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MWSA Review

Last Full Measure of Devotion: A Tribute to America's Heroes of the Vietnam War

by Donald J. Farinacci

Publisher: Authorhouse

Pub. Date: November 2007

ISBN-13: 9781434318572

148pp

Hardcover (6x9) - $13.70

Paperback (6x9) - $8.70

There were no marching bands welcoming home returning troops from Vietnam, no ticker-tape parades for its heroes and no celebrations in Time Square. Instead, returning Vets were confronted with a range of reactions, not the least of which were indifference, silent disapproval, criticism, hostility and even contempt, in some quarters, for their lack of cleverness in not avoiding service in a war zone.

Most returning Vietnam warriors were bewildered by the reactions of their fellow countrymen; but, then how could they possibly comprehend the psychological phenomenon which was only beginning to take hold and would later be named the "Vietnam Syndrome", a phenomenon which, at its extremes, was manifested in a revulsion to all things military? Even those who were proud of the returning servicemen and women were hardly effusive in their praise and greeted them with only muted enthusiasm.
 

REVIEWS:

50th Infantry Assoc. Book Reviewer: '..Farinacci does a fantastic job of bringing the action to life...I highly recommend this book.' Robert R. McMillan, former Commissioner of the Panama Canal: 'A Great Book.'

PURCHASE HERE

Sunchon Tunnel Massacre Survivors

By Joyce Faulkner and Pat McGrath Avery

Non-fiction History, Korea

In October 1950, two hundred and fifty American POWs were shot in North Korea.  Less than 30 survived. Today, there are less than 12 still alive.

Sunchon Tunnel Massacre Survivors is the story of how these men were captured, interrogated, tortured, marched for hundreds of miles, and finally, taken out of a train on a cold autumn evening and executed.  Taken from interviews of those men who are still alive, official debriefings, congressional testimonies, and other historical sources, this is an important book that details a little known event in America's Forgotten War, Korea.  For the true historian, there are a few surprises as well.  For the families of those lost in Korea, here's what happened to Valdor, Sherman, Ed, Bob, George, Walt, Bill and Jim.

REVIEWS: 

PURCHASE HERE.

In the Shadow of Suribachi

by Joyce Faulkner

Historical Fiction

List $15.95

MWSA price: $12.00

In the Shadow of Suribachi focuses on the lives of seven young Marines whose lives intersect on the bloody beaches of Iwo Jima.  Although this is a novel, the stories are based on the experiences of the author's father and of the Marines who chose to share their hearts with her.

RECIPIENT OF THE MWSA 2006 GOLD MEDAL FOR HISTORICAL FICTION!

REVIEWS:

"In the Shadow of Suribachi should be required reading on Air Force One." -- Hugh Rush,  Retired English Teacher, Mesa Arizona  

I could smell the dirt from the fox holes, feel the bullets racing by my head, and fear was my constant companion as I turned from one page to the next. Fear, but laced with hope for their safe return to "HOME" and whatever laid ahead." ~ Georgia Richardson, Author of A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Throne.

"This is a book that will remain etched in the reader's own memory, for many years to come." ~ Hugh Rosen, author of the novel, Silent Battlefields

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For Shrieking Out Loud

By Joyce Faulkner

Humor

$12.95

Based on Joyce Faulkner's column, "The Weekly Shriek", For Shrieking Out Loud is chock full of fun and rife with wry observations about the absurdities of everyday life.  Includes perennial favorites such as "Flipping the Bird," "Why Women Usually Say No," and "The Dog Whisperer."  Joyce is featured regularly on K-Dade Radio performing her shrieks.

REVIEWS:

"For Shrieking Out Loud!  One minute it's chortle-in-the-gut funny! The next so poignant it nudges at the heart!  Joyce Faulkner may single-handedly bring the two-minute essay back into vogue."~ Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author, poet, publicist, teacher.

"For Shrieking Out Loud! is like Sex and the City, without a lot of sex or city...funny and thoughtful all at the same time." ~ Anna Marie Gire, Publisher of Women's Independent Press.

PURCHASE HERE.

Angel's Wing: A Year in the Skies of Vietnam

by Joseph R. Finch

Non-Fiction, Vietnam, Memoir

$16.95

Angel’s Wing is Joe Finch’s account of the year he spent with A Company, the “Little Bears” during the Vietnam War. His story is raw and authentic, unflinching in its honesty. Sometimes his tale is humorous. Sometimes it’s tragic. Whether he writes of a preposterous moment or of brutality and death, his personal account is powerful. If you weren’t there, at times his experiences in Vietnam are hard to imagine: the blood, the noise, the smells.  At other times, you will open your eyes in wonder at the dedication that the young men fighting there demonstrated.

REVIEWS:

"The Angel's Wing was a "very bad place" to the helicopter pilots of Viet Nam but to the men on the ground the "Angels" were the pilots themselves. For the pilots it was the hotly contested no-mans land along the Cambodian border. To those soldiers on the ground who were injured or hungry or needing support, the helicopter units like the "Little Bears" and so many others, were the Angels who came upon "rotary" wings. The book is also a story of the soldiers in those helicopters who made the rules up as they went. They learned as they lived and died." -- LTC Hugh L. Mills, jr. scout pilot, Viet Nam
 

PURCHASE HERE:

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Grady's Tour

By John H. Gallagher

Historical Fiction, Korea

$22.00 plus $3.00 s&h

2007 MWSA Award Winner

John Grady engages in combat in Korea.  He subsequently is assigned to Fort Monmouth where he becomes involved in Joe McCarthy's allegations that a Communist spy ring exists in the engineering laboratories at Fort Monmouth and is his generals harsh regulation requiring the court-martial of soldiers who have auto accidents. 

PURCHASE HERE:

MWSA Review

“Amy Goodpaster Strebe’s book is excellent … meticulously researched, well-written, and convincingly argued and documented. One of the book’s great strengths is a comprehensive bibliography that makes it particularly valuable as a reference for students and professionals alike.”– Air & Space / Smithsonian

 “I really enjoyed the book. It tells the true story of how women were involved in aviation during the war.” – General Chuck Yeager

 “Before reading Flying for Her Country I never imagined that the Russian women military pilots of WWII had the same values (honor, integrity, courage, commitment, faith, patriotism, service and sacrifice) as America’s WWII women pilots. This fascinating book portrays a significant chapter in history that is not found in most history books. It is educational, motivational and inspirational as it chronicles the history of how these young women military pilots proved that, no matter the challenge, no matter your nationality, and no matter how difficult the mission, you can do anything, if it’s the right thing to do and you put your mind to it.”– Deanie Bishop Parrish, WASP (Class 44-W-4)

 “Strebe has done an outstanding job researching and writing about the invaluable contributions made by women pilots in the Second World War. As pioneers in military aviation, the WASP proved to the world that they were indeed capable of flying both fighter and bomber aircraft. In the case of the Soviet women aviators who saw combat along the Eastern Front, their indomitable spirit and heroism in battle have made them legendary. A book depicting the combined achievements of these intrepid military airwomen is long over due. I highly recommend it.” – Dr. Peggy Chabrian, President and Founder, Women in Aviation, International

 “Strebe’s book offers a beautifully written, well-researched account of a little known but fascinating aspect of World War II. Her story of these women aviators in the U.S. and USSR is both dramatic and moving. Their courage is truly remarkable. Equally amazing is the way they were treated by their respective governments because of their gender. Strebe’s book is not to be missed by anyone interested in women’s history and military history.” - Dr. Mary Pickering, Professor of History, San Jose State University

PURCHASE HERE:

Full Time & Sub-Nine: Fitting Iron Distance Training into Everyday Life

by David Glover

Non-fiction

$16.95

I share my story of my athletic career, battle with cancer and winning strategies that earned me four overall wins at the Iron-distance and dozens of top ten finishes in triathlons of all distances. Whether you're training to win, training to finish or just need inspiration from my life journey, my book will help you compete wiser while enjoying the training and challenge of triathlon competition.  
 

REVIEW:

PURCHASE HERE:

Fire Mission: The World of Nam -- a Marine's Story

by Earl J. Gorman

Non-fiction

Publisher- Red Desert Press (Clarendon Hills),

Retail $19.95; a 30% discount for members

A Marine’s memoir of a life-changing 2007 adventure back to Vietnam with a medical mission team that weaves in his 1965-66 combat experiences. Against all odds, the author searched for his two Vietnamese friends. The therapy derived from the reconciliation work and his successful reunion (after 41 years) with his friends, closed the mental wounds of his war experience. The monkey was off his back! A deadly Viet Cong sapper attack as well as episodes from Operation Hastings are featured combat stories.

REVIEWS:

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The Shenandoah Spy

By Francis Hamit

Historical Fiction, Civil War

$18.95

This is a fiction based upon the real life of Belle Boyd , who became famous as The Rebel Spy and The Cleopatra of the Secession. This is the first novel in a series about the Confederate Secret Service and the women who worked for it. The time is July 1861. Belle, a 17 year old debutante, is alarmed and distressed when her home town , Martinsburg, Virginia, is invaded by volunteer Union Army troops. The man she'd hoped to marry has been killed in battle. When drunken Union soldiers invade her home, dire consequences ensue.

REVIEWS:

The writing is truly gifted and the author is inventive with how he uses real and fictional dialogs and narrative of people and events. I honestly do not know Civil War history well enough to know one from the other. But I would bet that the author has researched much deeper into this period then one might realize. He captures this place and time in our history. To me it was a very satisfying reading. I think I even learned something about that war new. -- Bill McDonald, Military Writers Society of America
 

Francis Hamit, best known as a journalist, has a good grasp of historical fiction. His writing is solidly based on the true story of Belle Boyd, including bits of dialogue taken from historical accounts. What makes this good historical fiction is that fact that he is able to fill in the "known" with the "believable" in terms of actions and dialogue, filling in the gaps and fleshing out the characters. -- Nick Smith, Amazon Reveiwer

PURCHASE HERE

The book is also available on Amazon.com and at fine bookstores everywhere by special order.

Bring Cup, Plate, & Spoon

By Betsy Herold Heimke

Memoir, World War II

$15.95

When Betsy Herold was 12 years old, Japanese soldiers came to her home in the Philippines and took her entire family prisoner.  Bring Cup, Plate, & Spoon is the story of how she grew up in a series of civilian internment camps on Luzonn.  In the final climatic moments of World War II, Betsy and her family were eye witnesses to the Battle of Manila from their cells in the infamous Bilibid Prison. Charming and informative at the same time.

REVIEWS

PURCHASE HERE

5 Brothers In Arms

by Raymond C. Heimbuch

Non-fiction, History, Memoir, World War II

List: $19.99

Special discount $15.00 plus $2.00 Shipping

This book starts with our becoming POW's, with a brief flash back telling how we got there, then goes on to tell about my POW life, and as each of my brothers who is not already mentioned joins the service, he gets a separate chapter telling his war experience, and goes on to tell what happens to each of them up until the present time.  Essentially it tells what we did during the war and then what we did up until the present time.

REVIEWS:

"This is a true story about our ordeal as POWs.  Ray’s sharp memory tells the story of our starvation and suffering as Japanese POWs.  Our friendship is one reason we did survive by helping each other, especially on the “Hell Ships” from Mindanao to Japan, a horrific journey of ninety-two days.  Ours was not to reason why – ours was to do or die." - Bob Dowding, Japanese POW,  Author: A few Survived.

"I’ve known Ray and George Heimbuch since 1941, while assigned to the 5^th Air Base Group.  This relationship has lasted to today.  It was interrupted in May 1942 when the unit was surrendered to Japanese forces in the Philippines. We shared similar experiences in POW camps until our liberation in 1945. Afterward we stayed in the Air Force, got married, and raised families.  At Survivor Reunions we share experiences, good and bad.  Memories fade, but the tales get better. May our memories of the footlocker fifth remain with us forever."  --  Walt Regehr, another survivor!

PURCHASE INFO:

To purchase, send check, payable to Ray Heimbuch,  (X No. books X $15.00, plus $2.00) to:  Ray Heimbuch, 1314 Estates Drive, Fairfield, CA  94533.

 

Voices Under Berlin: The Tale of a Monterey Mary

By T.H.E. Hill

Fiction, Cold War

$14.95

REVIEWS:

 “Voices was a treat to read because it accurately, amusingly, and respectfully captures—as never before was so well done—the carefree yet dedicated attitude of U.S. military intelligence linguists. With humor, Voices describes how intelligence folks successfully and honorably worked in Berlin, as they did worldwide, to defeat the Soviets in the Cold War.”
— Bruce Ford, veteran of Field Station Berlin in the 1960s, and webmaster of the FSB Veterans Group.

PURCHASE HERE

Rogue Avenger

By John R. Hindinger

Fiction, Adventure, Cold War

$25.95

Rogue Avenger is the sequel to Rogue Trident, a Military Writers Society of America award winner.

After hijacking a Trident Missile submarine in Rogue Trident, international arms dealer Pierre Renard and ex-naval officer Jake Slate team up for nobler purposes in Rogue Avenger. Pressured by a blockaded Taiwan, Renard agrees to lead a new Pakistani-built Agosta submarine against Chinese Kilo class boats. Refusing to join him, Slate hides in France where he is falling in love with undercover CIA seductress Olivia McDonald.

As McDonald uses Slate to infiltrate Renard's network and learn of the Agosta's anti-Sino mission, she also discovers that a trusted CIA leader has betrayed her. She questions her loyalties. Meanwhile, a Pakistani submarine has gone rogue with genocidal intent, and the Pakistani Chief of Staff commissions Renard and his Agosta to hunt the renegade boat.

A Virginia class submarine plays a vital protective role, but only the improbable alliance of Renard, Slate, and McDonald can protect hundreds of thousands of lives.

REVIEW:

“After reading Hindinger's extraordinary debut novel, I had no idea how he was going to top his own performance. Now I know. 'Rogue Avenger' … BUY THIS BOOK NOW!” - Jeff Edwards, award-winning author, Torpedo.

PURCHASE HERE

Rogue Trident

By John R. Hindinger

Fiction, Adventure, Cold War

$23.95

The U.S. Navy makes a big mistake when it thinks it can get away with sacrificing one of its own.

Naval officer Jake Slate survives an explosion on a submarine, but the damage will haunt him forever. He learns that the worst harm resulted from malice, and when politically motivated naval officials bury the truth, they lock horns with the wrong guy. Slate's vengeance will turn the Navy inside out.

Arms broker and French ex-submarine commander Pierre Renard discovers Slate's situation and recruits him to steal his Trident Missile submarine, the USS Colorado, and sell its warheads to Taiwan.

Blinded by rage, unsure of his future, and uncertain of whom he can trust, Slate is confident in one thing - nobody can stop him from taking the Colorado.

He allies with Renard and begins a journey that will define the fate of nations.

REVIEW:

PURCHASE HERE:

PURCHASE HERE:

The Frugal Book Editor: Put your Best Book Forward to Avoid Humiliation and Ensure Success

By Carolyn Howard-Johnson

Non-Fiction

$17.95

There are gremlins out there determined to keep your work from being published, your book from being promoted. They —resolved to embarrass you before the gatekeepers who can turn the key of success for you —lurk in your subconscious and the depths of your computer programs. Whether you are a new or experienced author, The Frugal Editor: Put Your Best Book Forward to Avoid Humiliation and Ensure Success will help you present whistle-clean copy (whether it's a one-page cover letter or your entire manuscript) to those who have the power to say "Yea" or "Nay." It is a USA Book News award winner.

REVIEWS:

Midwest Review
"To the rescue comes acclaimed author Carolyn Howard-Johnson with The Frugal Editor, the latest in her How to Do It Frugally series. This little gem is a must-have for any writer, published or not, bestselling or unknown." ~Christy Tillery French

As an editor myself, I purchased the book to see what type of advice Carolyn Howard-Johnson could give readers and perhaps learn a few new tips for my own business. Carolyn did not disappoint. The book is filled with easy-to-understand language that will truly help guide the first time author to be better equipped to present their manuscript to a professional editor. I highly recommend to all authors and writers. --
Karen L. Reddick, author of Grammar Done Right!

PURCHASE HERE:

The Frugal Book Promoter: How to do What Your Publisher Won't

By Carolyn Howard-Johnson

Star Publishing

Non-Fiction

$17.95

For only a few cents a day THE FRUGAL BOOK PROMOTER assures your book the best possible start in life. It is full of nitty - gritty how -tos for getting nearly-free publicity. Carolyn Howard-Johnson, an instructor for UCLA’s Writers’ Program, shares her professional experience as well as practical tips gleaned from the successes of her own book campaigns. She tells authors how to do what their publishers can’t or won’t and why authors can often do their own promotion better than a PR professional. It won the Irwin Award, USA Book News' Best Professional Book award and it has been Star Publishing's top selling book for three years running.

REVIEWS:

This book earns my highest approval and I believe it will be of great help to authors, whether self-published or traditionally-published. --Jenna Glatzer Author of MAKE A REAL LIVING AS A FREELANCE WRITER and editor-in-chief of AbsoluteWrite.com

Frugal is filled with easy to understand marketing tips along with how to use postcards, get book reviews and Media interviews. There's a chapter on E-Books and one on how to use Amazon perks to your advantage. Any one of those topics is worth the price of the book. -- Tom Barnes author of "Doc Holliday's Road to Tombstone."
 

PURCHASE HERE:

The Great First Impression Book Proposal: Everything You Need To Know To Sell Your Book in 20 Minutes or Less

by Carolyn Howard-Johnson 

ISBN:  B000YG6O5U 

Publisher, Amazon.com  

Non-Fiction

The perfect  learning experience for those who want to learn to wow an editor in no time flat and only 49 cents out-of-pocket! 

PURCHASE HERE:

PURCHASE HERE:

Tracings

by Carolyn Howard-Johnson

Finishing Line Press

Poetry

$12.00

Tracings touches chords—both major and minor—for readers interested in nostalgia, tolerance, culture and aging. The author traces her life's experiences and for her it feels like "a movie reel running backwards." "Tracings" was named to the Compulsive Readers' Ten Best Reads list.

TRACINGS RECEIVED THE MILITARY WRITERS SOCIETY OF AMERICA 2006 SILVER MEDAL FOR POETRY.

REVIEWS:

Carolyn Howard-Johnson is a natural talent honed to a bright polish by years of practice and exploration. "Tracings" is an example of her work at the height of her poetic expertise and passion. Poems like "Perfectly Flawed" start out with fiery word paintings and end up in a memory of childhood that moves us to our own memories -- the lovely ones scarred by reality -- but still lovely. Then there is "Earliest Remembered Sound" which also harkens back to childhood memories of World War II images, traumas and gallantry. And then there is "Mother in December" -- an ode to loss that is gradual and inevitable and all the more heartbreaking for it's seemingly endless duration.

This book is like gentle whiffs of Chanel #5 -- a perfect gift for mothers to give daughters, girlfriends to give other girlfriends, men to give lovers...poets to share with other poets. -- Joyce Faulkner, Author of In the Shadow of Suribachi, For Shrieking Out Loud and co-Author of Sunchon Tunnel Massacre Survivors.

Carolyn is a masterful and creative writer and this small collection of her poetry certainly proves that to be true beyond any doubts! There is a fire of feminine spiritual energy burning in her writings but also a powerful and steady hand of control that gives these poems a special kind of feeling. You too will notice that these simple poems are much more than what they appear to be.

This book receives the MWSA's top book rating of FIVE STARS! -- Bill McDonald, The American Author Association.

PURCHASE HERE

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Shades of Gray: A Novel of the Civil War in Virginia

by Jessica James
List Price $27.99
Discount 20%

REVIEWS:

"Well written and expertly executed. You cannot leave this book unchanged in your understanding of the souls of the Civil War" says the Book Review Journal. Shades of Gray is a highly praised epic love story that gives a balanced view of the Civil War while transporting readers to a time when
honor was more precious than the blood spilled to earn it. This debut novel by Jessica James has received critical acclaim from Civil War authors and historians, as well as lovers of romance and historical fiction.

"[James']  work stands out among the best of the historical novelists, and is a worthy addition to the Civil War fiction line-up. Huzzah!" Scott Mingus, Civil War Blogger

"Shades of Gray" is a beautiful story with a timeless message. It touched my heart and soul." Catherine Bennett, Amazon Reviewer

" I haven't enjoyed a book so much in years! Shades of Gray is an incredible achievement and a treasure." Virginia Morton, Author of "Marching Through Culpeper"

"... Exciting, intense, romantic, and thrilling from start to finish. The most balanced book on the War Between the States I have ever read." Bob O'Connor, Author of "The Virginian Who Might Have Saved Lincoln"

PURCHASE HERE:

MWSA Review

Two Brothers: One North, One South

By David H. Jones

Historical Novel

$24.95

REVIEWS:

by Robert F. Dorr & Thomas D. Jones

Non-fiction, History, World War II

Hard Cover

$24.95

REVIEWS:

Veteran aviation author Dorr and astronaut a Jones have produced a riveting account of the gritty and unheralded war fought by young Thunderbolt pilots of the Ninth Air Force. Through dozens of interviews, the authors let the voices of pilots and ground crewmen tell what it was like to fly daily into the teeth of Luftwaffe fighters and Wehrmacht flak to help win the victory in Europe. This book represents the 17 other Ninth Air Force fighter-bomber combat groups.
 

PURCHASE HERE

or

If you'd like a personalized copy, send me a check for $ 30.23, for the
book, an inscription from the authors, and priority mail packaging.

Robert F. Dorr
3411 Valewood Drive
Oakton, Virginia 22124
(703) 264-8950
robert.f.dorr@cox.net
 

The Last Farewell: A journey of the heart

By Edmund Burke O’Connell. Co-authored by Julie Whitman Jones and Thomas J. Sullivan, Jr.
Non-Fiction, WW2

Paperback- $21.99

Hardback- $31.99

The Last Farewell, a posthumous wartime
memoir set against the rich, colorful landscape of historic Florence and Northern Italy, tenderly recalls one soldier’s love story through the viewfinder of a still and motion picture camera during the Italian campaign of the Second World War.

An unlikely luncheon date during a lull in the summer 1944 liberation of Florence leads Edmund Burke O’Connell, an Army motion picture photographer with the U.S. Army's 196th Signal Photo Company to meet an
attractive English-speaking Florentine, Tina Calamai. Their friendship steadily blossoms into love as her family’s 15th century Medici villa, the Villa Calamai, becomes his wartime base of operations.
 

REVIEWS:

“This well-written and researched, romantic memoir, richly embellished with photographs and additional historical material, is a must read. My 80-something mother read it in one sitting, saying not only was it a riveting story, it brought back for her many memories of World War II and gave her new insights into a war that affected a generation.” -- Elaine Larsen, Editor and Publisher, Pacifica Tribune

 "Mesmerizing tale traversing the war-torn confines of Tuscany. Well-written, with brilliant photographs. Read it over an obliging chianti and two helpings of tiramisu." - Tom Gollo

 "An intimate snapshot in an important age, painstakingly researched." -- Alan Wald

PURCHASE HERE: