MSI Press Blog

  RECOMMENDED BY US REVIEW OF BOOKS With fresh, highly informative material on every page, Potter offers intelligent, sensitive guidelines meriting thoughtful study, along with pragmatic, readily accessible approaches from which anyone can benefit at any stage of the grief experience . -- so says Barbaara Bamberger Scott, reviewer for the US Review of Books. Read the entire review HERE . For more posts on Julie and her book, click HERE .

  (Sula and Deacon Van) Sula is sick again; her tumor has come back. In honor of her heroic struggles and in honor of Caturday, we are posting an exceprt from one of her many books, the one about cancer. Here we have the preface, written by Deacon Van.  Preface Letter to Sula from Deacon Van Dear Sula, I love your book. It rings so true—your stories, your humility, most of all your love of God and of the people of God here at Old Mission San Juan Bautista. The people who love you (there are hundreds, I’m sure) will cherish this book and love you all the more for your plainspoken faith and your mission of service at the Mission. Tell your amanuensis that she did a wonderful job of capturing your voice and incorporating the moving stories of Loryn and Cody. Thanks to her efforts, the book is not only an excellent fund-raising vehicle, it’s an inspirational call to Catholic faith and worship. She served you well, just as you have served all of us so well. Love, Deacon ...

  THIS EXCERPT FROM THE OPTIMISTIC FOOD ADDICT SEEMS APPROPRIATE FOR WHAT MANY PEOPLE ARE EXPERIENCING FROM THE "QUARANTINE FIFTEEN" COUNTRY-WIDE AVERAGE POUNDS GAINED OVER THE PAST YEAR.              For a good half an hour before falling asleep, I would try to force my mind to coerce my body to burn itself alive. I hated my fat so much that I would imagine it sizzling like bacon in a skillet, dripping like hot wax off my bones and into the ether. I was determined to will my fat to melt away.              The next morning I would wake up, disappointed to find my thighs and ass still too big to fit comfortably in my third-hand Jordache jeans. And later that night, I’d lay prone in my bed, visually imagining my flesh liquefying in my skin once again.              This dour wishful thinking would go on n...

  Recent polls indicate that, for the first time since such records have been kept, less than 50% of Americans are affiliated with religious institutions. Just when the challenges are more daunting than ever-- pollution...terrorism... wars...pandemics... political polarization--the question for most people is not so much “Does God exist?” as it is “Is religion relevant anymore?” That is not to say that Americans are not interested.  Similar polls consistently show that the vast majority of Americans believe in, well... “something.” However, access to that “something” for too many people amounts to seeing a couple of lines about “all is love” on some idyllic poster.  Man may not live by bread alone, but spiritual life cannot survive on Facebook memes alone, either. Read the full article on Tikkun HERE . For more blog posts about Arthur and his book, click HERE .

  Crafton Hills College published a very nice profile of Dr. Brink on his 30th anniversary of teaching psychology at the college. In part, the profile reads " Psychology itself is a tough course to tackle, but Brink said he enjoys the subject because it is “at the center of everything” and opens a lot of doors to students thinking about entering the fields of social work, nursing or, perhaps, politics." You can read the whole profile HERE . For more posts about Dr. Birnk and his book, How To Argue with an Atheist, click HERE .

  (photo by Frank Perez) It is Tuesday. Time to tall turkey. Monday's madness is over, and Wednesday will take us over the hump, so Tuesday it is--for some serious discussion with authors. Tuesday talks mean to address authors in waiting and self-published authors who would like to go a more traditional route or who would at least like to take their steps with a publisher by their side. Today's topic shares an important reason for a book being turned down by an acquisitions editor. While there are almost as many reasons for turning down a manuscript as there are manuscripts submitted, there is one reason that has nothing (or very little) to do with the manusciprt. It has to do with the author, and it comes across in the proposal, the cover letter, or the enote (if emailed), or in all of them. That trait is arrogance, and it will turn off an editor before the editor even reads the manuscript. After all, a publisher has to work with an author, and if they dynamics are poor, it wi...

  In " Pages, Prompts and Poses: Journaling Through a Pandemic ," published by Yoga Chicago , MSI Press author Julie Gentile makes the following recommendations: Choose a journal that speaks to you.   Write about what inspires you or recent observations you’ve made.   Make up your own journaling rules.   Get into a groove.   Read your words.   Read the full article to get all the helps, tips, and prompts that Julie generously offers. To read more posts about Julie and her books, click HERE .