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MWSA Review

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:

First Marine Captured in Vietnam
A Biography of Donald G. Cook
Donald L. Price
ISBN 978-0-7864-2804-5

Publisher: McFarland
67 photos, appendix, notes, bibliography, index
334 pp. softcover
price: $35
Non-Fiction, Vietnam War

Colonel Donald Gilbert Cook was the first U.S. Marine captured in Vietnam; the first and only Marine in history to earn the Medal of Honor while in captivity; and the first Marine POW to have a U.S. Navy ship named in his honor, the USS Donald Cook (DDG-75). On December 31, 1964, while serving as an observer with a South Vietnamese Marine Corps battalion on a combat operation against Viet Cong forces, he was captured near the village of Binh Gia in South Vietnam. Until his death in captivity in December 1967, Cook led ten POWs in a series of primitive jungle camps. His leadership and adherence to the U.S. Military Code of Conduct earned him the nation’s highest military award, but Cook never received historical attention commensurate with his enormous accomplishments.
 

REVIEW:

“Brings back the terror and heartache of these times...thoroughly-researched...highly recommended!”—Midwest Book Review

“[the author] has done a great service in his book...I highly recommend this book”—Marine Corps Gazette

“Very impressive...a captivating read”—Purple Heart Magazine

“riveting...extensive research”—U.S. Naval Institute

"Portions of the book are painful and poignant, but most are inspiring and compelling... (Col Cook) epitomized the best of America. (Price) has written a fitting tribute to him"--Vietnam Magazine

PURCHASE HERE:

Purchase through McFarland. Orders only Tel: 800-253-2187, Orders only FAX: 336-246-4403 or

www.mcfarlandpub.com/

 

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:

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.

Foreign and Domestic

Campaign II: Battle for the Middle States

by Michael Mannske

Radius7 Pressworks

Fiction, Thriller, All Things Military

Hard cover: $28.99

Soft Cover: $20.99

Foreign and Domestic: Campaign II: Battle for the Middle States by Michael Mannske is a page-turning war-thriller that explores the high price of freedom and the cost of fighting the U.S. president himself to secure it! In this sweeping epic, it is the near future, and the UN has now become a superpower, brutally fighting the United States on its own soil. Ex-Air Force pilot John “Spiderman” Trent’s life is in constant danger, his beloved wife is forced into an internment camp, and the fate of the world is in grave jeopardy. Can Trent’s secret force of military patriots save the day—and the Constitution?

REVIEWS:

"A thrilling political and military novel that resists being put down until the last page is turned." - Midwest Book Review

"...Welcome to Michael Mannske's nightmare." -- Minneapolis City Pages

"Cross Tom Clancy with Dean Koonz. Mike knows his science and hardware. I'm a near-history junkie and this is right down my alley."
-- William Sloan, National Liaison, American Legion Riders

PURCHASE HERE:
 

From 'Nam With Love: An Infantry Soldier's Vietnam

By Lloyd A. King

Poetry

$12.95

From 'Nam with Love is a heartbreaking journey into the soul of a young man who documents his world during the ugliest year of his life.  King tackles topics like "First Kill," "Leach Island," and "Chopper Down."  Highly decorated for his deeds in Vietnam, the poets grief encompasses the reader.

FROM 'NAM WITH LOVE IS THE RECIPIENT OF THE MWSA 2006 GOLD MEDAL FOR POETRY!

REVIEWS:

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

Non-Fiction

$17.95

With the Frugal Editor as a desk companion for the Frugal Book Promoter, you'll have what you need to know about publishing at your fingertips--whether your publishing on-you-own or traditionally.

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:

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:

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MWSA Review

The Ghosts of Thua Thien

by John A. Nesser

McFarland

$29.95

Drafted in October 1968, John A. Nesser left behind his wife and young son to fight in the controversial Vietnam War. Like many in his generation, he was deeply at odds with himself over the U.S. involvement in Vietnam, instilled with a strong sense of duty to his country but uncertain about its mission and his role in it.

Nesser was deployed to the Ashau Valley, site of some of the war’s heaviest fighting, and served eight months as an infantry rifleman before transferring to become a door gunner for a Chinook helicopter. In this stirring memoir, he recalls in detail the exhausting missions in the mountainous jungle, the terror of walking into an ambush, the dull-edged anxiety that filled quiet days, and the steady fear of being shot out of the sky. The accounts are richly illustrated with Nesser’s own photographs of the military firebases and aircraft, the landscapes, and the people he encountered.

REVIEWS:

“I knew John Nesser for years, and never knew him. I read his book. Now I will never forget. He wrote many years after his Vietnam experience and he has forgotten much. But his heart has not. John’s story of adventure (for adventure it was) is as poignant now (in the days of the Iraq debacle and its aftermath) as it was the day he returned to the world. John was a soldier once. Part of him will never be anything else”—Henry Shovic, author of When There’s Only You: Safe Living for Women.

PURCHASE HERE

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:

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:

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PURCHASE HERE:

Highest Traditions: Memories of War

By Tony Lazzarini

Memoir

This is the author's memories of his two years in Vietnam serving as a helicopter door gunner in a UH-1D (Huey) helicopter. He flew over 250 missions between April, 1966 and November 1967 with the 25th Aviation "A" Company LITTLE BEARS.

REVIEWS: 

"Lazzarini does an outstanding job!" - MilitaryReadingList.com

"Touching and thrilling at the same time." - Heartland Reviews

"Best memoir 2004" - RebeccaReads.com

PURCHASE HERE.

Deep in the dense forests of the Pacific Northwest live an eclectic assortment of loggers, loners, survivalist, and people who just want to disappear.
After 3 long years of bloodshed in Vietnam and another 20 plus as a covert agent for the US Government, the Major belonged in the last category. Diabetic, slightly overweight and on the wrong side of 55, he just wanted to be left alone to enjoy his little slice of forested heaven.
One foggy autumn night he finds himself targeted by what appears to be a Special Operations Team. The Major is forced to resume hunting, in the old way, again. Next, his peaceful life is completely shattered when his Montagnard War Brother, Y'Ang, is brutally tortured and killed in a cabin just down the road. Y'Ang's daughter is kidnapped, and now the killers are headed for their true prey - the Major. Only his combat and survival skills can save him and his brother's daughter, and allow him to avenge his brother's death. But first he must discover who wants him dead, and what long-lost secret the Asian jungle hides.

REVIEWS

"A tense thriller painted on a dark palette, suffused with the heavy, cedary incense of the rugged northwest forests." Michael Curtis Ford

"HONOR DUE is filled with suspense and action, modern technology and a tender love story." American Authors Association

"D. H. Brown's HONOR DUE is a mind-gripping action-packed adventure. D. H. Brown paints with words like an Old Master."
Seniors Sunset Times

"D. H. BROWN has written a pulse pounding story with a strong unique voice, an unforgettable character, and a mesmerizingly clever plot." David H. Dun

D. H. BROWN gives us a character we can connect with. If I was in a tight spot, I'd want the Major as a friend and by my side.Buzz the Book Reviews

"HONOR DUE is an action-packed book that I could not put down." Reader Views

PURCHASE HERE

OR

WEBSITE: http://www.dhbrownbooks.com

How to Become a Published Author

by Don Bendell

Non-fiction

$19.95 including shipping

Don has been approached by many friends, relatives, and strangers several times each week for years on advice in getting their first book or novel published. He has always explained that it is a damned-if-you-do and damned-if-you-don’t dilemma, wherein to get a good book published you have to have an agent, but to get a good agent you have to have successful books under your belt first. How do you navigate the pitfalls to  get your first book published without having to endure the morass described? With 25 successful books published by Berkley, Dell, and Penguin USA and over 1,500,000 copies of his books in print worldwide, Don  knows the secret.

PURCHASE HERE

Hunting with Tigers

By Gene Basilici

Fiction, Vietnam, Thriller

$29.95

REVIEW:

This is a high-energy, high-octane, combat thriller that you will not be able to put down until you have read the last word on the final page! This is a must read book! -- Bill McDonald

PURCHASE HERE:

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by R. J. Morris (Roger J. Morris )

Music

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

PURCHASE HERE:

MWSA Review

Is Anybody Listening?

by Barbara Birchim

Nonfiction, Vietnam

AuthorHouse

Hardcover:  $ 31.50

Softcover:  $ 21.75

IS ANYBODY LISTENING? tells of dignitaries, presidents and those involved with the POW/MIA issue as I’ve known it since November 1968 when my husband, a Special Forces officer, became missing-in-action.

The pages reveal my feelings and torment during my 

many trips to Southeast Asia in search of answers, and my frustrations while wandering the halls of Washington D.C. for help.

The book was written to show the issue’s insidious  

cover-up and my commitment to the truth.

REVIEWS:

This book is very good...It is well written and a fast read. I could not put it down.  The story is gut-wrenching and I have come away, once again, very angry and frustrated with out government!  It tells a story of a POW'S wife and her quest for the "real" truth behind her husband's disappearance. The lengths she has gone to to get answers are unreal. She is a hero herself for standing up and never giving up. This is one of my more favorite books regarding the Vietnam Pow's. ~ C. O'neal
 

This is a heart breaking account of seeking the truth through the govt. red tape. Evidence supports the fact that we left servicemen behind in Laos and Cambodia. As former military, I am deeply saddened by what appears to be true. Through the pipeline, President Reagan was the last Commander in Chief to sanction rescue missions into S.E. Asia to search for POW s. Former SPEC OP WARRIORS are very tight lipped on this subject. Former Special Forces Sgt. Isaac Camacho escaped from Laos in 1965 and was never debriefed until the early seventies. Only a handful of military men escaped from captivity during the Vietnam War. Why did the govt. never utilize their knowledge? General Tighe, former director of the Defense Intell. Agency 1974 - 1981 has stated that he believed we had indeed left servicemen behind. ~ FRANK ROCKER "ROCKN IN SO CAL

PURCHASE HERE

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Journey to a Closed City

With the International Executive Service Corps

By Russell Miller

Fiction, World War II

Beach House Books

Tradeback: $16.95, Large Print: $24.95

Journey to a Closed City describes the experiences of an unlikely central character, traveling in a little known part of the world, at the aftermath of a different type of war. The book will appeal to armchair travelers eager to discover far-off corners of the world, and the reader interested in expense paid travel to intriguing locations while using their skills to "do good" in the developing world.

PURCHASE HERE: