phoenix and has a blended family of five daughters and a son living in various states, as well as a large extended family in California and in his homeland.

U.S. $XX.XX

M. Alberto Zelaya Aragon

nother way of understanding this change from the ceremonial to a reflective union with our God is to consider the relationship between a heap of iron strands and a magnet. We know that the magnetic field around its poles is always active. The iron filaments are not receptive to that attraction if the magnet is kept at a distance, but if the filaments come very close to it, they cannot resist that strong attraction from the poles. At this point, each filament, without any exertion from itself, realigns itself in the same direction as the magnetic field and, along with the rest of the filaments, reveals the pattern and the extent of the magnetic field’s strength. When this happens, the chaos that existed within that heap becomes orderly, according to the energy and orientation of the magnetic force. In this very same

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Our Real Life in

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Experiencing the Life and Quality of Faith Provided by Jesus Christ to Overcome Any Obstacle in Our Lives

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Show Time by Phil Harvey www.philharveylit.org

Day 198 It didn’t take long to reach the clearing on the north shore. What was left of Rudy’s shelter was barely visible under the deep snow, but it was enough to mark the shallow grave where they had left Rudy’s body two months before.

Ambrose went to work.

Under a stiff, frozen tarpaulin and a few inches of frozen dirt lay a hundred pounds of frozen meat. It was time.

There was a layer of fresh powder and then a crust, but the crust was thin and Ambrose broke it with his boot heel, quickly uncovering Rudy’s grave.

The blue tarp just showed through the dirt. They had dumped enough soil on top of the tarp so the foxes and raccoons wouldn’t find it interesting. With the body frozen, there would be no smell. On that, at least, they had been right. There was no sign of animal digging.

Ambrose pushed the soil back with his gloved hands, standing from time to time to kick at a heavy frozen clod with his boots, then working again on his knees until the blue tarp over Rudy’s body was uncovered.

He tugged at the corners of the tarp near where he knew Rudy’s head would be. It took some more kicking and digging until the corners came free. Then he pulled the tarp back slowly, one corner, then the other. There was Rudy.

Frozen solid. His oncedark face was nearly white, ashen. One hand stuck off awkwardly to the side, the head turned back in the direction of the main camp.

Ambrose slid his hunting knife carefully out of its sheath and slowly, fearfully, began cutting the back of Rudy’s parka pants. *** “Do you think they’ll do it?” Janice McNeely said.

She was staring at the #12 monitor.

Jimmy Asaki looked up.

“Yes,” he said. “They’re starving.”

“They’ve uncovered him.

Look.”

“I see.”

“If they do it, do you think Bud will air it?”

“Probably.”

“Maybe they’ll keep it away from the open mikes.”

“I don’t think they care about that anymore. I don’t think they care what reaches the open lines.

They’re fighting for their lives.”

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OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2015

Message Stick by Laine Cunningham www.lainecunningham.com

W

hen a man dies in the desert, he is completely alone. At thirtynine, Ian McCabe knew this simple fact. He had spent most of his life working the demanding seasonal jobs that kept Australia’s rural towns alive. He had seen a flat tire turn deadly, and knew that beauty and danger were the sisters who bore the land.

Ian was not a tall man but a shock of blond hair added inches to his height.

Quick blue eyes and a steady aim were useful in his career as a kangaroo culler. Every night the slim .22 found its target between the shine of an animal’s eyes. On cattle stations hundreds of kilometers wide, engine trouble and the bite of the brown snake posed constant threats.

This area, so close to the Davenport Ranges, was typical of the Northern Territory. Wide plains of twisted mulga trees reached southwest to Alice Springs. A

network of creeks and rivers that ran only during the Wet sustained towering gum trees. Cockatoos raised their young in the hollow trunks, and after a rain lorikeets gorged on the nectar.

Grass was sparse, edged out by the ubiquitous spinifex that cut flesh as cruelly as broken glass.

Only the toughest creatures survived and half-feral Brahma cattle were the breed of choice. To a rancher beleaguered by drought and debt, every blade eaten by native animals robbed them of beef. Roo shooters were always welcome.

A flash of metal caught his eye. A red SUV beetled behind ridges and moved slowly to keep its dust cloud low. The same stealth kept Ian from sight as he followed.

When the trespassers parked beside a hill, Ian stuffed the Land Rover under a mulga tree and watched as a pair of men hiked up the slope. The

first, a sturdy white fellow about thirty years old, clutched a rifle. The other man, an Aborigine who might have been in his sixties, was wiry yet had the grace of a predator.

The outback was filled with men like them, drifters who found the bush far removed from the law.

From a cleft among the boulders, the elder retrieved a spirit board. Ian knew they were supposed to be magical. He also knew it would fetch a small fortune on the black market.

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Holes in my Shoes by Alice Breon aandwbreon@comcast.net

CHANGES

S

eptember, 1939. The summer is ending. The days are still warm, but the early September evenings are cool. Leaves on the trees give us warnings that they will soon change color.

There are big changes in everyone’s lives. Dottie has moved to Chicago to start her new life. There is an empty feeling in my heart when I walk past her house.

Life will never be the same.

I turned my thoughts to the “big day.” In a few weeks I would leave my childhood behind and become a freshman in high school. My mother took me shopping for new school clothes and this time we shopped in the teen department. I sensed a change. Mom didn’t have that “worried look” as we shopped. Unlike previous times, she let me choose clothes I really loved, and she didn’t examine the

price tags so carefully. She seemed to enjoy watching me make selections. She even bought me new shoes, and my old ones didn’t have holes in them yet.

It seems like a heavy load has been lifted from the shoulders of my parents and neighbors. The Depression was ending.

My figure is changing, too. It no longer looks boyish. My waist is smaller than my hips. I am getting taller—almost 5 feet 1 inch.

Newsreels at the movies are reporting on a war in Europe. I prayed that the princesses in England will be safe. During one of our Sunday dinners, Aunt Sadie and Aunt Tonie told my parents about some people who had escaped from Germany and are living next door to them in Chicago. They had some bad experiences and were lucky to get out of

Germany. I learned a new word—“atrocities”.

For me, a change was coming that I never dreamed of. I was going to have a weekly allowance! I would be given one dollar every week. Fifty-five cents had to be used for a weekly bus ticket to go to high school but the rest, fortyfive cents, was mine to spend.

I was rich!

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OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2015

After the Wind: 1996 Everest Tragedy— One Survivor’s Story

by Lou Kasischke www.afterthewind.com

I

was excited and anxious.

After almost six weeks, we were on the final push for the summit. Once the decision was made to leave Camp 2 it was a single continuous push. Camp 3 and High Camp would only be brief rest stops on the way to the top of the world.

By my calculation and assumption, we would be on the move for 59 or more hours, with little if any sleep, and little solid food to eat. Sleep deprivation and lack of nutrition, by themselves, magnify the difficulty of all the climbing challenges. Hopefully I could get my body to digest solid food, but I wasn’t counting on it. My body would also have to climb 7,800 vertical feet while hypoxic and while my cell structure was dying from oxygen starvation. Also,

in very practical terms, others who had climbed the terrain before told me there was no place to sit down and take a rest. If you wanted to rest, it would be while standing and gasping for air.

If everything did not continue as a go for some reason, it was possible to wait above the altitude at Camp 2 for a limited time before going further, or even return to Camp 2 after an aborted attempt and try again later. This commonly occurred and we were prepared for that possibility. We had the time and resources. But we never talked much about that contingency. Rob was always positive. He said that the idea and priority was to have patience and pull it off the first time and avoid the physical and logistical

challenge of a second attempt.

I knew the next 59 hours would be the big hurt. It would be all misery. Suffer and endure.

From After the Wind by Lou Kasischke. Reprinted with permission. All rights reserved.

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION 27

Jesus: The Jew No One Knows by D.C. Smith International Books Award: Best In Non-fiction History!

T

his short book describes Jesus of Nazareth as he lived day to day, walking the hill country of Herod’s domain nearly two-thousand years ago, sharing communal meals along the way, teaching neighbors and fellow travelers not only what to believe, but how to behave.

Unfortunately, it did not take long for the king to hear about what was happening.

Informants reported that ordinary people were responding to the new rabbi in ever-increasing numbers and that Zealots may even have joined his messianic movement. Worse still, it appeared certain that the youthful teacher had recently formed an alliance with John the Baptist, the most popular preacher of the age. Together they would join forces to bring an end to Roman rule so they could build a new nation dedicated to God. We all know what came next. Both men were executed, leaving their disciples in disarray, especially the followers

of Jesus who expected a miraculous return and who hoped to keep the memory of his earlier pilgrimage alive. Yet their master’s mission and his revolutionary message began to slowly fade away, distorted over time by selfappointed apostles claiming to speak on his behalf, by gospel writers who never knew him, and by church fathers competing for control of their fledgling faith.

To satisfy Jews they doctored the genealogical record and moved his place of birth from Galilee to Judea. To attract Gentiles they made his mother “a perpetual virgin,” his father “an adopted caretaker,” and his brothers “reluctant bystanders” instead of comrades and co-conspirators. Even his name and his birthday were changed because “Joshua” offended non-Jews and December 25th glorified a god-man named Mithras.

Local aristocrats, foreigners and narcissistic

emperors could not abide who he seemed to be, another Galilean rebel inciting insurrection! So they manufactured a very different story where Romans were exonerated, Judeans vilified and his descendants cruelly exterminated.

Anyone wanting to discover the truth about this ultimate icon of the ages, whether for religious reasons or merely because he’s such a fascinating historical figure, has found the right book to read.

D. C. Smith, Big Bear Lake, California

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OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2015

Is what we know about Jesus true?

D.C. Smith reintroduces

history’s most misunderstood Messiah. He presents the Torahobservant teacher, accompanied by classical artwork and concise explanations, to show what actually happened to him both before and after Christianity took root in Roman-occupied Judea. Using a carefully drawn out series of historical segments, Smith peels back 2,000 years of revisionist distortions to uncover the many myths and made-up stories about a local rabbi we now think of as “Jesus,” but whose real name was Joshua.

From start to finish, this remarkable book separates fact from fantasy in reconstructing the historical Jesus and the turbulent times in which he lived. It is a must read for inquisitive people of all faiths as well as secular humanists.

The Jesus No One Knows

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translations

The World Between Two Covers: Reading the Globe

by Ann Morgan What Ann Morgan learned from a year spent reading a book from every country in the world.

Liveright/Norton books.wwnorton.com

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OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2015

Shelf Unbound: You spent all of 2012 reading translated books from 196 countries. How did this project come about?

Ann Morgan: A comment from someone on a small blog I wrote in 2011 (ayearofreadingwomen. wordpress.com) got me thinking about how little literature I used to read from countries other than the UK and US. I couldn’t explain this, so I decided to spend 2012 (a very international year for the UK because of the Olympics and Jubilee) trying to read a novel, short-story collection or memoir from every UN-recognized country (plus a couple of extras). As I didn’t know what to choose or even how to find books from some places, I decided to ask the world’s booklovers to help me with advice and suggestions. I put a call out on social media and before

long I was inundated with recommendations and other offers of help.

Shelf Unbound: You write, upon assessing your library, “The awful truth dawned: I was a literary xenophobe.”

I was that way myself until we started doing this annual Read Global issue of Shelf Unbound, and I think a lot of people primarily read books originally written in English.

Why do you think that is?

Morgan: I’m sure the reasons vary from reader to reader, but in general it has a lot to do with habit and with the way we’ve been taught to think about books. The proportion of literature that is translated and published each year is tiny in most English-speaking countries (particularly when compared to translation rates in much of the rest of the world), which means many

of us have not been used to buying and reading translated books. As a result, world literature can sometimes, erroneously, seem like a strange subset of literature that is a bit daunting or perhaps not as good as our homegrown works. In my case, I remember worrying that I wouldn’t have the cultural awareness to understand books from other places fully, which is a shame because there’s so much richness and wonder out there.

I think to a certain extent this is starting to change.

But it would be great to see publishers, bookshops and libraries being more proactive in seeking out works from further afield. Readers can also help drive that change. If we request a wider range of things to read, and buy and borrow more translated books, it will encourage those in the industry to bring more of the world’s stories to us.

Shelf Unbound: What did you gain as a reader from the experience of reading books from all over the world?

Morgan: I’m much more aware of the complexity of situations around the world and more conscious of some of the assumptions that underpin my own thinking and the stories

that surround us here in the anglophone world. If you’re only reading texts written by writers local to you, you are likely to be exposed to a relatively narrow range of perspectives.

By contrast, reading far beyond your national borders gives you the opportunity to develop your thinking and your ability to put yourself in someone else’s place to a much greater extent. And I now have a great network of friends and fellow booklovers all around the globe.

Shelf Unbound: You write of translators, “Depending on a third person to bring us something from a place we are unable to venture to on our own is an act of faith.” What do you think are the ingredients of a great translation?

Morgan: The recipe varies, I think. Some translators are very linguistically inventive, overcoming the challenges of communicating a text in a different language and cultural framework by ingenious means and sometimes creating whole new idiolects to reflect the voice of a book. Others work incredibly hard to preserve the precise feel of the original text, which can often require just as much dexterity. Both approaches can yield wonderful

UNBOUND

31

results. But perhaps at root it comes down to passion: a desire to share what it is about a particular book that makes it special, to create a text that will do justice to the original and to give readers a work that they’ll get something worthwhile from.

A number of them are not available to buy, however I have done a list of ten favorite commercially available reads:

Shelf Unbound: When we read books in translation, we get to see other people’s lives and how they are similar to and different from our own.

I believe that learning about our fellow humans in this way promotes empathy and could change the world. Do you share any of my optimism on that front?

Morgan: Yes (see above). And excitingly, neuroscience has provided some compelling evidence to support this in recent years, with various studies showing reading and imagining have the power to restructure our brains and make us more attuned to others’ emotions.

CZECH REPUBLIC – Bohumil Hrabal, Too Loud a Solitude

Shelf Unbound: Do you have a favorite or favorite from your list?

Morgan: No is the short answer. There were so many books that were special for all kinds of reasons—not least because of the efforts people went to to get them to me.

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OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2015

ALBANIA – Ismail Kadare, Broken April CANADA – Nicole Brossard, Mauve Desert

MONGOLIA – Galsan Tschinag, The Blue Sky MYANMAR – Nu Nu Yi Smile, As They Bow PAKISTAN – Jamil Ahmad, The Wandering Falcon SERBIA – Srdjan Valjarevic, Lake Como (limited availability) SIERRA LEONE – Ismael Beah, A Long Way Gone TAJIKISTAN – Andrei Volos, Hurramabad TOGO – Tete-Michel Kpomassie, An African in Greenland As I still get contacted almost every day by people suggesting books to me, I also do a “Book of the Month” slot on my blog, where I select one book to review and add to the list on the blog each month. It’s a nice way of continuing my literary exploration—something I hope I’ll be doing for many years to come.

The 196 (... and Kurdistan)

This list comes with the caveat that it is the titles I chose for my project but it is not a best list or a definitive canon or anything like that. Someone else would read a different world and to me that’s the joy of literary exploration.

–Ann Morgan AFGHANISTAN The Patience Stone by Atiq Rahimi, translated from the French by Polly McLean (Vintage Digital, 2010) ALBANIA Broken April by Ismail Kadare, translation © New Amsterdam Books and Saqi Books Publisher (Vintage Digital, 2003) ALGERIA The Sexual Life of an Islamist in Paris by Leïla Marouane, translated from the French by Alison Anderson (Europa Editions, 2010) ANDORRA The Teacher of Cheops

by Albert Salvadó, translated from the Catalan/Spanish by Marc Brian Duckett. (Albert Salvadó, 2011) ANGOLA The Whistler by Ondjaki, translated from the Portuguese by Richard Bartlett (Aflame Books, 2008) ANTIGUA AND BARBUDA Lucy by Jamaica Kincaid (Plume, 1991) ARGENTINA Seconds Out by Martín Kohan, translated from the Spanish

by Nick Caistor (Serpent’s Tail, 2010) ARMENIA Armenian Golgotha by Grigoris Balakian, translated from the Armenian by Peter Balakian with Aris Sevag (Vintage, 2010)

AUSTRALIA Cloudstreet by Tim Winton (Picador, 2011) AUSTRIA Frozen Time by Anna Kim, translated from the German by Michael Mitchell (Ariadne Press, 2010) AZERBAIJAN Ali and Nino by Kurban Said, translated from the German by Jenia Graman (Vintage, 2000) THE BAHAMAS Thine is the Kingdom by Garth Buckner (Ravenna Press, 2008) BAHRAIN QuixotiQ by Ali Al Saeed (iUniverse, 2004) BANGLADESH The Good Muslim

by Tahmima Anam (Canongate Books, 2011) BARBADOS Song of Night by Glenville Lovell (Soho Press, 1998) BELARUS King Stakh’s Wild Hunt by Uladzimir Karatkievich, translated from the Belarusian by Mary Mintz (Belarusian Literature in English Translations, 2006) BELGIUM Invitation to a Voyage

by François Emmanuel, translated from the French by Justin Vicari (Dalkey Archive Press, 2011)

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BELIZE On Heroes, Lizards and Passion by Zoila Ellis (Cubola Productions, 1997) BENIN Stories We Tell Each Other

by Rashidah Ismaili Abubakr (forthcoming) BHUTAN The Circle of Karma by Kunzang Choden (Zubaan/Penguin India, 2005) BOLIVIA Sangre dulce/Sweet Blood by Giovanna Rivero Santa Cruz, translated from the Spanish

by Kathy S. Leonard (Editorial La Hoguera, 2006) BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA How the Soldier Repairs the Gramophone by Saša Stanišić, translated from the German by Anthea Bell (Grove Press, 2008) BOTSWANA A Question of Power

by Bessie Head (Heinemann, 1974) BRAZIL House of the Fortunate Buddhas by João Ubaldo Ribeiro, translated from the Portuguese by Clifford E. Landers (Dalkey Archive Press, 2011) BRUNEI Four Kings by Christopher Sun and Jimmy Chan (CreateSpace, 2011) BULGARIA Natural Novel by Georgi Gospodinov, translated from the Bulgarian by Zornitsa Hristova (Dalkey Archive Press, 2005) BURKINA FASO The Parachute Drop by Norbert Zongo, translated from the French by Christopher

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Wise (Africa World Press, Inc., 2004) BURUNDI Weep Not, Refugee by Marie-Thérèse Toyi (Emhai Printing & Publishing Company, 2007) CAMBODIA In the Shadow of the Banyan by Vaddey Ratner (Simon & Schuster, 2012) CAMEROON Mission to Kala by Mongo Beti, translated from the French by Peter Green (Mallory Publishing, 2008) CANADA Mauve Desert by Nicole Brossard, translated from the French by Susanne de LotbinièreHarwood (Coach House Books, 1990, 2010) CAPE VERDE The Last Will & Testament of Senhor da Silva Araújo

by Germano Almeida, translated from the Portuguese by Sheila Faria Glaser (New Directions, 2004) CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC Daba’s Travels from Ouadda to Bangui by Pierre Makombo Bamboté, translated from the French by John Buchanan-Brown (Pantheon, 1970) CHAD Told by Starlight in Chad

by Joseph Brahim Seid, translated from the French by Karen Haire Hoenig (Africa World Press, Inc., 2007) CHILE The Private Lives of Trees

by Alejandro Zambra, translated from the Spanish by Megan McDowell (Open letter, 2010)

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CHINA Banished! by Han Dong, translated from the Mandarin by Nicky Harman (University of Hawaii Press, 2009) COLOMBIA Delirium by Laura Restrepo, translated from the Spanish by Natasha Wimmer (Vintage, 2008) COMOROS The Kaffir of Karthala

by Mohamed Toihiri, translated from the French by Anis Memon (unpublished) CONGO, Democratic Republic of Full Circle by Frederick Yamusangie (iUniverse, 2003) CONGO, Republic of Johnny Mad Dog by Emmanuel Dongala, translated from the French by Maria Louise Ascher (Picador, 2005) COSTA RICA Cadence of the Moon by Óscar Núñez Olivas, translated from the Spanish by Joanna Griffin (Aflame Books, 2007) CÔTE D’IVOIRE Allah is not Obliged by Ahmadou Kourouma, translated from the French by Frank Wynne (Vintage, 2007) CROATIA Our Man in Iraq by Robert Perišič, translated from the Croatian by Will Firth (Istros Books, 2012) CUBA Afro-Cuban Tales by Lydia Cabrera, translated from the Spanish by Alberto HernandezChiroldes and Lauren Yoder (University of Nebraska Press, 2004)

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OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2015

CYPRUS Ledra Street by Nora Nadjarian (Armida Publications, 2006) CZECH REPUBLIC Too Loud a Solitude by Bohumil Hrabal, translated from the Czech by Michael Henry Heim (Abacus, 2011) DENMARK The Exception by Christian Jungersen, translated from the Danish by Anna Paterson (Phoenix, 2007) DJIBOUTI In the United States of Africa by Abdourahman A. Waberi, translated from the French by David and Nicole Ball (University of Nebraska Press, 2009) DOMINICA The Snake King of the Kalinago by Grade 6 of Atkinson School, Bataka, Dominica (Papillote Press, 2010) DOMINICAN REPUBLIC The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz (Faber, 2009) EAST TIMOR The Crossing: A Story of East Timor by Luis Cardoso, translated from the Portuguese by Margaret Jull Costa (Granta, 2000) ECUADOR The Villagers by Jorge Icaza, translated from the Spanish

by Bernard Dulsey (Arcturus Paperbacks, 1974) EGYPT Spectres by Radwa Ashour, translated from the Arabic by Barbara Romaine (Arabia Books, 2010)

“In West Tennessee

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God forgot his geography

…

”

so begins South of Everything, the story of Missy Sara. Born to a plantation-owning family in 1940s in Germantown, Tennessee, Missy Sara is, like so many other white girls of her era, largely raised by Mammyrosy, the black woman who rocks her from the cradle and who cooks the biscuits her Daddy lives to eat. With her brother and her parents, Sara is served supper by black men wearing white jackets, and like so many others, she watches her mother head off to Junior League and horse shows. But Missy Sara is a quiet rebel.

“

In the hands of an adroit storyteller, magical realism has always been one of the most truthful and compelling forms of fiction. Here, Gonzales proves herself to be master of both the form and her material. A beautiful book.

”

—Phyllis Tickle, American author and lecturer, founding editor of the Religion Department of Publishers Weekly

“

South of Everything is a triumph, an essential but oft unheard American story.

—Amy Friedman, author of Desperado’s Wife: A Memoir

“

”

A powerful message about love in a time of harsh race relations.

”

—IndieReader Starred Review

From youth she adores her Grandfather Reddaddy, who not only takes her to the places girls aren’t supposed to go—like Bozos where she eats the best barbecue in the world—but she also develops a special kinship with her parents’ servant Old Thomas, who “never owned any land but everything of value belonged to him.” Old Thomas first takes Missy to the Lolololo Tree—far out in the pasture—a magical, mystical tree that Sara discovers is wiser than any teacher or parent or priest, a tree that harbors an entire zoo of animals that come to the tree to heal. Indeed, the Lolololo Tree heals everyone and everything, opening Missy’s eyes to the religious and racial prejudice of her surroundings and leading her on a journey of self-discovery that seals her destiny.

As Missy Sara’s parents cling to the Old South, she reaches out to create a new world, one that embraces all human beings, regardless of the color of their skin or the size of their property.

The book is available as hardcover, paperback and ebook at bookstores nationwide and all major online retailers including:

EL SALVADOR Senselessness by Horacio Castellanos Moya, translated from the Spanish by Katherine Silver (New Directions, 2008) EQUATORIAL GUINEA Shadows of Your Black Memory by Donato Ndongo, translated from the Spanish by Michael Ugarte (Swan Isle Press, 2007) ERITREA The Consequences of Love by Sulaiman Addonia (Vintage Digital, 2008) ESTONIA The Beauty of History

by Viivi Luik, translated from the Estonian by Hildi Hawkins (Norvil Press, 2007) ETHIOPIA Beneath the Lion’s Gaze

by Maaza Mengiste (Vintage Digital, 2010) FIJI Kava in the Blood by Peter Thomson (Booksurge, 2008) FINLAND The Year of the Hare by Arto Paasilinna, translated from the Finnish by Herbert Lomas (Peter Owen Publishers, 2009) FRANCE Just Like Tomorrow

by Faïza Guène, translated from the French by Sarah Ardizzone (Definitions, 2006) GABON Mema by Daniel Mengara (Heinemann Educational Publishers, 2003) THE GAMBIA Folk Tales and Fables from The Gambia (volume 1) by Dembo Fanta Bojang and Sukai Mbye Bojang (Educational

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OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2015

Services, Gambia, 2011) GEORGIA Contemporary Georgian Fiction, edited and translated from the Georgian by Elizabeth Heighway (Dalkey Archive Press, 2012) GERMANY All the Lights by Clemens Meyer, translated from the German by Katy Derbyshire (And Other Stories, 2011) GHANA Journey by Gheysika Adombire Agambila (Sub-Saharan Publishers, 2006) GREECE Kassandra and the Wolf

by Margarita Karapanou, translated from the Greek by NC Germanacos (Clockroot books, 2009) GRENADA The Ladies are Upstairs

by Merle Collins (Peepal Tree Press, 2011) GUATEMALA The President by Miguel Ange Asturias, translated from the Spanish by Frances Partridge (Waveland Press, 1997) GUINEA The Guardian of the Word by Camara Laye, translated from the French by James Kirkup (Fontana, 1980) GUINEA BISSAU Unity and Struggle: speeches and writings of Amilcar by Amilcar Cabral, translated from the Portuguese by Michael Wolfers (Monthly Review Press, 1982) GUYANA BUXTON Spice by Oonya Kempadoo (Phoenix, 1998) HAITI I am a Japanese Writer by

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... He held my legs... The woman stuck the gun in the center of my stomach...

I screamed at the woman, “DON’T DO IT, DON’T DO IT!!!”...

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“A vivid, gripping account of police fight or flight that highlights genuine heroism...”

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... My partner was now leaning against my right shoulder.

He was motionless... The car, the inside of the car was evaporating, disintegrating.

Metal, glass, dust...

“Gritty portraits of true courage under fire...”

IndieReader Reviews

Real “Medal of Valor” accounts; by real “Medal of Valor” officers.

The author is a native of Los Angeles who is a retired detective from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.

Starting from the first story detailing Robert’s ambush, this book will keep you spellbound through the end.

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Dany Laferrière, translated from the French by David Homel (Douglas & McIntyre, 2011) HONDURAS Points of Light by Guillermo Yuscarán (Nuevo Sol Publicaciones, post-1989) HUNGARY Metropole by Ferenc Karinthy, translated from the Hungarian by George Szirtes (Telegram Books, 2012) ICELAND Stone Tree by Gyrðir Elíasson, translated from the Icelandic by Victoria Cribb (Comma Press, 2008) INDIA Kaalam by M.T. Vasudevan Nair, translated from the Malayalam

by Gita Krishnankutty (Orient Blackswan, 2012) INDONESIA Durga/Umay by Y.B. Mangunwijaya, translated from the Indonesian by Ward Keeler (University of Washington Press, 2004) IRAN Touba and the Meaning of Night by Shahrnush Parsipur, translated from the Persian by Havva Houshmand and Kamran Talattof (The Feminist Press at the City University of New York, 2006) IRAQ The Madman of Freedom Square by Hassan Blasim, translated from the Arabic by Jonathan Wright (Comma Press, 2011) IRELAND Ulysses by James Joyce, read by Jim Norton with Marcella Riordan, directed by Roger Marsh, produced by Nicolas Soames

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(Naxos, 2004) ISRAEL Blooms of Darkness by Aharon Appelfeld, translated from the Hebrew by Jeffrey M Green (Alma Books, 2012) ITALY Gomorrah by Roberto Saviano, translated from the Italian

by Virginia Jewiss (Pan Books, 2008) JAMAICA John Crow’s Devil

by Marlon James (Macmillan Caribbean, 2008) JAPAN Manazuru by Hiromi Kawakami, translated from the Japanese by Michael Emmerich (Counterpoint, 2010) JORDAN Cities of Salt by Abdelrahman Munif, translated from the Arabic by Peter Theroux (Vintage International, 1989) KAZAKHSTAN The Nomads by Ilyas Yesenberlin, translated by Anon (Ilyas Yesenberlin Foundation, 1998) KENYA Kenya, Will You Marry Me?

by Philo Ikonya (Langaa Research & Publishing Common Initiative Group, 2011) KIRIBATI Waa in Storms by Teweiariki Teaero (Institute of Pacific Studies, University of the South Pacific, 2004) KURDISTAN The Man in Blue Pyjamas: A prison memoir by Jalal Barzanji, based on a translation from the Kurdish by Sabah Salih (University of Alberta Press, 2012)

LONGEVITY Laurel Blossom

Advance Praise for Longevity

“Dreams are ways in which we can see what we sometimes don’t want to see, where in some brief truce we might work out our human conditions. Blossom’s book-length poem Longevity achieves such translation: bordering the longed-for and the illgotten, a speaker sorts out her survivorship: a sister, a mother, a dear one. This poem skirts 9/11, family, and the degradation of the body in time and illness, as ‘Memory catches on the sprockets of grief.’”

—Sophie Cabot Black “…In Laurel Blossom’s Longevity, we share a survivor’s guilt for deaths both imagined and experienced—a falling away from love, a piecing-together of fragments of memory, a lyrical book-long dream-meditation on trauma, transgression—and how, in desire and empathy, we fashion from loss the shapes that sustain us.”

—Carol Muske-Dukes

Excerpt from “The Longevity of Bone” Where it says I, it means me.

Where it says she, it means Margaret or Lucy or my poor mother.

Where it says she, it means said.

It means dead.

Not that she was such a good guide, but I miss my mother.

The market had its worst week, points dropped, ever.

“… Longevity’s narrative arc possesses the range, density, and richness of a novel, but Blossom’s long poem is buoyed by an elegant lyricism that is wrenching in its musicality. The poem’s style and structure seem so inevitable, it would be easy to overlook the audacity of the book’s project, which is nothing less than to salvage our dead. In this wise, generous, heartbreaking book, ‘Everything is elegy.’”

—Gary Young Laurel Blossom is also the author of Degrees of Latitude (Four Way Books), another book-length narrative prose poem telling the geography of a woman’s life from Pole to Pole. Earlier books of lyric poetry include, among others, Wednesday: New and Selected Poems and The Papers Said, selected as a Notable Book of Poetry by Shelf Unbound. Blossom is the editor of Splash! Great Writing About Swimming and Many Lights in Many Windows: Twenty Years of Great Fiction and Poetry from The Writers Community. She is the first Poet Laureate of Edgefield, SC, where she lives.

www.laurelblossom.com

http://fourwaybooks.com/site/laurel-blossom

KUWAIT The Chronicles of Dathra, a Dowdy Girl from Kuwait (volume I),

by Danderma, illustrated by Fatima F. Al-Othman (danderma.net, 2011) KYRGYZSTAN Jamilia by Chingiz Aitmatov, translated from the Russian by James Riordan (Telegram, 2007) LAOS Mother’s Beloved: Stories from Laos by Outhine Bounyavong, translated from the Lao by Anon.

(University of Washington Press, 1999) LATVIA With Dance Shoes in Siberian Snows by Sandra Kalniete, translated from the Latvian by Margita Gailītis (Dalkey Archive Press, 2009) LEBANON One Thousand and One Nights by Hanan Al-Shaykh (Bloomsbury, 2011) LESOTHO Basali!: Stories by and about women in Lesotho edited by K. Limakatso Kendall (University of Natal Press, 1995) LIBERIA Konkai: Living between two worlds by Mardia Stone (Cotton Tree Press, 2011) LIBYA The Bleeding of the Stone

by Ibrahim Al-Koni, translated from the Arabic by May Jayyusi and Christopher Tingley (Interlink Books, 2002) LIECHTENSTEIN Seven Years in Tibet (Sieben Jahre in Tibet) by Heinrich Harrer, translated from the German by Richard Graves

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(Flamingo, 1994) LITHUANIA No Men, No Cry (‘Collective’ series) (International Cultural Programme Centre, 2011) LUXEMBOURG Minute Stories by Robi Gottlieb-Cahen (Éditions Phi, 2014) MACEDONIA Conversation with Spinoza by Goce Smilevski, translated from the Macedonian

by Filip Korzenski (Northwestern University Press, 2006) MADAGASCAR Voices from Madagascar edited by Jacques Bourgeacq and Liliane Ramarosoa (Ohio University Press, 2002) MALAWI The Jive Talker: Or, How to Get a British Passport by Samson Kambalu (Vintage Digital, 2008) MALAYSIA Ripples and Other Stories by Shih-Li Kow (Silverfish Books, 2008) MALDIVES Dhon Hiyala and Ali Fulhu by Abdullah Sadiq, translated from the Dhivehi by Fareesha Abdullah and Michael O’Shea © F. Abdullah and M. O’Shea, 2004 MALI The Fortunes of Wangrin by Amadou Hampâté Bâ, translated from the French by Aina Pavolini Taylor (Indiana University Press, 1999) MALTA Happy Weekend by Immanuel Mifsud, translated from the Maltese by Rose Marie Caruana, Mary Darmanin, Albert Gatt and Maria Grech Ganado (Midsea Books, 2006)

Of Ocean and Ash Of Ocean…

Cast into the sea at birth, human-born Ia found her adoptive family among the merfolk.

And Ash… When a storm lands Ia ashore, she discovers her body has transformed into the human she would have been. Taken in as property by a callous plantation owner, Ia works alongside the slaves.

There is nothing Ia wants more than to go home, that is, until she meets a handsome man named Matthias, who has a touch that can be as kind as his tongue is harsh.

Torn between two very different lives, Ia must choose—stay in his world and risk her life for a love untested, or return to the familiar arms of the underwater world that raised her and risk losing what may be the greatest love she will ever know.

Author Amber (A.R.) Draeger specializes in macabre, fantastical fiction, spreading her interest across multiple genres including horror, sci-fi, fantasy, romance, and thriller.

Daughters of Men “I couldn’t turn the pages fast enough.”

—Jamie Lee Scott, USA Today Bestselling Author Devastated by the loss of her son, Rebecca is struggling to salvage her marriage to Jacob, a cold and detached pastor. When he goes on a men’s hunting retreat and does not return on time, Rebecca fears the worst.

Jacob arrives three days late, citing bad weather and poor cell service as the reasons none of the men called home. Jacob appears healthy, but Rebecca is concerned with the deep gashes on his arms.

As the weeks pass, Rebecca begins to wonder what happened in the mountains. Jacob is not the same man he was before. While she is relieved he is no longer detached, she cannot comprehend why he’s become so flirtatious, so sexually aggressive. So obsessive.

Jacob’s odd behavior mounts, and the actions of the men who joined Jacob on the retreat grow more and more strange, convincing Rebecca that the men who came home are not the men who left.

WWW.AMBERDRAEGER.COM

MARSHALL ISLANDS Marshall Islands Legends and Stories told by Tonke Aisea et al., collected, edited and translated by Daniel A. Kelin II, illustrated by Nashton T. Nashon (Bess Press Inc., 2003) MAURITANIA Angels of Mauritania and the Curse of the Language

by Mohamed Bouya Bamba (Mohamed Bouya Bamba, 2011) MAURITIUS Benares by Barlen Pyamootoo, translated from the French by Will Hobson (Canongate, 2004) MEXICO Like Water for Chocolate: A Novel in Monthly Installments with Recipes, Romances and Home Remedies by Laura Esquivel, translated from the Spanish by Carol and Thomas Christensen (Anchor, 2002) MICRONESIA, Federated States of The Book of Luelen by Luelen Bernart, translated from the Pohnpeian dialect and edited by John Fischer, Saul Riesenberg and Marjorie Whiting (Australian National University Press, 1977) MOLDOVA The Story of An Ant

by Ion Drutse, translated from the Moldovan by Iraida Kotrutse, illustrated by Nina Danilenko (Kishinev Literatura Artistika, 1988) MONACO Grace Kelly: Princesse du Cinema edited by Richard and Danae Projetti (Stanislas Choko, 2007)

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MONGOLIA The Blue Sky by Galsan Tschinag, translated from the German by Katharina Rout (Milkweed Editions, 2006) MONTENEGRO A Lullaby for No Man’s Wolf by Xenia Popovich, translated from the Montenegrin by Xenia Popovich (Xenia Popovich, 2012) MOROCCO The Sand Child by Tahar Ben Jelloun, translated from the French by Alan Sheridan (Quartet Books, 1988) MOZAMBIQUE Ualalapi by Ungulani Ba Ka Khosa, translated from the Portuguese by Isaura de Oliveira and Richard Bartlett (translation unpublished) MYANMAR Smile as they Bow

by Nu Nu Yi, translated from the Burmese by Alfred Birnbaum and Thi Thi Aye (Hyperion, 2008) NAMIBIA The Purple Violet of Oshaantu by Neshani Andreas (Heinemann, 2001) NAURU Stories from Nauru by Ben Bam Solomon et al. (The University of the South Pacific Nauru Centre & Institute of Pacific Studies, 1996) NEPAL The Lazy Conman and Other Stories by Ajit Baral, illustrated by Durga Baral (Penguin India, 2009) NETHERLANDS The Twin by Gerbrand Bakker, translated from the Dutch by David Colmer (Vintage, 2009)

WWW.STEWIEBOOM.COM

Stewie BOOM! Starts School and Stewie BOOM! Boss of the Big Boy Bed are two volumes in the Stewie BOOM! series from Nothing But The Truth Publishing.

The Stewie BOOM! books follow a format that has proven to be a hit with parents and kids alike: children’s book in the front, ready-to-use parent tips from a specialist in the back. Kids love the engaging stories as well as the detailed and colorful illustrations while parents find the expert tips extremely simple and easy to apply during important moments in the lives of their children.

Written by Christine

Bronstein Illustrated by Karen L. Young

“Generation-spanning” Kirkus Book Review

“a must-have for parents and children” Kirkus Book Review

“Sweet and engaging...a delightful bedtime story and a lesson in growing up.”

“Gold award in family friendly media”

SF Book Review

Mom’s Choice Awards

“Entertainingly helpful” Kirkus Book Review

“An excellent resource” SF Book Review

COMING SOON! APRIL 2016 Stewie Boom! and the Case of the Eweey, Gooey, Gross and Very Stinky Experiment.

NEW ZEALAND Once Were Warriors by Alan Duff (Vintage, 1995) NICARAGUA Infinity in the Palm of her Hand by Gioconda Belli, translated from the Spanish by Margaret Sayers Peden (Harper, 2010) NIGER The Epic of Askia Mohammed recounted by Nouhou Malio, translated from the Songhay

by Thomas A. Hale et al. (Indiana University Press, 1996) NIGERIA The Secret Lives of Baba Segi’s Wives by Lola Shoneyin (Serpent’s Tail, 2011) NORTH KOREA My Life and Faith by Ri In Mo, translated from the Korean by Anon. (Foreign Languages Publishing House, Pyongyang, Juche 86 (1997)) NORWAY Hunger by Knut Hamsun, translated from the Norwegian by George Egerton (Dover, 2003) OMAN My Grandmother’s Stories: folk tales from Dhofar collected and transcribed by Khadija bint Alawi Al-Dhahab, translated by W. Scott Chahanovich, Munira Al-Ojaili, Fatima Al-Mashani, Muna Al-Mashani, Muna Saffrar, illustrated by Fatima bint Alawi Muqaybil (Sultan Qaboos Cultural Center, 2012) PAKISTAN The Wandering Falcon

by Jamil Ahmad (Penguin, 2011) PALAU Spirits’ Tides by Susan Kloulechad (unpublished) PALESTINE Mordechai’s

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Moustache and his Wife’s Cats

by Mahmoud Shukair, translated from the Arabic by Issa J. Boullata, Elizabeth Whitehouse, Elizabeth Winslow and Christina Phillips (Banipal Books, 2007) PANAMA The Golden Horse by Juan David Morgan, translated from the Spanish by John Cullen (translation unpublished) PAPUA NEW GUINEA Mata Sara

by Regis Tove Stella (University of Papua New Guinea Press and Bookshop, 2010) PARAGUAY I the Supreme by Augusto Roa Bastos, translated from the Spanish by Helen R. Lane (Faber & Faber, 1988) PERU Death in the Andes by Mario Vargas Llosa, translated from the Spanish by Edith Grossman (Faber & Faber, 1996) PHILIPPINES Ilustrado by Miguel Syjuco (Picador, 2010) POLAND Illegal Liaisons by Grażyna Plebanek, translated from the Polish

by Danusia Stok (Stork Press, 2012) PORTUGAL The Mandarin and Other Stories by José Maria Eça de Queiroz, translated from the Portuguese by Margaret Jull Costa (Dedalus, 2009) QATAR The Corsair by Abdulaziz Al Mahmoud, translated from the Arabic

by Amira Nowaira (Bloomsbury Qatar Foundation Publishing, 2012)

I am Lexsi Silver, and I will determine my own future.

Most people consider their wedding day to be one of the happiest of their lives.

Most people are not High Demon.

Just before my arranged marriage to Kordevik Weth took place on the planet called Kifirin, I decided I wasn’t going to marry someone I’d never met. Kordevik was a stranger to me and I wasn’t willing to accept him. That’s why I asked Aunt Bree for help.

She had one condition.

I had to live on Earth and take a job with Rome Enterprises in San Francisco.

My name is Kordevik Weth.

My intended left me standing at the altar. Afterward, I destroyed the bar where I’d gone to drink and forget my humiliation.

As punishment, Li’Neruh Rath, god of my home planet, sentenced me to five years on Earth, working as a driver for Rome Enterprises in San Francisco.

Every day, I curse the job I hold and the one who’d pushed me into it—

Lexsi Silver.

Available at

www.subtledemon.com

ROMANIA The Baiut Alley Lads by Filip & Matei Florian, translated from the Romanian by Alistair Ian Blyth (University of Plymouth Press, 2010) RUSSIA One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, translated from the Russian by Ralph Parker (Penguin Classics, 2000) RWANDA Teta: a story of a young girl

by Barassa (Real Africa Books, 2010) SAINT KITTS AND NEVIS Only God Can Make a Tree by Bertram Roach (Athena Press, 2008) SAINT LUCIA Neg Maron: Freedom Fighter by Michael Aubertin (Caribbean Diaspora Press, 2000) SAINT VINCENT AND THE GRENADINES The Moon is Following Me by Cecil Browne (Matador, 2010) SAMOA Telesa: The Covenant Keeper by Lani Wendt Young (Lani Wendt Young, 2011) SAN MARINO The Republic of San Marino by Giuseppe Rossi (The Governmental Tourist Body Sport and Spectacle of the Republic of San Marino, 1976) SÃO TOMÉ AND PRINCIPE The Shepherd’s House by Olinda Beja, translated from the Portuguese by Yema Ferreira, Ana Fletcher, Tamsin Harrison, Margaret Jull Costa, Clare Keates, Ana Cristina Morais, Robin

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Patterson, Ana Silva and Sandra Tavares (translation unpublished) SAUDI ARABIA Girls of Riyadh

by Rajaa Alsanea, translated from the Arabic by Rajaa Alsanea and Marilyn Booth (Penguin, 2008) SENEGAL So Long a Letter by Mariama Bâ, translated from the French by Modupé Bodé-Thomas (Heinemann International Literature & Textbooks, 1989) SERBIA Lake Como by Srđan Valjarević, translated from the Serbian

by Alice Copple-Tošić (Geopoetika Publishing, Belgrade, 2009) SEYCHELLES Voices: Seychelles Short Stories by Glynn Burridge (Nighthue Publications, 2000) SIERRA LEONE A Long Way Gone

by Ishmael Beah (Fourth Estate, 2007) SINGAPORE Fistful of Colours

by Suchen Christine Lim (SNP Editions, 2003) SLOVAKIA Rivers of Babylon by Peter Pišťánek, translated from the Slovak by Peter Petro (Garnett Press, 2007) SLOVENIA The Golden Shower or What Men Want by Luka Novak, translated from the Slovenian by Urska Charney (Guernica Editions, 2012) SOLOMON ISLANDS The Alternative by John Saunana (University of the South Pacific, 1980) SOMALIA Secrets by Nuruddin Farah (Penguin, 1999)

LIVE FOR TODAY A broken promise takes a gifted teenager down a suicidal path of selfdestruction. When a girl asks him about his future he says, “I live for today, there are no tomorrows for me.” Will her love, and her secret, be enough to save him? Without faith there is no hope.

Without hope there is no tomorrow.

Watch the Video Here

FORMULA 2000, THE DREAM Keeping a promise, a father enters his son in the Formula 2000 race series with only a dream and a prayer. When things go from bad to worse it takes a crusty old mechanic to show them how to win.

MOON SHADOW, THE LEGEND The United States is destroyed, not so much from outside forces, but rather from the greed within. A handful of pilots try desperately to take back America. Now the future of America depends on its best pilot defeating an F-14 at night but all he has is an antiquated P-51 Mustang and an old Indian Legend, Moon Shadow.

THE CAJUN A little Crocodile Dundee and a little Rambo. With a million dollar reward on her head, Kelli Parsons hides in the treacherous Atchafalaya Swamp where living or dying depends on one man— the Cajun!

Watch the Video Here

WWW.JWBARFIELD.COM

SOUTH AFRICA African Delights by Siphiwo Mahala (Jacana Media, 2011) SOUTH KOREA The Guest by Hwang Sok-Yong, translated from the Korean by Kyung-Ja Chun and Maya West (Seven Stories Press, 2011) SOUTH SUDAN ‘To Forgive is Divine Not Human’ by Julia Duany (ayearofreadingtheworld.com, 2012) SPAIN Exiled from Almost Everywhere by Juan Goytisolo, translated from the Spanish by Peter Bush (Dalkey Archive Press, 2011) SRI LANKA Metta by Sunethra Rajakarunanayake, translated from the Sinhala by Carmen Wickramagamage (The Three Wheeler Press, 2011) SUDAN Season of Migration to the North by Tayeb Salih, translated from the Arabic by Denys JohnsonDavies (Penguin, 2003) SURINAME The Cost of Sugar by Cynthia McLeod, translated from the Dutch by Gerald R. Mettam (HopeRoad, 2011) SWAZILAND Weeding the Flowerbeds by Sarah Mkhonza (Sarah Mkhonza, Xlibris, 2009) SWEDEN Montecore by Jonas Hassen Khemiri, translated from the Swedish by Rachel WillsonBroyles (Knopf, 2011) SWITZERLAND Why the Child is Cooking in the Polenta by Aglaja Veteranyi, translated from the German by Vincent Kling (Dalkey

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Archive Press, 2012) SYRIA Damascus Nights by Rafik Schami, translated from the German by Philip Boehm Publisher (Arabia Books, 2011) TAIWAN Crystal Boys by Pai Hsienyung, translated from the Chinese

by Howard Goldblatt (Gay Sunshine Press, 1995) TAJIKISTAN Hurramabad by Andrei Volos, translated from the Russian by Arch Tait (GLAS, 2001) TANZANIA Desertion by Abdulrazak Gurnah (Bloomsbury, 2005) THAILAND Time: a Thai Novel by Chart Korbjitti, translated from the Thai by Marcel Barang (Thai Fiction Publishing, 2010) TOGO An African in Greenland by Tété-Michel Kpomassie, translated from the French by James Kirkup (New York Review Books, 2001) TONGA A Providence of War by Joshua Taumoefolau (Lulu, 2009) TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO One Scattered Skeleton by Vahni Capildeo (unpublished, extracts published in London: City of Disappearances edited by Iain Sinclair, Penguin, 2006) TUNISIA Talismano by Abdelwahab Meddeb, translated from the French by Jane Kuntz (Dalkey Archive Press, 2011) TURKEY The Forty Rules of Love

by Elif Shafak (Penguin, 2011)

WWW. STACYCHILDS.COM

A

s a weapons dealer, Mack Barton has spent the last four decades running from someone scary, and now is no exception. A crime boss in Las Vegas wants to kill him because of an overdue gambling debt. And is it the C.I.A. blaming him if some munitions fell into the wrong hands in a Syria deal? Or the last Colombia deal?

Thinking it might help him get his mind off his troubles, Mack accepts an invitation to a reunion with his four good friends from high school—the ‘troughers’.

He travels to Golden, Colorado, where he and three others are wined and dined by their mutual buddy, Ace Strain, a psychiatrist and the proprietor of a cutting edge cryonics company. Little did he know that, before all was said and done, Colombian gun runners and mob hit men would prove the least of his worries as he, and his companions face intrigue, death, romance, and the question of reincarnated sports stars, caught up in a crazy chain of kidnapping, murder and insanity.

Available at

“I enjoyed Stacy Childs’ debut novel, Block 10, and immediately became a fan. The Boys of the Dixie Pig is better. It displays Childs’ versatility within the medical thriller genre with a rapid-fire story that seems too fantastic to be true, but which sucks you in from page one and doesn’t let you go until the final word. I couldn’t put it down. Mack Barton is sure to become the Jack Reacher of medical thrillers.”

Robert Dugoni, New York Times and #1 Amazon Bestselling Author, and author of My Sister’s Grave

“Childs has created a masterful work of medical suspense that I couldn’t put down. The Boys of the Dixie Pig is a hands-down winner!”

Steve Babitsky, Chief Judge of SEAK, Inc.’s National Fiction Writing Competition for Physicians

TURKMENISTAN The Tale of Aypi

by Ak Welsapar, translated from the Turkmen by W.M. Coulson (translation unpublished) TUVALU Tuvalu: A History by Simati Faaniu, Vinaka Ielemia, Taulu Isako, Tito Isala, Laumua Kofe (Rev.), Nofoaiga Lafita, Pusineli Lafai, Kalaaki Laupepa (Dr), Nalu Nia, Talakatoa O’Brien, Sotaga Pape, Laloniu Samuelu, Enele Sapoaga, Pasoni Taafaki, Melei Telavi, Noatia Penitala Teo, Vaieli Tinilau, ed Hugh Laracy (Institute of Pacific Studies, 1983) UGANDA Abyssinian Chronicles by Moses Isegawa (Picador, 2011) UKRAINE Death and the Penguin

by Andrey Kurkov, translated from the Russian by George Bird (Melville International Crime, 2011) UNITED ARAB EMIRATES The Wink of the Mona Lisa and Other Stories from the Gulf by Mohammad Al Murr, translated from the Arabic by Jack Briggs (Motivate Publishing, 1998) UNITED KINGDOM Martha, Jack and Shanco by Caryl Lewis, translated from the Welsh by Gwen Davies (Parthian, 2007) UNITED STATES OF AMERICA American Gods by Neil Gaiman (Headline, 2001) URUGUAY The Decapitated Chicken and Other Stories by

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Horacio Quiroga, translated from the Spanish by Margaret Sayers Peden (University of Wisconsin Press, 2004) UZBEKISTAN The Railway by Hamid Ismailov, translated from the Russian by Robert Chandler (Vintage, 2007) VANUATU Laef Blong Mi: From village to nation by Sethy John Regenvanu (Institute of Pacific Studies and Emalus Campus, University of the South Pacific, 2004) VATICAN CITY Shroud of Secrecy: The story of corruption within the Vatican by The Millenari, translated from the Italian by Ian Martin (Key Porter Books, 2000) VENEZUELA The Sickness by Alberto Barrera Tyszka translated from the Spanish by Margaret Jull Costa (MacLehose Press, 2011) VIETNAM The Sorrow of War by Bao Ninh, English version by Frank Palmos from translation by Phan Thanh Hao (Minerva, 1994) YEMEN The Hostage by Zayd Mutee’ Dammaj, translated from the Arabic by May Jayyusi and Christopher Tingley (Interlink Books, 1994) ZAMBIA A Cowrie of Hope by Binwell Sinyangwe (Heinemann, 2000) ZIMBABWE The Hairdresser of Harare by Tendai Huchu (Weaver Press, 2010)

BOOK SHELF The Vampire Girl Next Door

by Richard Arbib

M

ark falls in love with Sylvia, the beautiful, but quirky girl next door, not realizing that she’s a vampire who killed his last neighbor.

When Mark first meets Sylvia, he tells her, “You’re the girl of my dreams!” Sylvia smiles and responds with a warning—“Be careful what you wish for.”

“The Vampire Girl Next Door is a choice pick for one looking for a romance with a supernatural twist, highly recommended.”

—John Burroughs, Midwest Book Review www.thevampiregirlnextdoor.com

..Available at Amazon in paperback and Kindle.

Paperback and all e-book formats available on author’s website.

You’ll Be Thinking of Me

by Densie Webb “Two likable and charming main characters and one offkilter stalker, the journey into their hearts and minds will have you on the edge of your seat.”

“By chapter three, I was hooked and did not want to put it down.”

“A compelling story, interesting characters and great writing...this was far from your basic boy meets girl.”

“An intoxicating story.”

www.densiewebb.com Available at Amazon.

What Jennifer Saw

By Hal Schweig

W

hat Jennifer Saw was recommended by the Huffington Post as a mystery/thriller that fans of Gone Girl (the New York Times bestseller) would like. A 100% positive review from Kirkus Reviews concluded: “A gripping tale of suspense.” In the novel, festering moral decay beneath the golden surface of the most beloved family in a small Midwestern town leads to murder. www.halschweig.com ....Available at Amazon and B&N.

*

Promote your book in Shelf Unbound in our Special Advertising Section for Authors. Each issue of Shelf Unbound is distributed to more than 125,000 people in the U.S. and 62 countries around the globe. Our introductory ad rate for this section is $375/quarter page as seen here.

Contact publisher Margaret Brown to reserve your space.

Margaret@shelfmediagroup.com 214.704.4182.

ingle be it ssage on of Such tion, ecise offer ng us

Our Real Life in Christ

ed in each hares

BOOK SHELF

wing ffered

M. Alberto Zelaya Aragon

and hand aised Now d has iving mily

M. A l b e r t o Z e l a y a A r a g o n

Our Real Life in Christ

by M. Alberto Zelaya Aragon

T

his book is not about Religion, nor caters to the religious mind, but it’s for those persons looking for genuine lifeOur Real Life in changing answers. Both, secularism and religion have largely failed to deliver solutions to our profound questions and typically, just adds to the confusion. Humanity is eyeing a multitudes of approaching crises, if not disasters, and this book spells out Jesus’ solutions, his actual mission, and His strategy for our everyday life.

Christ

Experiencing the Life and Quality of Faith Provided by Jesus Christ to Overcome Any Obstacle in Our Lives

www.ourreallifeinchrist.com Available at Amazon and iUniverse.

Shattered Not Broken: The Autobiography of Barbara Brown

by Barbara Brown

B

y sharing my life experience, I hope it will help others to survive the trauma from emotional, physical, and sexual abuse. I was five years old when we were placed in foster care. All five children were taken from our natural mother because of physical abuse and sexual abuse from her boyfriends.

I shared my life story to inspire people that no matter what challenges they face in life there is a higher power they can turn to.

Available at Amazon.

My Extraordinary Life

by Monica Sucha Vickers

A

uthor is a triple amputee. This epic story about her life is deeply inspirational, very well written, easy to read, eloquent, and uplifting.

Book reviewers have written, “in the league with “Still Me” by Christopher Reeve,” “should be required reading for lawmakers,” “would make for compelling film,” “will alter everyone’s perspective who reads it,” and “difficult, if not impossible, to put down.”

2015 Indie Book Winner www.myextraordinaryamputeelife.com Available at Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

Request a signed copy: mmvickers@gmail.com Holes in my Shoes

by Alice Breon “I highly recommend this book for anyone interested in learning what life was like during this time period, but more so for every school age child to learn about what it means to live your life not dependent upon or for things, but for the relationships with family, your neighbors, and your closest friends.”

—Amazon Reader’s Review aandwbreon@comcast.net Available at Barnes & Noble, Amazon, and Xlibris.

BOOK SHELF The Central Park Tales written and illustrated

by Marcus Meesters

T

he Central Park Tales is a delightful children’s book about the adventures of the animals that live in Central Park. It contains 10 short stories with 60 beautiful color illustrations. Because many of the illustrations depict real places in Central Park, the book is especially appealing to children who live in New York City. Available in hardcover and eBook. www.thecentralparktales.com Available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, BookBaby Bookshop, and iBooks.

The Seventh Magpie

by Nancy Chase

A

queen’s disappearance. A priceless magical book.

A lost love. A deadly mistake. Can Princess Catrin complete seven impossible tasks and regain all she’s lost, or will the riddles of the seven Magpies cost her the only thing she still values? A dark fairy tale of loss and renewal.

“A wonderful, heartbreaking, and ultimately rewarding tale. Remarkably different and fresh.” www.nancychase.com Available in paperback and ebook editions on Amazon.

Destiny’s Forge

by Theresa M. Moore

H

onor and duty, loyalty and betrayal, murder and revenge, espionage, adventure and vampire romance. In the 23rd century, a stranger from another planet comes to Earth in search of an ancient enemy. Through a quirky twist of fortune she winds up serving on the military starship Destiny’s Forge, where the crew is haunted by murder and sabotage. But as she is faced with a series of monumental challenges, she finds her course changed by destiny when the fate of two worlds is placed in her hands. antellusbooks Available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Powell’s, Books A Million, and VRomans Bookstore.

Precious Bones

by Mike Ashley-Hollinger

A

s the summer of 1949 is drawing to an end Bones discovers something horrible out in her family’s beloved swamp. Their small community is rocked by the news of two murders.

As evidence pointing toward Bones’ father mounts up, Bones’s life begins to unravel. The thin thread of hope that her father will be found innocent is held in the hands of bumbling Sheriff LeRoy. Will the sheriff come through? Is Nolay innocent? Bones is determined to take matters into her own hands. www.mikaashleyhollinger.com Available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and indiebound.

BOOK SHELF There Will Be Cyberwar: How The Move To Network-Centric War Fighting Has Set The Stage For Cyberwar

by Richard Stiennon

T

he move on the part of the US military to NetworkCentric Warfare (NCW) meant the combination of sensor grids, Command & Control, and precision targeting. This is the history of NCW, expertly told by Stiennon, who warns us that we are heading toward future cyberwar where vulnerabilities in those elements are attacked. www.ith-press.com Available at Amazon.

Mal Practice: A Mystery of Medicine and Murder

by Paul Janson

J

oe Nelson is a pediatrician being tried for malpractice.

During the trial he realizes his patient’s death was not an accident or malpractice, it was murder and the killer is trying to kill him too. He must use his medical knowledge and reasoning to solve the crime and save himself. The sequel: “With a Little More Practice” is coming soon.

www.pauljanson.com FACEBOOK LINK Available at Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

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BOOK SHELF Blood and Freedom

by Gordon Greenwood

M

cNeill the sniper is on his way home but a horrific terrorist attack claims everything he holds dear. Plunged into the midst of the CroatSerb conflict, he is thrown together with Alina, daughter of the crooked General Tomelsky. What transpires is a roller coaster ride of thrills and suspense in their bid to escape.

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Available at Amazon, and Barnes & Noble.

Paperwhite Narcissus

by Tom Baker

T

im Halladay, a senior at the College of William & Mary, is in the process of discovering his true sexuality. The novel explores narcissism, identity, and the doppelganger theory as one young man struggles to define himself.

WINNER - 2015 Beverly Hills Book Awards - LGBT Fiction FINALIST - 2015 NIEA National Indie Excellence Awards - LGBT Fiction www.TomBakerBooks.com Available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and iUniverse.

Warren Lane

by Andrew Diamond What happens when a troubled woman asks the wrong man for help? It might just be her lucky day. Suspenseful and richly plotted, with vividly-drawn characters, Warren Lane is by turns funny and moving, offering a compelling portrait of ordinary people blundering their way through difficult times. www.adiamond.me Available at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Apple iBooks, Kobo, and Google Play.

BOOK SHELF Anatomy of a Darkened Heart

by Christie Stratos

F

ather’s wretched secret coincides with Abigail Delilah’s birth. Mother will make Abigail suffer because someone must take the blame. But do these cruelties breed a shadowed soul or is redemption within reach? Multi-layered and rife with psychological depth, this riveting novel appeals to the literary reader and the leisure reader alike, combining key facets of several popular genres. www.christiestratos.com Available at Amazon.

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Contact us for more information at: www.TheReadingSofa.com or send us an email to: TheReadingSofaSite@gmail.com The Sorrow’s Garden

by Anthony Carinhas

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ell-known as an architect and writer in Leipzig, Germany. Radulf is repulsed by the nature of other people’s selfish living. Ironically, his own character is devoid of morals.

Despite the destitution his schemes cause.

The power turns obsessive and his appetite for lust gives way for a new motive.

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BOOK SHELF Little Bits of Karma

by Laura Simmons

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ven though Holly O’Rourke is having problems with her longtime significant other, James, she has never considered cheating…that is, until the day she has a very interesting encounter with Charlie, a handsome coworker. Distressed by her mixed emotions, Holly schedules an appointment for a reading with a psychic medium, where she discovers her adulterous past lives and their tragic consequences. www.littlebitsofkarma.com Available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Outskirts Press.

Griff Montgomery, Quarterback

by Jean C. Joachim

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wo people, two tragedies, two deep, devastating secrets….

Griff Montgomery is the headline-making, heart-breaking star quarterback of the Kings.

Lauren Farraday is a beautiful young interior designer, bitterly scarred by divorce, whose life is falling apart. Though they violently oppose one another in court—(she thinks he’s arrogant and conceited, he thinks she’s a bitch on wheels), something happens.... www.jeanjoachimbooks.com Available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, iTunes, Kobo, Amazon UK, Smashwords & Kartindo (India only).

The Thriving Woman’s Guide to Setting Boundaries

by Kim Buck, M.B.A.

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eing the dependable one drains you of your life force, dreams and sanity. You can say no. You have the right to set boundaries and live your life in a more peaceful, engaged way. You are not here to save everyone. That is not your job nor your responsibility. You deserve to live your life, not carry others through theirs. www.areyouwillingtobeseen.com Available on Amazon.

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BOOK SHELF A Poisonous Journey

by Malia Zaidi “Zaidi’s plot is marvelous.”

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he shadows of the Great War looming over her, Lady Evelyn Carlisle escapes 1920s London for Crete. What starts off sunny quickly turns sinister, when Evelyn stumbles across a corpse. Drawn into the mystery of the murder, she embarks on a mission to discover the truth, facing her own past as well as a cold-hearted killer.

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The Last Best Thing

by Kate Sebeny

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n Iowa farmhouse evolves into a private retirement community, but the rustic setting isn’t everything it seems. One of its elderly inhabitants is a killer.

Another is her victim.

Witness what loyalty and sacrifice really mean to this unlikely group of people gathered together under one roof.

“This story of growing old with humor, wisdom and love will make you cry, laugh, and say what if.”

—Trudi LoPreto, for Readers’ Favorite www.katesebeny.com Available at Kellan Publishing, Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

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feature

translations

BEST TRANSLATED

BOOK AWARDS The blog Three Percent’s annual Best Translated Book Awards spotlights best original works published in the U.S. in the previous year. Here’s a look at their 2015 fiction finalists.

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Baboon

by Naja Marie Aidt translated from the Danish

by Denise Newman Denmark, Two Lines Press

The Author and Me by Éric Chevillard translated from the French

by Jordan Stump France, Dalkey Archive Press

“B

“E

eginning in the middle of crisis, then accelerating through plots that grow stranger by the page, Naja Marie Aidt’s stories have a feel all their own.

Though they are built around the common questions of sex, love, desire, and gender relations, Aidt pushes them into her own desperate, frantic realm. In one, a whore shows up unannounced at a man’s apartment, roosts in his living room, and then violently threatens him when he tries to make her leave. In another, a wife takes her husband to a city where it is women, not men, who are the dominant sex— but was it all a hallucination when she finds herself tied to a board and dragged back to his car? And in the unforgettable “Blackcurrant,” two young women who have turned away from men and toward lesbianism abscond to a farm, where they discover that their neighbor’s son is experimenting with his own kind of sexuality.

The first book from the widely lauded Aidt to reach the English language, Baboon delivers audacious writing that careens toward bizarre, yet utterly truthful, realizations.”

—Two Lines Press

ric Chevillard here seeks to clear up a persistent and pernicious literary misunderstanding: the belief that a novel’s narrator must necessarily be a mouthpiece for his or her writer’s own opinions.

Thus, we are introduced to a narrator haunted by a deep loathing for cauliflower gratin (and by a no less passionate fondness for trout almondine), yet his monologue has been helpfully and hilariously annotated in order to clarify all the many ways in which this gentleman and Chevillard are nothing alike. Language and logic are pushed to their farthest extremes in one of Chevillard’s funniest novels yet.”

—Dalkey Archive Press Fantomas Versus the Multinational Vampires

by Julio Cortázar translated from the Spanish

by David Kurnick Argentina, Semiotext(e)

“F

irst published in Spanish in 1975 and previously untranslated, Fantomas versus the Multinational Vampires is Julio Cortázar’s genre-jumping mash-up of his participation UNBOUND

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in the Second Russell Tribunal on human rights abuses in Latin America and his cameo appearance in issue number 201 of the Mexican comic book series Fantomas: The Elegant Menace. With his characteristic narrative inventiveness, Cortázar offers a quixotic meta-comic/novella that challenges not only the form of the novel but its political weight in contemporary cultural life.

Needing something to read on the train from Brussels (where he had attended the ineffectual tribunal meeting), our hero (Julio Cortázar) picks up the latest issue of the Fantomas comic. He grows increasingly absorbed by the comic book’s tale of bibliocide (a sinister bibliophobic plot to obliterate every book from the archives of humanity), especially when he sees the character Fantomas embark upon a series of telephone conversations with literary figures, starting with “The Great Argentine Writer” himself, Julio Cortázar (and also including Octavio Paz and a tough-talking Susan Sontag).

Soon, Cortázar begins to erase the thin line between real-life atrocities and fictional mayhem in an attempt to bring attention to the human rights violations taking place with impunity in the country from which he was exiled.”

—Semiotext(e) 64

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Pushkin Hills

by Sergei Dovlatov translated from the Russian

by Katherine Dovlatov Russia, Counterpoint Press “An unsuccessful writer and an inveterate alcoholic, Boris Alikhanov has recently divorced his wife Tatyana, and he is running out of money.

The prospect of a summer job as a tour guide at the Pushkin Hills Preserve offers him hope of regaining some balance in life as his wife makes plans to emigrate to the West with their daughter Masha, but during Alikhanov’s stay in the rural estate of Mikhaylovskoye, his life continues to unravel.

Populated with unforgettable characters—including Alikhanov’s fellow guides Mitrofanov and Pototsky, and the KGB officer Belyaev— Pushkin Hills ranks among Dovlatov’s renowned works The Suitcase and The Zone as his most personal and poignant portrayal of the Russian attitude towards life and art.”

—Counterpoint Press 1914

by Jean Echenoz translated from the French

by Linda Coverdale France, The New Press “Five Frenchmen go off to war, two of them leaving behind a young woman who

longs for their return. But the main character in this brilliant novel is the Great War itself.

Echenoz, whose work has been compared to that of writers as diverse as Joseph Conrad and Laurence Sterne, leads us gently from a balmy summer day deep into the relentless—and, one hundred years later, still unthinkable— carnage of trench warfare.

With the delicacy of a miniaturist and with an irony that is both witty and cleareyed, Echenoz offers us an intimate epic: in the panorama of a clear blue sky, a biplane spirals suddenly into the ground; a piece of shrapnel shears the top off a man’s head as if it were a soft-boiled egg; we dawdle dreamily in a springscented clearing with a lonely shell-shocked soldier strolling innocently toward a firing squad ready to shoot him for desertion.

Ultimately, the grace notes of humanity in 1914 rise above the terrors of war in this beautifully crafted tale that Echenoz tells with discretion, precision, and love.”

—The New Press Street of Thieves

by Mathias Énard translated from the French

by Charlotte Mandell France, Open Letter Books “Exiled from his family for religious transgressions related

to his feelings for his cousin, Lakhdar finds himself on the streets of Barcelona hiding from both the police and the Muslim Group for the Propagation of Koranic Thoughts, a group he worked for in Tangier not long after being thrown out on the streets by his father.

Lakhdar’s transformations— from a boy into a man, from a devout Muslim into a sinner—take place against some of the most important events of the past few years: the violence and exciting eruption of the Arab Spring and the devastating collapse of Europe’s economy.

If all of that isn’t enough, Lakhdar reunites with a childhood friend—one who is planning an assassination, a murder Lakhdar opposes. A finalist for the prestigious Prix Goncourt, Street of Thieves solidifies Énard’s place as one of France’s most ambitious and keyed-in contemporary novelists.”

—Open Letter Books Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay

by Elena Ferrante translated from the Italian

by Ann Goldstein Italy, Europa Editions “Since the publication of My Brilliant Friend, the first of the Neapolitan novels, Elena Ferrante’s fame as one of our UNBOUND

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most compelling, insightful, and stylish contemporary authors has grown enormously.

In this third Neapolitan novel, Elena and Lila, the two girls whom readers first met in My Brilliant Friend, have become women. Lila married at sixteen and has a young son; she has left her husband and the comforts her marriage brought and now works as a common laborer. Elena has left the neighborhood, earned her college degree, and published a successful novel, all of which has opened the doors to a world of learned interlocutors and richly furnished salons.

Both women are pushing against the walls of a prison that would have seen them living a life of misery, ignorance and submission. They are afloat on the great sea of opportunities that opened up during the nineteen-seventies.

Yet they are still very much bound to each other by a strong, unbreakable bond.”

—Europa Editions Things Look Different in the Light

by Medardo Fraile translated from the Spanish

by Margaret Jull Costa Spain, Pushkin Press “From one of the finest shortstory writers in Spanish, this is the first anthology of his work to appear in English.

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Like Anton Chekhov and Katherine Mansfield, Medardo Fraile is a chronicler of the minor tragedies and triumphs of ordinary life, and each short tale opens up an entire exquisite world.

Medardo Fraile, born in Madrid in 1925, is considered to be one of Spain’s finest short-story writers. The collection Cuentos de verdad (on which this anthology is based), won him the 1965 Premio Nacional de la Crítica. While his stories have appeared in translation in other story collections, this is the first complete anthology of his work to appear in English.”

—Pushkin Press Monastery

by Eduardo Halfon translated from the Spanish

by Lisa Dillman and Daniel Hahn Guatemala, Bellevue Literary Press “In Monastery, the nomadic narrator of Eduardo Halfon’s critically-acclaimed The Polish Boxer returns to travel from Guatemalan cities, villages, coffee plantations, and border towns to a private jazz concert in New York’s Harlem, a former German U-Boat base on the French Breton coast, and Israel, where he escapes from his sister’s Orthodox Jewish wedding into an erotic adventure with the enigmatic Tamara.

His passing encounters are unforgettable; his relationships, problematic. At once a world citizen and a writer who mistrusts the power of language, he is pursued by history’s ghosts and unanswerable questions. He is a cartographer of identity on a compelling journey to an uncertain destination. As he draws and redraws his boundaries, he confronts us with the limitations of our own.”

—Bellevue Literary Press Letters from a Seducer

by Hilda Hilst translated from the Portuguese

by John Keene Brazil, Nightboat Books “The first English-language translation of the second volume in Hilda Hilst’s dynamic and unnerving eroticpornographic trilogy. In Letters from a Seducer, Hilst describes the everyday life of Karl, a wealthy, erudite, and amoral man who seeks an answer to his incomprehension of life through sex. Karl writes and sends twenty provocative letters to Cordelia, his chaste sister. The letters’ text becomes intertwined with the life of the poet Stamatius, who finds Karl’s letters in the trash. It quickly dawns upon the reader that both men are in fact the same person albeit at different points of time and

circumstance. This mirror play is the guiding trope for a uniquely grand work.”

—Nightboat Books Harlequin’s Millions

by Bohumil Hrabal translated from the Czech

by Stacey Knecht Czech Republic, Archipelago Books “One of the last novels of Bohumil Hrabal – the writer whom Milan Kundera called Czechoslovakia’s greatest – Harlequin’s Millions is set in a castle converted into a home for the elderly, whose eccentric, unforgettable inhabitants exchange phantasmagoric stories about their lives and their changing country in an attempt to uphold sight of the world outside their confinement. Hrabal uses his aging protagonists to tell of Nymburk, the small Czech town in which he grew up, and explore the mythologizing power of memory. Poised on the threshold between joy and melancholy, this novel admits us into the mind of a woman coming to terms with the passing of time. Stacey Knecht’s translation brilliantly conveys Hrabal’s winding ecstatic sentences that capture the author’s flowing conversational style, described by James Wood as “anecdote without end.”

—Archipelago Books UNBOUND

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Rambling On: An Apprentice’s Guide to the Gift of the Gab

by Bohumil Hrabal translated from the Czech

by David Short Czech Republic, Karolinum Press

The Woman Who Borrowed Memories

by Tove Jansson translated from the Swedish

by Thomas Teal and Silvester Mazzarella Finland, NYRB

“Novelist Bohumil Hrabal (1914–97) was born in Brno, Czechoslovakia, and spent decades working at a variety of laboring jobs before turning to writing in his late forties.

From that point, he quickly made his mark on the Czech literary scene; by the time of his death he was ranked with Jaroslav Hašek, Karel Capek, and Milan Kundera as among the nation’s greatest twentieth-century writers.

Hrabal’s fiction blends tragedy with humor and explores the anguish of intellectuals and ordinary people alike from a slightly surreal perspective.

His work ranges from novels and poems to film scripts and essays.

Rambling On is a collection of stories set in Hrabal’s Kersko. Several of the stories were written before the 1968 Soviet invasion of Prague but had to be reworked when they were rejected by Communist censorship during the 1970s.

This edition features the original, uncensored versions of those stories.”

—Karolinum Press

“Many of the stories collected here are pure Jansson, touching on island solitude and the dangerous pull of the artistic impulse: in “The Squirrel” the equanimity of the only inhabitant of a remote island is thrown by a visitor, in “The Summer Child” an unlovable boy is marooned along with his lively host family, in “The Cartoonist” an artist takes over a comic strip that has run for decades, and in “The Doll’s House” a man’s hobby threatens to overwhelm his life. Others explore unexpected territory: “Shopping” has a postapocalyptic setting, “The Locomotive” centers on a railway-obsessed loner with murderous fantasies, and “The Woman Who Borrowed Memories” presents a case of disturbing transference.

Unsentimental, yet always humane, Jansson’s stories complement and enlarge our understanding of a singular figure in world literature.”

—NYRB

Works

by Edouard Levé translated from the French

by Jan Steyn France, Dalkey Archive Press “Like Suicide and Autoportrait, Works is another of Eduoard Levé’s bewitching reconceptions of what the novel can (or should) do. A list of 533 projects, beginning with its own description–both likely and unlikely, sober and ridiculous; some of which Levé later realized, most of which he did not. Works ranks with the fiction of Georges Perec for its seemingly limitless, ingenious, and comical inventiveness. A lampoon of conceptual art–if not, indeed, an exemplar of its charms at their best–Works is another piece in the puzzle of Levé’s brief and fascinating life.”

—Dalkey Archive Press Faces in the Crowd

by Valeria Luiselli translated from the Spanish

by Christina MacSweeney Mexico, Coffee House Press “A young mother in Mexico City, captive to a past that both overwhelms and liberates her, and a house she cannot abandon nor fully occupy, writes a novel of her days as a translator living in New York. A young translator, adrift in Harlem, is desperate

to translate and publish the works of Gilberto Owen, an obscure Mexican poet who lived in Harlem during the 1920s, and whose ghostly presence haunts her in the city’s subways. And Gilberto Owen, dying in Philadelphia in the 1950s, convinced he is slowly disappearing, recalls his heyday decades before, his friendships with Nella Larsen, Louis Zukofsky, and Federico Garcia Lorca, and the young woman in a red coat he saw in the windows of passing trains. As the voices of the narrators overlap and merge, they drift into one single stream, an elegiac evocation of love and loss.”

—Coffee House Press Adam Buenosayres

by Leopoldo Marechal translated from the Spanish

by Norman Cheadle and Sheila Ethier Argentina, McGill-Queen’s University Press “First published in 1948 during the polarizing reign of Juan Perón, the novel was hailed by Julio Cortázar as an extraordinary event in twentieth-century Argentine literature. Set over the course of three break-neck days, Adam Buenosayres follows the protagonist through an apparent metaphysical awakening, a battle for his soul UNBOUND

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fought by angels and demons, and a descent through a place resembling a comic version of Dante’s hell.

A salient feature of the Argentine canon, Adam Buenosayres is both a pathbreaking novel and a key text for understanding Argentina’s cultural and political history.”

—McGill-Queen’s University Press

us, can be read in any order) leap between Paris, Taipei, and Tokyo. They display wrenching insights into what it means to live between cultures, languages, and genders—until the genderless character Zoë appears, and the narrator’s spiritual and physical identity is transformed.”

—NYRB

Last Words from Montmartre

by Qiu Miaojin translated from the Chinese

by Ari Larissa Heinrich Taiwan, NYRB

Winter Mythologies and Abbots

by Pierre Michon translated from the French

by Ann Jefferson France, Yale University Press

“When the pioneering Taiwanese novelist Qiu Miaojin committed suicide in 1995 at age twenty-six, she left behind her unpublished masterpiece, Last Words from Montmartre.

Unfolding through a series of letters written by an unnamed narrator, Last Words tells the story of a passionate relationship between two young women—their sexual awakening, their gradual breakup, and the devastating aftermath of their broken love.

In a style that veers between extremes, from self-deprecation to pathos, compulsive repetition to rhapsodic musings, reticence to vulnerability, Qiu’s genrebending novel is at once a psychological thriller, a sublime romance, and the author’s own suicide note.

The letters (which, Qiu tells

“This welcome volume brings to English-language readers two beautifully crafted works by the internationally acclaimed French author Pierre Michon.

Populated by distant and little-known figures—Irish and French monks, saints, and scientists in Winter Mythologies; Benedictine monks in the Vendée region of France in Abbots—the tales frequently draw on obscure histories and other literary sources.

Michon brings his characters to life in spare, evocative prose. Each, in his or her own way, exemplifies a power of belief that brings about an achievement—or catastrophe—in the real world: monasteries are built upon impossibly muddy wastes, monks acquire the power of speech, lives are taken,

books are written, saints are created on the flimsiest of evidence. Michon’s exploration in ancient archives has led him to the discovery of such often deluded figures and their deeds, and his own exceptional powers bestow upon them a renewed life on the written page. This in turn is an example of the power of belief, which for Michon is what makes literature itself possible.

Winter Mythologies and Abbots are meant to be read slowly, to be savored, to be mined for the secrets Michon has to tell.”

—Yale University Press Our Lady of the Nile

by Scholastique Mukasonga translated from the French

by Melanie Mauthner Rwanda, Archipelago Books “In her first novel, Our Lady of the Nile, Scholastique Mukasonga drops us into an elite Catholic boarding school for young women perched on the ridge of the Nile. Parents send their daughters to Our Lady of the Nile to be molded into respectable citizens...and to escape the dangers of the outside world. Fifteen years prior to the 1994 Rwandan genocide, we watch as these girls try on their parents’ preconceptions and attitudes, transforming the lycée into a microcosm of the country’s mounting racial tensions and

violence. In the midst of the interminable rainy season, everything unfolds behind the closed doors of the school: friendship, curiosity, fear, deceit, prejudice, and persecution. With a masterful prose that is at once subtle and penetrating, Mukasonga captures a society hurtling toward horror.”

—Archipelago Books Talking to Ourselves

by Andrés Neuman translated from the Spanish

by Nick Caistor and Lorenza Garcia Argentina, FSG “Lito is ten years old and is almost sure he can change the weather when he concentrates very hard. His father, Mario, anxious to create a memory that will last for his son’s lifetime, takes him on a road trip in a truck called Pedro.

But Lito doesn’t know that this might be their last trip: Mario is gravely ill. Together, father and son embark on a journey that takes them through strange geographies that seem to meld the different parts of the Spanish-speaking world. In the meantime, Lito’s mother, Elena, restlessly seeks support in books, and soon undertakes an adventure of her own that will challenge her moral limits.

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the different ways that we talk to ourselves: through speech, through thought, and through writing. While neither of them dares to tell the complete truth to the other two, their individual voices nonetheless form a poignant conversation.”

—FSG Granma Nineteen and the Soviet’s Secret

by Ondjaki translated from the Portuguese

by Stephen Henighan Angola, Biblioasis “By the beaches of Luanda, the Soviets are building a grand mausoleum in honour of the Comrade President.

Granmas are whispering: houses, they say, will be exploded, and everyone will have to leave. With the help of his friends Charlita and Pi (whom everyone calls 3.14), and with assistance from Dr. Rafael KnockKnock, the Comrade Gas Jockey, the amorous Gudafterov, crazy Sea Foam, and a ghost, our young hero must decide exactly how much trouble he’s willing to face to keep his Granma safe in Bishop’s Beach.

Energetic and colourful, impish and playful, Granma Nineteen and the Soviet’s Secret is a charming coming-of-age story from the next rising star in African literature.”

—Biblioasis 72

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La Grande

by Juan José Saer translated from the Spanish

by Steve Dolph Argentina, Open Letter Books “Moving between past and present, La Grande centers around two related stories: that of Gutiérrez, his sudden departure from Argentina 30 years before, and his equally mysterious return; and that of “precisionism,” a literary movement founded by a rather dangerous fraud. Dozens of characters populate these storylines, including Nula, the wine salesman, ladies’ man, and part-time philosopher; Lucía, the woman he’s lusted after for years; and Tomatis, a journalist whom Saer fans have encountered many times before.

Written in Saer’s trademark style, this lyrically gorgeous book—which touches on politics, artistic beliefs, illicit love affairs, and everything else that makes up life—ends with one of the greatest lines in all of literature: ‘With the rain came the fall, and with the fall, the time of the wine.’”

—Open Letter Books Paris

by Marcos Giralt Torrente translated from the Spanish

by Margaret Jull Costa Spain, Hispabooks “Paris depicts a man’s journey

The Association of Independent Authors (AiA) is a global not-for-profit membership organization representing, advancing, supporting and encouraging self-published (independent) authors. Our membership spans five continents, with directors based in the USA, Asia, Australia and South Africa.

The role of the AiA is to guide, educate, support, encourage and unite authors who have chosen to self-publish.

Our Body of Knowledge (BoK) is a comprehensive resource on all aspects of selfpublishing and running a small business—today’s authors must understand the business side of publishing (sales, marketing, promotion, legal and financial issues) and how to sell a book in a global marketplace.

Our vision is that independent publishing will be the preferred, first choice, for all authors.

Our mission is to create a culture of excellence, teamwork and professionalism in a community environment where sharing and collaboration benefits each individual member and independent authors as a whole.

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through the labyrinth of his memories, a search for his origins that will uncover an old family secret and turn his world upside down. A mesmerizing and haunting story by awardwinning author Marcos Giralt Torrente, a master craftsman calibrating nuance and impact with a true gift.

The unnamed narrator reflects on the marriage between his mother (aloof, stoic, saintly, and stubborn) and his father (a vain, promiscuous scoundrel). He is fixated on eight mysterious months his mother spent in Paris after they split up, when the narrator was a boy: Did she clandestinely reunite with the father?

Did she live out a perennial ambition carefully kept secret?

Or did she attempt to sort out another matter entirely, of which the narrator hasn’t the least indication? If he discovers what happened in Paris he might make sense of his parents’ relationship, and, in the process, end the nightmares that still recur twenty-plus years after his parents split up.”

—Hispabooks Snow and Shadow

by Dorothy Tse translated from the Chinese

by Nicky Harman Hong Kong, East Slope Publishing “Dorothy Tse’s stories 74

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often start on a note of innocence, but an abrupt twist invariably brings us up short: dreamscapes descend and the pages become populated with ever-weirder characters.

Strange occurrences are juxtaposed in ways that confound logical expectations.

These stories are not for the faint-hearted—violence and sensuality abound. Limbs, even heads, are lopped off with regularity. Yet scenes can be so outrageous that we find ourselves laughing. Dorothy’s bold narrative experiments leave us alternately beguiled and deeply unsettled.”

—East Slope Publishing The Last Lover

by Can Xue translated from the Chinese

by Annelise Finegan Wasmoen China, Yale University Press “In Can Xue’s extraordinary book, we encounter a full assemblage of husbands, wives, and lovers. Entwined in complicated, often tortuous relationships, these characters step into each other’s fantasies, carrying on conversations that are “forever guessing games.” Their journeys reveal the deepest realms of human desire, figured in Can Xue’s vision of snakes and wasps, crows, cats, mice, earthquakes, and landslides.”

—Yale University Press

ss le d a h rs e sh li b u -p lf se , e Once upon a tim d e w ie v re s k o o b ir e th g in of a chance gett ked ic w r e h g n si a le p d a h a ll than Cindere . d e g n a h c s a h y r o st t a Th stepmother.

BlueInk Review: because every book

might not be a princess, but they all deserve a shot at the ball.

serious reviews of self-published books www.blueinkreview.com

Marketing

by Jake Kerr

I my self-publishing journey

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OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2015

n my last column on self-publishing I described the various grassroots methods I was using to get my middle grade novel, Tommy Black and the Staff of Light, noticed. It is important to note that my theory of a spark that lights a fire requires that the spark actually catch. It is ultimately ineffective if the spark lights but doesn’t spread, eventually dying out. This is exactly what happened to me, unfortunately.

The simple truth is that my spark theory turned out to have a fatal flaw—the only sparks that really spread are those that are actually fires in and of themselves.

An example of these kinds would be a major star or author saying nice things about your book. That is the kind of spark that moves large numbers of people to actually buy your book. I’ll discuss the importance of actual sales in a future column, but for now just note that my theory that a broad amount of “little exposure” could lead to something bigger turned out to be false.

That led me to advertising. I put a lot of time, effort, and money into advertising with Facebook, Twitter, and even Linkedin. Ultimately these didn’t do much, but the exercise is revealing in why it didn’t.

What I learned from Facebook advertising is that you definitely move people to click through and then buy your book, but the cost of doing so generally is higher than the money you subsequently make from the sale of the book. For example, Tommy Black is priced at $3.99. For every $5.00 in advertising I made one sale. I was spending $5.00 to lose over $2.00.

I optimized my ad in a number of ways, including testing multiple headlines, body text, and images. My most effective ad still was losing me about a $1.00 for every $5.00 I was spending. Theoretically I could have considered this a marketing investment and hoped that by spending a few hundred dollars the

sales numbers would have made my book reach a top 100 list and then sell better, but that kind of investment was a bit too much for me at that point.

I tried something different with Twitter—I aimed for building my mailing list with something called Leads on Twitter; this was a way for me to have people who were interested in my book click through and get more information via email. This worked pretty well and cost me about 50 cents for every email.

Of course the real question was whether I could mail those people regularly and turn them into buyers and long-term fans. The jury is still out, but the quality of the mailing list is much lower than if the people had signed up after having read my book—the number of people who open the emails and then click through to my website or the buy pages is low. Still, the people didn’t unsubscribe en masse, and each name is a potential sale, so I was okay with it.

The only problem was that this still wasn’t generating sales.

I next tried Google and Bing for advertising via search, specifically for people who liked the Harry Potter and Percy Jackson books. Much like Facebook advertising, the sales generated from the clicks were lower than the cost of the ad. Also like Facebook, I ran dozens of ad variations looking for one that might actually give me a positive return on my investment. I never found it.

Finally, I had a $50 ad credit on LinkedIn, so I targeted an ad exclusively to librarians. I figured that librarians would like to see an ad about a fun new kids book. While the click through rate was good, as was the exposure, sales were again minimal.

At this point I realized that my entire theory of book marketing, which I had modeled after a traditional “swing for the fences” model, was simply not working. I had to re-think everything and do some research into what the professionals were doing. So I started from scratch and spent a few weeks doing nothing more than studying the true masters of self-publishing: Romance authors. In my next column, I will share what I learned.

about Jake Kerr

After fifteen years as a music industry journalist Jake Kerr’s first published story, “The Old Equations,” was nominated for the Nebula Award from the Science Fiction Writers of America and was shortlisted for the Theodore Sturgeon and StorySouth Million Writers awards. His stories have subsequently been published in magazines across the world, broadcast in multiple podcasts, and been published in multiple anthologies and year’s best collections. Tommy Black and the Staff of Light is his first novel, and is the first volume of the Tommy Black series. tommyblackseries.com.

UNBOUND

77

dystopian fangirl Blue Karma

by J.K. Ullrich jkullrich.com

Karma: The sum of a persons’s actions in this and previous states of existence, viewed as deciding their fate in future existences.

F

What to read next in YA dystopian fiction? Our intrepid fangirl Sarah Kloth reviews some of her favorites.

orget dystopian. Cli-fi is about to explode and Blue Karma is going to take it there. Cli-Fi is the new Dystopian, as Blue is the new Black in this brilliant narrative of choices and consequences, humanity and love.

Amaya the Ice Poacher. Logan the Polar Guard. Paul the Heir to an Empire. Survival, protection, and rule. The perfect combination producing the perfect adventure. Teens and adults—the tomboys, tree climbers, adventure seekers, and backyard-campers—this is for you. Every line. Every chapter. Every character.

Every moment. Perfectly come together is this marvelous story.

“I’m an engee pirate who steals the ice you’re supposed to protect. You want to save all of North America’s water, while I just care about keeping myself alive another day. We’re enemies. ” Synopsis from jkullrich.com Water. It covers almost three-quarters of the planet, comprises more than half the human body, and has become the most coveted resource on Earth.

Amaya de los Santos survived the typhoon that left her an orphan. Now she scrapes by as an ice poacher, illegally harvesting fresh water for an always-thirsty market.

Logan Arundson should be dead. After a mysterious attack destroys his military unit, he abandons his Arctic post for his native California, where droughts have made water a religion and a resource worth killing for.

Paul Hayes is heir to an empire. But being vice president of a powerful hydrology company isn’t all gardens and swimming pools: he deals with ice poachers, water rights, and the crushing expectations of his CEO mother. His investigation into company sabotage and the miraculous appearance of a lake in a small California town lead him to a shocking discovery ... and an impossible decision.

78

OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2015

CROWDFUNDING, FOR BOOKS ONLY

P

ubslush is a global crowdfunding and analytics platform for the literary world.

Our niche platform allows authors to raise money and gauge audience response for new book ideas while readers pledge their financial support, democratically bringing books to life. By offering publishers and industry professionals their own unique pages, Pubslush gives these innovators the power of customized crowdfunding. Pubslush’s highly-rated personalized service and focus on user education helps to ensure our authors are as successful as possible. Our community bridges the gap between writers, readers and industry leaders, facilitating a more open and comprehensive publishing process. While our philanthropic cause, The Pubslush Foundation serves to aid in the fight against illiteracy by providing books to children with limited access to literature.

www.pubslush.com

poetry

Contest

by Lucio Mariani You’d ask if I were ever late.

That’s a problem for people stuck between the second and last lanes.

Me. I’m in lone pursuit.

So that whether I’m early or late depends solely on the day’s disaffection.

To catch the beat I clapped my hands once or twice, Before splashing my face with particles of happiness. For getting it right. In the dark.

From Traces of Time by Lucio Mariani, translated from the Italian by Anthony Molino, Open Letter, openletterbooks.org. Reprinted with permission.

All rights reserved.

Where

by Lucio Mariani Where the din of your memory stagnates strong subtle unconsumed everywhere moons and disparate stars tell how much of the night I pass how many nights I still pass looking to find the rarest of pretenses to pour over my chest and the wait for the little death you handed me.

From Traces of Time by Lucio Mariani, translated from the Italian by Anthony Molino, Open Letter, openletterbooks.org. Reprinted with permission.

All rights reserved.

80

OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2015

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on our shelf

THE ONE BEFORE

THE ILLOGIC OF KASSEL “A puzzling phone call shatters a writer’s routine. An enigmatic female voice extends a dinner invitation, and it soon becomes clear that this is an invitation to take part in Documenta, the legendary contemporary-art exhibition held every five years in Kassel, Germany. The writer’s mission will be to sit down every morning to write in a Chinese restaurant on the outskirts of town, transforming himself into a living art installation.”

—ndbooks.com The Illogic of Kassel by Enrique Vila-Matas, translated from the Spanish by Anne McLean and Anna Milsom, New Directions Books, ndbooks.com.

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OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2015

“Juan José Saer’s quintessential themes are on display alongside his idiosyncratic blend of philosophical ruminations and precise storytelling. From the story of two characters who decide to bury a message in a bottle that simply says “MESSAGE,” to Pigeon Garay’s attempt to avoid the rising tides and escape Argentina for Europe, The One Before evocatively introduces readers to Saer’s world” —openletterbooks.org The One Before by Juan José Saer, translated from the Spanish by Roanne L. Kantor, Open Letter Books, openletterbooks.org.

BREAKNECK “Rose Dubois and Julie O’Brien find themselves on the roof of a Montreal apartment building on a scorching summer’s day, and from that moment on their fates are intertwined.

Worldwide climate change and dramatic shifts in weather patterns foreshadow their predestined suffering. As is soon revealed, the two women share a submissive love for the same man, Charles. Their mutual desire creates an arms race of artificial beauty and debasement.”

—anvilpress.com Breakneck by Nelly Arcan, translated from the French

by Jacob Homel, Anvil Press, anvilpress.com.

JUNE/JULY 2012

BEACH READS

SURF, SUN AND

SUMMER

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Detroit Disassembled

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RENAISSANCE READS

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TOWARDS ZERO ENERGY ARCHITECTURE

IDENTITY

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BOY SCOUT BOOKS

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DORTHE NORS ELVIRA DONES CARMEN BOULLOSA

SHELF UNBOUND WRITING COMPETITION

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KEVIN MORRIS JACK LONDON THE INSTAGRAM BOOK

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create dangerously THE WARBLER ROAD

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small press reviews Elvis is King: Costello’s My Aim Is True

by Richard Crouse

W

ECW Press ecwpress.com

ord on the street is that Elvis Costello has a memoir due any day now. For those who can’t wait, there’s Richard Crouse’s Elvis Is King: Costello’s My Aim Is True, a meticulously researched account of Costello’s early years and the release of his first LP with independent label Stiff Records. Of particular interest with respect to this volume is Crouse’s attention to the milieu out of which both My Aim Is True and Costello himself emerged. Indeed, the sense one gets is that Costello’s identity congealed around the production and marketing of his first album in ways that few other acts ever did. “Elvis Costello,” the stage name adopted fairly late in the proceedings by singer-songwriter Declan McManus, emerges as somewhat of a construct, an amalgam of various mythical figures of rock’s colorful history—Elvis Presley and Buddy Holly in particular. Crouse also does an excellent job of contextualizing the album in question. Not punk by any stretch of the imagination (Costello’s backing group for this project was an American country-rock band called Clover), My Aim Is True nonetheless appealed to the raw DIY aesthetic as well as the iconoclastic attitudes of the indie and punk movements of its time. Though relatively brief (and appropriately so, given its narrow focus), Elvis Is King presents a tight, thorough portrait of the musician as a young man that will appeal not only to die-hard Costello fans but rock historians in general.

—Marc Schuster, www.smallpressreviews.wordpress.com Shelf Unbound Contributing Editor Marc Schuster is the author of The Grievers, The Singular Exploits of Wonder Mom and Party Girl, Don DeLillo, Jean Baudrillard, and the Consumer Conundrum, and, with Tom Powers, The Greatest Show in the Galaxy: The Discerning Fan’s Guide to Doctor Who. He is the editor of Small Press Reviews, and his work has appeared in numerous magazines and journals.

Marc teaches writing and literature courses at Montgomery County Community College in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania.

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contributors

CLAUDINE DUMONT is a writer, teacher, and ANDRÉS NEUMAN (1977) was born in Buenos photographer. Captive is her first novel. Visit her Aires, where he spent his childhood. The son of website at www.claudinedumontphotographe.com. Argentinian émigré musicians, he grew up and lives in Spain. He was included in Granta’s “Best DAVID SCOTT HAMILTON was born in Adelaide, of Young Spanish-Language Novelists” issue South Australia. He was educated in schools and is the author of numerous novels, short throughout Australia, New Zealand, and Canada, stories, essays, and poetry collections. Two of before settling in Vancouver, B.C. He studied lin- his novels—Traveler of the Century and Talking guistics and French at Simon Fraser University, to Ourselves—have been translated into English. and French literature and law at the University of Traveler of the Century won the Alfaguara Prize Ottawa. He has worked as a freelance transla- and the National Critics Prize, was longlisted for tor since 1995, most notably for the Canadian the 2013 Best Translated Book Award, and was Museum of Civilization in Gatineau, Quebec. Exit, shortlisted for the 2013 Independent Foreign his translation of Nelly Arcan’s final novel, Para- Fiction Prize and the 2014 International IMPAC dis, clef en main, was shortlisted for the Gover- Dublin Literary Award. Talking to Ourselves was nor General’s Literary Award for Translation and selected as number one among the top twenty books in 2014 by Typographical Era, and was named a Globe and Mail Top 100 Book. longlisted for the 2015 Best Translated Book LUCIO MARIANI is the author of eight volumes Award. His works have been translated into of poetry including Qualche Notizia del Tempo twenty languages.

(Some News of Time) and Echoes of Memory, as well as a volume of essays, a collection of Shelf Unbound is published bimonthly by Shelf short stories, and translations of works by César Media Group LLC, 3322 Greenview Drive, Garland, TX 75044. Copyright 2015 by Shelf Media Vallejo, Tristan Corbière, and Yves Bonnefoy.

Group LLC. Subscriptions are FREE, go to www.

ANN MORGAN is a freelance writer and editor. shelfmediagroup.com to subscribe.

She continues to blog about books at ayearofreadingtheworld.com and lives with her husband Steve Lennon in south London.

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