ter graduating from college and finishing an unsatisfying internship at
the Nation, Schimmoeller embarked on
a solo journey across America on a unicycle. The author’s story of finding a way
to live in the world on his own terms is
told simultaneously with that of his attempts to save old-growth forest adjacent
to his homestead in Kentucky. “It doesn’t
make a difference one way or the other if
I take a break,” he tells a stranger who
questions the intensely slow pace of his
mode of transport—an explanation that
speaks to the author’s quest to find respite in a troubled world.
To the Survivors
Robert Uttaro. CreateSpace, $12.95 paper
(268p) ISBN 978-1-4909-3166-1
Rape counselor Uttaro draws upon his
years of experience to warn that sexual
abuse is far more prevalent than most
people suspect, and provides a moving
series of survivor stories. Uttaro persuasively argues that each survivor’s story is
unique—and this
militates one-size-fits-all advice. The
surprising revelations of the survivors
Uttaro interviews
corroborate his claim
that justice is an individual concept that
depends on what redress survivors seek. Uttaro’s assurances
that survivors are not defined by sexual
abuse offer the possibility of a positive
resolution. This book is both informative
for the general public and supportive for
those who have suffered sexual abuse. It
is hard to imagine that members of either
group will not gain from reading it.
The Travellers’ Guide to Hell
Michael Pauls and Dana Facaros. Tinsel-house, $8.11 e-book (202p) ISBN 978-1-
86011-910-1
A witty and (appropriately) irreverent
spoof on tourist guides, this Beelzebubian
Baedeker tells intrepid vacationers every-
thing they need to know about the hot-
test of all travel spots. It features chapters
on how to research your trip (“Think of
satanist groups as cultural embassies”),
the best way to get there (indulge in the
seven deadly sins), what to eat there
(don’t!— remember Persephone?), and
tips on day trips to Limbo (“a real must,
has that neither-here-nor-thereish atmo-
sphere”) and Purgatory (“a hot-and-both-
ered boot camp for the soul”). The
tongue-in-cheekiness of their humor
aside, Pauls and Facaros pack an impres-
sive amount of data into their breezy
commentary. Their
conception of Hell’s
topography, accom-
modations, and per-
sonnel is synthesized
from Scripture; cen-
turies of literature,
mythology, and
folklore; and the
writings of popes, theologians, mystics,
and visionaries. Funny, oddly informa-
tive, and illustrated with modified artis-
tic renderings of Hell and its denizens,
this book provides insights into our cul-
ture’s enduring fascination with a place
where no one really wants to go.
Children’s/YA
The Casquette Girls
Alys Arden. For the Art of It Publishing,
$3.99 e-book (522p) ISBN 978-0-9897577-2-0
In this Southern Gothic love letter to
the spookier side of New Orleans’s sto-
ried past, Arden spins out a moody tale
of magic and mystery, set against the
backdrop of a city recovering from disas-
ter. Two months after a massive hurricane
nearly destroys New Orleans, 16-year-
old Adele Le Moyne and her artist father
return to a half-underwater home, where
rebuilding goes hand in hand with cur-
fews and scavenging. As Adele tries to
return to normal, she’s swept up in inex-
plicable events, with strange people
drifting in and out of her life and bodies
turning up like clockwork. Adele finally
discovers that the French Quarter is
home to a clan of vampires and that only
she, as a descendant of the coven that
originally cursed
them, can break the
centuries-old spell
that holds them
there. The sense of
place and weight of
history are strong in
this slow-burning
dark fantasy, filled
with colorful characters and growing
tension. While the cast occasionally
grows unwieldy and the story can get
convoluted, it’s still a thoroughly satisfy-
ing page-turner and a strong debut for
Arden. Ages 12–up.
Shattered Veil
Tracy E. Banghart. CreateSpace, $15.99
paper (372p) ISBN 978-1-4936-1320-5
Banghart (By Blood) offers a fast-paced,
action-packed SF adventure, first in the
Diatous Wars series, in which a young
woman sacrifices her identity to fight for
her homeland and the man she loves.
When 18-year-old Aris Haan’s boy-
friend, Calix, is “selected” to serve in the
military of Atalanta, she’s left behind,
since long-held tradition forbids women
to fight. However, because of Aris’s ace
piloting skills, she’s chosen to enter a se-
cret program to become part of an elite
search-and-rescue
unit, technologi-
cally disguised as a
male named Aris-
tos. As the ongoing
war against the do-
minion of Safara
continues, Aris un-
dergoes a trial by
fire that threatens
to change her beyond recognition. What
starts as a tale of star-crossed romance
quickly evolves into a gripping page-
turner, with gender roles and identity
explored and questioned at every turn.
Aris overcomes societal disapproval and
her own physical weakness to meet every
challenge head-on, never faltering in the
face of pain and danger. While there’s
room for Banghart to further develop the
futuristic setting, this is a very strong
starting point. Ages 12–up. ;
