Zone Tennis

Whether you are out on clay or green, playing tennis involves a lot of mental energy and control, besides physical strength and stamina. Jay P. Granat’s Zone Tennis (World Audience Publishers, New York, 2009) is a rather short but enjoyable book with valuable information, tips, and advice for tennis players – beginners especially – on developing the skills to play in the ‘zone’, i.e. a state of mind that allows playing with optimum calmness, concentration, and control. In its two divisions, the book imparts information on two main kinds of game: ‘Inner mental Game’ and ‘External Mental Game’.

The first part of the book, telling about inner mental game, concerns psychological aspects like motivation, confidence, relaxation, thinking, emotional states, optimism, and even less thought-of factors like ‘wonderful dreaming’. The author gives brief guidelines on inner psychological states and their desirable form/level for playing tennis in the zone. The second section takes practical performance on the court and gives useful advice on what to consider and how to practice important factors. Here, Dr. Granat also mentions a few top ranked tennis stars, pointing to their main strengths or qualities. Most part of the book treats single game but the end has a few important guidelines about doubles and issues like selecting the right coach and communicating with your game partner.

Zone Tennis is an enjoyable work about the psychology of tennis in particular but can also be read with interest by any sports enthusiast as Dr. Granat tells how tennis has so much common with other sports, chess, baseball, and boxing to name a few. It is certainly an important book to read for beginner tennis players or those who have been playing tennis for a while and need to get a better grip of the game’s less conspicuous nuts and bolts. Dr. Granat also shares his website and article links that will help tennis players and enthusiasts in playing and/or understanding the sport of tennis better.

ISBN: 978-0-9820540-9-3

Buy at Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Zone-Tennis-Jay-P-Granat/dp/0982054092/ref=sr_11_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1220989769&sr=11-1

Not Just Spirited: A Mom’s Sensational Journey With Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD) by Chynna T. Laird

LOVING, HEALING PRESS INTRODUCES

Not Just Spirited: A Mom’s Sensational Journey With Sensory Processing Disorder(SPD) by Chynna T. Laird
With a moving and insightful Foreword written
by Dr. Shane Steadman

A powerful story of a mother’s determination to find the right diagnosis and the right treatment for her daughter.

An inspiration for families, teachers and professionals everywhere!

”Chynna's memoir is sure to encourage other parents
to advocate with the same determination
for their sensational children.”

~ Carol Stock Kranowitz, author of The Out Of Sync Child

Offers encouragement and insight to any parent, caregiver, teacher or therapist who cares about, or cares for, a child with Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD).

AVAILABLE: November 1, 2009

What would you do if your child suffered with something so severe it affected every aspect of her life?

And what if your cries for help fell on deaf ears at every turn? You'd follow your gut and fight until someone listened. And that's what Chynna Laird did. When she was just three months old, Jaimie's reactions to people and situations seemed odd. She refused any form of touch, she gagged at smells, she was clutzy and threw herself around and spent most of her day screaming with her hands over her ears and eyes.

By the time she turned two, Jaimie was so fearful of her world they spent most days inside. What was wrong with Chynna's miracle girl? Why wouldn't anyone help her figure it out? Jaimie wasn't "just spirited" as her physician suggested nor did she lack discipline at home. When Jaimie was diagnosed with Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD) at two-and-a-half, Chynna thought she had "the answer," but that was just the start of a three-year quest for the right treatments to bring the Jaimie she loved so much out for others to see. With the right diagnosis and treatment suited to Jaimie, this family finally felt hope. Not Just Spirited is one mother's journey to finding peace for her daughter, Jaimie. As Chynna says often, "Knowledge breeds understanding. And that's so powerful."


CHYNNA TAMARA LAIRD – is a psychology student, freelance writer, and author living in Edmonton, Alberta, with her three daughters [Jaimie (almost seven), Jordhan (five), and baby Sophie (seventeen months)] and baby boy, Xander (three). Her passion is helping children and families living with Sensory Processing Disorder and other special needs. You’ll find her work in many online and in-print parenting, inspirational, Christian and writing publications in Canada, United States, Australia, and Britain. In addition, she’s authored a children’s book, and a reference book about the Sensory Diet coming in early 2011.

Please visit Chynna’s website at www.lilywolfwords.ca to get a feel for her work and what inspires her.

Now available at fine e-tailers including Amazon.com, BarnesAndNoble.com, and BooksAMillion.com. Ask your local bookseller!

Loving Healing Press books are distributed by Ingram, New Leaf, Quality Books and other wholesalers.

For review copies or to interview the author, please contact Loving Healing Press, Inc. info@LovingHealing.com or Tollfree 888-761-6268 USA/CAN.

Press Release: Ring of Fire by Noelle M. Kalipetis

AVAILABLE IN PRINT/DOWNLOAD

Contact Noelle M. Kalipetis: kalipetisn@student.wpunj.edu
http://stores.lulu.com/thedarkmyth

Ring of Fire by Noelle M. Kalipetis
http://stores.lulu.com/thedarkmyth

Immediately Available via Web

VAMPIRES AMONG US

Noelle Kalipetis’s novel, Ring of Fire (Lulu.com, $16 print/$7 download), follows the trials of Lana Williams, a young girl whose dismal life is set aflame with the discovery of her own fantastic powers. From smoky visions in mirrors to fighting back against the school bully, Lana’s magical abilities seem unreal, a dream come true.

But then truths start creeping out of the shadows: Lana and her new friend Mike are not the only ones with these intriguing talents. The Light Ones, human beings who also possess supernatural powers, want to use Lana to battle the Dark Ones, a race similar to humans with one glaring exception: they need to drink blood, anyone’s blood, but most especially the blood of a Light One. Neither side is what it appears to be, though; unwilling to be used in some sinister ploy, Lana gives up her powers and returns to obscurity.

The flames of the past, however, will not let her walk away so easily. After ten years, Lana’s shut-in life is ripped wide open, throwing her back into the conflict that has raged for more than two millennia. Aided by Lunetta, the quirky yet noble ancestor with a penchant for Bon Jovi tunes and matchmaking, Lana finds love in unexpected places and comes closer to achieving a destiny sewn into her bloodline since the time of Pompeii. But the questions remains: will she survive?

READERS’ RESPONSES

“I read this novel in about a day on spring break because I just could not put it down. The author truly creates a captivating and exciting world full lovable and intriguing characters. The plot is enticing and keeps you guessing[;] it develops so that the outcomes are surprising but not ridiculous. Bringing my two favorite genres together, magic and vampires, Kalipetis grabbed my attention and held it.”

--“pellegrinis” on Lulu.com

“Pick up this book! Kalipetis creates a world unlike anything I've ever read. It combines the mystery of ancient magic and the tempting lust amongst vampires which works so well together. I thought I would have gotten confused by the two different worlds, but it was perfect…I just kept turning page after page because I was desperate to know what happened. I have already re-read it & can't wait for the series to be complete.”

--“Valerie Saggau” on Amazon.com

The 5-Second Inventor

Attractive design, durability, affordability, and marketing are all important features of a commercially successful product. But above all of them comes the creative idea – the birth of a product in one’s mind. Ideas are the most precious asset of people; we all have great ideas, but not many of us pursue them to make them become real products – those sold in markets. Ken Chuah’s recent book The 5-Second Inventor tells readers how to benefit from your potentially successful ideas by turning them into commercially viable products – your very own inventions.

Ken’s book points to the commercial success achieved by “inventpreneurs”, people who invent, manufacture, and distribute their products without taking the traditional routes to success in business. Ken gives examples of famous inventpreneurs who earned both profit and reputation by developing their ideas. He also tells his own success story while showing the core elements of successful business using modern inexpensive channels of promotion. The book is particularly meant for helping people with a limited budget to start and promote their own businesses.

The 5-Second Inventor also extends the topic of developing ideas into products and promoting them to doing business overseas. The author himself travels to China off and on and considers China as the business center of the world. Thus he gives practically useful advice on cultural differences, emotional intelligence, and consideration of a number of other factors that determine how far you succeed in cashing your ideas. The book includes a glossary of terms related to the business world and an index of key concepts in the chapters. For anyone, interested in setting up his/her own business, starting with a single idea, and going all the way to a big name and income, The 5-Second Inventor is a recommended read.

ISBN: 978-160844-064-1

Website: http://www.5sinventor.com/

The Meaning of Life

Here is a book that has taken a grand question and makes sure to possess the attention of its readers for a topic that has been central to humanity for ages – the meaning of life. Professor Terry Eagleton, an acclaimed British literary critic of our time, discusses whether it makes a good question to inquire about the meaning of life. Critically looking at language’s own limitations and the reifying character of the mind-language-tradition interface, Eagleton warily attempts to present a perspective on the meaning of ‘meaning’ and how it might lead to meanings of life – ‘meanings’ because stamping a single meaning onto the somewhat misleading singular term ‘life’, in itself, is a potentially erroneous approach.

Given the transitory nature of the experience of life, Eagleton allows the validity of multiplicity as well as elusiveness of meanings while acknowledging the importance of well-thought and rational views, whether in philosophy, literature, or other systems of meanings. A point worth-noting (and appreciating) is Eagleton’s ‘floating’ position on the topic he writes about; while we know the author as a Marxist critic, his personal viewpoint doesn’t show in his commentary on the nature of meaning and its alleged inherent versus derived characters in human language. Still, he does not leave his readers disorientated as he finishes his book with a chapter on the core values that stand as best candidates for life’s dominant meanings.

The Meaning of Life comes as a work of serious thought, one which puts the question of life in the background of its ethical significance. In an age of terrorist violence and nuclear weapons, carrying the force of destroying the planet and wiping out its life forms, we do need to consider what life means for us – not as a group of people but as a species on the whole. It is Eagleton’s aesthetic cum ethical venture to remind humans about the question for their species while they are encircled in the web of technological advance and commercial enterprise. It is a fresh start for human thought and hopefully will be carried farther to a meaningful conclusion.

ISBN: 978-0199210701

Availability

http://www.amazon.com/Meaning-Life-Terry-Eagleton/dp/0199210705

How to Teach English

Jeremy Harmer’s How to Teach English is an invaluable guide for English teachers, particularly for those who have not undergone any special training in English teaching. This book covers all the important topics that relate English teaching classes at various levels as well as the main elements of English grammar and some effective methods teaching them to students.

Harmer’s attention to the extra-linguistic features that help in engaging students’ interest is the most appreciable aspect of his book. Teachers can gain some truly valuable tips here on, for example, how their dress and voice influence the attention of their students; how to plan lessons; the pros and cons of different English teaching approaches, and much more. The exercises included with the text to illustrate the topics are simple and easy to use in any English teaching class.

How to Teach English also includes a special chapter What If? to guide teachers on how to handle the commonly experienced difficulties with students in a class. What, for example, can a teacher do if the students are uncooperative or if the students keep using their native language(s) in the class instead of speaking English. The author has also provided a brief list of helpful resources for teachers of English. For all the latter, Jeremy Harmer’s How to Teach English is strongly recommended.

ISBN: 0582297966

Availability

http://www.alibris.com/booksearch.detail?invid=9957856604&browse=1&qwork=3030985&qsort=&page=1

The Labyrinth

Shackled in a dreary room in one of Chicago’s mental hospitals, a schizophrenic child’s life had crossed the way of eternal darkness. Wounded and nearly abandoned, this kid couldn’t foretell then that he was to attain freedom from the dismal scene of the mental hospital, get back to school, go to fight in a war for his country, get married and sire kids, and found his own publishing company in the heart of the world’s publishing center. This child was Mike Stefan Strozier and The Labyrinth (World Audience Publishers, 2006) is his memoir.

Reading the book’s subtitle – schizophrenia, homelessness, war, alcoholism, and divorce – did at first induce some apprehension: was it going to be another gloom-and-doom story? But it was amazing to find the episodes of Mike’s troubled past free of self-pity. Instead, you find the writer’s success in stepping aside from the negativity so frequently associated with the bitter memories of trauma. With time, the account of his life’s most challenging phases show Mike as a man growing in strength while his trial changed its guise. There was pain, a lot of it, but there also was a characteristically human tenacity that took the throes one after the other, without cringing. The Labyrinth goes to show how tolerant the human spirit is!

Something worth-noticing in the book is that Mike has chosen not to causally or – for some part – chronologically connect the choices he made in his adult life; one reason perhaps being that he didn’t have many of them. But this is also how he proves his writing talent, i.e. by engaging the readers’ interest in the immediacy of his episodic narrative. And it works in preventing The Labyrinth from sounding too egotistical.

There is some limitation, however, with respect to the book’s audience. This reviewer feels that The Labyrinth is about the phases of a man’s life, which would be of little interest to many women. The interesting question that strikes the mind, therefore, is ‘who is Mike’s Ariadne?’ Or did his magical thread come out of the blue?

ISBN: 978-0978808662

Availability
http://www.amazon.com/Labyrinth-M-Stefan-Strozier/dp/0978808665/ref=sr_11_1/105-0654095-5530023?ie=UTF8&qid=1189857871&sr=11-1

How to Write a Suicide Note

In an exceptionally daring work of cultural criticism and probe into multicultural identity, Sherry Quan Lee takes her readers to the roots of emotional trauma experienced by a woman of color who has attempted suicide more than once. How to Write a Suicide Note (Modern History Press, Michigan, 2008) is a work of prose-cum-poetry exploring the role of cultural background in inhibiting one’s true self from expression, leading to suppression and trauma – the beginning of suicide. As the book’s subtitle serial essays that saved a woman’s life connotes, Lee’s verse becomes the medium through which she reclaims her right and will to live. Her book is, therefore, a life-loving book, and not a collection of ‘suicide-recipes’ (as the title may seem to suggest).

Lee’s remarks and questions about the experience of a Black-Chinese woman, impelled into following the white American values and lifestyle, come in a poignant tone. But, somewhat unexpectedly, there is no sickness as such, which leaves the reader depressed or queasy. One may get a bit confused at first up on making sense of the desultorily-written lines, blending surrealism with self-consciousness. However, the multiple messages on the same page get connected as you move forward through the book. Five divisions of the book present suicide notes – writings that ask question about life, ethnicity, cultural values, and the trauma associated with one’s identity as a minority member of a lower social rank.

More than anything, How to Write a Suicide Note places high value on the written word and the process of writing as pertains the expression of one’s real self. It is through this activity that lost lives and dejected spirits can return to confidence and a revived will to exist. Writing, to Lee, is just a form of life, or sometimes, even greater than life. Here is how she culminates the meaning of writing for her readers:

‘When you can, write
When you can’t, live
When you can’t live, write.’

While seriously concerned with cultural critique and emotional pain, How to Write a Suicide Note is not simply gloom-and-doom. Judging the process of writing as a form of therapy, Lee shows the intimate connection between identity and passion for art. For Lee, writing counters the darkness of social life; for other readers, it may be another activity that gives greater meaning to their lives. What is important to learn and remember from How to Write a Suicide Note is ‘don’t die by your weaknesses; live by your passion.’ It is one of those books that show you why living is greater than suicide.

ISBN: 978-1-932690-63-7