MBR Bookwatch: April 2023
James A. Cox, Editor-in-Chief
Midwest Book Review
278 Orchard Drive, Oregon, WI 53575
Mary Cowper’s Bookshelf
An End to Arguing: 101 Valuable Lessons for All Relationships
Linda & Charlie Bloom
Koehler Books
3705 Shore Drive, Virginia Beach, VA 23455
9781646638109, $28.95, HC, 306pp
Synopsis: Given the dreadful impact that the Covid-19 Pandemic has had on marriages and friendships, now more than ever, couples need guidance for navigating conflict wisely and skillfully.
With the publications of “An End to Arguing: 101 Valuable Lessons for All Relationships” drawing on insights from their work with couples since 1975, co-authors Linda and Charlie Blooms offer practical tools and strategies that apply to all relationships. “An End to Arguing” convincingly shows how destructive conflicts can be avoided, and provides stimulus for individual and interpersonal growth. The authors use compelling examples from their clinical work and their own fifty-year marriage, which has had its share of challenges.
“An End to Arguing” doesn’t just provide a way of preventing differences from turning into painful conflict; it gives the reader an insight into what qualities are inherent in argument-free relationships. The way of getting there may be simpler than you think!
Critique: Exceptionally well written, and thoroughly ‘reader friendly’ in organization and presentation, “An End to Arguing: 101 Valuable Lessons for All Relationships” is an extraordinary and unreservedly recommended addition to personal, professional, community, and academic library Self-Help/Self-Improvement collections. Of special appeal to readers with an interest in Family Conflict Resolution, Marriage Counseling, and Communication & Social Skills Development, it should be noted that “An End to Arguing” is also available in a paperback edition (9781646638086, $19.95) and in a digital book format (Kindle, $1.99).
Editorial Note: Married for fifty years, Linda and Charlie have served as psychotherapists, seminar leaders, and marriage counselors since 1975. They both have master’s degrees in clinical social work and have lectured, led seminars, and provided consultation at universities and learning institutes throughout the United States as well as internationally. Their organization, Bloomwork, is dedicated to promoting healthy, fulfilling, and successful relationships for individuals, couples, and organizations. They have written and published four books, Happily Ever After… and 39 Other Myths about Love: Breaking Through to the Relationship of Your Dreams, Secrets of Great Marriages: Real Stories from Real Couples about Lasting Love, That Which Doesn’t Kill Us: How One Couple Became Stronger in the Broken Places, and 101 Things I Wish I Knew When I Got Married: Simple Lessons to Make Love Last.
Mary Cowper
Reviewer
Wisconsin Bookwatch: April 2023
James A. Cox, Editor-in-Chief
Midwest Book Review
278 Orchard Drive, Oregon, WI 53575
The Historical Fiction Shelf
High Bridge
Michael Miller
Koehler Books
3705 Shore Drive, Virginia Beach, VA 23455
9781646638130, $32.95, HC, 384pp
Synopsis: Upstate New York in the mid-19th century was a cauldron bubbling with the lure of fast fortunes, religious zealotry, and battles for civil liberties. This fervor centers on the Erie Canal, which successfully supports scores of villages brimming with opportunity. One such village, Fayetteville, shapes the lives of two future American leaders.
“High Bridge” by novelist Michael Miller tells the stories of a young newlywed, the only child of freethinking abolitionists, and a prankster lad who grows up in the large family of an austere reverend. Despite their different childhoods and worldviews, they form an unlikely friendship. Can they combine their skills to solve a mystery and vindicate a Black man accused of murder?
Critique: A deftly crafted and inherently absorbing read from first page to last, “High Bridge” will have a very special appeal to readers with an interest in historical fiction and race relations in 19th Century American history. Entertaining and thought-provoking, original and memorable, “High Bridge” is a welcome and unreservedly recommended addition to community library American Historical Fiction collections. It should be noted for personal reading lists that “High Bridge” is also available in a paperback edition (9781646638116, $22.95) and in a digital book format (Kindle, $7.49).
Editorial Note: Michael Miller (https://www.koehlerbooks.com/writer/michael-miller) was born in a small town in New Jersey similar to Fayetteville, NY. He played baseball, delivered the daily newspaper, and tramped through the woods. Through small town life, he learned to respect people regardless of their backgrounds and appreciate the gifts each person brought to the world.