Young Adult Author J. Cafesin Debuts Her First Novel

After publishing two successful young adult books, San Ramon resident J. Cafesin has released her first novel, Reverb.

James Whren is brilliant, handsome, rich, and a talented musician.  His only flaw is his self-absorbed approach to life. James' world is turned upside down on the eve of his brother's funeral, leaving him abandoned and afraid.

Fear drives James to escape to the Greek island of Corfu. Loneliness threatens to consume him until he meets Elisabeth and her son Cameron.

Reverb is a love story, a psychological thriller paced with romantic suspense, and chronicles the evolution of a modern man, from solipsist to integrated awareness. It is a tale of redemption, of one man's journey through extraordinary emotional growth, awakening his capacity to love.

The first six chapters of Reverb are available to read here.

J. Cafesin is a San Ramon resident.  Her fan base includes her husband of fifteen years and two children.

J. Cafesin is also the author of Tales of Finnegus Boggs and The Activation, two young adult short stories in her acclaimed Fractured Fairytales of the Twilight Zone fantasy series.

She is currently working on her second novel called Disconnected.  The story is set in Los Angeles during the Rodney King riots in 1992.

Kate, determined that feminine success is defined by marital status and children, finds herself floundering in a world of dysfunction. As the city burns around her, she fights to make sense of her deteriorating relationship and find validation in personal accomplishments.

Reverb can be purchased on Amazon. Tales of Finnegus Boggs and The Activation are available for Kindle. The first twenty-one chapters of Disconnected are availabe online for reading at this link.
To follow more on J. Cafesin, you can read her blog at Jcafesin@blogspot.com or click here to visit her website.

Children's Book Author Sondra Perry

San Ramon resident Sondra Perry had no idea that her newly landscaped back yard would soon be the new home for Henry, a great blue heron. Weeks after the Perry family installed two ponds, Henry made regular appearances, feasting on the fish.  After several attempts to rid their back yard habitat of the feathered intruder, Sondra accepted defeat and welcomed Henry as the newest addition to the Perry family.

Seven years later, Henry and his wild antics have become the subject of Sondra Perry's book,  The Most Unusual Pet Ever, Henry our Great Blue Heron and his Adventures.

Sondra lives in San Ramon with her husband, Lance, and is the step-mother of three children.  She is the previous owner and chef of a catering company.  After selling her catering business she turned her talents to writing. She had begun accumulating stories that she had written for her daughter regarding simple life lessons when Henry made his first appearance. His daily visits inspired Sondra to write about the majestic bird. She began to document her unique relationship with Henry in her new children's book, beautifully illustrated by Janice Byer.

Sondra has been a regular volunteer in the child-care center at Shepherd's Gate Women and Children's Shelter in Livermore, a nonprofit organization that meets the practical, spiritual and emotional needs of battered and homeless women and children. Because of her passion and devotion to this organization, a portion of every book sold is donated toward building the Life Center at the shelter.

In addition, Sondra has donated a copy of her book to every San Ramon elementary school and several local libraries.  She has begun holding speaking engagements to tell children about Henry and how he inspired her to write. Her hope is to spread the joy that Henry has brought her and her family to children. Henry's backyard home has become certified as an official wildlife habitat by the National Wildlife Federation.  His community of animal friends includes two ducks, three chickens, frogs, squirrels, blue jays and numerous bugs.

Henry has been rumored to make unannounced appearances at Blackhawk Plaza, where he enjoys the fish stocked in the stream.His wild adventures are not done yet.  Sondra is working on a two-part series titled Baby Carrots and Crunchy Carrots, in which Henry will play the character of the Wise Old Heron. As the oldest resident of the backyard world, he will assist his neighbors, Mr Duck, Squirrel and the three chickens -- Mother, Raven and Braveheart -- in learning simple life lessons.

The Most Unusual Pet Ever, Henry our Great Blue Heron is available at most local libraries.  Sondra's book also is available for purchase at Amazon, Barnes and Noble or directly from her website.

Alameda County Fair Author Victoria Christian

The Alameda County Fair is just around the corner and will bring an estimated 400,000 visitors to its annual festivities.

While attendees enjoy rides, deep-fried delicacies, and July Fourth celebrations, few will know the grounds' rich history. Author Victoria Christian hopes to bring to light the long-forgotten stories that still echo throughout the 270-acre campus.

In Victoria's new book, Alameda County Fair, she unveils the untold history of the property in what began as a ranching family's Sunday pastime of horse racing. The original racetrack was built in 1850 by the Bernal family on their 52,000-acre ranch, which was part of the Northern California land grant, Rancho Valle de San Jose.

Today the track is the oldest one-mile track in America.

In the early 1900s, businessman Rodney G. MacKenzie approached a group of county businessmen and ranchers with a proposal to hold a county fair on his property in hopes of turning a profit on his newly acquired racetrack. The first Alameda County Fair ran from Oct. 23 to Oct. 27, 1912, making next year the Alameda County Fair's centennial anniversary.

In 1939, leaders sought to form a modern fair and the Alameda County Fair Association was established as a 501(c)3 private, nonprofit corporation.

Today, the Alameda County Fair is the largest county fair in Northern California and the largest public event in Alameda County.
This year, it received the coveted Western Fair Associationʼs (WFA) Louis B. Merrill Award, named for the WFA's founder. The award is given to individuals, businesses or organizations that demonstrate outstanding vision, innovation and leadership. Only one Merrill Award was issued this year throughout the United States and Canada.

The Alameda County Fair received the award for its exceptional canine-featured attraction last year that provided educational seminars, sessions, shows and the opportunity to adopt rescued dogs at Puppy Party Palooza.

Victoria was approached by Arcadia Publishing to write the history of the fairgrounds after she published her first book,  Images of America: Sunol  in 2007. Victoria contacted the Alameda County Fairgrounds manager of markerting, April Mitchell, for assistance.

She was warmly welcomed by Mitchell, Victoria said, and was given access to the fairgrounds archives. Victoria found a treasure-trove of vintage newspaper clippings, photos and fair memorabilia. It took her more than a year and a half to sort through the dozens of boxes, organize thousands of photos and research the history behind the stories she discovered.

On May 23, Victoria Christian's book Alameda County Fair, from the Images of America series, debuted on store bookshelves. The book is filled with classic black-and-white photos dating back to the late 1800s.
Victoria, a longtime resident of Sunol, is the new editor-in-chief of the Sunolian newspaper.
Images of America: Alameda County Fair can be purchased locally at Towne Center Books, Berry Patch and the Museum on Main. The book also can be purchased online through Barnes & Noble and Amazon.

The 99th Annual Alameda County Fair runs from June 22 to July 10. Victoria will be at the fair signing her book Fridays from 5  to 8 p.m.. She'll also be there Saturdays and Sundays, starting at 10 a.m. some days and noon on others, ending at 4 p.m. some days and at 6 p.m. on others.

Look for her also on opening day from 5 to 8 p.m. and July 4 from 10 a.m. to noon and 2 to 4 p.m.

"The Square Root of Murder" by Ada Madison, aka Camille Minichino

Camille Minichino, a physicist who works at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, is the author of two murder mystery series and is set to publish the first book of a third series.

The Square Root of Murder will be released Tuesday. Click here to read chapter one of The Square Root of Murder.

Under the pen name Ada Madison, Minichino introduces Dr. Sophie Knowles, a mathematics professor at a small Massachusetts college campus.

Her students enjoy her classes because of her ability to make math easy to understand. During her spare time, Sophie creates puzzles for publication, enjoys beading with her friend Ariana, and spends time with her handsome boyfriend, medevac pilot Bruce Granville.

When a professor disliked by most of the college staff and student body is found murdered, Sophie adds amateur detective to her list of hobbies. Rachel Wheeler, Sophie's assistant, becomes the police's primary suspect. Sophie sets out to prove Rachel's innocence, putting her own life on the line.

Minichino has published eight novels in her first series, the "Periodic Table Mysteries." In it, Dr. Gloria Lamerino, a retired physicist, signs on to help the police department in science-related homicides.

The Hydrogen Murder is the beginning of Gloria's adventures and she soon realizes she may have 118 cases ahead of her. After the eighth novel, The Oxygen Murder, was published, the "Periodic Table Mysteries" continued in short stories on Kindle and on smashwords.com.

The "Miniature Mysteries" series, published under the pen name Margaret Grace, features retired high school English teacher Geraldine Porter. Retirement suits Geraldine well because it gives her time to spend on her hobbies: dollhouses and miniatures. When a murder happens in her small town, Geraldine and her 10-year-old granddaughter, Maddie, find themselves playing detective to solve bigger-than-miniature murder mysteries.

Geraldine will return in the spring in the sixth book of the series, Mix-Up in Miniature.
Minichino is a Bay Area resident with an impressive resume.

She received her doctorate in physics from Fordham University in New York City. She is a faculty member at Golden Gate University and is on staff at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. Minichino has contributed to many publications involving nuclear and fusion energy.

In addition, she received the Jack London Award from the California Writers Club in 2007. She is a board member of the California Writers Club and NorCal Sisters in Crime.  She also is a member of NorCal Mystery Writers of America and San Francisco Romance Writers of America.

Minichino uses her expertise in science and math, and her hobbies, dollhouses and miniatures, to inspire her creative fiction.

She creates strong, academic heroines in her novels to encourage girls to pursue science and mathematics careers that are dominated by men. Her hope is to teach girls that science and math is fun.

Minichino's fan club includes her husband of 34 years, Dick Rufer. His continued support of her passion to write, her hobbies and the need to travel has been the foundation of their successful marriage, she said.
The Square Root of Murder by Ada Madison can be purchased at Towne Center Books and Barnes & Noble in Dublin.

Local Author Turns Grief into Wrting

Sharon Svitak of Dublin was living the traditional suburban life. She was married with two grown children while living in a modest home. She worked for the city of Pleasanton, as well as a handful of companies throughout the East Bay writing for any needs her corporate employers came up with.  Little did she know that through loss, she would find herself becoming a successfully published writer.

Sharon first met Joe in Denver at a dance.

"My girlfriend was supposed to be his date for the evening, but she wanted to pursue someone else," Sharon said.

"She brought me along to run interference. I didn’t know, of course, that was her intention."

Joe and Sharon married in the fall of 1974 and soon after had two children.

During the later years of his life, Joe began to struggle with diabetes, eventually losing his leg to the disease. In November of 2007, Joe was diagnosed with terminal liver cancer. Doctors told Sharon and Joe that he had less than six months left to live.

Joe took the grim news with resolution, telling Sharon that he wanted to enjoy every last moment of his life. They booked a cruise to Puerto Vallarta to celebrate their 34th wedding anniversary.  Joe lived another thirteen months before passing away in December of 2008.

Initially, Sharon began writing to sort through her grief and the loss of her soulmate. She soon found herself writing letters to her year-old grandson Ethan about the grandfather he would never know. She wrote of how an everyday man lived with phenomenal ambition, vivaciousness, and perspective.

"Joe was an ordinary man who had an extraordinary impact on those who knew him," said Sharon.
With encouragement from her critique group through the California Writers Club, Tri-Valley Branch, Sharon began researching publishers to put her heartfelt letters into print. Her first publication came when Chicken Soup for the Soul: Grieving and Recovery picked up her submission about the letters she was writing. She titled her submission A Book of Memories.

Soon, she received news from a publisher that they were eagerly waiting for her to complete her collection of letters to put into print.  Two years after Joe's passing, Sharon submitted her letters for publication.
Letters to Ethan: Joe's Story was released in January 2011.

The book consists of twelve short letters written with love, admiration, and fond memories of who Joe Svitak was and the life he lived.

Joes' legacy is not only being carried on through Sharon's book but through their two children, John and Carmen. John and his wife now have two sons, including Ethan for whom the letters were originally written. Sharon says John has become as wonderful of a father as Joe was. Carmen, passionate much like Joe, is pursuing music with her husband.

Sharon Svitak is currently toying with writing a fiction novel. She is an active member of the California Writers Club, Tri-Valley Branch and the editor of their monthly newsletter. She can occasionally be found teaching workshops.

Letter's to Ethan: Joe's Story can be ordered through Barnes & Noble, and Amazon offers the Kindle version for digital readers. The book can also be purchased through Towne Center Books or directly from Sharon at at svitak5@comcast.net

You can follow Sharon's writing through her personal blog at SimplySharonComments@blogspot.com or through her book critiques on What is a Body To Read?