#BlogTour: The Consequence of Stars by David W. Berner @davidwberner #memoir

THE CONSEQUENCE OF STARS by David W. Berner, Memoir, 200 pp., $19.60 (paperback) $7.99 (Kindle)

Title: CONSEQUENCES OF STARS: A MEMOIR
Author: David W. Berner
Publisher: Adelaide Books New Yotk/Lisbon
Pages: 200
Genre: Memoir/Essays

THE CONSEQUENCE OF STARS is a unique and thoughtful memoir on our eternal search for home. Told in a series of essays on love, loss, travel, music, spirituality, and the joys of solitude, memoirist David W. Berner, reaches deep to discover where he belongs and ultimately where all of us belong.
“Berner gives us both travelogue and memoir in living, breathing depth and color.” — D.S. White, Editor-in-Chief, Longshot Island.

“A writer with an enormous sense of humanity.” — San Francisco Review of Books
“Reflective, engaging…Berner’s authentic storytelling takes you with him on his travels through the chapters of his life where in the end, he reveals connections to finding a place to be, his home under the stars.” — Nancy Chadwick, author of Under the Birch Tree. 

ORDER YOUR COPY BELOW:

https://www.amazon.com/Consequence-Stars-Memoir-Home/dp/1950437442/ref=sr_1_12?keywords=David+W+Berner&qid=1554234506&s=books&sr=1-12

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From FIRST THOUGHTS - 

"This memoir—written in a series of linked essays—was

born from that spirit, to examine the broad notion of home,

how it morphs and eludes, and the search for it—from family

roots to personal discoveries—growing up, moving on, returning

to, and embracing a singular sliver of the universe.

Like many, I have investigated near and far, from my boyhood

home’s big side porch to destinations around the world and

down the street, stumbling and tripping, hoping to uncover

pieces of myself in some way through work, leisure, and love,

taking fragments of my experiences with me to build something—

a home, a place under the stars. And it is the consequence

of all those stars that is the eternal search. There is no

straight path. There is no map."

 

David W. Berner is a memoirist whose personal stories tell all of our stories. His memoirs reflect on our collective relationships and how those experiences link us to the world we share. From stories of fathers and sons, to road trips, travel memoir, pets, and music, David’s books are mirrors of our common human experience.


Storytelling has been a part of David’s life since his days as a young boy, delivering The Pittsburgh Press newspaper. He began telling his own stories and the stories of others as a reporter for numerous radio stations, including freelance work at National Public Radio and more recently for CBS in Chicago.

David’s reporting background has given birth to award-winning memoirs and novels based on his own experiences.

He has been the Writer-in-Residence for the Jack Kerouac Project in Orlando, where he was privileged to live and work at the Kerouac House in Orlando for two-and-a-half months. He later was honored with the Writer-in-Residence position at the Ernest Hemingway Birthplace Home in Oak Park, Illinois.

Website: https://www.davidwberner.com/
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/davidwberner
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DavidWBernerWriter/?modal=admin_todo_tour  (David W. Berner—Writer)

Book Excerpt: Chicano Homeland by Louise R. Negrete

CHICANO HOMELAND by Louis R. Negrete, Historical/Nonfiction, 136 pp., $14.99 (paperback) $2.99 (Kindle)

Title: CHICANO HOMELAND
Author: Louis R. Negrete
Publisher: Independent
Pages: 136
Genre: Historical/Nonfiction

Los Angeles author-educator Dr. Louis R. Negrete lived and now tells the compelling, dynamic story of the movement for the rights of Mexican-Americans in the USA, particularly those In California.  In his riveting, powerfully written historical book, CHICANO HOMELAND,  retired college professor Dr. Negrete vividly describes the issues that sparked the Chicano civil rights movement, that saw unbridled police brutality, institutional poverty (that still even exists today, he says), demands for better schools, the  anti-Vietnam war protests and the support for undocumented immigrants.

Mr. Negrete’s CHICANO HOMELAND captures in its historical pages the early Mexican settlement in Los Angeles to the 1950s Zoot Suit riots in L.A. to where Chicanos stand today in the California culture. He gives us a colorful, vivid history of a people that every Hispanic should read, especially as he says, “Chicanos and Chicanas, so they can know where they came from, how they got here and be inspired to chart a course to a genuine, lasting political power for what is now the largest ethnic minority in the United States.”

Commented author Dr. Louis R. Negrete on his book, “I believe that Americans must fight back against racism and national politics. The Chicano movement was a success but resistance to racism must continue, especially with the anti-immigrant policies popular today. I wrote the book based upon my experience growing up in Los Angeles, aware of persistent demands for justice and an end to racism. Younger Mexican-Americans and other minorities should know this part of United States history.”

ORDER YOUR COPY:

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In spite of its general uncoordinated character, or perhaps because of it, the Chicano movement achieved notable success. Now a new generation of active Chicanos, who call themselves Mexican Americans or Latinos, works inside the political power structure. They continue to spark the growth of a professional and middle class, and promote a positive cultural identity rooted in the concept that Mexican Americans and Mexican immigrants are a major, permanent historical positive part of U.S. society. They reject the notion that an oppressed people must wait for a pony rider with blazing guns to rescue them. They rekindle the passion of the walkouts and mass protests. This new generation of Mexican Americans form a base for electoral politics aimed at reducing poverty.

Success also comes in the development of Chicano Studies academic departments in colleges and universities; ethnic studies courses in traditional social studies departments; the formation of immigrant defense committees; and in an increased number of Chicanos elected to public office. However; poverty and anti-Mexican racism continue to persist in America, and today, militant protest groups have gone missing.

 

Dr. Louis R. Negrete was born and raised in Los Angeles. During his distinguished career, Dr. Negrete served as Director of Project Head Start for the Council of Mexican American Affairs and was also a founding member of the new Chicano Studies Department at the California State University in Los Angeles. He served as professor of Chicano Studies for some 35 years at Cal State LA. CHICANO HOMELAND is his first book. Dr. Negrete makes his home in Los Angeles, California.  Web site for book at www.ChicanoHomeland.com Face Book: https://www.facebook.com/Chicano-Homeland-Louis-R-Negrete-1657612917852351/?fref=ts

Book Blast: Trinities to Enneagrams by Allen David Young - Win a $25 Gift Card

 

Inside the Book:

Title: Trinities to Enneagrams

Author: Allen David Young

Publisher: XLibrisUS

Genre: Mind, Body, Spirit/Supernatrual

Format: Ebook

As a spiritual tool and system of personality types, the new directions of the enneagram presented in this work give a clear understanding of ourselves and those who are important to us. The trinity forces within the enneagram are explained in ways that can greatly benefit people in the personal, interpersonal, and social spheres of human existence. The creation of enneagram signs is adapted from the twelve astrology signs. While enneagram types describe one’s egocentric personality, enneagram signs are given by the cosmos at birth; they are one of a kind and reveal one’s soul-centered personality. With the addition of nine signs and stages of development through the life cycle, the enneagram becomes a system in motion and reveals more of its insights. With the addition of nine enneagram letter groups from the alphabet, you can understand what the trinity and enneagram says about the personality of your name.

Purchase Here

Meet the Author:

Both of my parents moved to Berkeley from Louisiana to Berkeley, California where I was born, raised, and educated from grade school through my degrees along the way were in math, business, education, and consciousness studies. After my first 10-year career as a university professor, I spent the next six years immersed in the study of Jungian Psychology, dream work, clairvoyant development training, and occult tools. For more than three decades I have been self-employed as an intuitive counselor with over 500 clients, and for the past decade I have also served as a Centers for Spiritual Living minister.

Giveaway

Allen is giving away a $25 Gift Card!

 

Terms & Conditions:

• By entering the giveaway, you are confirming you are at least 18 years old.
• One winner will be chosen via Rafflecopter to receive one $25 Gift Certificate to the e-retailer of your choice
• This giveaway begins April 8 and ends on April 19.
• Winners will be contacted via email on April 20.
• Winner has 48 hours to reply.

Good luck everyone!

ENTER TO WIN!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Tour Schedule

April 8

Harmonious Publicity

Voodoo Princess

April 9

A Taste of My Mind

The Dark Phantom

April 10

Bent Over Bookwords

The Book Refuge

April 11

Inkslinger’s Opus

Write and Take Flight

April 12

She Writes

The Revolving Bookshelf

April 15

I’m Shelfish

A Title Wave

April 16

Breaking the Spine

A Book Lover

April 17

As the Pages Turn

C’est La T

April 18

The Writer’s Life

Straight From the Authors Mouth

April 19

The Review From Here

Literal Exposure

Josephine Baker's Last Dance by Sherry Jones

JOSEPHINE BAKER'S LAST DANCE by Sherry Jones, Biography/Historical, 304 pp., $11.00 (paperback) $11.99 (Kindle)

Title: JOSEPHINE BAKER’S LAST DANCE
Author: Sherry Jones
Publisher: Gallery Books
Pages: 304
Genre: Biography/Historical

From the author of The Jewel of Medina, a moving and insightful novel based on the life of legendary performer and activist Josephine Baker, perfect for fans of The Paris Wife and Hidden Figures.

Discover the fascinating and singular life story of Josephine Baker—actress, singer, dancer, Civil Rights activist, member of the French Resistance during WWII, and a woman dedicated to erasing prejudice and creating a more equitable world—in Josephine Baker’s Last Dance.

In this illuminating biographical novel, Sherry Jones brings to life Josephine’s early years in servitude and poverty in America, her rise to fame as a showgirl in her famous banana skirt, her activism against discrimination, and her many loves and losses. From 1920s Paris to 1960s Washington, to her final, triumphant performance, one of the most extraordinary lives of the twentieth century comes to stunning life on the page.

With intimate prose and comprehensive research, Sherry Jones brings this remarkable and compelling public figure into focus for the first time in a joyous celebration of a life lived in technicolor, a powerful woman who continues to inspire today.

Purchase Josephine Baker’s Last Dance in paperback,  ebook,  and  audiobook  formats on  Simon and Schuster’s website (available on Amazon,  Barnes and Noble,  BooksAMillion,  Indiebound,  Kobo,  and  other sites). Learn more about Sherry’s books  at  www.authorsherryjones.com

Just before she entered the stage door, a drop of rain hit her on the head. No, that was not a bad omen, only a reminder to do her best, to shine like the star she was, or would be. Wilsie came running up—Mr. Sissle was there, but Mr. Blake had yet to arrive. “You’ll knock ’em dead, Tumpy. Just do your dancing and forget the rest.” Josephine didn’t need to be told that. She was ready.

She flexed and stretched her arms as she walked with Wilsie across the stage, past the musicians gathering, trumpets and saxophones and drums and a clarinet, down into the auditorium, where a slender man spoke to a white-haired man at his side. He turned his head very slightly and looked her up and down from the corners of his shrewd, hard eyes. His mouth pursed.

“How old are you?” he’d said before Wilsie had even introduced them. The stage door opened, and a very dark-skinned man with a bald head hurried in, talking about “the damned rain,” scampering down the steps, striding up the aisle, shaking water from his clothes.

“Eubie Blake,” he said, smiling, holding out his hand to her.

“This is Tumpy, Mr. Blake, the one I told you about,” Wilsie said. “She’s here to audition for Clara’s spot in the chorus.”

The man with Mr. Sissle—the stage manager—motioned to her and she followed him up the stage steps. Did she know the songs? Could she dance to “I’m Just Wild about Harry”? Josephine wanted to jump for joy. She pretended to watch as Wilsie showed her the steps, which she already knew as if she’d made them up herself. Josephine stripped down to her dingy leotard, tossed her clothes on a chair, then ran and leaped to the center of the stage. This was it. She bent over to grasp her ankles, stretching her legs, then stood and pulled her arms over her head.

“Ready?” Mr. Sissle barked. The music started, and she began the dance, so simple she could have done it in her sleep. Practicing in the Standard, she’d gotten bored with it and had made up her own steps, throwing in a little Black Bottom, wiggling her ass and kicking her legs twice as high as they wanted to go, taken by the music, played by it, the instruments’ instrument, flapping her hands, step and kick and spin and spin and squat and jump and down in a split, up and jump and kick and spin—oops, the steps, she didn’t need no damn steps, she had better ones—and kick and jump and wiggle and spin. She looked out into the auditorium—a big mistake: Mr. Blake’s mouth was open and Mr. Sissle’s eyes had narrowed to slits. Don’t be nervous, just dance. Only the music remained now, her feet and the stage.

When she’d finished, panting, and pulled on her dress and shoes, Wilsie came running over, her eyes shining. “You made their heads spin, you better believe it,” she whispered, but when they went down into the aisle Josephine heard Mr. Sissle muttering.

“Too young, too dark, too ugly,” he said. The world stopped turning, then, the sun frozen in its arc, every clock still, every breath caught in every throat. Mr. Blake turned to her, smiling as if everything were normal, and congratulated her on “a remarkable dance.”

“I can see that you are well qualified for our chorus, Tumpy,” he said, and on his lips, the name sounded like a little child’s.

“You have real talent, and spark, besides. How did you learn to do that at such a young age? You are—how old?”

“Fifteen,” she said.

Mr. Sissle snorted, and cut Wilsie a look. “Wasting my time,” he said. Mr. Blake looked at her as if she’d just wandered in from the orphanage.

“I’m very sorry, there’s been a mix-up,” he said. “You must be sixteen to dance professionally in New York State.”

“I’ll be sixteen in June,” Josephine said. Her voice sounded plaintive and faraway.

“We need someone now.” Mr. Sissle folded his arms as if she were underage on purpose. Mr. Blake led her toward the stage door, an apologetic Wilsie saying she hadn’t known. Mr. Sissle followed, talking to Mr. Blake about adding some steps to “I’m Just Wild about Harry,” saying they should put in some kicks, that he’d been thinking about it for a while. Uh-huh.

“Come and see us in New York after your birthday, doll,” Mr. Blake said. “You never know when we might have an opening.” He opened the door and let the rain pour in before shutting it again. He looked at Josephine’s thin, optimistic dress. Where was her umbrella? She hung her head. He stepped over to retrieve a black umbrella propped against the wall and handed it to her. She took it without even knowing, her thoughts colliding like too many birds in a cage. She would have to stay in Philadelphia, she had failed—too young, too dark, too ugly—she should have lied about her age, what had gotten into her? Showing off, that was what.

And now Mr. Sissle disliked her, and she would never get into their show; it didn’t matter how many times she went back. As she stepped out into the rain with that big umbrella in her hands unopened and felt the rain pour down her face; she was glad, for now they would think it was water instead of tears, but when she looked back, Wilsie was crying, too, in the open doorway.

Seeing the men watching from a window, she stopped. They wouldn’t forget her; she’d make them remember. She walked slowly, her silk dress dripping, while Mr. Sissle gesticulated with excitement as he stole her ideas—authentic Negro dancing were the last words she’d heard—and Mr. Blake looking as if he wanted to run out there, scoop her up, and carry her back inside.

( Continued… )

© 2018 All rights reserved. Book excerpt reprinted by permission of the author, Sherry Jones. Do not reproduce, copy or use without the author’s written permission. This excerpt is used for promotional purposes only.

Author and journalist Sherry Jones is best known for her international bestseller The Jewel of Medina. She is also the author of The Sword of Medina, Four Sisters, All Queens, The Sharp Hook of Love, and the novella White Heart.  Sherry lives in Spokane, WA, where, like Josephine Baker, she enjoys dancing, singing, eating, advocating for equality, and drinking champagne.

Her latest novel is Josephine Baker’s Last Dance.

Website: http://authorsherryjones.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/sherryjones
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Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/josephinebakerslastdance
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cybersecuritytechnologywriter
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1219600.Sherry_Jones