Topic: Arts & Literature

There's probably not an area in the New Age arena that's more overpopulated than the world of New Age music. Each month it seems that hundreds of new titles are released by the many small independent labels that seek to serve the New Age community. Like everything else in the world, some of these releases are very good, some are just so-so and others are downright horrible. Unfortunately, when it comes to New Age music, most CDs fall in to the later category.

These days, the shelves at bookstores are filled with self-help books. It seems that everybody who's ever overcome a personal obstacle is writing a book that promises the reader answers to all of life's ills. “If you only do what I have done,” these writers say, “you too can become healthy and whole.” A few of these books are very good, offering workable solutions to a host of problems that people may face. Some are downright bad, offering solutions that not only won't work, but might be dangerous to boot. Most, however, are simply ineffective, incomplete and unnecessary.

And now there are two; only Paul and Ringo remain. There is no longer any question about a Beatles reunion for there is no longer a quorum. There’s only a couple of guys named Paul and Ringo who used to play in the same band that just happened to be the most important group from the rock era. Not that a reunion was even possible, mind you. As George himself once remarked, there could be no reunion as long as John Lennon remained dead.

Life is full of little ironies. For instance, perhaps the biggest mystery about life is death, which most of us perceive as being the opposite of life. But is death really the end, or merely the gateway to a new beginning and a new life? Nobody knows for sure what happens to us after we’re planted in the ground or incinerated atop a funeral pyre. In the west, most of us try not to think about it too much.

A Simple Cure For What's "Eating Us" The Simplest Path, Step One: Free Your Mind by Vincent Casspriano, Jr. New Paradigm Press 260 Pages Reviewed by Adam Clark

I considered titling this review, "Stop Whining, Wake Up and Get Busy Saving the World," but decided "Eating Us" would be more attention-grabbing – which matters because I believe Vincent Casspriano, Jr.'s The Simplest Path, Step One: Free Your Mind is an important book, and I want to do whatever I can to draw your attention to it. Pick the title you like best. Both very fittingly describe what you will find within the pages of this remarkable new release from New Paradigm Press.

A new illustrated children's book, The Dragonfly Door, follows two young insect friends and the struggles one of them endures when her friend disappears. In the process, the surviving friend learns about loss and change.

This poem is written for all those that are adopted, adopted a child, or have given a child up for adoption. I especially dedicate it to my birth mother and son. Hopefully one day he will follow my steps and find me, as I have found mine.

The mid to late sixties were a magical time. Everything was changing. What was once popular was now “in,” the new word to describe what was current and fashionable. Mini skirts and Nehru jackets were in. Also in: the birth control pill, anything from London's Carnaby Street, long hair on on men, and plastic clothing. Oh yes, so were the Mamas & the Papas – although many of us weren't to realize this fact until after the groups demise.

Combining fantasy with "real witches", Durk Simmons’ new novel, Strings of Connection - Book One of the Witches in America Series (now available through AuthorHouse), invites readers to enjoy contemporary fantasy magic through the eyes of a family of modern-day witches.

What if you were born on a deserted island with no one to pass their spiritual beliefs down to you? That’s how Steven Stromp approaches his short novel, "Cracking Grace." It tells the story of Mary, a gregarious statue frozen in place inside a small-town cemetery.