Second Chances Don't Grow on Trees

Second Chances Don't Grow on Trees is an interesting book by Patrick J. McLaughlin.

It's a true story that is unusual and fun-filled and very well written.

It's even more interesting as the story is all 100% true!

It relates the story of how a former teacher, one Patrick "Paddy" McLaughlin, became responsible for looking after a disparate group of people all who are troubled in one way and another, all social misfits and troubled folks who are from a tougher-than-tough working-class slum area.

He works with them and for them to find redemption and rehabilitation, proving that they were worth much more than they thought they could ever be worth. And showing what a remarkable individual he is.

His job was to get them all, by a miracle, back into gainful employment and back into productive, settled lives.

However, as Paddy cheerfully points out he had some demons in his own life which he successfully battled against.

Paddy realised that the one common factor was that they had all been failed pretty badly by the education system.

He struck on the idea of launching his own specially created homemade small college, dubbed The People's College.

The curriculum of this remarkable college also includes a strong commitment to creative writing and also on cosmology, which has helped boost their sense of self-worth.

One of the key points was that Paddy was able to establish not what his students didn't know, but what they did know. Something that had never been done before.

It's an amazing book. Which raised an interesting question in my mind. Why aren't their more People's Colleges in the country?

If you work in education, especially people with who have previously been failed by the education system, then you must buy this book.

It's published by Troubador at £9.99.

Missing Presumed Missing

Missing Presumed Missing is a new novel from the pen of Paul Harris which is an adventure story aimed at children aged 9 to 11 years.

Michael, the protagonist of this novel is twelve-years-old. He's a somewhat anxious young man, he has a difficult relationship with his mom and dad and is suffering from bullying at school.

What does Michael find to worry about? Anything and everything, unfortunately!

One day he takes the fatal decision to take a short cut through the nearby Spinney Wood. Michael suddenly finds himself in a weird, parallel world which has some deep, dark secrets. For example, what had happened to all the children who had gone missing.

The biggest, most nasty bully at the school is called Jonty. He has gone missing. But Michael know where Jonty is. 

Michael has befriended Melanie and Ben and he decides to make the return to Spinney Wood, where he hopes he will be able to rescue Jonty and uncovering the truth of Spinney Wood.

Will the three friends rescue Jonty and return to safety with him? Will they even be able to make it home in safety?

What are the secrets of Spinney Wood? Will they be revealed at long last?

It's an exciting story which will be well-received by children aged 9 to 11, That is if their parents and older siblings will allow them to get the chance to read it!

The book is published by Troubador at £7.99.

Circle Dance

The protagonist in Circle Dance is Miranda. 

The novel is set in the London of the 1970s and Miranda is looking for something in her life. She wants romantic love and some purpose.

New Age activities are the buzzword of the times and such activities are becoming more and more popular and she throws herself with great gusto into a range of self-development workshops.

Into Miranda's life comes a healer and clairvoyant Cassie who predicts that Miranda will have a happy future.

Eventually Miranda joins a creative writing class which is run by Jocasta, who is, unfortunately, both manipulative and promiscuous.

Miranda finds herself  drawn into a love affair with Julian. Julian is a very talented poet, but he is very highly sensitive. 

Unfortunately when Miranda needs him most, Julian shatters her by an act of gross betrayal.

Thus begins a strange three person dance between Miranda, Jocasta and Julian. 

Why are two highly intelligent women drawn so inexorably into the orbit of such a troublesome and self-centred man?

How will this impact on the destiny of Miranda? Will her friend's predictions for Miranda's life come to fruition, or not?

With the assistance of the paranormal and Cassie, Miranda's future life takes shape.

The book is published by Troubador at £9.99.

Bertrand & Wally Tackle The Clove Hitch Virus

Bertrand & Wally Tackle The Clove Hitch Virus is a new story from the inventive pen of Eric Carroll.

It tells the story of a dreadful pandemic that threatens the very existence of the insect kingdom.

The deaths of many millions of insects are reported and Bertrand, who is a beetle, and his friend Wally, who is a woodland wasp meet up with famed earwig scientist, Professor Clapperstein after an exciting journey through Lower Tinklewigglebottom Wood, at the professor's important research establishment.

The professor has made a remarkable discovery at a human landfill site, a discovery that will take them all on a wild journey through both time and space.

They meet up with aliens and medieval knights, but can they find out about the Clove Hitch Virus and discover a cure for it?

It's aimed at younger readers but older readers will also enjoy this book as it is a really fine quirky delight of a read.

It's colourfully illustrated by Bryan P. Ceney.

It's published by The Bookguild at £9.99.

Juliette – A mother's story of hope in the face of adversity

“Juliette is the heart-moving story of a little girl whose short life transcends the time she came to stay.”

A Christian who lost a child to perinatal death has authored a book to help others facing their own tough situation find the courage and hope to embrace life beyond their present hardships.

In Juliette, Aude Lombard recounts her deeply moving story from the moment she and her husband Baptiste received the prognosis that their little girl wouldn't live past birth, not only by sharing its profound painfulness but also the frequent moments of light.

With courage and frankness, she relates the long eight months during whicj Juliette grew inside her and beyond, describing the journey as one “full of joy, peace and revelation” that often felt like gifts from heaven.

Aude says: “To reduce our story to that of parents who lost a baby with Trisomy 13 would mean missing out on the many learnings that came with our journey. I have never felt so close to God as I did through this challenge, right to the end. We learned that life has meaning and a purpose no matter how short.”

The book addresses a range of topics likes finding peace in the face of pain, bonding with your unborn child, when prayer ‘seems’ to go unanswered and rebuilding faith and trust. As such, Juliette will appeal to anyone facing a personal difficulty as well as those who enjoy books about the miraculous resilience of the human spirit.

The book doesn't shy away from the reality of Christian suffering. In its pages, Aude attempts to find “a balance between encouragement through faith and staying anchored in what’s real”.

It was only after her loss and during the grieving process that she turned to that age-old question people often ask when faced with similar tragic experiences: “Where is God in this?”

Aude says: “I wasn’t able to imagine how God would be able to use this. I couldn’t see past my hurt. With time, new perspectives opened, and with them peace and transformation came … gradually, I found the road to confidence.

The central message of Juliette is that God always delivers the right resources to face life’s adversities. We may not always know what we need, but God will provide the “boosts” that help. The book also reminds readers that is it healthy and natural to embrace their emotions by “leaving room to share what [they] are feeling, along with [their] fears and questions”.

Aude says: “This second part of the journey is just as rich in its teaching and is worth being valued. Sometimes, we can run after an instantaneous change, when there’s actually a maturing in the process of living out the challenge we are facing.”

In the book, Aude describes the changes she saw in her character, emotions and perspective. She learned that God is in the present, not in the past or future, and that this is where we will locate the resources of strength, joy, peace and love.

Whether readers are seeking inspiration or encouragement, in Juliette they will discover a heart-moving story full of hope in the face of adversity — because while sadness passes, joy remains.

Juliette – A mother's story of hope in the face of adversity

Aude Lombard

Published Summer 2022

Paperback: £13.99

ISBN: 978-1-3999-1735-3

Kindle: £6.99

Pages: 126

Reginald Belcik and the Mystery of the Diamonds

In Reginald Belcik and the Mystery of the Diamonds we read how Reginald Belcik becomes entangled in the mysterious death of a woman. 

Reginald digs for answers into the young woman's death, but this is complicated by the fact that he is rapidly falling in love with her mother.

Reginald is a widower and a retired engineer who lives a solitary life in a nice apartment complex. All is perfectly normal until he receives a totally unexpected visit from the president of the apartment complex's  residents association when he is suddenly asked to take over the position as the manager of the apartment complex. The vacancy had occurred because, unfortunately, the young lady who previously held the position had been murdered.

Reginald accepted the position as manager, takes possession of the keys. 

It was then that the situation becomes even more complicated, when Reginald discovers a shoebox filled with diamonds.

Reginald decides that he needs to investigate what had happened to the previous manager, but his investigations become complicated by the fact that he is falling in love with her mother.

But there is another murder, this time of a police detective and what involvement does a robot have in all of the mayhem?

It's a thriller novel from The Book Guild and is priced at £9.99.

Mus-Iggle

In the latest book for children by John Benneyworth, Mus-Iggle, we read about music, about learning to sing, to play and also to write music.

When Mus-Iggle was a tot, his dad, who is a jazz musician, wanted Mus-Iggle to learn to play music.

 But unfortunately he could not learn to play music. Of course this made Mus-Iggle very sad.

Mus-Iggle's mother was also a musician, in fact, she is an opera singer. She wanted Mus-Iggle to sing for her, but he could not sing for her. This also made Mus-Iggle even more sad!

However with the arrival of a new music teacher at his school. His new music teacher showed hm how he could "talk" with crochets and quavers and pretty quickly they were able to chat together in harmony. 

Mus-Iggle loved the fun this generated and very soon Mus-Iggle was writing songs and music.

In fact, Mus-Iggle eventually became a successful musical composer. 

The story is well-told and the illustrations bright and colourful.

It's published by Troubador's Children's books at £7.99. 

Learn about all the other Iggles at www.igglebooks.com.