How can you get a chance to win this wonderful literary treasure basket filled with 14 books from local library-loving authors along with $50 of Winters Bucks?
Each donor will earn a chance to win by supporting Winters Friends of the Library with a minimum of $25 online donation before 3 pm at wfol.org on May 4. Use the orange Donate Now button at the top of the page. If you donate $25 you earn one virtual chance to win. Your chances will increase for each multiple of $25.
Save the date and save the link to help us win big for Winters and give yourself a chance to win too.
This year we have a selection of authors from Winters and the surrounding area. Many of the authors participated in our first Books and Brews event this year. More treasures may be added to the basketRead on to learn about our generous authors and what they have to say about libraries.
Libraries offer warm times that dispel the cold of our limitations – Steve Ackley
Harry Steven (Steve) Ackley was born and raised in Woodland, California. He is a graduate of Cabrillo College, Bethany Bible College, and San Francisco State University, where he received a master’s degree in education.
After a short stint as a high school English teacher, Steve changed careers and went to work as a website designer.
Steve presently divides his time between San Jose and Winters, California. He enjoys spending time with his girlfriend Natasha, his three children, Cedric, Cleo, and Adrian, and his dog, Muddy Waters. Steve also plays string bass and bass guitar in various jazz and blues groups.
Book Donated: Our Lady of West 74th Street
Our Lady of West 74th Street follows the history of a miracle-working icon depicting the Virgin Mary and the seven archangels. The story tells of the lives the icon touches, and of the angels and devils who are alternately trying to protect and destroy it. The events go from 42 AD, to the early 1990s, to the present, back to 1941, with a few stops in between.
The novel begins when anthropology professor Emily Campbell investigates recent paranormal events at a New York City day care center. Her findings, along with developments in her own life, cause Emily to question long-held opinions and to see her past in a new light. But Emily is not the only one whose world is changing. She is only one player in a drama that has been unfolding for centuries — a spiritual tug-o-war surrounding an ancient object with the power to transform the hearts of humankind. As Emily tries to understand the signs around her, others are attempting to make sure she never does.
Find out more at:http://regardingarts.com/ourlady/index.htm
When I was a kid the public library was my haven. I wanted to read every book in the children’s section, beginning with the “Z authors” first and working my way back to the “A’s”. (I think because the Z’s were on the bottom shelf and easiet to reach.) I made it to the “W’s” and still go to the library whenever I can!
– Kris Calvin
Book Donated: One Murder More
A beautiful aide to California’s governor is found stabbed to death in the capitol building.
When lobbyist Maren Kane’s colleague is arrested for the crime, Maren is certain the police have the wrong man.
But will Maren be able to prove her theory and free her friend before she becomes the killer’s next victim?
Learn more about Kris and her books at http://www.kriscalvin.com/
“Shades of Blue” isn’t just a book about depression and suicide, and it isn’t a book on how to “fix” it. It is a book about the experience of depression, attempting suicide or coping with a loved one’s suicide. It doesn’t offer solutions. It offers a place for people to discover… “Wow, I am not the only one who feels this way. I am not alone.” It offers hope that if all of these writers can survive these things… maybe you can too.
Debra (Lo Guercio) DeAngelo is a columnist with McNaughton Newspapers, and editor of the Winters Express newspaper in Winters, California. A graduate of UC Davis with a bachelor’s degree in psychology, she has more than 20 years of experience as an editor, and is co-founder, co-editor and CEO for iPinion Syndicate. During her tenure as editor, the Winters Express has won First Place in General Excellence in the California Newspaper Publishers Associations’ Better Newspapers Contest in 2000, and Second and Third Place in General Excellence in the National Newspaper Association’s Better Newspapers Contest as well.
Debra most recently won First Place in column writing in the NNA’s 2012 national competition. All together, she has five First Place awards from the NNA for column writing, one Second and two Thirds. On the state level, she has four First Place awards in column writing from the CNPA, and three Second Place awards. She was also the winner of the national column writing talent search for the Front Porch Syndicate in 2002 and was nationally syndicated in The Front Porch magazine for several years until the publication closed. Debra has been a judge in the California Newspaper Publishers Association’s Better Newspapers Contest for 21 years, and served as an essay writing judge for the Yolo County Academic Decathlon competition for 10 years.
She serves as the iPinion writing coach and occasional talent scout, and takes particular joy in spotting raw talent in emails, blogs, letters and posts, and pointing budding writers to a new career and helping them find their writing voice. Besides columns, Debra is interested in screenwriting, and both fiction and non-fiction writing.
Book Donated: Shades of Blue
Debra is one of the contributors to Shades of Blue which brings the conversation around depression and sadness into the open with real, first-hand accounts of depression and mental health issues, offering empathy to all those who have been affected by these issues.
The silent epidemic of depression affects millions of people and takes dozens of lives everyday, while our culture grapples with a stigma against open discussion of mental health issues. Editor Amy Ferris has collected these stories to illuminate the truth behind that stigma and offer compassion, solidarity, and hope for all those who have struggled with depression.
I love libraries because they’re accessible even when the internet is down. Hah! I’m an “old fogey” who did all of my initial research in the library (before the days of all-access internet sites). School reports, journaling, writing… I love just being able to sit in the quiet of a library and work for hours on end. – Mary Hanson
Books Donated:
“The Chubby Woman’s Walkabout Guide to Cool Stuff on the American River” and “The Chubby Woman’s Walkabout Guide to More Cool Stuff on the American River.”
The books I’m donating are ones I wrote myself as a response to the Certified California Naturalist coursework I took at age 61. I got so excited about helping other budding naturalists that I’ve written a series of book about the plant and animal species I’ve encountered along the American River. Two books in the 3-book series are complete, and I’d love to share them with you. All of the proceeds from the sale of my book is donated to nonprofit conservation organizations in the region.
To me, libraries were always a treasure of stories and adventures waiting to be explored And all just a library card away! – Kelly Hess
Books Donated: The Black Myst Trilogy
When his sleepy village is attacked, young Beynn Firehand escapes into BlackMyst Forest and begins an adventure of magic and danger. The YA books include Eyes of the Enemy, The Green Dagger, and The Third Power
Learn more at http://kellyhessauthor.com/
Humans sharing their knowledge in small pieces in quiet settings all through the land makes libraries oases of peace both for individuals and for each town that is luck enough to still have one – Emer Martin
Books Donated: Baby Zero and Why is the Moon Following Me?
Synopsis of Baby Zero:
Marguerite reluctantly leaves her career as a glamorous Los Angeles plastic surgeon to rescue her estranged mother who is trapped under a Taliban-like regime in their home country. Unaccustomed to such restrictions, she ends up pregnant, imprisoned, and sentenced to a stoning. If she is to survive and find her way back, she must use all her wits and strength. Her family has shrouded their past in mystery but she must find out what went down when they arrived in California as children. What did happen to the two beautiful and vulnerable refugee kids placed in the care of Uncle Mo, their larger-than-life bachelor, in his Malibu ocean house? Through tracing the storyof her family’s arrival in California she discovers a shocking secret; but it is this very secret that turns the tables and launches her mother’s daring rescue plan.
Baby Zero, is a child of our times: Caught between the fundamentalism of the East and the commercialism of the West. In a far-off land, everytime the regime changes they turn the year back to zero, as if to begin history again. Each girl in this family is born in the year zero, a time of turmoil. They are scattered across the globe, refugees in Ireland and the U.S. – but when one returns home she finds herself imprisoned.
Why is the Moon Following Me?: Children’s Book Uses Gravitational Pull of Fun & Adventure to Teach Early Astronomy & “Real Science”
Masterfully crafted by a unique co-operative of a scientist, illustrator and an award-winning writer, ‘Why is the Moon Following Me?’ bucks the trend of “cheap thrill” children’s fantasy fiction to instead introduce the boundless fun of astronomy. The book’s poetic verses were inspired by an experience the author witnessed as a child while driving through the dark countryside of her native Ireland, and has now been transposed into an adventure that whisks children through time and space as they meet seven great thinkers to learn about the universe around them.
Learn more at http://emermartin.com/
“Yolo County libraries are dear to my heart, because when I moved here on a “spouse” visa in 2010, I had no SSN, no credit card of my own, no bank account of own . . . While I waited, like a non-person, for my greencard to come through all I had was my precious library card. I was pretty much invisible to the USA, but to Yolo County libraries I existed. Thank you! “ Catriona McPherson
Catriona, a long time library supporter, spoke at our last Annual Membership Gathering and wrote a guest post for this blog in September.
She writes the Agatha, MaCavity, and Bruce winning Dandy Gilver series, set in her native Scotland in the 1920s. A DEADLY MEASURE OF BRIMSTONE won a third Bruce at Left Coast Crime in Portland this year. In 2013 she started a strand of darker (not difficult) standalones. The first, AS SHE LEFT IT, won an Anthony award at the Bouchercon World Mystery Convention in 2014 and the IndieFab Gold for Mystery. THE DAY SHE DIED is currently on the shortlist for an Edgar. Since 2010 Catriona has lived near Davis with a black cat and a scientist and is proud to be the 2015 president of Sisters in Crime. www.catrionamcpherson.com
Book Donated: Come to Harm
For Keiko Nishisato, leaving Tokyo is a rare adventure, but it’s living in the quiet little town of Painchton, Scotland, that shows her how far she is from home.
Keiko has never met friendlier people than the Painchton Traders. Only the Pooles, the butchers below her second-floor apartment, want to keep their distance. Murray Poole attracts her right away. Mrs. Poole puzzles her—is there more than recent widowhood behind all that sadness? And then there’s Malcolm. Massive and brooding, he hints at something dark behind the bustle and banter of this strange little town.
For such a settled place, a lot of young women seem to leave. But the more Keiko discovers the less she believes, until she can’t tell where her fears end and the real nightmares begin.
Find out more at http://catrionamcpherson.com/
Book Donated: Un-Bridaled, a novel set in Winters!
With half her immediate family having been committed — mentally speaking — why can’t Chloe Sachs commit? After all, she’s always been considered the sane one in the family. But seconds before becoming Mrs. Mark Hutchinson, Chloe leaves her handsome, successful fiancé at the altar and tears down Interstate 505 in her red Ford Frontier. Maybe it was the heat of a California June wedding. Maybe it was when a family tradition went awry before hundreds of shocked guests. Or maybe it was because she heard a voice telling her in no uncertain terms, Run!
Now Chloe has no Plan B, two kooky dogs, one angry ex, and a truckload of wedding gifts to return. Taking refuge at her grandmother’s, Chloe helps her renovate a bungalow that’s been in the family for years — and unearths some surprising secrets. She also discovers that leaving her heart open may invite some very intriguing guests — like the beguiling veterinarian she can’t get off her mind. And with her family and friends’ help, Chloe realizes she’s truly free…to follow her heart wherever it takes her.
Learn more about Eileen and her books at http://www.eileenrendahl.com/
As someone who thrives on diversity libraries are a bit like a mecca – you can learn about so many things, have so many experiences all in one (sacred) place. Tamsen Schulz
Tamsen Schultz is the author of several romantic suspense novels and American Kin (a short story published in Line Zero Magazine). In addition to being a writer, she has a background in the field of international conflict resolution, has co-founded a non-profit, and currently works in corporate America. Like most lawyers, she spends a disproportionate amount of time thinking (and writing) about what it might be like to do something else. She lives in Northern California in a house full of males including her husband, two sons, four cats, a dog, and a gender-neutral, but well-stocked, wine rack.
Tamsen dreamed up the idea and organized our first Books and Brews event this past year, inspiring many of her fellow authors to visit Winters and donate their books to support our mission and the Winters Community Library.
Book Donated: TBA
“I prized libraries as a child and spent much of my teenage years helping to build a new one in Winters. I’m excited to see how libraries grow and change as they enter the 21st century in the coming years
I first fell in love with the library at Story Time. I was instantly hooked: I could have as many books as I wanted for free! I started volunteering with the Friends of the Library because I saw the library as an incredibly valuable resource, both for myself and members of the community. The library is one of the best places to pursue lifelong learning and no one needs permission to use it.” Dale Stephens
Dale Stephens grew up in Winters and is the founder ofUnCollege.org. UnCollege provides gap year programs, workshops, and community resources to self-directed learners.
Dale wrote Hacking Your Education. because of his unique perspective on the future of education: he left school at age twelve. He speaks around the world on the changing landscape of post-secondary education. He has appeared on CNN.com, NPR,Fox, and TechCrunch. His work has been covered by the New York Times, New York Magazine, andFast Company. He is a Thiel Fellow, one of theForbes 30 Under 30 for Education and has spoken at TED and TEDx events.
Book Donated: Hacking Your Education
Did you know that student loan debt recently eclipsed credit card debt for the first time in history and now tops one trillion dollars? It’s true and it’s causing parents and students to question if attending university is the right decision. Are there other paths to achieve the benefits and job prospects associated with a college degree?
There is – and Dale Stephens is proof of that. In Hacking Your Education, Stephens speaks to a new culture of “hackademics” who think college diplomas come second to an impressive portfolio and hard skills in our competitive job market. Stephens shows how he and dozens of others have hacked their education, and how you can, too. You don’t need to be a genius or especially motivated to succeed outside school. The real requirements are much simpler: curiosity, confidence, and grit.
Hacking Your Education offers valuable advice to current students as well as those who decided to skip college. Stephens teaches you to create opportunities for yourself and design your curriculum – inside or outside the classroom. Whether your dream is to travel the world, build a startup, or climb the corporate ladder, Stephens proves you can do it now, rather than waiting for life to start after “graduation” day.
Find out more at UnCollege.org
