GOLD medal winner!

2019 Readers’ Favorite Non-fiction Cultural.

Eastern European mythology and folklore contain a rich, colorful blend of Christian and pagan tales, customs, and rituals. Many have lost their original significance, but others are still practiced—especially in remote, rural locations.

Household Spirits, the first in a series of books, will take you on a journey to discover nine fascinating house spirits you may never have heard of. Here are a few tidbits about what you can expect to find within the book’s pages:

·       Unusual noises at night in your attic may be a Talasum or a hungry Stopan.

·       Sacrificing a black hen and sprinkling its blood in the foundation of a new home keeps the building and occupants safe from evil spirits.

·       Builders often measure passersby with string or “capture” their shadow in the mortar of a wall to make structures strong.

·       Forgetting to wash your dishes at night and leaving your house messy anger a Kikimora, and she’ll get her revenge.

·       Don’t kill a snake because it may be the spirit guardian of your home.

·       Have you heard of the Bannik? Taking a steam bath will never be the same again after you learn about his habits.

That’s not all. You’ll learn historical facts, discover fascinating and horrifying stories, and enjoy beautiful illustrations to gain a complete experience of these elusive house spirits.

• Discover Ancient Bulgarian Myths, Legends, Folklore, and Mythology

• Meet Heroes from Greek Mythology with Thracian Origins

• Enjoy Diverse, Delicious Modern and Traditional Bulgarian Recipes

A book for children and adults from 8 to 108 who would like to take a journey and discover Bulgarian folk tales, legends, and mythology. Whether you want to learn a little about their ancient Thracian origins, or you want to experience rituals practiced throughout the year with a fictitious Bulgarian family, or even if you’re only interested in traditional Bulgarian cuisine, this book has something for everyone.

Bulgarian culture is rich in folklore and traditions surviving since the days of the ancient Thracians. As pagan and Christian religions collided, many celebrations merged into one.“Light Love Rituals” will take you on a journey to discover these unique festivals.

• Illuminated by the light of the full moon, a woman in a long, white robe holds an icon while she dances in a trance over burning coals. The mystical music of a shepherd’s pipe plays in the background.

• Women dressed in colorful outfits dance in a circle, then pass through an enormous wreath made of magical healing herbs.

• Wild spring flowers decorate the hair of young girls. Laden with baskets filled with colorful Easter eggs, the youths travel from house to house singing to bring health and prosperity to the village.

• Men clothed like wild animals with colorful, scary masks parade around a village. Attached around their waists, giant cow bells resound announcing their arrival. The men jump and yell to scare away evil spirits.

"Light Love Rituals," not only describes the rituals, but also makes them interesting and understandable to people of all ages. The book is divided into four seasons, beginning with winter. It includes activities where you can learn how to make martenitsi, survachka, and Easter eggs dyed with natural colors. A short quiz after each season lets you test your knowledge of what you’ve read. To help you engage in the traditions in the book, you’ll meet Maria and her family. They’ll open the doors of their home so you can participate in these celebrations along with them. For an added taste of Bulgaria, try some of the traditional recipes at the end.

What’s Next? Creativity in the Age of Entertainment details the interconnected causes of the creativity crisis that exists today where a focus on entertainment has confused and compromised our society. Ms. Karlin shares her experiences with creative people and artistic projects, demonstrating how inspiration and imagination coexist across various disciplines. She explores our current Age of Entertainment and how our culture discourages creativity in many fields. The roles of imitation, discipline and cleverness in nurturing creativity skills offer an overview of the creative process. Examples of innovative ideas that led to Grammy Awards and international projects provide a background of program and leadership development. She illustrates her views about the future of arts education and the music business through successful programs around the country. Finally, suggestions are offered to assist creativity development in the arts, philanthropy, business, education and our personal lives toward a new Age of Creativity.

It is a common notion that Africa has, and indeed ought to have, learned much from the west. This is not wrong; all cultures rightly learn from each other. But less is said of what there is to learn from Africa: from her stories, myths, music, proverbs, insights - and more. Here an acclaimed African scholar steps into the gap by uncovering for us something of the great legacy of African thought and practice in ways that will astonish many. Written with verve and authority and directed above all to students and sixth formers, this book will also delight and often surprise those who know something of Africa as well as those hitherto ignorant. Ruth Finnegan OBE FBA is Emeritus Professor The Open University, Foreign Associate of the Finnish Literature Bureau, and International Fellow of the American Folklore Society. An anthropologist and multi-award author, she has published extensively, chiefly on Africa, musical practice, and English urban life. Recent books include How is Language?, Fiji's Music: Where Did It Come From?, her edited Entrancement: The Consciousness of Dreaming, Music and The World, and two prize-winning Africa-influenced novels Black Inked Pearl and Voyage of Pearl of the Seas.

We often don't realize all it takes for refugees to navigate the path to resettlement. They face years of waiting and countless hurdles before arriving in a strange new land with few possessions and little knowledge of their new communities' language and culture.

How did a diverse group of refugees make their way to the US and settle in Abilene, Texas? Who helped them through the resettlement process as they embarked on their new lives?

In Ten Cultures, Twenty Lives, refugee storytellers from a broad swath of cultures—Rwanda, Congo, Liberia, Cuba, Iraq, Bhutan, and more—reveal their compelling, sometimes humorous, often bittersweet tales of resettlement in West Texas. Through their life stories, refugees share their powerful experiences about the long, hard road they took to get to the US.

Ten Cultures, Twenty Lives guides us through their journeys and draws us into the world of refugees and resettlement staff, describing the passion and energy needed to help these courageous storytellers resettle in the US and the challenges they faced.

• 2018 FINALIST, NANCY PEARL BOOK AWARD
• 2018 FINALIST, NATIONAL INDIE EXCELLENCE BOOK AWARDS
• 2017 FINALIST, THE NEXT GENERATION INDIE BOOK AWARDS 
• BESTSELLER, MIDWEST INDEPENDENT BOOKSELLER ASSOCIATION

"Rhythm For Sale" the 5-Star Grand Prize Award book voted one of the Best Self-Published books 2015 and Bookawards.com Gold Award Winner. Get this NAACP Mid-Manhattan Black History Month Founders Day Award-winning Edition filled with 20 Extra Vintage Harlem Renaissance images. About Harlem Renaissance producer Leonard Harper's life. Reid has documented Harper's tale with decades of research and the careful chronological arrangement of the facts. Reid begins with Leonard Harper as a young pickaninny boy dancing in Medicine shows in the racist South. After leaving Alabama, Harper tours the country with his song and dance partner Osceola Blanks, and they wind up performing at the Empire Theater in London. As a married couple Harper and Blanks, arrive back in the States smack dab in the middle of the Harlem Renaissance. Pianist Duke Ellington moves in with them. Harper is hired to be the main in-house producer at Harlem's fabled Connie's Inn nightclub. "Rhythm For Sale" just gets started as Harper opens up his downtown Times Square Dance Studio. He teaches the Marx Brothers, Ruby Keller, Adele Astaire and Busby Berkeley's chorus line in the fine art of (Colored), dancing with "that little extra something in the butt department." He forms his famous chorus-line the Harperettes, who jiggle and joggle in skimpy outfits while setting dance floors on fire. Leonard Harper produces in at least eight nightclubs and theaters just in New York City alone. The Cotton Club, the Hollywood Inn, Al Capone's Grand Terrace Cafe, the Lafayette Theater, and the Apollo Theater all owe their status and particular place in nightclub and theater entertainment history to Harper and his fast variety revues. He rules the nightclub and Black Musical Comedy world on "The Great White Way" and uptown in Harlem. "Black And Blue" and "Ain't Misbehavin" all came from Harper's "Hot Chocolates." The book is chock full of celebrities and gangsters who come and go. Ethel Waters, Cab Calloway, Fats Waller, Chick Webb, Louis Armstrong, Billie Holiday, Count Basie, Lena Horne, Dutch Schultz and Lucky Luciano are all integral players in Harper's show business world. Grandson Grant does not disappoint. These real-life characters come to life. No cardboard cutout characters are in this book. It's not all the razzle and dazzle of the bright stage lights in this tome. "Rhythm For Sale" finely peals away beyond the surface to reveal what lurks underneath the facade. Like a master chef, the author delves deep into the ingredients of Harper's complicated personal life. We examine his relationships with his possessive mother, jealous brother, crippled and bitter wife, sexy girlfriends and his loving daughter. The book ends with Harper's 1943 downfall. When Harper's variety revue form of Colored Musical Comedy is, deemed out of date with his audience, his time on earth expires. His sad downfall is inevitable as the master Stager is trapped and held captive of his past success. The racial pigeonhole that forced him into working for only small-time Harlem nightspots caused his death. A Harlem street was named "Leonard Harper Way" because of the deep historical contents in this book. "Clearly Leonard Harper was just about the most important contributor to the entertainment mystique that enveloped Harlem in the 1920's and 1930's. He invented the nightclub floorshow, Harlem style that everyone, uptown and down, then emulated. Without him, I doubt we would have Broadway musicals as we know them today." Barry Singer author of Black And Blue. "Harper's extraordinary accomplishments as an artist and innovator spanned the worlds of vaudeville, cabaret, burlesque, and Broadway musical comedy. Harper is also remembered as a pioneer who integrated the all-white Shubert touring circuit and directed Hot Chocolates' the first-ever Broadway production with an all-black creative team." President of Lincoln Center. Enjoy the read!

Join Carole P. Roman when she visits the beautiful land of Germany in the newest book of her informative series. Learn about the varied customs and cultures. Travel to the central Europe to discover what you would eat and do for fun. See the land through the eyes of a youngster like you and understand what life is like in this exciting place. Don't forget to look at the other books in the series so that you can be an armchair world traveler.

The Mastery of You takes you on a self-discovering journey that provides the framework for developing inner self-confidence. The priority shifts from other-centric to self-centric. And, in the end, giving you the tools in order to be a healthier, happier and balanced individual.