Books, Writing, History, and Me
In “Books, Writing, History, and Me” I share my thoughts on travel, cooking, van-life, books, the process of writing, the experiences of an indie-publisher, WWII, the Holocaust, and anything else I feel might be of interest to readers of my books. Please send me comments and let me know what you like and what you want to know more about. Everything in this blog reflects my personal ideas and feelings–a memoir of sorts, it is my perspective and any errors or omissions are mine.
Comfort Food for Shelter in Place Days
The simple cooking style I practiced of necessity in my van-life days translates well to the shelter in place weeks we are experiencing now. One of my favorite comfort food ingredients, white sauce, is finding its way back into my repertoire. If you are older (say in your 70s like myself), mid-twentieth century comfort food…
Nomadland, A Book about Van-life Today
Over the last months, while I was researching travel memoirs, I came across Nomandland, by Jessica Bruder. Not a memoir, still this triumph of personal journalism hit a cord with me because it reveals van-life as it is today. I am aware of the trend of adventurous youth to spend some years living in a…
Mexican Fried Rice, Van-life Cooking at a Time of Uncertainty
Last night for supper I prepared a rice dish that was inspired by both Chinese Fried Rice and the delicious Persian dish, Baghali Polo. Creating new dishes has always been relaxing and fun for me and, during these days of enforced “sheltering in place,” I’ve set myself the goal of making the best use of…
Comparable Books for A Travel Memoir
A nonfiction book (including a travel memoir such as Wherever the Road Leads) is first presented to an agent or publisher in the form of a book proposal. One of the most important elements of this proposal is the section of competitive and complementary books. These are often called “Comps.” I looked for narratives that…
A Summer of Memoir Reading
Recently, following the writer’s adage to read the genre you write, I set out to read memoirs in search of stories that would inspire my own writing and push me to expand and excel. Some time ago, I fell in love with the memoirs of Isabelle Allende. Starting with Paula, a memoir about her youth…
Memoir Writing Update: Wherever the Road Leads
I can’t believe it’s been two years since I posted my last blog! How could it have taken so long to write my memoir? Originally, I set a goal for myself to finish within a year. For twelve months, I poured over old letters, studied maps, looked up details of time and place on the…
A Memoir of Love and Travel Van-Life Style
Travel is my passion and my way of learning about the world. What was the most influential journey of your life? How has travel changed your perspective? The first question is an easy one for me — it was my honeymoon! Granted, my honeymoon was a bit different…
The Muralist and LBJ, a Secret Hero.
WWII novels always figure importantly among the stacks of books waiting for me to read and summer is a great time for catching up. Maybe your “to read” stack is on your bedside table, or in leaning towers on the floor under your desk, or stashed neatly in boxes in a…
A Summer Book for Young Readers
After two years promoting my adult novel, Immigrant Soldier, I decided go back to my roots – children’s literature. As a result of the publication of the novel, I now have my very own publishing company. Why not publish a children’s book? Last February, I pulled out one of my favorite children’s manuscripts – a work where…
My Mother’s Secret – A Self-Publication Success
I have to admit, Amazon has my number! Whenever I sign in to my account on their website, I get a display of “featured recommendations,” and when I order a book, I am shown selections that “customers who bought this item also bought.” It was one of these suggestions that lead me to the wonderful…
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