SPR | Self-Publishing Review

Review: The Truth Within: A Humanist’s Memoir by Leonard M. Cachola

Author and artist Leonard M. Cachola has composed an emotive exploration of life’s vicissitudes in his engrossing memoir, The Truth Within.

Son of a hotheaded, alcoholic, and often abusive father and a calm and mostly forgiving mother, Cachola found solace in the fantasy worlds of arcade gaming and comic books. He created pictures at an early age, ran a cartoon strip for his college newspaper, and eventually launched a laudable career in graphic arts. As he sought balance in his life, he pursued diverse hobbies that included autocross racing, dancing, and photography.

His girlfriends ranged from the rather raunchy […]

SPR2020-06-03T04:26:27+02:00April 15th, 2020|Categories: Book Reviews|Tags: Memoir Book Reviews|

Review: The Meaning of Life by Nathanael Garrett Novosel

A professional researcher has considered and compiled data from various fields to create a goal-oriented exploration of life’s meaning in the informative and impassioned The Meaning of Life: A Guide to Finding Your Life’s Purpose.

At the outset of the comprehensive tome, author Nathanael Garrett Novosel offers a “Pre-Book Assessment,” allowing the reader to rate his/her current “ability to derive meaning from life,” with a simple analysis of the resulting rating. He propounds that no important information about how to live can come from one of our most basic questions: How did life come to be? Instead, we should […]

SPR2020-04-14T11:06:40+02:00April 12th, 2020|Categories: Book Reviews, Lead Story|Tags: Self-Help Book Reviews|

Milly: My Life As a Labradoodle by Robert Belenky, Ph.D.

Milly: My Life As a Labradoodle … In Five Short Dog Tales by Robert Belenky is a sweet and surprisingly poignant book told from the point of view of Milly, a dark brown Labradoodle, and her unique perspective on life as she knows it. With a light and amusing tone throughout, the book is also philosophical at times, covering topics of ethics and even death, while mostly concentrating on Milly’s many comforts, which mirror our own. The book will appeal to all dog owners, but will be especially rewarding for children, as Belenky skillfully weaves in some heady topics into […]

SPR2020-04-06T08:40:06+02:00April 6th, 2020|Categories: Editorial Reviews|

Review: Silent Muse Poetry by Ariele Tee

The timeless theme of love gained, appreciated, and lost is explored in Silent Muse Poetry: A Tale of Heartbreak and Becoming, the eclectic debut collection by poet Ariele Tee.

Tee’s book is divided in five parts. An introductory piece in Volume 1, “The Buildup,” states the issue clearly: “This love ran through my veins, ignited flames and drove me crazy.” Here, the poet focuses on the blindness of the early stages of love. She refuses to see the lover’s flaws, enumerating the virtues and vowing her eternal devotion. She wants to be the one and only (“9-5 and weekend”), […]

SPR2020-04-03T04:50:16+02:00April 2nd, 2020|Categories: Book Reviews, Lead Story|Tags: Poetry Book Reviews|

An Interview with Stephen J. Ethier: Author of The Void Revealed

Stephen J. Ethier has a lifelong interest in science fiction and fantasy. He has published over 35 non-fiction books. This is his first novel, for which he designed the cover art. Ethier lives on the east coast of Canada with his wife of 37 years, Christine, and their three fur babies, Frodo, Tessa and Tinkie.

Tell us about your book.

The Void Revealed is ultimately about perseverance and triumph. The cyclical Fury has destroyed Elspa, the City of Carvings, and all that remains is the community of Windhold perched high atop the Spire while the forbidden Void lies below, a […]

SPR2020-04-17T10:40:47+02:00March 28th, 2020|Categories: Interviews|

An Interview with Brian Meehl: Author of Blowback ’94

Brian Meehl is the award-winning author of seven novels, including the vampire comedies, Suck It Up and Suck It Up and Die. Blowback ’07 and Blowback ’63 are his first two books in the Blowback Trilogy. Prior to penning novels, Brian enjoyed a successful career writing for television, winning three Emmys, and performing Muppets on Sesame Street and in Jim Henson films, including “The Dark Crystal.”

Tell us about your book.

“So the last shall be first…” Although this book, Blowback ’94, is the last in the Blowback trilogy, it was the initial story that inspired the trilogy, […]

SPR2020-03-26T09:20:05+02:00March 26th, 2020|Categories: Interviews|

Review: The Growth and Collapse of One American Nation by Donald J. Fraser

Donald J. Fraser has created a detailed view of the early years of the American republic as it gradually narrowed towards the turmoil of civil war in The Growth and Collapse of One American Nation.

In the first decade after the founding of the nation, political parties – Federalism and Republicanism – developed almost immediately. In the mix, the fascinating George Washington was slightly right of center, believing that governance couldn’t rely on people’s nature since we often cannot control that nature, as he sometimes had trouble controlling his own.

By contrast, Thomas Jefferson, more to the left philosophically, […]

SPR2023-06-30T17:22:03+02:00March 10th, 2020|Categories: Book Reviews|Tags: History Book Reviews|

Review: Memoirs of an Angel by Jim Huggins

How much do animals know? What can pets offer and share if given the chance? These are questions that are explored and answered in Memoirs of an Angel by Jim Huggins.

Having had a beloved dog in his life – a German Shepherd named Smokey who passed away in 2002 – Huggins began to feel lonely after Smokey was gone. Drawn to the breed and also driven by a passion for animals that have suffered abuse after his own childhood of feeling unwanted, Huggins began searching for a possible replacement. That’s when he learned about Cadie, a “boomerang” award winner […]

SPR2020-03-11T10:59:23+02:00March 8th, 2020|Categories: Book Reviews, Lead Story|Tags: Memoir Book Reviews, Pets Book Reviews|