Jim Alkon

Nonfiction

“When the Tempest Gathers:” U.S. Marine Leader Dissects His Experiences in War

So writes Andrew Milburn in the introduction to When the Tempest Gathers (Pen and Sword Books), his detailed memoir as a Marine Corps leader in Mogadishu, Baghdad, Fallujah, Mosul and in the fight against ISIS. Marines, with their ritual, tradition, obedience and hierarchy, thrive in a profession that most Americans…

Jim AlkonMarch 31, 2020

Nonfiction

Sorting Out the Truth Behind the Man Who Built London’s Japanese Village

Who was Tannaker Buhicrosan? That simple question from his granddaughter Annette Gibbs set off what her husband Brian calls a “long, hard and incredible journey.” An initial internet search generated three hits. Enter first-rate researcher Paul Budden, who years later has given us Paper Butterflies: Unraveling the Mystery of Tannaker…

Jim AlkonMarch 24, 2020

Young Adult

“Walking Among Birds” Offers an Epic Vantage Point of Boarding School Secrets

So, there’s something about birds in the aptly named Walking Among Birds (Magdalen College Press), one of the neatest, niftiest and most intriguing dramas I’ve read this year, from a new young voice and literary talent Matthew Hickson. Right before the book’s pivotal sequence, Hickson writes, “The lights went out…

Jim AlkonMarch 18, 2020

Children's Books

“Willa and the Whale:” An Underwater Friendship Unlocking the Gold Beneath the Sea

I’m not a 13-year-old, but in reading Willa and the Whale (Shadow Mountain Publishing), I felt locked inside the head of one — with all the love, curiosity, perceptions and insecurities authors Chad Morris and Shelly Brown could muster. And I couldn’t break that lock, so fascinated was I with…

Jim AlkonMarch 3, 2020

Nonfiction Pop Culture

“Let’s Mountain Bike!” Imparts Trail-Tested Wisdom for Novices and Experts Alike

The subtitle of Paul Molenberg’s Let’s Mountain Bike! (Gatekeeper Press) is “The Complete Guide to Mountain Biking.” Unless you already are a fanatical mountain biking enthusiast, you may ask yourself why you would be interested in a “complete guide.” You’ll find the answer before you finish the introduction. Whether Molenberg…

Jim AlkonFebruary 17, 2020

Listicles Miscellany

16 Favorites From 2019 That You’ve Probably Never Heard Of

Isn’t author discovery a beautiful thing? What a joy to lock into a writer’s style, story, voice, themes and characters to the point where you can’t wait for his or her next work to come out. Author discovery, of course, is a lot easier for the reader than the author…

Jim AlkonJanuary 23, 2020

Audiobooks Fiction

“The Optimist” Skewers Academia with a Smile

Shortly after I moved to New York City right out of college, I had to get my tonsils removed — a bit unusual for an adult. A friend came by to visit and brought along a book. Understanding my state of oral incompetence, she jotted a note within: “Don’t bother…

Jim AlkonJanuary 20, 2020

Children's Books

Delightful “Mr. Business” Series Encourages Kids to be True to Themselves

Having to wear an outfit like that to school would make most children cringe. But Little BK, the star of BK Fulton’s charming Mr. Business: The Adventures of Little BK, learns a valuable lesson decked out in exactly those clothes. It’s one of the many life nuggets the author shares…

Jim AlkonJanuary 17, 2020

Book Club Network

Welcome to BookTrib’s New Book Club Section

https://booktrib.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/celebrating-book-clubs.jpg “My drinking club has a book problem,” said a wise humorist somewhere. We have this to say to anyone who is not a member of a book club: our deepest sympathies. But if you are a BookTrib reader or subscriber, chances are greater that you belong to multiple book…

Jim AlkonJanuary 16, 2020

Romance

An “Evergreen” Romance for Couple and Furry Friend

Just how much influence can pets have in determining one’s future partner? There are studies on this. In his roles as an evolutionary biologist at the Kinsey Institute at Indiana University and scientific advisor for Match.com, Justin Garcia has acknowledged that they certainly “add some twists and turns to our…

Jim AlkonJanuary 14, 2020

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Protected: Stories in This Collection are “Mostly True”

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Jim AlkonJanuary 13, 2020

Romance

Lights, Camera, Second Chances in “The Last Chapter”

“I’ve been told for the last few years that I should share my story, but my journey has been too painful and destroyed too much of my health for me to rehash the past,” starts the foreword to the heartwarming, clean romance novel, The Last Chapter (Arthur House). “I never…

Jim AlkonJanuary 12, 2020

Fiction

Seraphim Invasion Triggers Big Questions in “The Harvest War”

Such is the case in the intriguing novel, The Harvest War (Gatekeeper Press), where author Martin Davis flips the switch from a friendly football toss to an apocalypse triggered by an alien invasion of Earth. More than an exciting science fiction adventure, Davis wrestles with big-time themes of good and…

Jim AlkonJanuary 10, 2020

Author Spotlight

A “Reanimated” Conversation with “Monsterland” Author Michael Okon

When you write a novel that centers around an amusement park where guests interact with vampires, are chased by werewolves and walk among zombies, don’t expect to get off so easily. Michael Okon had a lot of cleaning up to do since the end of his weird and wacky Monsterland.…

Jim AlkonJanuary 8, 2020