Today was the 2017 Dayton [OH] Book Expo at Sinclair Community College. The publishing business has changed lightyears since I entered it in 1990. Today anyone can get published, so this show was a fascinating assortment of (near as I could tell) about 80 local, self-published authors. There were also seminars on such subjects as “Self-Publishing Made Easy” and “The Basics of Marketing”.
I’m sure you’ve heard the old adage “Don’t judge a book by its cover,” especially for self-published works. I’m going to violate this badly; a few titles I saw really jumped out at me. (If I only had two more lifetimes to read all of these.)
– Small Feet On The Run: Childhood During World War II Remembered and Arguments Against War by Sieglinde Martin. The author was born in Langenfeld, Germany in 1940. She came to this country in 1964 for post-graduate training in physical therapy. This book tells the true story of eighteen children who lived in Europe during World War II.
– I Love My Ponytail by Simone O. Nooks. This is a coloring storybook about a little girl who decides that having the best ponytail in the world is not as important as the gift of compassion after visiting her best friend in the hospital. A portion of the proceeds goes to help children fight cancer.
– Understanding When Others Don’t: How to Help Those Hurting from Loss (And Maybe Learn Something about Your Own Losses Too) by Stephanie Hittle. “Our idealized dream of life may include avoiding abuse and tragedy, marrying once to the ‘right’ person, having successful careers, having children who mirror our values, and after a long and healthy life, dying peacefully in our sleep. But life doesn’t always go that way.”
– Beaten But Not Stirred: 7 Steps to Deliverance by Stephinie R. Johnson. This book “is not just a message for victims of domestic violence, but a call to arms for all women. This is a message of hope, peace, faith, love and endurance.”
All of these books are available on Amazon.com.
