Book Review: The Black Sea Whale: A Beacon in the Sea of Troubles (OT)

The Black Sea Whale: A Beacon in the Sea of Troubles, by The Froms (The Magazine Cafe, 2026, 121pp, $25)

A lovely, heavy, literary magazine, a fictional collection of true stories based on current life in Ukraine, this is the third issue and contains four selections. More like a small book with simply gorgeous illustrations, Issue Number 3 contains examples of brilliant writing.

From villages and cities, academics and peasants, young and old, the reader gets a flavor of what living abroad is like for both the resident and the foreigner. And The Black Sea Whale will bring back memories of when the reader was not a tourist but someone living abroad.

Mistaken for a book about sea life at first, Whale is more than just symbolic as "a beacon in a sea of troubles." The characters are real, and though some (all right, many) leave town one after another, due to the gravity of the situation, others stay and survive because they understand the rules of the game.

The prose is lilting, the stories move along, with pictures in the reader's mind or depicted by the illustrators. One can read a story in one sitting or pause and come back without missing a beat. And the reader just may pay more attention to new about Ukraine or even search for articles on the war in the media.

Marichka Melnyk writes about accepting graft in the police world while Mace describes city life and Paddington even appears on page 11!

Book Review: Beyond the Politics of Contempt (OT) (Practical Steps to Buiild Positive Relationships in Divided Times)

Beyond the Politics of Contempt (Practical Steps to Buiild Positive Relationships in Divided Times), by Doug Teschner, Beth Malow and Becky Robinson (Together Across Differences, 302pp,, 2025, $19.95)

What a timely book to help heal America as she continues on the road to becoming more and more divided into silos. The cover illustrates that point with two groups of people - one blue and one red, separated by nothing but empty space. The title appears in red though I would put some words in blue, too.

Like the Dummies books or Idiot's guides that are elementary but excellent, the three authors of Beyond the Politics of Contempt have produced a bookful of ideas, explanations, and helpful hints, via boxed text and cute little figures. I believe Doug Teschner, Beth Malow and Becky Robinson have co-written a section then added their own anecdotes to make the 'lessons' on leadership more memorable - and it works. In addition, each chapter ends with additional questions, For Further Thought. The writing is easy to follow (perhaps due to simple illustrations) and short ideas flow into others. One appendix even has a checklist, a pathway to follow to help our nation heal.

The authors met in Braver Angels, "a citizens' organization uniting red and blue Americans in a working alliance to depolarize America."

The authors discuss a graphic that is rather like a Johari Window (with Urgent and Important axes) but do not show the graphic itself so if the reader is not familiar with it, it slides by him. The reader is helped to remember COVID, and learns concepts like healthy and unhealthy conflict, how major decisions, if gone the other way, would result in different paths, and how we tend to gather round us, those who are like us.

This is a book that could very well help to change the world by starting with the individual.

Book Review: Stand Up, Speak Up (OT) (How survivors created a movement to end sexual violence)

Stand Up, Speak Up (How survivors created a movement to end sexual violence), by Tim Lennon (self-published by Tim Lennon, 2025, $24, 320pp)

My first question was why was a man writing a book about sexual abuse/violence but it didn't take long (though I was embarrassed) to remember that men can be sexually abused too. It happened to author Tim Lennon - by a Catholic priest - when he was just a child. Can you imagine holding that inside you for many years?

Stand Up, Speak Out is not too long a book but it seems long because it is more of a text book, a complete history, replete with all the information you might need to become involved - from subject matter details to how one person got a start in a movement, and grew in his recovery as a result. Highly referenced, it contains 33 pages of organizations that might help, as well as 20 pages, an entire chapter, on politics (related laws, e.g.)

Helpful also are the headings, especially when reviewing topics later rather than reviewing page after page straight through (though that, too). The Preface is the most prose-like part in that it shows Lennon's ability to use triplets as a good writing tool:"step forward, stand up, speak up"; "empower the victim, challenge the powerful, and raise social awareness"; "break free of past domination, take action, and create a world free of sexual abuse."

Stand Up, Fight Back

I look at all parts of a book and ask friends and colleagues and ask what they think (mostly titles and covers), from the index to the front cover. We noticed the cover font for Stand Up is masculine while the font for Speak Up is feminine. Hmmmmmm. Wonder what that means. If anything.

One way to recover from a tragedy or crime, even if or especially if unreported, is to become an activist, telling your story, helping others, with an organization behind you. This is what the author did, and began his book with his story, to grab your attention and try to have you follow his road to recovery by sharing it.

It's All Here

From historical days to how the author helped himself recover by volunteering in recovery organizations. From unknowns centuries ago to people we know, like Larry Nassar, Bill Cosby, R. Kelly, members of the Supreme Court, Anita Hill. Harvey Weinstein, Jeffrey Epstien, Jerry Sandusky, and Joe Paterno, and "Me, too!" - even Trump - and organizations like the Catholic church, colleges and universities, and the military. And focusing on the experiences of author Tim Lennon especially. A very necessary book for a certain group of people. 

Book Review: Space Shock (OT)(18 Threats that Will Define Space Power)

Space Shock (18 Threats that Will Define Space Power), by Peter Garretson and Richard Harrison (Armin Lear Press, $24.95, 2025, 330pp)

                                                            

Space Shock is one book whose title says it all: "18 threats that will define space power." I leave it up to the reader to make the connection between the title and the text, however.

Written by two subject matter experts (SMEs) rather than reporters or journalists, Space Shock seems to be an expanded engineering document - very well organized.

Written for a high-level expert audience, the book seems long but isn't, because of the comfortable font size and spacing. Each chapter has a couple of illustrations (not captioned, just plopped in) that, if in color, would be worthy of being studied as works of art.

I had some difficulty with the index, though - there could have been better spacing and slightly smaller font size for ease of finding a topic. Loved the chapter summaries and recommendations, however, though a shorter version in the chapters' first words would tell the reader what to look for as well and focus his attention. And again, each chapter/senario has the same methodology so planning and comparisons are easier and more valuable.

We are at the beginning of another couple of decades of revived interest in space, particularly by China and Russia, so to help in planning, Space Shock provides a synopsis of scenarios with their discussion participants named - very helpful for high-level directors of space programs. Even if a scenario materializes, it would be years in the future, with different personnel in key positions: however, those personnel would have similar backgrounds and their discussion 'errors' committed now might be the same as in the future. Therefore, a critique of those role plays, if analyzed, would serve their purpose well.

Book Review: Confronting the Politics of Gridlock (OT)(Revisiting the Founding Visions in Search of Solutions)

Confronting the Politics of Gridlock (Revisiting the Founding Visions in Search of Solutions), by Steven Ludd (Distinction Press, 2025, $19.99, 285pp)

Confronting the Politics of Gridlock (Revisiting the Founding Visions in Search of Solutions) would be a good choice for an undergraduate seminar in history or contemporary politics. It iis not a hard book to read but the subject matter is detailed and requires a wide base of knowledge to get the best understanding of the subject.

The introduction describes each chapter which is very helpful to refer back to even if nothing sticks the first time through. Chapter 1 sets the stage and within it lies the job description of each of the three parts of our government - the judicial, the legislative and the executive. The reader may refer back to this chapter often.

Rather new terms include the "political elite" and congressional paralysis, the latter being quite illustrative.

My favorite chapter, the fourth, focused on the Fourth Estate, the press. Author Steven Ludd tells us that the dearth of objective reporting lately is caused by the need for newspapers to make a 'financial' living which has been the case for a long time - this book's seminar students might debate whether or not the demise of newspapers and subsequent rise of other forms of media will change this.

Though mentioned in chapter four, 'gridlock' might have been given more attention since it also appears in the title and is such an optical term. The front cover, depicting the signing of our Constituation shows the reader that history will play a large role, on many pages of Gridlock. 

Book Review: Love Rebels (How I Learned to Burn it Down without Burning Out)(OT)

Love Rebels (How I Learned to Burn it Down without Burning Out), by Kitty Stryker (Thornapple Press, $24.95, 193pp, 2025)

Love Rebels: A Book about Activism and Relationships

Love Re-bels' or Love Re'-bels? Reality favors the former. Or the latter. Or both. The answer may be found in the final chapter. Or the first.

Intriguing Title on the Cover (and something very intriguing - the book block)

The front cover is more informative than at first glance with letters of only two colors, red and black, red being the color of the title and black being the subtitle, a black flag replete with a cut-out heart and the flag nearly cut to pieces, and some letters with white smudgeons and other marks. 

The most memorable visual is the book block, the edges of the pages (all of them), this time printed with "Keep Loving, Keep Fighting."

Publishers should adopt book blocks! They would help bookstores and private libraries plus I like them!

A powerful, uplifting, well-organized and conversationally written conversation to boost the spirits of activists and to offer newly minted ones approaches to follow, Love Rebels provides helpful hints for activists, often taken from the author's experiences with details of her own life as a queer woman. The reader has a big sister in author Kitty Stryker.

I especially like the half dozen or so questions at the end of each chapter that bring out the main points. 

Boundaries, families, four-letter words, protests, arrests, all are covered in a stream of consciousness style that makes for easy reading and since there is a plethora of material about the subject matter but not with the style, Love Rebels is welcome.

Book Review: Strong Floor, No Ceiling (OT)(Building a new foundation for the American Dream)

Strong Floor, No Ceiling (Building a new foundation for the American Dream), by Oliver Libby (Advantage Books, 2025, $19.99, 344pp)

Ah! Reading the back cover explains the title. Love it!

So glad this author is considering running for office. He is extremely well-rounded, coming from a European family of academics, physicians, and Nobel Laureates. The author adds just the right amount of personal story to make the book believable and inspiring. Oliver Libby's writing style is fascinating and his writing style, easy reading.

With a puzzling title like Strong Floor, No Ceiling, author Libby has written a book that can serve as a blueprint for the return of the American dream. I would not necessarily use it as a college text but perhaps as a book for an upperclass seminar, along with other books.

I generally look at all parts of a book, from the index to the acknowledgement to the preface and skip over the pre-publication quotes but this time after reading the book, I went to the quotes and counted 29. including many names I was familiar with. This only cemented the value of the book for me.

Well-organized beyond the requisite introduction and conclusion chapters, Strong Floor focuses on severn topics from education to immigration, justice, the economy and more, so the reader can begin with the first and last chapters, then go to the topic chapter of greatest interest. 

Libby's writing style is invisible in that the reader does not notice how he writes, but on what he writes - ideas and content over style of expression.

My only suggestion is to perhaps rename the book to grab more readers and pull them inside Strong Floor. The cover design is crisp and clear but might be made more representative of what's inside. For example, since it is about the new American dream, perhaps a house with a white picket fence.