I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own.
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Author and poet G.W. Wietgrefe share a collection of witty and relaxing poetry to help ease the stress of everyday life in the book “Dakota Country Problems”.
The Synopsis
Rhyming light-hearted poems are rare today. There is no better stress reliever than a smile after reading Half-Assed Ranch, Duck Lesson, Innuendo, Rock in the Road, Need Credit, Can, Time’s Right, Anticipate Fishing, Dad’s Desk, or a book full of relaxing poetry. Keep Dakota Country Poems on your desk, end table, or nightstand and smile.
The Review
This was a heartfelt and captivating read. The author does a remarkable job of creating a calming and easy-going vibe throughout many of his poems, touching upon the memories and experiences of his life and allowing the sometimes fun, sometimes sad, but always memorable moments to shine brightly on the page.
The use of rhyme in these poems utilized the simplicity of the art form to bring to life some heartfelt lessons on life and those who live within it. One poem that spoke to me personally was Badger, which utilized the life and experiences of the animal to help illustrate the need to reach out to those who isolate themselves from society and ask themselves if it is isolation through choice or a form of self-sabotage through loneliness.
The Verdict
Heartfelt, gripping, and thoughtfully written, author G.W. Wietgrefe’s “Dakota Country Poems” is a must-read poetry collection. The heart and passion for which the author writes these poems and the balance of lighthearted fun with care and essential themes make this a compelling collection not to be missed. If you haven’t yet, be sure to grab your copy today!
Rating: 10/10
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About the Author
Gary Wietgrefe (pronounced wit’ grif) is an inventor, researcher, military intelligence veteran, agriculturalist, economist, systems developer, societal explorer, cyclist, hiker, outdoorsman, and author. See www.RelatingtoAncients.com.
I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own.
Author and poet James Morehead share a chilling and rich collection of poetry that delves into the nature of existence in the book “The Plague Doctor”.
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The Synopsis
A mesmerizing collection of eerie, image-rich poems that explore the fleeting nature of existence and friendship, inspired by the world of art and artists. The Plague Doctor combines poetry with mesmerizing ink drawings by Natalia Ardus, art by Mark Kulas and Tony Rubino, and photography by the author.
Poet and musician Lisa Marie Simmons writes in her forward to the collection, “I’ve read this collection three, four, then five times. In my office, in the tour van and the green room, after yoga, and once bundled up beneath an ancient olive tree. Despite those many deep dives, it never seems enough to complete this forward. So I returned—six, seven, ten times. Each reading has me focusing on something new, and a year from now, I know more discoveries will be made as my perspective shifts with my own experiences. This is one of the many things I love about poetry and, in particular, Poet Laureate of Dublin, California, James Morehead’s poetry.”
The Review
These were some incredibly powerful and chilling poems. The fantastic imagery and atmosphere that the author is able to tap into with these poems will stick with readers long after the book has been read, and the imagery that accompanies the book’s pages helps evoke an emotional response that touches upon the iconography that we latch onto to represent the key emotional moments in our lives.
To me, the heart of this collection rested in the balance between macabre imagery and heartfelt themes. The idea of life and death plays across some of life’s toughest moments, from life in the big city (San Francisco in this case) to the striking fear of performing alone on a stage. I also enjoy the way the book was divided into “Acts” as if life were a play and the poems were but the stage in which they were lived, and the way these poems also reflected on the artistic works that moved the author throughout their journey through San Francisco was greatly expressed through these poems.
The Verdict
Heartfelt, haunting, and engaging, author James Morehead’s “The Plague Doctor” is a must-read poetry collection. The almost narrative feel to the overall collection and the memorable way the author was able to tackle such dark and entertaining imagery through their poems with the emotional journey that the poems represented made this a compelling book to get lost in. If you haven’t yet, be sure to grab your copy today!
1) Tell us a little bit about yourself. How did you get into writing?
I’m a child of the enlightenment. I believe in science, rational thought, and the value of knowledge. At the same time, I’m fascinated by philosophical questions that stubbornly reside outside the sphere of scientific truth: the phenomenon of consciousness; the origin of the universe; the nature of time; and the formation of the first living cell. In my later years, the limitations of logic and reasoning have left me more receptive to the numinous in our world — a novice in the realm of spirituality. Above all, I strive to perceive beauty wherever it may exist.
I began writing independently of schoolwork when I was nine. As was true for many children of my generation, I was introduced to the world of poetry through the work of Theodor Geisel, a.k.a. Dr. Seuss. His book “Yertle the Turtle” was a particularly strong influence (though I had no idea at the time that the story was allegorical, a satire of Adolf Hitler). Not surprisingly, all of the poems I scribbled on shirt cardboard rhymed.
In my sophomore year of high school, I maintained a poetry notebook as part of the curriculum. But my interest in poetry really blossomed at Amherst College where, as a biology major on the pre-medical track, I took four rigorous poetry courses. During the last of these, in what I like to describe as an act of love masquerading as mania, I stopped attending classes, isolated myself from friends, ate and slept reluctantly, and spent five straight weeks writing a metaphysical poem on the theme of subjective versus objective reality. This represented my first serious attempt to write poetry.
2) What inspired you to write your book?
Most of the poems that appear in Exits were written between 2003 and 2021 without a book in mind. It wasn’t until two years ago that I decided to incorporate what I considered to be my best work into a book entitled Line Drawings. However,
during the process of reviewing my modest oeuvre, I noticed that a significant number of the poems were related to one or more aspects of mortality. This led me to curate a more concise, themed collection of poems, and Exits was born.
One might wonder where the focus on life’s transience derives from. In retrospect, I can identify three sources. First, I was raised without any religious training, so from a very young age, I was left on my own to ponder the enormity of the universe, time and eternity, and the meaning of existence. My fear of death was such that I often fought against falling asleep, which to me resembled nothing so much as a rehearsal. Second, as a physician and neuro-ophthalmologist, I’ve cared for numerous patients with serious and/or life-threatening diseases. And third, since 1999, I’ve had to deal with the spinal cord variant of multiple sclerosis and the ramifications of that disease for life expectancy.
3) What theme or message do you hope readers will take away from your book?
Death is an integral part of life. It exerts a profound influence on how we think about the limited time granted to us and the meaning we attach to it.
Exits will resonate with different people in different ways. Some readers will gravitate to the visual imagery and nature metaphors. Others will enjoy the wordplay. Still others will find satisfaction in the resurrection of formal elements.
It’s important to keep in mind that we live in a time of great uncertainty. War, climate disasters, and a recent pandemic have led many to contemplate the prospect of their own demise. Exits speaks to this anxiety and angst. It also may provide fresh perspective on mortality, the cycles of life, and the possibility of renewal.
4) What drew you into this particular genre?
My mom, now deceased, deserves a great deal of credit in this regard. A lifelong visual artist, she made it a point to instill in her young son a deep appreciation for
art. I recall sitting on her lap at age four or five as she paged through artbook after artbook. As a result, I could distinguish a Monet from a Cezanne before I could read!
Over the course of my life, I’ve written in multiple genres, including: engineering and technology (U.S. Patent 4,477,158); clinical research articles published in medical journals; chapters in neuro-ophthalmology textbooks; business papers; short fiction; and poetry.
My attraction to poetry is multifaceted:
The thrill of creating art with words
Permission to access the subconscious
The marriage of sound and sense
The fact that anything can appear in a poem
The fact that anything can happen in a poem
The surreal, dreamlike, associative way that poems move the mind
The surprising connections and juxtapositions
Fun with form
The paradoxical precision of poetic ambiguity
Metaphor and the multilayering of meaning
The sonic extravaganza of rhyme, alliteration, assonance, onomatopoeia, meter, and non-metrical rhythms
Non-linear narratives
Emotional intensity
The potential to enlighten
The potential to console
Oblique routes to ineffable truths
5) What social media site has been the most helpful in developing your readership?
None! I’ve never had an account on any social media platform. The lone survivor of the Jurassic Period, I tend to use long-forgotten methods of communication, mainly face-to-face chats, telephone calls, and handwritten letters.
6) What advice would you give to aspiring or just starting authors out there?
Write poems that represent your unique aesthetic sensibilities. Try not to be overly influenced by prevailing trends or by contemporary poetic styles.
Edit mercilessly over an extended period. Satisfying first drafts often begin to show their flaws only after sufficient time has elapsed to afford an objective assessment.
Begin your foray into publication by submitting poems to literary journals. This will help you determine which of your poems resonate with experienced reviewers. Before each submission, make sure that your poem is a good fit for the journal.
7) What does the future hold in store for you? Any new books/projects on the horizon?
Given my age, history of MS, and undisciplined writing process, I’m doubtful that any additional books are forthcoming. But you never know…
About the Author
Stephen C. Pollock is a recipient of the Rolfe Humphries Poetry Prize and a former associate professor at Duke University. His poems have appeared in a wide variety of literary journals, including “Blue Unicorn,” “The Road Not Taken,” “Live Canon Anthology,” “Pinesong,” “Coffin Bell,” and “Buddhist Poetry Review.” “Exits” is his first book.
1) Tell us a little bit about yourself. How did you get into writing?
• I honestly don’t know why, but I’ve always wanted to be a writer. I have distinct memories of myself as a child, maybe five or six, writing stories and poems. I’d carry a notebook around with me everywhere.
• But what’s funny is that I was never much of a reader as a child! I had my favorites. I devoured Harry Potter and other books. But I don’t think that my drive to be a writer came from a love of reading.
• In college, I majored in English with a concentration in creative writing. As a part of my studies, I took workshops each semester, and that’s where I finally began to come into my own as a writer — developing my own voice and style instead of just mimicking other writers. I credit my professors at the time — Sharon Bryan, Darcie Dennigan, Penelope Pelizzon, Gina Barreca — with helping me find my voice.
2) What inspired you to write your book?
• To be quite honest, when I sit down to write poetry, it isn’t with a book or some greater collection in mind. All I’m doing is writing a poem. So I can’t really say that anything inspired me to write the book, because in my mind there never was a book — until there was.
• That being said, with a few exceptions, I wrote these poems during the pandemic. The early days of the pandemic were very lonely for me. I was single during the lockdown, and found myself longing for human connection at a time when it was impossible to have. Those feelings of love and longing and loss really permeate the poems that eventually made it into the collection. In that way, writing Dancehall was a way for me to make sense of the world.
3) What theme or message do you hope readers will take away from your book?
• More than anything, I want readers to connect with the poems and come away with a sense that love is universal.
• The poems in Dancehall follow the narrative arc of a single relationship from start to finish. I call the book a queer love story, because I myself am queer and I see the book as coming from that perspective. But I also made very conscious stylistic decisions so that the poems would appeal to everyone — gay or straight, single or partnered, male or female or non-binary.
• You may notice, for example, that except for in two instances the poems don’t make use of pronouns. Instead, the speaker (“I”) is talking directly to the subject (“You”). I did this so that it would be easier for the reader to put themselves in the poem — either as the speaker or the subject — and feel the immediacy of the work.
• If I, a queer man writing about queer relationships, can write a poem that allows a straight person to feel something about their own relationships, then I think I’ve succeeded in my mission. It’s kind of cliche at this point to say it, but love is love.
4) What drew you into this particular genre?
• I think I was drawn to poetry because I myself read poems that triggered an intense emotional response in me, which made me realize that poetry could be powerful. Some of the most powerful poems I’ve ever read were short poems — under 10 words — and yet they had the power to conjure memories and emotions in what is really an awe-inspiring way. Once I experienced that, I knew that I wanted to learn how to do that myself. I wanted to make people feel something, and I personally haven’t found a better way of doing that than through poetry.
5) What social media site has been the most helpful in developing your readership?
• I have to admit, I’m terrible with social media. I use it mostly for personal reasons — staying in touch with friends, etc. But I’m starting to get a handle on it as a means of building my reader network! I’ve just begun sharing videos and pictures of my work on Instagram (timstobierski) and TikTok (tendre_croppes) and they’re definitely both powerful tools. I think TikTok has the most potential to get your work in front of millions of people quickly, but it’s also tricky to know what’s going to go viral or do well and what’s going to be a flop. I guess I’m still learning.
6) What advice would you give to aspiring or just starting authors out there?
• I think the most important bit of advice I have is to not let rejections get to you. If you submit a poem or a story or an entire book to a press and get a rejection, do your best not to take it personally. Brush yourself off, think critically about whether or not there’s a way you can make your submission stronger, and find a new press to submit to. Just because your work isn’t for someone doesn’t mean that it’s for no one.
• When I first pulled together the manuscript for Dancehall, it was very different from what the book now looks like. I was submitting it to contests and presses that wanted books of poetry consisting of 30 poems max, so that’s how I arranged the book. It wasn’t until I got my fourth or fifth rejection that I looked at the collection and thought, “Well, they keep turning me down when I send them what they say they want. I’m going to submit what I want.” I doubled the poems, reorganized the book, and gave the collection a narrative arc that didn’t exist before. And when I sent it out the next time? The book was accepted by not one, but two presses.
• The moral of it all: Rejections are a part of being a writer. So do your best to build up a thick skin.
7) What does the future hold in store for you? Any new books/projects on the horizon?
• The way I write poetry is slow. It takes time. I don’t set out to write a collection — they amass over time as I write a poem here or there and realize that a theme has emerged.
• Recently, I’ve been writing a lot about grief, tied specifically to my father’s death. I think that those poems will eventually form the body of a collection. Likewise, I’ve been writing more explicitly about my experiences coming to terms with my sexuality, and I think that will eventually form a collection
About the Author
Tim Stobierski writes about relationships. His work explores universal themes of love, lust, longing, and loss — presented through the lens of his own experiences as a queer man. His poetry has been published in a number of journals, including the Connecticut River Review, Midwest Quarterly, and Grey Sparrow. His first book of poetry, Chronicles of a Bee Whisperer, was published by River Otter Press in 2012.
To pay the bills, he is a freelance writer and content strategist focused on the world of finance, investing, fintech, insurance, and software. In his professional writing, he prides himself on his ability to help the reader understand complicated subjects easily, a quality that informs his poetry.
He is also the founder and editor of Student Debt Warriors, a free resource for college students, graduates, and parents who are struggling to make sense of the complex world of student loans.
I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own.
Author Don Behrend shares a fun collection of poetry that twists everything from modern romance to the modern-day self-help trend in the book “In Doubtful Taste: New and Selected Poems”.
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The Synopsis
“Don Behrend’s In Doubtful Taste is a playful collection of rhyming poems that skewers everything from modem courtship to self-improvement routines to the sexual advantages of an octopus-and much more.The collection includes 56 poems presented in nine short sections, each titled with a “P” word, including “Pandemic”, “Ponderings” and “Peccadilloes”. Behrend’s speaker is amused and amusing, toying with the lingo and idiosyncrasies of our current zeitgeist.The poet delivers both elaborate and simple rhyme schemes, short witticisms and longer tales. His poems are clever without being shallow and are sure to elicit smiles and sometimes hearty chuckles.”BlueInk Review
The Review
Art and poetry can cut through the tension and troubles plunging our world into chaos, especially in the darkest times. The need to confront tragedy and heartbreak with humor and wit often comes to pass for those who have had to live through these types of events, and the author’s book perfectly captures this need.
The author balances the poems in this collection with enough humor to tackle the pain and trauma that was the recent pandemic. The rhyming verse throughout each of these poems really cuts through the themes and issues that our modern world deals with constantly. The wit and charm of the author’s writing style and the way these poems showcase the contradictions that always rule our lives made this a compelling read.
The Verdict
Thoughtful, heartening, and engaging, author Don Behrend’s “In Doubtful Taste” is a must-read poetry collection. The heart and charm of the writing style itself was a great way to cut through the tension and atmosphere of the subjects the author was touching upon and kept the reader invested in the gripping poems. If you haven’t yet, be sure to grab your copy today!
I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own.
Author and poet Tim Stobierski share a beautiful queer love story through a collection of powerful poetry in the collection “Dancehall”.
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The Synopsis
A queer love story in five acts, Dancehall follows the arc of a relationship from its earliest days to its final, somber conclusion.
In these 60 poems, you will join the speaker as they navigate the highs and the lows, the tranquility and the turbulence, the euphoria and the despair that comes with giving yourself fully to another.
Through language, imagery, and form at once universal and intimate, you are invited to take part in this love story – not as some distant observer, but as a central figure: The “you” to whom the speaker writes these poems.
Experienced poetry readers and poetry novices alike will enjoy the clean, simple style embodied in the majority of the poems.
Whether straight or queer, young or old, single or happily partnered, these poems are for anyone who has ever loved or longed for another.
The Review
This was a powerful and memorable story. The way the author was able to convey this relationship from start to finish through poetry produced an incredible and emotional read. The subtle yet powerful moments in this relationship really stand out, and the imagery the author used made the narrative these poems were telling feel alive on the page.
The heart of this book was in the main narrative itself, as the reader felt the strong pull of this emotional bond formed between two people. The closeness and the haunting memories of that closeness play a crucial role in the themes of love and loss, and the honest and important language the author uses to bring this queer love story to life was so passionate and engaging.
The Verdict
Thoughtful, emotional, and moving, author Tim Stobierski’s “Dancehall” is a must-read collection of poetry. The structure of this five-act play of sorts and the memorable imagery that captures those heartfelt moments both good and bad made this a compelling read. If you haven’t yet, be sure to grab your copy today!
Rating: 10/10
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About the Author
Tim Stobierski writes about relationships. His work explores universal themes of love, lust, longing, and loss — presented through the lens of his own experiences as a queer man. His poetry has been published in a number of journals, including the Connecticut River Review, Midwest Quarterly, and Grey Sparrow.
His first book of poetry, Chronicles of a Bee Whisperer, was published by River Otter Press in 2012.
I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own.
Author and poet Stephen Pollock take readers on a journey to discover the root of mortality in the book “Exits”.
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The Synopsis
Stephen C. Pollock’s debut collection, Exits, nods to the literary traditions of years past while simultaneously speaking to the present moment. Multilayered and musical, the poems in Pollock’s “Exits” (Windtree Press, June 29, 2023) have drawn comparisons to the work of Eavan Boland and Seamus Heaney. With bold imagery, attention to form, and a consistent throughline rooted in the theme of mortality, his collection responds to contemporary anxieties surrounding death and the universal search for meaning in life’s transience.
The Review
This was a compelling and moving read. The poetry was brilliant, each poem evoking a sense of powerful and gripping imagery that explores our connection to nature and our role in keeping it safe, while also delving into the idea of our own mortality and how the issues facing our world, such as war and disease, are impacting both nature and man’s mortality greatly.
The imagery and atmosphere the poems were able to achieve were greatly enhanced due to the author’s ability to infuse nature and the natural world as a whole into each poem, capturing the raw emotion and philosophical discussion that these themes bring out in us all. The passion and heart with which the author wrote these poems will speak to readers who not only enjoy poetry but poems that bring out the almost lyrical and relatable words we say and feel every day and yet rarely are able to put into practice.
The Verdict
Heartfelt, captivating, and engaging, author Stephen Pollock’s “Exits” is a must-read book of poetry. The succinct yet thoughtful approach to each poem and the moving words that brought this collection to life really will hit the reader in the heart, and the range of topics, from the passing of a loved one to toothpaste, will speak to both the mundane and valuable moments in life we take for granted, and yet need to remember. If you haven’t yet, be sure to grab your copy today!
Rating: 10/10
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About the Author
Stephen C. Pollock is a recipient of the Rolfe Humphries Poetry Prize and a former associate professor at Duke University. His poems have appeared in a wide variety of literary journals, including “Blue Unicorn,” “The Road Not Taken,” “Live Canon Anthology,” “Pinesong,” “Coffin Bell,” and “Buddhist Poetry Review.” “Exits” is his first book.
Creative writing and poetry have been a part of my life since childhood; seeing my first poetry collection, The Unempty Spaces Between, come to life has been a dream come true.
From the time I first held a pen to write simple rhymes for both my grandmothers, I appreciated the power and beauty of the written word to move readers to laughter, tears, reflection, and action.
While the poems in The Unempty Spaces Between are all part of me, they are not unique to me. Rather, they reflect what it means to be human through an expression of purposeful words, vivid images, and intense emotions.
Some of the poems in this collection were seeded or written years ago, and others completed within weeks of publication. Collectively, they tell a story of fear, pain, loss, beauty, love, and the environment surrounding us.
My goal in poetry, writing, and this book is to bring to light the details and mechanics of the human experience missed in the process of living. My desire is to give readers a chance to stop and look between the distractions to appreciate all that exists in the spaces between, the essence and roots of life, drawing light through darkness.
While the poems in this collection grew out of my experiences and capture how they moved me at the time, our unique human experience is defined by how we each see what is before us. This is another beautiful element of the universality of art and why no two readers will be touched by the poetry in my book in the same way.
Whether “Reflection” capturing an unimaginable pandemic world, “God’s Garden” moved by a tear rolling down the cheek of a young woman, the elusive exploration of universal perfection “In the Eye of the Beholder,” or the serene yet tragic romance of two dancing flames in “A Candle with Two Wicks,” my collection is aimed at viewing the world in a profound way.
I hope The Unempty Spaces Between will meaningfully move you and bridge the plentiful void between us.
About the Author
Louis Efron is a poet and writer who has been featured in Forbes, Huffington Post, Chicago Tribune, POETiCA REViEW,The Orchards Poetry Journal, Academy of the Heart and Mind, Literary Yard, New Reader Magazine and over 100 other national and global publications. He is also the author of five books, including The Unempty Spaces Between, How to Find a Job, Career and Life You Love; Purpose Meets Execution; Beyond the Ink; as well as the children’s book What Kind of Bee Can I Be?
I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own.
Author and poet Louis Efron share his debut collection of poetry in the book “The Unempty Spaces Between”.
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The Synopsis
A beautiful creation of song and scar, of emotional complexity and simple witness, Louis Efron’s debut collection The Unempty Spaces Between mingles the natural and human worlds in a series of accessible, personal, universal poems. From lush to bare, the landscapes he presents us with are so intertwined with and impacted by our actions that we realize the two have always been one. Brimming with meditations deep as winter snow and boundless compassion and curiosity, these vibrant poems remain grounded in a universal familiarity that opens us up to something greater.
The Review
This was quite a beautifully written and deeply introspective read. The author’s handle on imagery is felt immediately in this book, allowing the reader to become lost in the worlds and narratives that each poem brings to life as if they are caught in the emotional wave of creativity that spills across the blank canvas of life. The unique structuring of each poem speaks to the deep thoughts and the working world in which the author’s mind inhabits.
The poems themselves are quite engaging, allowing the reader to see pieces of themselves in the work, and even in the poems that don’t directly speak to them, the reader is able to contemplate and look inward at their own lives to the core of each poem’s meaning. The poem “Nicked Wedding Ring” is a particular favorite, exposing the depths of deep emotion in the wake of a loss and the juxtaposition of those who seek out that same death out of greed or power, revealing how death shows us our best and our worst.
The Verdict
Memorable, engaging, and thought-provoking, author Louis Efron’s “The Unempty Spaces Between” is a must-read poetry collection. The fast pace of the collection and the way readers can easily sit and read through this book in one sitting and yet return to it time and time again speak to the author’s powerful words and the heart behind them. If you haven’t yet be sure to grab your copy today!
Rating: 10/10
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About the Author
Louis Efron is a poet and writer who has been featured in Forbes, Huffington Post, Chicago Tribune, POETiCA REViEW,The Orchards Poetry Journal, Academy of the Heart and Mind, Literary Yard, New Reader Magazine and over 100 other national and global publications. He is also the author of five books, including The Unempty Spaces Between, How to Find a Job, Career and Life You Love; Purpose Meets Execution; Beyond the Ink; as well as the children’s book What Kind of Bee Can I Be?
