SPR’s book reviews of new self-published books
On the Margin of the Sky by Dee Plecic
Dee Plecic’s autobiographical account of life in a war-torn city presents a world where racism and religious tyranny gradually replaced multiculturalism and tolerance is an amazing tale of one woman’s endurance.
In 1992, the city of Sarajevo, the capital of the Balkan country Bosnia and Herzegovina, fell under siege in the Bosnian War. The center of a multi-ethnic, multi-national power struggle among Serbs, Croatians, and Bosnians erupted, bringing the term “ethnic cleansing” into modern-day vocabulary. The author lived in Sarajevo during much of that time, and describes the daily conditions in harrowing detail: snipers firing on people getting water at […]
Are You Happy?: A Guidebook to Earning Happiness is a wonderfully illustrated book that offers sage advice and some handy metaphors that distill our behavior in the pursuit of happiness. 
With the current saturation of superhero stories in films and television, 
Graphic novels may have spent decades in the shadow of comic books, but the genre continues to expand and progress, as shown in the electric new graphic novel, Genesis II, by Allan Ling and Christian Boe, a stunning artistic and storytelling achievement.
The challenges of being a young boy are uniquely showcased in Boys, Bears, and Bubblegum, an eclectic collection of short stories and poems for children written by Carolyn Madero and illustrated by Giovanni Munari and Jane Brusetti.
Layers by A.G.R. Goff is a riveting thriller that keeps you on edge throughout; it’s claustrophobic, tense, and contains a mystery that is revealed slowly, while still reading at a fast pace. 
Clouds: On the Wind is another lovely book of poetry by Gary Burns, adding another naturalistic collection to his oeuvre.