Recommended Books For Christmas Gifts By Bestselling Author Donna Fletcher Crow - New Releases, Jane Austen, Kishanda Fulford And More

Crow writes meticulously researched, entertaining novels of romance, history, adventure and mystery in an engaging you-are-there style that allows readers to live the history. Reviewers have compared her work with PD James, Dan Brown and Barbara Pym.

Award winning author Donna Fletcher Crow just released her recommendations for the best books for Christmas gifts. In a post on her site, she stated in part:

It should be easy, shouldn’t it? Everyone knows books make great gifts, so that should be all you need to know for your friend who loves to read. Right?

Wrong. Choosing the right gift for a booklover can be one of the trickiest challenges of the season.

As Oliver Darkshire warns in his delightful book Once Upon a Tome, The Misadventures of a Rare Bookseller: 'Purchasing a book for someone isn’t like running to the shop and picking up a box of decorative soaps, or a bottle of wine. You can’t just take a stab in the dark and hope for the best. In the best-case scenario, a well-chosen book shows just how intimately you know a person, their interests, their politics…their very sense of self. In the worst case, it can show that you barely have any interest in who they are.'

Of course, one concern in choosing a gift for an avid reader is finding a book they haven't already read. Fortunately, I have a new title out this month, so I have a ready offering I know my friends won’t have read yet. 'Going There, Tales from the Riviera and Beyond' even offers a special full-color, hardback gift edition for the special someone who loves to travel, likes mystery stories, and and perhaps just happens to be a Francophile.

Other recommendations offered by Crow:

"For those who love history I also have a special collection of Christmas short stories based on scenes from my various historical series: 'A Lighted Lamp, Scenes of Christmas Through Time.'

"For those who love history and true stories of strong women Kishanda Fulford’s extensively researched book 'The Spite of Fortune', is an account of her husband’s ancestress, the intrepid 18th-Century Heiress Louisa Carolina Colleton.

"And for the Jane Austen lovers on your list, especially those fans of the wonderful Sanditon television series, there is 'Sanditon', as rewritten by Kate Riorden with a foreword by Andrew Davies for the television version."

The full text of the piece with more recommendations is available at Crow's website at https://donnafletchercrow.com/p/507/Christmas-Shopping-for-Booklovers-New-Releases-Jane-Austen-Kishanda-Fulford-and-More.

Crow said in a recent interview, "I love giving books because I know I'm giving so much more than just an object. I'm giving that friend an experience. Books expand our experience, they take us to places we've never been before, or let us revisit favorite locations on the map or in our minds. Books give us valuable information or provide a much-needed distraction. And as has been pointed out before, they are not-fattening. What could possibly make a better gift?"

Donna Fletcher Crow is the author of 50 books, mostly novels of British history. She has taken a number of high-level industry awards for her work. Many of her books have been bestsellers in their categories, including 'A Most Inconvenient Death', which achieved #1 bestseller status in Christian Suspense. 'The Fields of Bannockburn', the epic from which The Celtic Cross Series, Part I: Scotland, The Struggle for a Nation is based, was listed as Fiction Bestseller by Christian Book Distributors and 'The Banks of the Boyne', the epic from which The Celtic Cross Series, Part II: Ireland, The Pursuit of Peace is based, hit #3 Best-Selling Fiction.

Her latest release is, 'Going There, Tales from the Riviera and Beyond'. In the summer of 2021 amidst a world-wide pandemic, Donna, her daughter-in-law, and granddaughter managed to slip through a narrow window of calm for a remarkable journey to France and Switzerland. And much to Donna’s surprise and delight, she was accompanied on the undertaking by characters from her mystery series—who had adventures of their own. This book, scheduled to be available December 1, 2023, is an account of a memorable travel experience in the real world and the fictional. It takes the reader to places physical and imaginary.

The 10-volume Celtic Cross series covers the history of Scotland and Ireland. The leading historic figures of the day interact with fictional characters to bring the stirring events alive. Each epoch is tied to the series with the on-going events in the lives of modern young people as old wars and current conflicts keep them striving to find answers that provide hope for the future. The series is comprised of 10 novels. ‘The Keeper of the Stone,’ book 1 in the series was #1 on Amazon for Historical Scottish fiction.

The Daughters of Courage, 'Kathryn', 'Elizabeth' and 'Stephanie' is a pioneer family saga based on the stories of Crow's own family and other Idaho pioneers in the Kuna, Nampa and Boise area.

'Glastonbury' is her best-known book, which received the prestigious First Place, Historical Novel, award from the National Federation of Press Women. Readers and reviewers have raved about 'Glastonbury', calling it "The best of its kind," "richly fascinating," "beautifully researched," "gloriously evocative," and "panoramic." One Amazon reader said, "WHAT a work! Every reader can be enveloped in the sheer scope and quality, every historian be constantly nodding at the precise detail and accuracy, and every Christian can rejoice in the fullness of scripture. For me it is simply beyond descriptive praise. I would urge all who value truth to treat themselves to a feast."

The Elizabeth & Richard Mysteries is a literary suspense series using literary figures as background: Rudyard Kipling in 'The Flame Ignites', Dorothy L Sayers in 'The Shadow of Reality', Shakespeare in 'A Midsummer Eve's Nightmare', and Jane Austen in both 'A Jane Austen Encounter' and 'A Most Singular Venture'. Watch for 'A Prodigious Sum of Corpses: Seeking Sanditon at Jane Austen’s Seashore', which will take readers to all of Austen’s favorite seashore resorts. Accounts of Crow’s visits to these sites are available on her blog under the heading "Jane Austen Seashore Tour."

The Monastery Murders Series features atmospheric contemporary crimes with their roots buried deep in the middle ages. Books in the series include 'A Very Private Grave', 'A Darkly Hidden Truth', 'An Unholy Communion', 'A Newly Crimsoned Reliquary', 'An All-Consuming Fire' and the newly-released 'Against All Fierce Hostility.'

Where There is Love is a 6-book series of the enduring legacy of love and faith all based on historic people and events. The titles are: 'Where Love Begins', 'Where Love Illumines', 'Where Love Triumphs', 'Where Love Restores', 'Where Love Shines', and 'Where Love Calls'.

The Lord Danvers Victorian true-crime series is an Amazon bestseller in the British Detectives category. Books in the series include 'A Lethal Spectre', 'A Most Inconvenient Death', 'Grave Matters', 'To Dust You Shall Return' and 'A Tincture of Murder'. Donna provides a no-charge download of 'A Tincture of Murder' for those who sign up for her newsletter. More information is available at her website.

Donna Fletcher Crow's awards include:

The Dawning Of Peace, of Dreamers and Designers, Book Excellence Award 2023
Where Love Begins, Best Historical Romance, Pinnacle Awards 2019
A Lethal Spectre, Best Mystery, Pinnacle Awards, 2019
Glastonbury, First Place, Historical Fiction, National Federation of Press Women Award of Merit
The Banks of the Boyne, Silver Angel; First Place Historical Fiction, National Federation Press Women
The Fields of Bannockburn, First Place Historical Fiction, National Federation Press Women
Professional Achievement Award, Northwest Nazarene College
Juvenile Books Award of Merit, Idaho Press Women
Top Idaho Author
Pacesetter Award, Mt. Hermon Writers Conference
Outstanding Historical Fiction, Idaho Press Women, National Federation of Press Women,
Idaho Writer of the Year
Best Inspirational Novel, Finalist Romance Writers of America
Writer of the Year, Mt. Hermon Writers Conference

Donna is available for media interviews and can be reached by email at donna@donnafletchercrow.com. All of her books are available at online book retailers. More information, including a no-charge download of 'A Tincture of Murder', is available at her website at https://www.donnafletchercrow.com.

About Donna Fletcher Crow:

Donna and her husband live in Boise, Idaho. They have 4 adult children and 15 grandchildren living on 3 continents. Donna is a former English literature teacher and lifelong Anglophile. Idahoans with long memories will remember her as a former Queen of the Snake River Stampede, Miss Rodeo Idaho and runner-up for Miss Rodeo America. She is an enthusiastic gardener.

Contact:

Donna Fletcher Crow

donna@donnafletchercrow.com

https://www.donnafletchercrow.com

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Top Books For Christmas - 'The Truth' and 'Secrets' By Dr. Barbara Becker Holstein Help Tweens and Teens Develop Healthy Approaches To Growing Up

It used to be a diary. Now it's social media and selfies. Nothing has really changed, other than the tools kids use to deal the angst of growing up. It is vitally urgent that parents understand how to help them cope

Teens and tweens today face challenges that parents, grandparents and educators struggle to understand. While many of those problems are the issues faced by nearly everyone, the ramifications of how those challenges are addressed have changed dramatically. The advent of social media, selfies and other forms of electronic communication have, in many ways, increased the dangers kids face. What has not changed is the need for parents to understand and to be involved. Dr. Barbara Becker Holstein addresses these issues head-on in her book for teens, 'The Truth'.

" 'I hate my mother';  'I'm in love and I can't imagine marrying anyone else when I grow up';   'How can we move now,  I can't leave all my friends behind';   'I'm miserable and nobody understands';  'I can't stand it when my parents fight'; 'When I grow up I will do things differently'".

"The list could go on and on," Dr Holstein stated. "Growing up is tough and quite frankly, it always has been.  What makes it different now is kids move from telling secrets to their friends and isolating in their bedrooms to the world of social media.  That means that any feelings, thoughts, ideas or pictures or videos of themselves that they express on social media can appear on Facebook, or Instagram, selfies and other technologies." 

ScreenshotBarbara"That's the part of the angst of growing up that is new.  The use of social media can be dangerous as it exposed our kids to strangers and often to their own remarks, pictures or videos that they wish they hadn't shared, perhaps a month or years later."

"Both The Truth, Diary of a Gutsy Tween' and 'Secrets, Diary of a Gutsy Teen', give parents a great place to start communicating about the angst of growing up with their daughters. These coming of age books in the form of written diaries by a girl growing faster than her moods and feelings can keep up with, give parents a perfect opportunity to share their own stories of growing up and to make your daughter more comfortable to come to you with her feelings and problems.

"The surest way to protect your child from excessive and poorly thought out exposure to social media is to make sure the door is always open for her to come to you.  After all, most kids just need to be heard and understood.  Who better, than you to fill that mission? My suggestion is that after your daughter reads one or both of the books you get together to chat about the thought provoking questions in the back of the books."

"I take the subject of social media so seriously, that recently I've produced a short film, 'The Truth' in which the 'Girl' has many of the usual problems and feelings of growing up.  She does keep a written diary, but she has also made the leap to potentially placing her entries on Social Meda, by recording her video diary entries on her cell phone.The Film Festival route is about to start for 'The Truth, a Short Film' so look for more information at www.newshortfilmthetruth.com and of course on social media."

"The Truth, Diary Of A Gutsy Tween" is a revised and expanded edition of her very successful book, 'The Truth: I'm a Girl, I'm Smart and I Know Everything'. The new book is published by Sky Pony Press.

Her second book in The Truth Series is “Secrets: Diary Of A Gutsy Teen”. The book has been awarded a Silver Medal in the 2015 Moonbeam Book Awards in the Pre-Teen Fiction category. In 'Secrets' the girl is 13 years old. She handles many adolescent issues, including a crush, moving, a death in the family, feeling fat and problems with girlfriends.  'Secrets' provides a book kids and parents and grandparents can share and use as a sounding board for needed communication between the generations.

Both “The Truth” and “Secrets” are great for parents, grandparents, older siblings and teachers to establish lines of communication with the tweens and teens in their lives. Both books have been re-released by Sky Pony Press. Both make perfect Christmas books for teens and tweens.

Dr. Holstein is available for media interviews and can be reached using the information below or by email at drbarbara@enchantedself.com. All of her works are available at Amazon, Barnes and Noble and all other online retailers. More information on 'The Truth' is available at her website at http://www.TheTruthForGirls.com. General information can be found at http://www.drbholstein.com. Information on the film can be found at http://www.NewShortFilmTheTruth.com,

Profile:

Dr. Barbara Becker Holstein, internationally known Positive Psychologist is the creator of The Enchanted Self ®, a positive psychology method for happiness.  She is in private practice in Long Branch, New Jersey with her husband, Dr. Russell M. Holstein.

Dr. Barbara can be found on the web, interviewed, writing articles and posting video 'TED' style talks on Happiness,  Positive Psychology, Relationships and Parenting.

She has been a contributor to Heart and Soul, Cosmopolitan Magazine, Redbook, Real Simple, The Wall Street Journal, Time on line, the Today Show and Family Circle Magazine.

Contact:

Dr. Barbara Becker Holstein
170 Morris Ave.,
Long Branch, New Jersey 07740
drbarbara@enchantedself.com
732-571-1200
http://www.newshortfilmthetruth.com

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