Elizabeth Hughes’ Book Periscope

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Out of Uganda In 90 Days by Urmila Patel

outofuganda

Out of Uganda in 90 Days is the gripping memoir of Urmila Patel. She and her family lived in Uganda from the time she was very young. There were many families who lived there who were of Indian descent. They went to school, had friends and led a full life in Uganda. She did not remember India and her younger siblings had never been to India.

Then one day in 1971, Idi Amin came to power. He was a cruel and ruthless dictator. He would order his soldiers to go through and rob, torture and murder people. He ordered all people from India to leave Uganda and go back to India. They could not take their money, jewels, anything of value. If they did not hand over their valuables they would be beaten, tortured and murdered.

Urmila and her family were able to board a train just a few days before the deadline by which they had to be out. From the train they all boarded a ship for the remainder of the trip. Despite their fear, Urmila Patel describes the beauty of seeing lions, elephants and other animals on their journey.

This book will definitely keep you reading to the very end.  Urmila has a gift for writing and you are able to picture her descriptions all the way through. I highly recommend this book. It is a very interesting account of a young teen’s harrowing journey out of a country she called home.

Urmila Patel’s Out of Uganda in 90 Days is available here. 

 

Dr. Ramon Pinon’s Friction and Fantasy

Friction and Fantasy is a very informative and interesting book about sex: its history and how it affects us. He talks about how opinions of women and their sexuality has evolved through history. He goes in depth about the role fantasy plays in the sexual experience. He touches on a variety of topics. The research and quotes make this book very informative concerning topics many won’t ask about openly.  I highly recommend this book.
To Keep A Butterfly from Flying by Cynthia Snyder
In To Keep A Butterfly From Flying, Cynthia gets a job on a cruise ship as a hairdresser in the ship’s salon. She is getting out of a rough relationship and wants to work on a cruise ship to try to put her life back in perspective. She finds out that the work requires long hours with hardly any time off. The people who come to work on the ship come from all different countries. She learns about their varied cultures and finds out how different, yet alike, everyone is. This is a quick yet interesting read. I loved the story and recommend it very much.

Essay from Doug Hawley

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Californication

Oregonian Special Californication Issue February 10, 2045

 

Over the last few years, the trickle of people moving north into the greater northwest has gone from a trickle to a torrent.  The population table tells the story:

 

State/Province                        Population (000 omitted)

                       2010 census  2044 estimated              2055 projected

California            37,253            44,367                       42,500

Washington            6,721            11,839                      14,675

Oregon                   3,831              9,845                      11,438

Idaho                      1,567              4,382                        6,891

Montana                    989               2,010                       4,236

British Columbia    4,221             10,546                     10,856

 

U.S. Census demographer Hal Lelen was blunt in analyzing the numbers.  His interview with the Oregonian has been edited for length and clarity:

 

Oregonian:  Give us a short version of what’s happening.

Lelen:  People don’t want to live in California anymore.

 

Oregonian:  That was definitely short.  Could you expand on that?

Lelen:  Well, you got the climate and the water situation.  The lack of rain and snowfall, except for the occasional monsoon, has caused the state agriculture to plummet, and for people to rely on very expensive desalinated water.  Then you have the hot spells that regularly kill thousands of the very young and very old.

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Announcement and excerpts from Chimezie Ihekuna/Mr. Ben’s upcoming book The Poured-Out Thoughts

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Chimezie Ihekuna’s new book The Poured-Out Thoughts will be released soon, so he has sent us a collection of reviews and excerpts from his work. Please enjoy!

Published Excerpts

https://drawneartochrist.com/2016/11/23/meet-the-poet/ (Mr Ben, my pen name and one of the contributors of the anthology, ”Draw Near To Christ)

 

Below are some publications of my poems (i own the rights to them, however)

 

http://www.rewardpublishing.info/october-.html (Aside the fact that my poem, ‘My Capability’ won Reward Publishing Poet of the month. Reward Publishing is currently holding the first right to the poem i ‘replaced’ it with the poem, ‘The Tri-angles of being; Me, Myself and )

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Tony Nightwalker LeTigre reviews Doug Cook’s Tae Kwon Do: A Path to Excellence

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Review of Taekwondo: A Path to Excellence (Doug Cook)

By Tony Nightwalker LeTigre

 

American practitioner Doug Cook trained in Taekwondo under Grandmaster Richard Chun and reached 5th dan level by 2009 when he published Taekwondo: A Path to Excellence, with its subtitle, “Achieving Physical and Spiritual Enrichment Through Disciplined Practice.” The author places great emphasis on learning about Korean culture and the historical genesis of Taekwondo, and his preference for the traditional, self-defense oriented style over the more Americanized, sportive Olympic style of taekwondo, known popularly as “the world’s most popular martial art form.”

 

Cook takes us behind the scenes of his pilgrimages to Korea, “Land of the Morning Calm,” from a languorous and lengthy airplane flight to vigorous training sessions to meetings with illustrious personages like Dr. Yong Kim, president of the World Taekwondo Federation (“someone who is clearly at home in the halls of power”), in the Kukkiwon, the central training facility and world headquarters of Taekwondo, located in Kangnam, Seoul.

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Poetry from J. Ryberg

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1) Everything Gonna Be All Right

(or, Trading Body Blows with

the Ghost of Victor Smith)

The night was thick, black and nasty

and my mattress was a raft drifting down

a mighty Mississippi of memory,

a Viking longboat in which my broken

warrior-poet’s form had been placed

and sent downstream through the silver-grey mists

of eternity and on to the far bright shores of my

forefathers and their fathers before them,

only to be turned away from those fearsome

gates for being insufficiently deceased.

And, lately, it seems like I’ve been waking up

in the middle of varying stages of dream-state

at all my former places of residence, feeling around

the bed for some imaginary former spouse

or significant other, freaking out about

being late to some former place of employment

and whatever it is I’m gonna say (this time?)

to placate whichever former employer.

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Poetry from Karen D’Antona

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By Linda Rondon
The Lottery
It was surreal even when it was happening.
I can’t help but think of it as some strange kind of lottery.
The children were delighted; we’re going home early!  Who will be next?  Why can’t it be me?
The single mothers usually so beautifully made up, were numb and ashen.
As more children left the classroom, the cheers were replaced by fears.
The teacher was so brave holding their tender faces, as tears dripped down her hands.
What’s happening?  The children’s voices whispered.  She shook, as she searched for the words.
Little did any of us know the numbers would be 9-11.


*My unique reference point was created in a community where many of the parents worked in The Twin Towers.  From the inside of a fourth grade classroom, I watched as an unselfish, dedicated teacher did her job under the most traumatic of circumstances.  
9-11 reminds us that fate does not choose favorites. 

9-11
Karen D’Antona

About the Author…

Karen D’Antona is a survivor, risk-taker, wife, mother, and educator.  Her spare time is filled with love, drama, home cooked meals, and a well paired wine… not necessarily in that order.