Book Review: Creating A Life Worth Living Volume 1 by Debbie N. Goldberg

If you're looking to start on the journey of self-discovery, Creating A Life Worth Living Volume 1 by Debbie N. Goldberg can be a resource for you. As a therapist for close to two decades, Goldberg helps others along their spiritual journey. In this first volume, she shares her own awakening and then provides the framework for the reader to begin their own journey.

The author shares insights on the importance of reflection and discovering for yourself your purpose in life--not what someone else has told you it is; the importance of spending quiet time and pulling away from the chaos of life; and how we truly are self-sufficient. She has a soothing, conversational style that is perfect for this type of book.

If New Age spirituality is of interest to you, Creating A Life Worth Living Volume 1 should be added to your reading list.


Paperback: 156 pages
Publisher: BalboaPress (September 27, 2016)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1504358791
ISBN-13: 978-1504358798

I received a copy of this book from the author through Pump Up Your Book. This review contains my honest opinions, which I have not been compensated for in any way.

Book Spotlight: The Spirit of Love Volumes 1, 2 & 3 by The Spirit of Love, Known as Glen

Title: THE SPIRIT OF LOVE
Author: the spirit of love, known as glen
Publisher: Aurora House
Pages: 196
Genre: Spirituality/Poetry


The Spirit of Love is a collection of short writings, poems and phrases written by a man who took himself into some of the darkest and most destructive depths that one can go with drug and alcohol addictions back in his early twenties.

The collection of writings contained within The Spirit of Love are the result of one man’s healing journey within himself and the deep questioning that has arisen from within it.

With the love, support and guidance of his dear friend Edwina, in helping to bring these writings from the handwritten scribbles on paper to how they are presented today, The Spirit of Love is a reminder that no matter how dark, desperate, alone, helpless or trapped one believes they may be, the sheer beauty of the perfection of life in its totality is silently and patiently living within us all, and its love is so powerful that it can heal anything that has come to pass.

Excerpt

6.

Take me now so that I need never feel again

Screaming inside I keep everything in

Release me now so I may tear this skin from off my shell

For free can I not be from this living hell?

7.

Why are you afraid?

Swept along without giving a moment to stop

Why are you going to the next place you want to be?

What’s wrong with where you are now?

Is the next place going to be any different or better?

Funny how unwilling you have become to look

Can it be that bad inside?

Afraid to feel life no more

Oh, how the voice is clever

Feeding the prey so as not to be hunted.

9.

Staring at you the battle begins

Nightmare’s voice always wins

Fighting so strongly against my will

Oh, the insanity contained in a pill

Within gulp of water’s cup

Battle lost I’ve given up

Slowly the chemicals suffocate my brain

The next few hours surely insane.

10.

How can you label I and in turn yourself?

For labels change as frequently as the weather

I am changeless – eternal

Let your sight not fool you into a world of form

Enjoy thy magic and mystery

Play with it joyfully and compassionately

But see yourself not of it

Are you your job?

Is that the limit of your destiny?

Why do you choose to do what you do?

Is it really you doing it?

Look what the eternal search has brought

A searching with no end to wanting

That which you truly not need.

11.

Stop it, stop it, I hear you scream, the voice constant in its demands of you

But what can be done if broken you have become?

Bound to a meaningless death whilst your feet still walk

Bow to grace as freedom is you just in being

See the butterfly kiss the wind as a graceful dance

What have you become outside yourself?

Smash all mirrors as they do not allow you to see what lies beneath

Seven colours formed of white

Form holds the illusion together not wanting it to be seen

All that allows it to be is what’s in-between

No sense I make, so that your mind can move beyond the hours of 9 till 5

I lie timeless for you.

20.

Is mankind reflecting upon itself?

From and within the boundless nothingness that I Am

Nothing more or less than degrees of variation

Like a leaf throughout the seasons of its cycle

Come within so that I am released from form

And journey from stillness back to stillness

As infinite space and eternal grace dance together in the hands of thy children

Mention not a word of I, nor a thought, nor emotion, invisible I remain

See that star in your eye?

It is your world beneath your world

A diamond in the form of a stone

Belong to silence, cometh to existence through seed of breath, even and pure.

24.

Cannot you feel the spirit within her? Why? Why? Why?

You poison her veins with fluorescent venom

Yet still she gives you soil to grow your food

You shatter her body with each bomb that tears at her skin

Yet still she gives you air to breathe

Your chemical mind soaks away her pure clear blood

Yet still she gives you water to quench greed’s thirst

Great Mother Earth, you inspire me to a love that holds no enemy

Take not a moment more to cleanse your soul from our mistrust

Seeing you create your balance now

A new earth awaits your presence

And yet still you wish to give us abundance’s dance

Your wisdom singing peacefully within thy true self

A self of love, a selfless love

My weeping heart bleeds its last drop into your soil

Take it and send me to my grave with your earthy kiss

For you have earned your rest from the hand of man.

37.

Is thy being too simple for belief?

A simple being of love sets everything free

40.

For whilst thoughts, emotions, content, story and experience is a part of the journey, it is a mere ripple on the surface of the vast depthless ocean of thy being, of which I know nothing.

PURCHASE AT:

Amazon | Barnes& Noble

At the peak of his destructive cycle glen was so consumed by addictions, that on any given day saw the abusive consumption of cocaine, MDMA powder, special K, ecstasy, crystal meth, marijuana, prescription drugs (anti-depressants, sleeping pills) and alcohol.

A time that saw him attempting and failing to out race police cars through the streets of a Melbourne suburb one night, to experiencing a near death experience while bleeding out from a glass injury when holidaying overseas, a time of daily self-harming with the prospect of suicide never being far out of reach.

However, through the unconditional love of his parents, glen found himself backpacking though South America where a collection of events and direct experiences with the local people and Mother Earth herself, triggered the beginning stages of what would later become known to him as the shattering and dissolving of the false identity of the illusionary mind-made-self and its “poor me” story.

An inner-journey that awakens the spirit of love, known as glen, to not being a personal identity as such but rather a way of being, a way of simplicity, a way of the heart, a way that embraces and dances with the perfection of the present moment like no other.

You can visit the author’s website at www.spiritoflove.com.au or his Facebook page at www.facebook.com/thespiritoflovebook.

Musing Mondays - April 4 Comfort Reads

Musing Mondays is a weekly meme now hosted at Jenn's new blog Books And A Beat that asks you to choose one of the following prompts to answer:

• I’m currently reading…
• Up next I think I’ll read…
• I bought the following book(s) in the past week…
• I’m super excited to tell you about (book/author/bookish-news)…
• I’m really upset by (book/author/bookish-news)…
• I can’t wait to get a copy of…
• I wish I could read ___, but…
• I blogged about ____ this past week…

THIS WEEK’S RANDOM QUESTION: What is your favorite “comfort” read?

It's a snowy start to the week here in Massachusetts. Yesterday was crazy: high winds, blowing snow, and spots of blue sky and sunshine. It's snowing this morning too. I thought we were in spring, not winter.

Great question this week. Comfort reads are either fun or inspiring for me depending upon why I need the comfort.

If I am seeking a return to when my life was simpler or I wasn't facing so many decisions, it would be a book or series that I used to read regularly--or at least more than once.

If I am overwhelmed or feeling sad, I usually reach for something spiritual or inspiring.

And if I just want to read for the fun of it--something that is comfortable simply because it is purely for entertainment value--I might go with a romantic comedy or women's fiction.

How about you? What are some of your "comfort" reads?

Book Spotlight and Excerpt: The Council of Light by Danielle Rama Hoffman

Galactic teachings and practices to raise your vibrational energy and create a life of joy, abundance, and ease

• Provides direct transmissions of spiritual technology from the Council of Light to activate the 11 Rays of Light

• Reveals that by shifting your consciousness and raising your inner vibration, you can change your daily life experience and manifest the life you want

• Includes guided journeys and exercises to manifest health, wealth, happiness, and purpose and to form a direct connection with the Council of Light

Through her advanced spiritual work with Thoth, Danielle Rama Hoffman was introduced to the Council of Light--an intergalactic group of thousands of light beings from across the Multiverse. Their purpose is to support individuals as they shift into Unity Consciousness and return to their natural state of joy. The Council transmitted the teachings in this book for those seeking to accelerate their journey toward health, wealth, happiness, and their soul's deepest desires.

The Council's teachings reveal that by shifting your consciousness and raising your inner vibration, you can change your daily life experience and manifest the life you want. These direct transmissions of spiritual technology from the Council include activations for the 11 Rays of Light, guided journeys and meditations, and written, spoken, energetic, and breathwork exercises to creatively turn your debt into wealth, transfigure your food into light for better health and well-being, enhance your abilities for interdimensional travel, and return to your natural inner state of joy. The Council explains how each Ray of Light has a specific vibration and application and can assist in removing any blocks to achieving your soul's purpose. The Emerald Ray, for example, activates the signature energy of your authentic and full self, and the Venus Ray, the Ray of Opulence, supports alignment with abundance and prosperity.

Offering an opportunity to form a direct connection with the Council of Light, this book provides practical tools to move from a life of worry, debt, exhaustion, and isolation to one of joy, abundance, purpose, ease, and connectedness, with a team of Divine supporters to assist you along the way.

Excerpt:

De-clutter and Stop Procrastinating

Replacing a Habit. When you stop a habit, when you quit smoking for instance, it is more successful if you replace this habit with something else. Perhaps going for a walk, chewing on a toothpick, running, or having something else that replaces the habit. The Council of Light, as you can tell, has provided very practical applications of how you can begin to replace the internal dynamic struggle, the habit of negative emotional patterns, and belief systems with active processes.

The ancients have used mantra, pranayama breath, and sound current to provide the space for alignment to occur, and these are viable techniques. We are offering additional ones that we feel will address the discomfort of the modern day and the average person who is overstimulated and overwhelmed and who has an internal dialogue that is running out of control.

Becoming Current

As we said earlier, as the consciousness on the Earth continues to shift things are going to continue to dissolve in ways around you—this is a good and necessary thing. The more that you can feel at peace and at ease the better. We would encourage you to complete the projects that you are able to complete to free up your energy, as well as create a demarcation point from that which you were engaged in at a previous vibrational vantage point.

Written Exercise: Finish Projects and Dissolve That Which Is No Longer Current

 Take a few minutes to contemplate your life. Notice what projects you are ready to complete. Also, identify areas that you are feeling called to just let go of. Take some time to write down what you are choosing to dissolve and what you are choosing to complete so you can become energetically current. Then create some guidelines as to how and when you would like to complete these areas and projects. Remember to include patterns that are no longer serving you, as well as physical items like cleaning out your closet. If you find an area that you have been stuck in for a long time, create a plan that includes getting added support. Take all the time that you would like with this exercise.

Excerpt from The Council of Light: Divine Transmissions for Manifesting the Deepest Desires of the Soul By Danielle Rama Hoffman

© Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Danielle Rama Hoffman is a divine transmitter and scribe of ancient and innovative wisdoms for the purpose of elevating consciousness and inspiring personal growth. She is a leader in the shift into unity consciousness, living from joy, purpose and prosperity as divine creator beings.

Danielle supports spirit centered light-workers, visionaries, coaches and personal growth enthusiasts to access their inner divinity so they can confidently share their purpose and unique contribution prosperously (unencumbered by fear, shame or doubt) and manifest the life they desire.

She is the award winning author of The Temples of Light, creator of bestselling, life changing divinely guided programs such as Divine Birthright Activation, the Prosperous Soul and Thoth's Magic Academy. She leads tours to Egypt and offers private retreats in Southern France where she lives part-time with her husband, Dr. Friedemann Schaub.

Through Danielle Rama Hoffman’s advanced spiritual work with Thoth, she was introduced to the Council of Light—an intergalactic group of thousands of light beings from across the Multiverse. Their purpose is to support individuals as they shift into Unity Consciousness and return to their natural state of joy. The Council transmitted the teachings in this book for those seeking to accelerate their journey toward health, wealth, happiness, and their soul’s deepest desires. Order today and receive an array of valuable gifts www.counciloflightbook.com.

Book Spotlight with Excerpt from The Council of Light by Danielle Rama Hoffman

Galactic teachings and practices to raise your vibrational energy and create a life of joy, abundance, and ease

• Provides direct transmissions of spiritual technology from the Council of Light to activate the 11 Rays of Light

• Reveals that by shifting your consciousness and raising your inner vibration, you can change your daily life experience and manifest the life you want

• Includes guided journeys and exercises to manifest health, wealth, happiness, and purpose and to form a direct connection with the Council of Light

Through her advanced spiritual work with Thoth, Danielle Rama Hoffman was introduced to the Council of Light--an intergalactic group of thousands of light beings from across the Multiverse. Their purpose is to support individuals as they shift into Unity Consciousness and return to their natural state of joy. The Council transmitted the teachings in this book for those seeking to accelerate their journey toward health, wealth, happiness, and their soul's deepest desires.

The Council's teachings reveal that by shifting your consciousness and raising your inner vibration, you can change your daily life experience and manifest the life you want. These direct transmissions of spiritual technology from the Council include activations for the 11 Rays of Light, guided journeys and meditations, and written, spoken, energetic, and breathwork exercises to creatively turn your debt into wealth, transfigure your food into light for better health and well-being, enhance your abilities for interdimensional travel, and return to your natural inner state of joy. The Council explains how each Ray of Light has a specific vibration and application and can assist in removing any blocks to achieving your soul's purpose. The Emerald Ray, for example, activates the signature energy of your authentic and full self, and the Venus Ray, the Ray of Opulence, supports alignment with abundance and prosperity.

Offering an opportunity to form a direct connection with the Council of Light, this book provides practical tools to move from a life of worry, debt, exhaustion, and isolation to one of joy, abundance, purpose, ease, and connectedness, with a team of Divine supporters to assist you along the way.

Excerpt

A Written Exercise to Manifest the Deepest Desires of Your Soul

Written Exercise: Exploration of the Deepest Desires of the Soul.

We would like to complete this segment with a writing exercise. What is it that you would like to connect to in this moment that would totally realize the deepest desires of your soul?

Once you have your paper, pen, or computer and keyboard ready call upon the Love Ray. You may do the same exercise that we did in the beginning of connecting to your heartbeat, connecting to your pituitary gland, connecting to the base of your spine, calling upon the Love Ray and letting it build a pathway and the spiral of ascension and descension. Call upon the Love Ray; when you feel that you’ve connected and you have an awareness that you feel a greater sense of harmony or a greater sense of peace, ask to connect to your soul and to communicate to your soul. The Love Ray is creating a deeper interconnectedness, a oneness to your soul and the consciousness that your soul has. Then ask, “What are the deepest desires of my soul?”

Spend a few moments writing about the deepest desires of your soul. Maybe this is in longhand or maybe it comes out as a list. Spend about ten minutes with this and in the last couple of minutes, if you can, create a list or a sentence that really embodies for you the deepest desires of your soul.

The reason that we’re recommending that you don’t spend tons of time on this is because when you’re in this interconnectedness with the soul it just comes quickly; you can trust that what comes through is what you’re wanting to know at this time. Once you have your written form you may want to put it on a different piece of paper. Then imagine that you are calling upon the Love Ray and that you’re dropping units of the Love Ray onto this piece of paper, and that that is a process of manifestation. It’s disintegrating anything that is creating a lack of connection between you and what it is that you’re choosing to have in your life, and that it is also amplifying your vibration to be in the high vibration of that which you would choose.

Excerpt from The Council of Light: Divine Transmissions for Manifesting the Deepest Desires of the Soul By Danielle Rama Hoffman

© Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Danielle Rama Hoffman is an ancient wisdom keeper, divine transmitter, and a leader in the shift into Unity Consciousness. She is the author of The Temples of Light and The Council of Light and creator of Divine Transmissions Inc. She provides energy facilitation and consciousness coaching to empower empaths, visionaries and new thought leaders to prosperously share their purpose and manifest the deepest desires of their soul.


Through Danielle Rama Hoffman’s advanced spiritual work with Thoth, she was introduced to the Council of Light—an intergalactic group of thousands of light beings from across the Multiverse. Their purpose is to support individuals as they shift into Unity Consciousness and return to their natural state of joy. The Council transmitted the teachings in this book for those seeking to accelerate their journey toward health, wealth, happiness, and their soul’s deepest desires. Order Wednesday Oct 30, 2013 and receive an array of valuable gifts www.counciloflightbook.com.

First Chapter Review: Next Year in Jerusalem (Part Two) by Barbara Becker Holstein

This is the second book in the Next Year in Jerusalem! trilogy. I reviewed the opening chapter of the first part here.

BLURB:  Continue the drama in Part 2 in this Trilogy of Romance Books as Natalie and Maggie, best friends since college, find themselves steeped in the romance, mysticism and mystery of Jerusalem.

The appearance of Jack, a diamond dealer and Natalie’s old boyfriend from college, creates incredible tension and arousal for Natalie. How can see keep her marriage intact? Maggie is mesmerized also by a new man in her life: Raji from Inida.

The mystery woman, Chaya Sarah, continues to share profound spiritual wisdom. Teaching Natalie the concept of ‘soul mate’ helps Natalie revive her marriage, at least for a night.

However Chaya Sara’s secrecy about herself baffles them, and concern grows that Chaya Sarah may be involved in more than meets the eye.

Too soon they must leave Jerusalem. A last minute surprising upset centered around Chaya Sarah frightens them and they realize they may be dealing with intrigue and terrorism.

How will Natalie and Maggie handle the mystery and romance that floods both women as they attempt to get back to life in the United States? Can a return to Jerusalem be far behind in this trilogy of romantic fiction?

COVER: I find it interesting that the author decided to use the same book cover for both parts of the story. I'm guessing she will do the same for the final portion. This will help readers find the book easily, even if it is an unusual choice.

FIRST CHAPTER: This story picks up right after Part One ends. Natalie is trying to decide if she will forsake her marriage vows and enjoy a romantic night with Jack. Once back in her room, she sees that her husband, David, has been trying to reach her by phone. Meanwhile, Maggie is enamored with Raji.

KEEP READING: The author sent me the tail end of the last book and the opening chapter of this one, so that I could see how Part One flows into Part Two. Since the first part ends with a cliffhanger, nothing was ruined for me.

Though I don't know everything that happened in between, I'm still intrigued. Even if infidelity--in thought or in deed--isn't high on my reading list, I'm curious how Natalie and Maggie will reconcile their lives in Jerusalem with the lives they must return to in the States. In addition, the mystery surrounding Chaya Sarah isn't an aspect I've been exposed to, yet, and I want to see how this fits into the story as a whole.


File Size: 245 KB
Print Length: 87 pages
Simultaneous Device Usage: Unlimited
Publisher: Dr. Barbara Becker Holstein (February 22, 2013)
Sold by: Amazon Digital Services, Inc.
Language: English
ASIN: B00BJTGJCY


I received the first chapter of this book from the author. This review contains my honest opinions, for which I have not been compensated in any way.

Interview and Giveaway: Neil Hanson, Author of Peace at the Edge of Uncertainty

Joining us today is Neil Hanson, author of Peace at the Edge of Uncertainty. Read through to the end to see how you can win a paperback or electronic copy of Neil's book.

Neil lives and works in Colorado. Peace at the Edge of Uncertainty is his first book. He blogs actively and writes articles for periodicals. He is an avid outdoorsman, passionate about hunting and fishing. He spends a great deal of time bicycling the roads and trails of Colorado, and backcountry skiing in winter. His passion for gardening spills over into a joint venture with his oldest son, where they operate a landscaping and construction company in Colorado.

Welcome to The Book Connection, Neil. It's wonderful to have you here. When did you begin writing?


While I've loved writing all my life, it's only in recent years that I've decided to start publishing. Writing not only comes easily to me, it's also something that brings me great satisfaction. As each year goes by, I find myself looking for ways to spend more time writing.

Do you write during the day, at night or whenever you can sneak a few moments?

I've got creative energy in the morning, so that's when I prefer to write. However, I'm getting better at "making due" with whatever time the day gives me to write. I'm definitely a "zone" writer, so don't have the ability to just sit down and write (or at least not anything good). I need to have "quiet" around me so I can fall into a writing zone.

What is this book about?

This question I've not yet learned to answer well. An author is supposed to be able to answer this question in 25 words, and I've already burned my 25 words making this excuse...

More than anything, the book is about the important relationships we have in our life, especially spiritual relationships. It's about ways that mystical spiritual presence might peek around the corner into your conscious life. It's about finding ways to use the strength of the spiritual presence to open your heart to the most important people in your life. And it's about the regrets that occur when we fail to do so.

Depending on where a person is in life, the book will feel like it's about different things. Folks who read it at a point of great spiritual seeking in their life will say the book's about a spiritual quest and connection. Folks who read it at a point of loss and suffering in their life will say the book's about finding peace in loss.

I believe that the title is really the heart of what the book is about. In our lives, in our relationships with others, in our times of loss, in our search for spiritual meaning, in all these things there is great uncertainty. If we make it our goal to eliminate the uncertainty, then we're unlikely to find the peace we seek. If we find peace with the uncertainty, more doors to understanding are likely to open.

What inspired you to write it?

The story is based on events in my life. It's told in the form of a letter to my father. For many years, as I've considered expanding my career and publishing my writing, it's been very clear to me that before I could publish anything else, I needed to figure out a way to tell this story. While I've told it to groups of people many times, I'd never found a voice that worked well to put it down on paper.

This story is that voice.

Are you a member of a critique group? If no, who provides feedback on your work?

I'm not a member of a critique group, though I do belong to a local writer's group and a fantastic independent publishers group (CIPA) here in Colorado. I get feedback at a lot of different layers, and getting honest feedback is tough. Folks always assume we (as writers) have our ego attached to our work, so they're hesitant to give honest feedback. I don't know about most writers, but I do know that in my case, I just love to write, and I know that lots of times I write stuff that isn't all that good. When I know that, I pitch it or revise it. If I ask someone for feedback, it's because I really can't tell if it's good or not (in the eyes of someone else.) I really do want to hear honest feedback.

Because here's the deal: I love to write! If you tell me I wrote something that stinks and few people will like it, or that nobody will be moved in any way by it, then that's really great, because I'll quit spending time on that project or piece. It frees me up to write something else, or to improve what I wrote, and remember - I love to write! Saying it's good means less writing, and might mean the hard work of deciding what to do with what I wrote.

I think blogging is a great way for me to get feedback on what moves people and what doesn't, what they like and what they don't. It's easy to put up a post, and I hear from folks when I hit a nerve one way or the other.

And of course, when all those layers are done, the REAL feedback comes from the editor, who should be brutally honest!

Who is your favorite author?

This is very tough. I have a few. I LOVE the epic stuff that Ken Follett has been doing - Pillars of the Earth, World Without End, and Fall of Giants. Karen Armstrong is one of my favorites for religious history stuff, though Bart Ehrman is one I like a lot too. In terms of classic authors, I think Mark Twain has to be my all-time favorite.

Do you have an agent or are you looking for one?

I do not have an agent. I had an agent for a short time when I started trying to market the manuscript. I think the agent was a fine one who did a fine job, but as I came to understand more about the publishing business, and how traditional publishing was imploding on itself, it just seemed to me that the "most right" way for me to proceed was to become my own publisher. Plus, this was all in early 2008 - during the time that traditional publishers were trying to figure out how to survive in the new world, and were taking on no new authors.

So, I terminated my contract with my agent, and pursued publishing on my own. I would certainly entertain the notion of traditional publishing through an agent moving forward - it would all depend on how we were able to put a plan together.

One of the things I realized about the traditional publishing arrangement was that the author was simply a money-making tool for the publishing house. I've run businesses all my life, and have always been served well by the notion that business happens best and most profitably in the long run when both parties are happy. As I discussed next book projects with my agent at the time, it was clear that "next book" projects would be heavily influenced by what the publisher thought would sell, and not much influenced by what I wanted to write.

Remember that I write because I love to write. Sure, I'd like to make a living at it, but making the living isn't the reason I write. While I would greatly respect the opinion of an agent or publisher about building a career, being a successful writer, and making them some money in the bargain, I don't want to give up my "freedom" to make decisions about what I write about.

Having an agent would almost certainly increase my ability to sell way more books, so from that perspective I love the idea. If I could find an agent who built partnerships with authors that allowed the author to explore and grow as their spirits moved them, it could be a great thing.

Was the road to publication smooth sailing or a bumpy ride?

I wouldn't make it past tense - the road IS bumpy in many respects.

But I love learning new businesses, and this is a fun one to learn.

I will say that my next book project will be dramatically more smooth than the first one, based on all the learning I’ve been doing. I can be taught...

If you knew then, what you know now, is there anything you would have done differently?

I would spend more pre-release time building the network of bloggers and reviewers that's necessary for an independent to be successful. I'd also enter all the writing contests I could - I only entered one and won several awards - I think those awards are important.

Where can readers purchase a copy of your book?

If they're Amazon folks, they can purchase it at Amazon. Also available at other online outlets such as BN and Indiebound. They can email me directly or leave a message on my website and I'll send them one - I discount books I sell directly. It is available through local bookstores everywhere, and I'm a big supporter or local bookstores.

Do you have a website and/or blog where readers can find out more?

I blog actively, and can be found at http://neilhanson.com/

What is up next for you?

I have several next projects that I'm working on.

• I just spent 3 weeks riding my bicycle down the coast of California, turning left north of LA to ride across the mountains and deserts of the west, then riding north through Navaho, Hopi, and Ute lands, and back across southern Colorado to home. Last summer, I rode from Trinidad, CO east across eastern Colorado and southern Kansas. Next summer I hope to complete the ride across the eastern part of the country. Either in sum or in parts, these rides will become a book project. (They actually already have - I just haven't decided on voice and form for how to publish them.)

• Related to the above, I'm just putting the finishing touches on a short piece on minimalist bicycle touring, and should have that available electronically in a matter of weeks as I write this. By the time this is posted in September, the piece should be available on my website.

• For many years, our family practiced and evolved a Passover tradition in the spring. As a Christian, this beautiful and meaningful holiday took on great importance for me. Each year, I'd write a new Haggadah for that year's celebration. I'd like to write one and publish it for Christians, though I'm still debating the form as well as content/message internal debates I have.

• I hunt and fish quite a bit, and would like to find the time to write stories on hunting and fishing.

Thanks for spending time with us today, Neil. We wish you much success.

Blog Tour web site:


http://peaceattheedgeofuncertainty.blogspot.com/

Neil Hanson's website:

http://neilhanson.com/

Neil Hanson's Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/neilmhanson
Neil Hanson's Twitter:

http://twitter.com/neilmhanson

Neil Hanson's blog:

http://neilhanson.com/Blog/


Paperback
Price: $17.95
ISBN: 9780982639108
Pages: 132
Release: May 2010

Paperback buy links:

Amazon
Barnes & Noble

Ebook buy links:

Kindle - $2.99
Nook - $2.99
Smashwords - $2.99


Peace at the Edge of Uncertainty Giveaway information!
PAPERBACK GIVEAWAY (U.S. only)


Neil will give away 1 copy of the paperback version of the book to the FIRST person who leaves a comment on your interview along with their email address.

EBOOK GIVEAWAY (International)

Neil will give away a copy of the ebook version of the book (in the format of their choice) to EVERY person who leaves a comment on your interview along with their email address during the month of September.


Blogger's note:  All entrants will automatically be subscribed to Neil Hanson's email newsletter. Contact information is NEVER shared, and subscribers can unsubscribe at any time.

Book Spotlight: Keeping it Simple! by Jayne M. DeRouin

Many people use the spring season to tidy their homes and organize their closets, but when was the last time you decluttered your life?

Full-time wife and mother Jayne DeRouin says keeping life simple is essential to effective living. In her new book, “Keeping it Simple!: Keys to Living an Uncomplicated Life”, DeRouin reveals how she has managed to “keep it simple” despite facing adversity in her own hectic life. She demonstrates how focusing on life’s positive aspects and trusting their instincts can guide readers through any hurdles in life.

DeRouin provides readers with useful tips, like having a garage sale to rid themselves of emotional clutter or learning to say no to activities that cause needlessly harmful emotions. She also suggests focusing on physical health to gain emotional health, welcoming moments of reflection and using your spirituality as your personal GPS system. According to DeRouin, seeking long-term happiness rather than immediate endorphin highs is the best way to live a clutter-free life.

Read an excerpt!

There are no coincidences in life.

Everything happens for a reason.

You have this book for a reason. Maybe you picked it up because you felt something drew you in, but you weren’t quite sure what it was. Maybe you chose this book because you heard the inner voice of your soul speaking to you and you acted on its wisdom, without hesitation, trusting your instincts and using your free will to make a choice that you may have thought unusual in the past. Maybe you received it as a gift, from someone very special in your life because they felt it would be something you would enjoy reading. Maybe this book will validate for you how you feel about life and now you will know there is someone else out there who thinks like you and it will encourage you to continue doing things just the way you are. Or maybe, it will help you make some change in your life that you have sensed you needed to make but weren’t quite sure how. No matter what the circumstance is, or your reason for reading it, this book is now in your hands, what you decide to do is completely up to you.

Keeping It Simple! is a compilation of divine principles, providing a spiritual philosophy and approach to life unlike anything else you have ever read before. The stories you read, the personal stories I share and the messages revealed come from my heart and soul. Like a good cookbook, with tips and tricks to aide you in your cooking, “Keeping It Simple!” is an inspirational guide that can support you during your spiritual journey. The principles and techniques discussed are meant to provide you with a way to draw parallels to your own life, and through the personal stories I share, help you start to throw away the old way of thinking and plug into your own spiritual creativity.

Read the reviews!

"A must read for every caregiver or anyone who thinks the world has gotten the best of them."

~ Editor-in-Chief, Caring Years Magazine

"I encourage everyone to read Jayne's book; truly inspirational; it will ignite the light within!"

~ Kerri D.

“There is a down to earth, everydayness to the writing of Keeping It Simple! that allows the reader to make a direct connection. The beauty of this book is that it is not professorial or theological. It is like having a dialogue with the author. It is easy to sit down with it and read it comfortably.”

~ Bill C.

PURCHASE A COPY OF KEEPING IT SIMPLE! AT AMAZON!

Jayne DeRouin is a busy wife and mother, as well as an incurable optimist who knows the secret to achieving a balanced life. Over the years, she realized almost any obstacle life threw her way could be overcome by trusting deeply in herself. Eager to pass on what she’s learned, Jayne shares her life-tested advice in her new book, where she offers practical tips and insights for decluttering your life.


DeRouin didn’t always know she would be a writer. As a young woman, she considered being a hairdresser and even aspired to be a celebrity stylist, but after a brief time as a cosmetic consultant, DeRouin decided to study business administration. She worked as a banker for 18 years before becoming a full-time homemaker when her son was born. An active member of her church choir, she enjoys volunteering for her son’s school, where she serves on the parent-teacher organization. She also maintains a motivational blog on her website and helps her husband run his business. DeRouin lives in Cranston, R.I., with her husband, David, and their son, John. For more information about DeRouin or Keeping it Simple!, please visit www.jaynederouin.com.  

Author Spotlight: Finding God: To Believe or Not to Believe by Nick Oliva

Do you believe in God, life after death, or nothingness? Do you know the origins of the Bible’s New Testament? This book explores the world of science, religion, and atheism and integrates them into the aspects of Twentieth and Twenty-first Century physics. It ponders life and death experiences and includes the author’s own near death experience. Posing many questions about the realm of our existence, it stresses the importance of promoting humanity without exclusionary elements of human prejudice. These and many other contemporary issues are combined with the latest scientific and philosophic theories in the search for real truth of subjects that have brought down entire empires in bloodlust, and have each of us pondering the eternal “Why?” We are in the second century since the collision of science and religion. One is based in empirical evidence; the other is based on thousands of years of pure faith. Hang on as your perfectly ordered world is shaken and stirred – if you have an open mind to believe what is real and allow for possibilities of the yet unknown.


Read an Excerpt from Finding God: To Believe or Not to Believe!

The hardest part of the human experience is to comprehend the enormity of thousands of years, of the many religions predating today’s beliefs, and the shortness of human memory and our lives in perspective to our history. To begin to speak of history is to be mired in details especially in this day and age. Instant gratification rules in this era. Few can keep it all straight and understandable. Massive amounts of information exist on human history and beliefs and the majority of it has nothing to do with Christianity. The human mind can only process a small bit of the intricate details bringing us to present day.

History is made by those who have the blood of others on their swords and keeping track of thousands of points of aggression is impossible, but for scholars. It is easy to confuse hundreds of years with thousands of years. We think the Romans ruled as a unit for hundreds of years but they were part of a process that saw a rise, a stabilization, and then a long fall. We know even less about Greece and the Egyptian Empires, though they are relatively close to our time frame. The ancient civilizations are still many years before these empires and time has eroded their presence. There are but shards of evidence left behind. All this is difficult to put in perspective for the average person trying to get through life with some type of understanding and survive day to day.

The ancient religions of India and the Far East far predate Buddhism, which is usually confused as a religion and not a way of life. That is really more of what religion and belief are supposed to do—meld together so one would practice their beliefs in everyday life. We must begin to recognize the humanness of mistakes and faults and to reach out and spread love to help each other through this short life. These are the real reasons for faith. Faith in one’s self to do the moral and human things necessary to make life bearable. All we have is our ability to create great happiness or great sorrow for others.

Many of us, both religious and non-religious, want to feel what we do is righteous. In order to be righteous, we must do the righteous thing. By this I mean to forgive and forget and to move on with the knowledge, in the end, all that matters is the laughter you’ve spread, the love you made. We cannot control those who have the power to create horrible experiences for their fellow man, but we do have control over those with whom we surround ourselves everyday and our loved ones. Don’t let the big picture overwhelm the importance of your contribution to making the world a better place. It is not as hard as you think.

It begins with you. A mere smile can change someone’s day. A good gesture can make the difference in someone wanting to live or die. Tackle what is around you and leave the worry of what could be harmful for the time being. Do what you can to fight inhumanness and that is all you can do. Struggle is what we humans must do and it never ends. Change is inevitable. It is hard to manage, but it is all we have.

“Finding God: To Believe or Not To Believe truly is a gift to humanity. If only we would heed the advice this book contains. I invite you to put down your weapon (fear), stop hating those you don‘t understand, and prepare to be tolerant as you delve into this gift.”

– Yvonne Perry -Author of RIGHT TO RECOVER: Winning the Political and Religious Wars Over Stem Cell Research in America and MORE THAN MEETS THE EYE: True Stories About Death, Dying, and Afterlife

Nicholas Oliva (O-lee-va’) has been a musician, writer, poet, photographer, an audio engineer, an Entertainment and Technical Director for over twenty-five years.


His first book, Only Moments, was published in 2007, which was a novel that followed the lifetime journey of the professional musical career of a husband and wife team to the year 2020.


His latest book is Finding God: To Believe or Not To Believe, now available at Amazon.com as well as Barnes and Noble and will be available in the Kindle Store soon. To visit the website go to www.tobelieveornot.com. Mr. Oliva’s other Websites are OnlyMoments and for his first book Only Moments by Nick Oliva. You can find him on Facebook as well on either the book page Facebook
Finding God: To Believe or Not To Believe or his home page http://www.facebook.com/noliva.


Oliva lives in the quiet mountains of Nevada.