Category: Non-Fiction

Nothing but a Circus by Daniel Levin

Posted on by Keely Flanagan

“Brilliant observations on the anthropology of power. You will laugh aloud and won’t put it down.”
—Daniel Kahneman, Winner of the Nobel Prize in Economics, Psychologist, and Author of the International Bestseller
Thinking, Fast and Slow

The majestic architecture that lines the streets of capital cities around the world reflects a level of power and prestige that is an enigma to some and intimidating to others.  Most of what is observed of our leaders is on the two-dimensional screens on our devices, causing these people who are responsible for solving some of the world’s biggest problems to appear untouchable, far removed from ordinary people and the nations they lead.  Once the powerful take the helm, society can only hope that they are doing the job that’s expected of them, and dong it well with a conscience and dedication.  

Daniel Levin, international lawyer and advisor to governments and development institutions worldwide, has had unique access to high-level leaders around the globe.  He is called upon to listen, assess, and offer solutions to mediate disputes, help failing or failed states, and develop future leaders among the next generation of hopeful aspirants by providing advice and insights to presidents, governments, parliaments, and diplomats.  After twenty years of boarding planes with few days’ notice – sometimes even planes without doors when required – Daniel has written down some of his most remarkable and grotesque encounters in the halls of power.  His book NOTHING BUT A CIRCUS: Misadventures among the Powerful (Allen Lane/Penguin; July 6, 2017; Hardcover; $27.95) is shocking, eye-opening, and at times hilarious, as he portrays his real-life characters in their all-too human imperfections and vanities.

Daniel felt compelled to record his first-hand experiences in NOTHING BUT A CIRCUS based on detailed diary entries over the past two decades, giving the reader a rare glimpse of the actions and conversations that take place behind closed doors – from Moscow’s puppeteering skills and manipulation of the West (sound familiar?) leading up to the Ukrainian conflict, Beijing’s power plays for Africa, Washington-style corruption and hubris, ridiculously misguided development initiatives in Angola, arrogance and ineptitude at the United Nations, to a hair-raising, hilarious adventure in a Senegalese airport prison.  

With a generous sense of humor, also at his own expense when recounting his missteps and occasional naïveté, Daniel holds nothing back. The dialogues allow the reader to relive these terrific scenes real-time and to witness how powerful people behave when they think (or, rather, believe – as very little thinking tends to be involved) no one is watching, and the extraordinary contortions they perform in justifying their unscrupulous and self-serving actions.

For more information and to schedule interviews please contact Claire McKinney Public Relations at (908) 955-7563 or claire@clairemckinneypr.com.

About the Author

Daniel Levin has spent the last twenty years working with governments and development institutions worldwide.  A lawyer by profession, he is an advisor on political and economic affairs, from financial development to conflict resolution.  He is currently a member of the board of the Liechtenstein Foundation for State Governance.  Nothing but a Circus is his first book. 

NOTHING BUT A CIRCUS
Misadventures among the Powerful
by Daniel Levin
Allen Lane/Penguin
Publication Date: July 6, 2017
ISBN:  978-0241288535
Hardcover/Ebook
Price: $27.95 Hardcover; $17.99 Digital
Pages: 208 pages

 

How to Build a Piano Bench by Ruthi Postow Birch

Posted on by Keely Flanagan

“Thirteen East Petain Street, Prichard, Alabama—that’s an important address for me. It’s where I learned everything I needed to know to succeed in life and in business—lessons passed on to me by the people who lived in this neighborhood that straddled the poverty line. I learned I’d have to be independent enough to do things for myself. I would have to be brave enough to take on things I’d never done before and didn’t know how to do—and would have to figure out as I went along. Not knowing how to do something never stopped my daddy from doing it. He didn’t know how to build a piano bench till mine broke.”

—from HOW TO BUILD A PIANO BENCH

“Don’t follow the crowd until you are sure you want to be where they’re going.” 

—Daddy 

Ruthi Postow Birch grew up on a red-dirt road in south Alabama without any idea of what she would become in this world. When her father built her a new piano bench, not knowing a thing about how to do it, he passed on an important lesson. 

“There is always just one right next step—and you know it because it’s the only one that makes sense. Find that and do it. Then look for the next. If there is something you can’t do, figure out who can do it for you.”

Ruthi took that advice from Petain Street all the way to an office on K Street in Washington D.C., where she built her own successful staffing firm from the ground up. In a new book HOW TO BUILD A PIANO BENCH: Lessons for Success from a Red Dirt Road in Alabama (River Grove Books, March 2017, $16.95, ISBN 9781632991089), she chronicles her engaging and humorous journey, noting important tokens of wisdom she captured along the way. 

Like most parents, Ruthi’s did what they could to provide everything she needed and to support her interests as a child. Still, Ruthi was uncomfortable in social situations and found that listening to other people’s stories can be more important than telling her own. From her childhood visits with her elderly neighbors on Petain Street, to her professors as a college student at the University of Georgia, Ruthi was an attentive and discerning audience—who remembered almost everything they told her. 

Ruthi spent a considerable amount of time alone as a child, which may have contributed to some feelings of anxiety in group situations. In HOW TO BUILD A PIANO BENCH, she is completely candid about her social life in high school and college (or lack thereof) and admits to having had more first dates than seconds. In Ruthi’s world, most clouds had a silver lining that only added to her determination to make her personal dreams come true.

Whenever she was faced with a problem, she would forge onward and dig through to the solution. When she was in college and found that she couldn’t “learn” the way other students did and pass her exams, she created a plan that included writing down every last thing a professor said and adhering to a strict study schedule. When she had three children who she missed so much while at work, she made a steadfast routine that included an early start in the morning, a strict end time at work of 5:00P.M., two full hours with her kids at night, and more time to work before getting a few hours of sleep so she could hit the next day running in the same pattern. 

Resourceful, tenacious, self-deprecating, and funny, Ruthi Postow has a wonderful story to tell with colorful characters and a rich life of listening and learning her way to success. Some people might classify HOW TO BUILD A PIANO BENCH as a rags-to-riches story, but from Ruthi’s perspective she was wealthy way back when, just from growing up in her tight-knit community. 

“Whatever you’ve got can go. In the end, all you’ve got is your character,” said her parents. Her book is a testament to the strength of strong values, a work-ethic, and a lifetime of making dreams come true. 

HOW TO BUILD A PIANO BENCH
Lessons for Success from a Red-Dirt Road in Alabama
By Ruthi Postow Birch
Published By River Grove Books, 2017
ISBN 9781632991089
Trade Paperback / E-Book
$16.95 / $8.99
264 Pages

Achieving the Dream by Dr. Carol A. Leary

Posted on by CMPR

achieving-the-dream-cover-hi-resFOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Amazon: Achieving the Dream: A How-To Guide for Adult Women Seeking a College Degree

“As an educator for more than 45 years—33 of those at women’s colleges—I have witnessed the incredible spirit and tenacity of adult women as they embark upon and continue their higher education journeys.” —Carol A. Leary, Ph.D.

There are over 76 million women in this country without a college degree. According to the 2015 “Status of Women in the States” report published by the Women’s Institute for Policy Research, only 29.7% of adult women aged 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree. Even more compelling, significant gaps in degree attainment among racial and ethnic groups are a stark reminder of inequalities that remain in accessing and completing a college education: only 21.6% of African-American women and 15.5% of Hispanic women have earned their bachelor’s degree.

Dr. Carol A. Leary, President of Bay Path University with 40-plus years of experience in higher education, most of them at women’s colleges, is a first-generation college student herself and has a personal and professional commitment to dramatically improve these statistics. Bay Path, a women’s institution, is one of the fastest growing baccalaureate colleges in the United States according to the Chronicle of Higher Education. In 2014, under Leary’s leadership, The American Women’s College at Bay Path University, the first all-women, all-online baccalaureate program in the nation was launched. Dr. Leary’s experience and her passion for women’s education led her to write ACHIEVING THE DREAM: A How-to Guide for Adult Women Seeking a College Degree (White River Press; September 15, 2016; $22). The book is an enlightening, step-by-step guide that coaches and inspires women to successfully navigate the higher education system.

According to Dr. Leary, “There is so much cynicism about the value of higher education. We hear it all the time. Yet the real issue is the cost of not going to college or not completing a college degree.”

She states that more attention must be paid to the direct correlation between a woman’s level of education and her overall quality of life. Women with a college degree are far likelier to have financial security for themselves and their families, earning on average between 500,000 and over 1 million dollars more than those with a high school diploma alone. Their health outcomes are stronger; their children have a higher likelihood of going to college.

Despite these compelling reasons to earn a degree, Dr. Leary acknowledges that the prospect of starting college or returning to higher education as an adult can feel daunting. Women who never began a degree program or who never finished college, because of any number of life reasons, may lack the confidence to move forward. Challenges such as finances, time, and educational support are seemingly insurmountable. Adding to these obstacles, adult women often find that the traditional model of higher education at most colleges doesn’t address their unique needs. Limited information on where or how to begin is yet another impediment.

In ACHIEVING THE DREAM, Dr. Leary tackles these issues, presenting a clear and compelling case for not only why a woman should earn a college degree, but how to enroll in college and successfully complete a degree. Each chapter of the book includes a step-by-step guide addressing such topics as:

  • Why you need a college education
  • How to apply to college
  • What is financial aid and how to get it
  • How to choose a career path
  • How to find the right college
  • What to expect when taking your first course
  • How to develop relationships with faculty and others who will give you the support you need

Each chapter includes resources, websites, and all the information needed to get started and successfully attain a degree. Personal anecdotes of adult women graduates conclude every chapter, offering motivation and inspiration for the reader. ACHIEVING THE DREAM is an essential tool for any woman who wants to earn her degree. As Dr. Paul LeBlanc, President of Southern New Hampshire University, says in his endorsement of the book, “whether 18 or 80…this is a must-read.”

ACHIEVING THE DREAM
A How-to Guide for Adult Women Seeking a College Degree
By Carol A. Leary, Ph.D.
White River Press
Publication Date: September 15, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-88704324-3
Original Trade Paperback
Price: $22.00
310 pp

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The Baby Decision by Merle Bombardieri

Posted on by CMPR

The Baby Decision by Merle Bombardieri

Case Summary: Reissue of a book originally published in 1987 by an MSW with a private practice.

Goal: Brand Merle Bombardieri as a national expert regarding family planning and relationships.

Result Examples: Interviewed by Refinery29, New York Times, and was published on Time’s Motto Blog.  Book sales were steady, and her practice grew significantly.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Amazon: The Baby Decision: How to Make The Most Important Choice of Your Life

“An energetic book, full of advice, issues to consider, and exercises to help you discover your true feelings on the subject.”    — Kirkus Reviews

“Intelligent and Insightful” — Los Angeles Times

 

THE BABY DECISION

How to Make the Most Important Choice of Your Life

By Merle Bombardieri MSW, LICSW

A burning question for women of childbearing age is: “Do I want to be a parent?”  Despite a culture that often idolizes babies and extols motherhood, more women and couples are choosing to be childfree because of career or other commitments or because parenting doesn’t appeal to them.  Babies are wonderful, but come with sleepless nights, colic, couple stress and money problems.  So having a child only makes sense for those who look forward to nurturing a child. Well-meaning family, friends, and societal norms may pressure you one way or another, people need to make the decision that is best for them.

Merle Bombardieri, MSW, LICSW has helped her psychotherapy and coaching clients and workshop students face the baby question for the past thirty-five years. Her book THE BABY DECISION: How to Make the Most Important Choice of Your Life (Publisher; Pub Date; Price) is based on her work, and it will give decision-makers all of the tools they need to make a decision and deepen their relationships in the process.

In THE BABY DECISION, with the depth that only a seasoned therapist can provide, Bombardieri presents guidelines for making the decision while arming you with crucial knowledge about both parenting and childfree living.   You will learn a sample dialogue you can use to respond to pressure from loved ones, and how to broach the subject with your partner. .  Do you want a baby but your partner doesn’t?  THE BABY DECISION will open doors to creative compromises and possibilities that will be life-affirming, and increase intimacy between partners.

Bombardieri’s 5-step process in THE BABY DECISION will teach you how to:

  • Separate your own needs and preferences from society’s myths and expectations about parenting
  • Use “Secret Doors” exercises to uncover your hidden feelings and wisdom.
  • Give full consideration to the rewards and opportunities of living childfree
  • Manage work-life balance and keep your relationship strong if you decide to have a child
  • Learn about one-child families; single, LGBT, older parenting; and fertility and adoption options
  • Make the most of either choice, and even borrow some benefits from the path not selected

THE BABY DECISION is a comprehensive guide that cuts through tangles of pros and cons so that the right decision clearly emerges   Bombardieri also includes examples from her vast experience as a psychotherapist that will illustrate her points.  With a warm, conversational tone, THE BABY DECISION will be a comfort as much as it is a resource for the most life-changing readers will ever face.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Merle Bombardieri, MSW, LICSW is a clinical social worker in private practice in Lexington, MA. She has contributed to Our Bodies, Ourselves, 2005, The Boston Globe Magazine, Boston Magazine, Glamour, Self, and Brides. Learn more at http://www.thebabydecision.com/

THE BABY DECISION

How to Make the Most Important Choice of Your Life

By Merle Bombardieri MSW, LICSW

Publication Date: July 31st, 2016

ISBN: XX

Price: $9.99

Ebook

473 pages

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