Showing posts with label NonFiction. Show all posts
Showing posts with label NonFiction. Show all posts

Wednesday, September 30, 2026

Christian Non-Fiction Spotlight: The Christian Lawyer: Not an Oxymoron by Joe Bill Campbell

The practice of law asks people to work inside questions of truth, advocacy, judgment, responsibility, and justice every day. For a Christian legal professional, those responsibilities can raise another question: how should faith shape the way that work is actually done? In The Christian Lawyer: Not an Oxymoron, Joe Bill Campbell draws on more than fifty years in the legal profession to examine that intersection through Scripture, professional experience, and the ethical challenges faced by attorneys, judges, and law students.

 



Christian / Devotional

Date Published: December 4, 2025

Publisher: MindStir Media

 


༺ ABOUT THE BOOK ༻

 

A #1 Amazon Best-Selling Christian Devotional for Lawyers, Judges, Law Students, and Legal Professionals
 

Can you faithfully practice law while remaining true to your Christian faith?
 

Can a Christian lawyer zealously represent a client without compromising biblical truth? Can a judge administer justice while honoring God's principles? How does a law student prepare for a successful legal career without sacrificing their relationship with Jesus Christ? 

 

These are the challenging questions explored in The Christian Lawyer: Not an Oxymoron, a #1 Amazon Best-Selling Christian devotional by distinguished trial attorney, former President of the Kentucky Bar Association, and award-winning legal leader Joe Bill Campbell. 

 

After more than 50 years in the courtroom, Campbell shares a lifetime of experience, biblical wisdom, and spiritual insight to encourage Christian attorneys, judges, law students, and legal professionals who desire to honor God while serving the law with integrity. 

 

In a profession often defined by difficult ethical decisions, this inspiring devotional demonstrates that faith and the practice of law are not contradictory—they are a powerful calling when grounded in Scripture.

 

Inside this inspiring Christian devotional, you'll discover:

✔ How to balance professional responsibility with biblical truth

✔ Practical guidance for living out your Christian faith in the legal profession

✔ Encouragement for Christian lawyers, judges, and law students facing ethical challenges

✔ Biblical principles for pursuing justice, righteousness, honesty, and integrity

✔ Scripture-based reflections that strengthen your walk with Jesus Christ

✔ Wisdom for navigating today's legal system without compromising your values

 

Drawing on decades of courtroom experience and a deep commitment to Christ, Campbell reminds readers that every legal professional has the opportunity to serve not only clients but also God's greater purpose. Through thoughtful reflections, biblical teachings, and practical encouragement, he challenges readers to become lawyers, judges, and leaders who pursue truth, justice, mercy, and righteousness in every decision. 

 

Inspired by Matthew 16:24–26, The Christian Lawyer: Not an Oxymoron calls believers to take up their cross, follow Christ, and discover that genuine success comes not only from winning cases but from faithfully serving the ultimate Judge. 

 

Whether you are an experienced attorney, newly appointed judge, law student, legal educator, or someone interested in Christian leadership and ethics, this devotional will encourage you to live boldly for Christ while excelling in your profession. 

 

If you're searching for Christian books for lawyers, Christian leadership books, legal ethics from a biblical perspective, Christian devotionals for professionals, or faith-based workplace inspiration, The Christian Lawyer: Not an Oxymoron belongs on your bookshelf.

 

Discover how your profession can become your ministry—and how faith, truth, and justice can work together to glorify God.

"He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life." — John 14:6

 

༺ WHY READ THIS BOOK ༻

 

Campbell brings an unusual perspective to this discussion because the questions in The Christian Lawyer: Not an Oxymoron come from inside a profession he practiced for more than fifty years. Rather than treating faith in the workplace as an abstract idea, the book focuses on situations in which advocacy, professional responsibility, truth, justice, and personal conviction can occupy the same space.

That focus also gives the devotional relevance at several stages of a legal career. Attorneys must consider how conviction informs advocacy, judges carry responsibility for decisions affecting others, and law students are still developing the principles they will bring into practice. Campbell connects those professional roles with Scripture-based reflections on integrity, righteousness, mercy, honesty, service, and the meaning of success.

For Christian readers who have wondered what it means to treat a profession as a calling without ignoring its real obligations and pressures, this is a particularly specific conversation.

 



༺ WHO WILL LOVE IT ༻

 

The Christian Lawyer: Not an Oxymoron is written most directly for Christian attorneys, judges, law students, and other legal professionals who want to examine how their faith relates to the responsibilities of their work. Its emphasis on professional ethics, justice, truth, and integrity may be especially useful to readers confronting the gap between principles that sound straightforward in theory and decisions that become more complicated in practice.

 

The book may also interest Christian professional groups, legal mentors, Bible studies exploring faith and vocation, and readers interested in Christian leadership. Campbell's legal background keeps the discussion anchored in a clearly defined professional setting while raising questions that can extend into other careers where responsibility, authority, and personal conviction regularly intersect.

 

༺ ABOUT THE AUTHOR ༻

 


Joe Bill Campbell is a #1 Amazon Best-Selling Christian author, award-winning trial attorney, and respected leader whose life has been defined by faith, integrity, justice, and service. After more than 50 years practicing law, Joe Bill has dedicated his retirement to sharing biblical wisdom through Christian devotionals that encourage readers to live with purpose, character, and an unwavering commitment to Jesus Christ. 
 

A lifelong resident of Bowling Green, Kentucky, Joe Bill built one of the state's most distinguished legal careers. He graduated with honors from the University of Kentucky J. David Rosenberg College of Law, where he was later inducted into the College of Law Hall of Fame. Throughout his legal career, he served as President of the Kentucky Bar Association, chaired the Kentucky Council on Higher Education and the Western Kentucky University Board of Regents, and received the Kentucky Bar Association's Most Outstanding Lawyer Award. He was also recognized by Super Lawyers as one of the Top 50 Attorneys in Kentucky and is a Fellow of the prestigious American College of Trial Lawyers. 

 

While Joe Bill's legal accomplishments are significant, he considers his greatest calling to be serving Jesus Christ and helping others grow in their faith. At the age of 80, he answered God's call to become an author, writing devotionals that combine Scripture, practical life lessons, and decades of professional experience to inspire readers of all ages. 

 

His growing collection of Christian devotionals includes:

● Just Win Baby: The Game of Life — 101 sports-inspired devotionals designed to encourage young athletes and young adults to make Jesus Christ their ultimate coach.

● Virtue Triumphs Vice — A practical devotional demonstrating how biblical virtues can transform workplaces, businesses, and everyday life through faith-centered decision-making.

● The Christian Lawyer: Not an Oxymoron — A #1 Amazon Best-Selling book that explores how Christian lawyers, judges, law students, and legal professionals can faithfully pursue truth, righteousness, and justice while honoring their commitment to Christ.

 

Joe Bill's upcoming devotional, The End of Life Is Not the End of Life, continues his mission of offering biblical encouragement and eternal hope through every season of life. 

 

As a father, grandfather, attorney, and devoted Christian, Joe Bill believes every person has a God-given purpose. His writing encourages readers to strengthen their relationship with Christ, choose virtue over vice, lead with integrity, and impact their families, workplaces, churches, and communities through biblical principles. 

 

Whether speaking to attorneys, business professionals, churches, Bible study groups, young athletes, or anyone seeking spiritual encouragement, Joe Bill Campbell reminds readers that success is measured not only by earthly accomplishments but by faithfully following Jesus Christ—the Way, the Truth, and the Life.

 

Through every devotional, Joe Bill's mission remains the same: to honor his Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and fulfill God's purpose for his life by helping others discover the joy, wisdom, and peace that come from living according to God's Word.

 

༺ CONNECT WITH THE AUTHOR ༻

 

Website

Facebook

Instagram

TikTok

 

༺ BUY THE BOOK ༻

 

Amazon

Barnes & Noble

 

༺ LAST WORD ༻

 

The question in Campbell's title is more than a clever contradiction. It goes directly to the problem at the center of the book: what does Christian conviction require when professional life involves advocacy, competing interests, judgment, ambition, and decisions with real consequences?

 

Campbell's answer is rooted in the idea that professional achievement and spiritual faithfulness cannot be measured by separate standards. The Christian Lawyer: Not an Oxymoron asks legal professionals to consider not only what they accomplish, but how they advocate, exercise authority, respond to ethical pressure, and define success. For readers whose faith accompanies them into a courtroom, law office, classroom, or chambers, those are questions worth examining carefully.

 



༺ JOIN THE CONVERSATION ༻

 

Be the first to see cover reveals, upcoming releases, exclusive excerpts, author features, and more. Join our growing community of readers and book lovers.

➡️ Join our Newsletter

 

Read more
Posted by at 7:26 PM No comments: Edit
Labels: , , ,

Thursday, September 24, 2026

Christian Nonfiction Spotlight: The Grace of God by Tom Banwart

In the uncertainty of 2020, Tom Banwart and his family found practical ways to turn prayer into service. The Grace of God: True Stories of Faith and Hope grows from those experiences, tracing how Christian music shared with neighbors, handwritten notes for healthcare workers and elderly shut-ins, and efforts to meet physical needs became expressions of faith during an isolating time. Rather than separating spiritual reflection from everyday action, Banwart places the two side by side, building a collection around the conviction that grace can become visible through what people choose to do for one another.


The Grace of God

True Stories of Faith and Hope

Author: Tom Banwart

Religion Christian Nonfiction

Date Published: August 11, 2026

Publisher: Clay Bridges Press Publishing

Format: Paperback

Pages: 234

ISBN: 9781684881703



༺ ABOUT THE BOOK ༻

The power of prayer is undeniable. The Grace of God repeatedly illustrates how God equipped us to carry His message of love during one of our nation’s darkest times. 
 
Fear had taken root in our hearts. Our ages and health conditions felt like real disadvantages. We found comfort in Christian music, so we shared it with our neighbors. Notecards to healthcare workers and elderly shut-ins were warmly received, so we continued writing them and encouraged others to do the same. Physical nourishment was needed as well, and God provided a way for us to help there too. We prayed over every idea, and in return, God blessed us with inspiration.

We learned that love is an action.
 
We learned that anyone can be the hands and feet of our Lord.
 
We witnessed evidence of God’s presence again and again.
 

Our hope is that these stories encourage you to persistently seek God through prayer. His grace is unending.


༺ WHY READ THIS BOOK ༻

The Grace of God is rooted in a particular moment—the fear, isolation, and disruption of the 2020 pandemic—but its focus is on the decisions made inside that uncertainty. Banwart's stories connect prayer with specific acts of service, showing how music, correspondence, encouragement, and practical assistance became ways to respond when familiar routines and forms of connection were suddenly limited. That emphasis gives the book a concrete dimension: faith is not presented only as something believed or discussed, but as something practiced in response to the people close at hand. 

 

The book also carries the perspective of someone whose own health limitations had already redirected the course of his life. Banwart writes from experience with changed plans and restricted circumstances, making his pandemic reflections part of a larger story about seeking purpose when circumstances cannot simply be fixed. Readers interested in Christian testimony that stays close to ordinary choices, prayer, and community service will find that combination central to the book. 

 


༺ WHO WILL LOVE IT ༻

This book is especially suited to Christian nonfiction readers interested in personal testimony, prayer, and accounts of faith expressed through service. Its pandemic setting will also speak to those who want to revisit that period through the smaller, community-level responses that developed alongside the larger crisis. Readers who value stories about ordinary people finding practical ways to encourage healthcare workers, isolated neighbors, and others in need should find Banwart's emphasis particularly relevant.

 

It may also connect with readers whose own lives have been redirected by illness or circumstances outside their control. Banwart's background—including the chronic health issues that ended his corporate career and reshaped his family life—adds another layer to a book concerned with what can still be done when limitations are real.


༺ ABOUT THE AUTHOR ༻


Tom Banwart spent most of his life in northern Illinois and graduated summa cum laude from Trinity International University. A promising corporate career was cut short when chronic health issues led him into permanent long-term disability, reshaping both his priorities and his path. 
 

Blessed with creative talents, Tom turned a simple woodburning hobby into a small business and embraced the role of “Mr. Mom” to his three sons, finding purpose and joy in the rhythms of family life.

 

Though he often sensed a calling to do God’s work, Tom pushed it aside for many years. That changed in 2020. As the pandemic altered daily life and stirred deep questions of faith, he found himself in honest, raw conversations with Christ—dialogues that became a spiritual lifeline. Those reflections and personal experiences evolved into writing, eventually forming the foundation of his first book. 

 

Today, Tom continues to use his creativity and vulnerability to encourage others, sharing stories that point to God’s presence in every season, especially the difficult ones.


༺ BUY THE BOOK ༻

Amazon

Barnes & Noble


༺ LAST WORD ༻

 

The most distinctive thread running through The Grace of God is its insistence that prayer and action belong together. Banwart's memories of 2020 are anchored not only in fear and uncertainty, but in the responses that followed: playing music for neighbors, writing to people who were serving or isolated, helping meet practical needs, and continuing to look for another way to serve. Those details keep the book grounded in lived experience rather than leaving its message at the level of abstraction. 

 

For readers reflecting on what that difficult period revealed about faith, community, and personal responsibility, Banwart offers a record of one family's answer. The Grace of God asks readers to consider what it means for love to become an action—and how even constrained circumstances can leave room for meaningful service.



༺ JOIN THE CONVERSATION ༻

 

Be the first to see cover reveals, upcoming releases, exclusive excerpts, author features, and more. Join our growing community of readers and book lovers.

➡️ Join our Newsletter

 

Read more
Posted by at 6:57 AM No comments: Edit
Labels: , , ,

Tuesday, September 22, 2026

Christian Living Spotlight: Hello Peace by Beth McCall

Pregnancy and motherhood can change the way a woman sees her body at the same time they are changing the body itself. In Hello Peace: Finding Freedom from Body Image Struggles Through Faith, Motherhood, and Surrender, Beth McCall brings that intersection of physical change, identity, and faith into a deeply personal conversation shaped by her own experiences with an eating disorder, pregnancy, and motherhood.

 

McCall approaches body image from both professional and personal perspectives. As a registered dietitian and sports nutrition specialist, she has spent more than a decade working with athletes, yet Hello Peace turns toward a different measure of well-being: releasing appearance and performance as sources of identity. Through Scripture, reflection, and journaling prompts, she frames that process within Christian faith and the movement from control toward surrender.



Finding Freedom from Body Image Struggles Through Faith, Motherhood, and Surrender

 

Religion / Christian Living

Date Published: July 28, 2026

Publisher: Lucid Books Publishing

 


༺ ABOUT THE BOOK ༻

 

Hello Peace is a faith-filled journey for women navigating body image struggles, identity, and the physical and emotional changes of pregnancy and motherhood. Through a raw and honest personal story, this book invites readers to move from fear, comparison, and control into surrender, renewal, and lasting peace in Christ. 

 

Blending Scripture, reflection, and practical journaling prompts, it equips women to break free from shame, rediscover their worth, and anchor their identity in God—not in appearance or performance. 

 

For any woman who has ever felt at war with her body, this book offers hope, healing, and a reminder that God is not calling her back to who she was—but forward into who she is becoming.

 

༺ WHY READ THIS BOOK ༻

 

Hello Peace addresses body image during a season when familiar ideas about appearance and control can be challenged by profound physical change. McCall places pregnancy and motherhood directly within that conversation, drawing on her personal experience of healing from an eating disorder while examining identity through her Christian faith. That combination gives the book a specific focus: making peace with a changing body without allowing appearance or performance to determine personal worth.

 

The inclusion of Scripture, reflection, and practical journaling prompts also makes this a book intended for active engagement rather than passive reading. McCall asks women to examine fear, comparison, shame, and control while redirecting the conversation toward surrender and identity in Christ. For a reader wrestling with the expectation of returning to who she was before motherhood, the book offers a distinctly different premise—the possibility of moving forward into who she is becoming.

 

 

༺ WHO WILL LOVE IT ༻

 

Hello Peace is written specifically for Christian women navigating body image, identity, pregnancy, motherhood, or the emotional adjustments that can accompany physical change. Women who have struggled with comparison or with measuring themselves through appearance and performance will find those concerns placed at the center of McCall's discussion rather than treated as secondary issues.

 

The book should also appeal to those who appreciate Christian living books that combine personal testimony with opportunities for reflection. Its Scripture-based approach and journaling prompts make it particularly suited to readers who want to pause, write, and examine their own experiences as they move through the material.

 

༺ ABOUT THE AUTHOR ༻

 


Beth McCall is a registered dietitian, sports nutrition specialist, and founder of Purposeful Fueling, where she helps individuals fuel their body, mind, and life with purpose. With over a decade of experience working with high school, collegiate, and professional athletes, Beth is passionate about supporting both performance and whole-person wellness. 

 

A devoted follower of Christ, her work is deeply shaped by her personal journey of healing from an eating disorder and finding freedom through God’s truth. Hello Peace is her debut book, inspired by her experiences in pregnancy and motherhood and her desire to help women anchor their identity in Christ. 

 

Beth lives with her husband, son, and daughter, and enjoys running, hiking, and spending time with her family.

 

༺ CONNECT WITH THE AUTHOR ༻

 

Website

Instagram: @bethmiller_7
@purposefulfueling

 

༺ BUY THE BOOK ༻

 

Amazon

Barnes & Noble

 

༺ LAST WORD ༻

 

One of the more meaningful ideas in Hello Peace is contained in its refusal to make a former body—or a former version of oneself—the destination. McCall instead frames pregnancy and motherhood as seasons in which identity can be reconsidered through faith, particularly when comparison, control, or expectations about appearance threaten to dominate that process.

 

Her background as a registered dietitian and sports nutrition specialist makes that message especially notable. In a professional world where the body can easily be discussed in terms of performance, McCall's debut turns toward surrender, worth, and spiritual identity. For Christian women who have found themselves at odds with their bodies during pregnancy, motherhood, or another season of change, Hello Peace offers a faith-centered invitation to stop looking backward and consider what becoming might mean instead.




༺ JOIN THE CONVERSATION ༻

 

Be the first to see cover reveals, upcoming releases, exclusive excerpts, author features, and more. Join our growing community of readers and book lovers.

 ➡️ Join our Newsletter

 

Read more
Posted by at 9:11 AM No comments: Edit
Labels: , , ,

Nonfiction Book Blitz: reclaim by Heather Henderson

Attention is remarkably easy to surrender without noticing it happen. A notification becomes a quick check, a recommendation leads to another, and minutes that seemed available for living are suddenly gone. In Reclaim: How to Stop Scrolling Through Your Life and Start Living It, Heather Henderson examines that familiar pattern from the perspective of someone who spent years inside major technology companies, including Google and Uber. 

 

Her focus is not simply the amount of time spent looking at a screen. Henderson is interested in what she calls “unconscious time”—the moments we give away without deliberately deciding to do so. That distinction leads to the question at the center of Reclaim: Did I choose this, or was it chosen for me?

 

How to Stop Scrolling Through Your Life and Start Living It

Personal Development / Digital Well-Being (Narrative Nonfiction)

Date Published: Tuesday, September 22, 2026

Publisher: Fernlight Books

 


༺ ABOUT THE BOOK ༻

 
You’re not broken. You’re overstimulated.
 
 
They sat on the beach with their backs to the ocean, faces in their phones, watching clips of someone else’s vacation. As Heather Henderson stood a few feet away, ready to capture the perfect Cabo moment, she realized we were promised more: more connection, more freedom, more possibility — not a life spent refreshing feeds. 
 
 
Handed devices before we were taught how to live with them, most of us inherited this algorithmic world. We learned to let notifications and endless recommendations choose for us in small, quiet ways, until the choices no longer felt like choices at all, and we found ourselves scrolling through life instead of living it.
 
 
The problem goes beyond casual screen time. It is unconscious time — the moments we surrender without realizing the cost. 
 
 
Drawing from her years inside major tech companies, including Google and Uber, Heather Henderson invites readers to ask: 
 
 
Did I choose this, or was it chosen for me?
 
 
If you feel wired but tired, connected but lonely, or busy but empty, this book is an honest look at how we lost presence — and a guide to reclaim it. 
 
 
༺ WHY READ THIS BOOK ༻

 

The idea of “unconscious time” gives Reclaim a sharper focus than a simple discussion of reducing screen hours. Henderson asks readers to notice the point at which intentional technology use becomes automatic behavior—the quick checks, recommended content, and habitual scrolling that can consume time before we have consciously decided to spend it. 

 

Her years working inside major technology companies, including Google and Uber, add another dimension to that examination. The book is not built around pretending technology can simply disappear from modern life. Instead, Henderson’s central question—“Did I choose this, or was it chosen for me?”—offers a way to examine who is directing our attention whenever a device, notification, or algorithm asks for it.

 

༺ WHO WILL LOVE IT ༻

 

Reclaim will speak most directly to people who recognize the strange experience of being constantly connected while not always feeling fully present. Those interested in digital well-being, attention, personal development, and the influence of algorithms on everyday decisions should find Henderson’s central premise especially relevant. 

 

It should also appeal to people who are not interested in abandoning their devices but would like a more deliberate relationship with them. Anyone who has opened a phone for one reason and surfaced several minutes later somewhere entirely different will recognize the kind of “unconscious time” Henderson wants readers to notice.

 

༺ CONNECT WITH THE AUTHOR ༻


Website


༺ BUY THE BOOK ༻


Amazon


༺ enter the giveaway ༻

 



༺ LAST WORD ༻

 

The beach scene behind Reclaim makes Henderson’s argument unusually concrete: the ocean is right there, yet attention remains fixed on a screen showing somebody else’s experience. It is a small image with a much larger implication about how easily being connected can compete with being present. 

 

Henderson’s question—“Did I choose this, or was it chosen for me?”—is therefore more than a line from the book’s description. It offers a simple test for those ordinary moments when a notification, recommendation, or feed begins deciding what happens next. For a book concerned with reclaiming “unconscious time,” noticing that moment may be exactly where reclaiming it begins.




༺ JOIN THE CONVERSATION ༻

 

Be the first to see cover reveals, upcoming releases, exclusive excerpts, author features, and more. Join our growing community of readers and book lovers. 

 

 ➡️ Join our Newsletter

 

Read more
Posted by at 7:17 AM No comments: Edit
Labels: , , ,

Thursday, September 17, 2026

Non Fiction Review: Delaware Keepers - Life at the Edge of the Sea by Dave Tabler

The lighthouse keeper has accumulated a powerful mythology: a solitary figure cut off from ordinary life, maintaining a beacon against darkness, weather, and an unforgiving sea. Dave Tabler's Delaware Keepers: Life at the Edge of the Sea challenges that familiar picture by looking closely at the people who actually did the work. Across generations of Delaware lighthouse families, the record reveals marriages, children, neighbors, celebrations, emergencies, public service, and careers built around keeping the lights operating. The result shifts the story away from romantic isolation and toward the communities that existed around these essential maritime jobs. Today, I am sharing my review of this book! Learn about the book and author and read my thoughts!


Delaware Keepers Book Tour Banner

Delaware Keepers Life at the Edge of the Sea by Dave Tabler

Adult Non-Fiction / History

Book Title: Delaware Keepers / Life at the Edge of the Sea by Dave Tabler

Pages: 224

Publication Date: June 1, 2026

Publisher: Dave Tabler

Content Rating: G: no bad language, no sex scenes


Add to Goodreads


༺ ABOUT THE BOOK ༻

 

Delaware Keepers is a bottom-up social history of the men and women who tended Delaware's lighthouses from the colonial beacon at Cape Henlopen in 1769 through the automation era of the 1940s. Its central argument is a deliberate inversion of a familiar image. The popular lighthouse keeper—the bearded hermit slowly losing his sanity in storm-battered isolation—is, in Tabler's words, "dead wrong." Drawing on newspaper archives, government and inspection records, and family papers, the book reconstructs keeping not as a story of madness and solitude but of community, family life, civic engagement, and quiet professionalism.

The book opens on its thesis in miniature: keeper George W. Duncan celebrating his 37th wedding anniversary at the Port Penn Range Light in 1907, surrounded by forty guests and a brass band—a federal employee at the center of community life rather than its lonely edge. Delaware's compact geography makes the case plausible: short coastline, numerous inland waterways, and stations often within walking distance of town, with even offshore posts like Fourteen Foot Bank deliberately crewed by three men to forestall the very isolation the myth romanticizes. Tabler doesn't flatten the picture, though—remote, icebound posts like Mahon's Light and Reedy Island could genuinely isolate, and the work carried real risk from storms, wrecks, and accidents.

Across sixteen chapters organized into five chronological parts, the narrative traces keeping as it emerged as an occupation, matured into a respected federal career, and then vanished under automation:

  • Founding the Lights (1769–1850s) — colonial origins, John and Elizabeth Dickerson at the first Cape Henlopen beacon, and Abraham Hargis writing desperate letters to Thomas Jefferson about inadequate pay.
  • Forging a Network (1850s–1880s) — the lights through the Civil War and the professionalization of keeping into a genuine career.
  • The Golden Age of Keeping (1880s–1940s) — the profession at its height, its costs, and its public visibility.
  • The End of an Era (1940s–1970s) — automation and the disappearance of the resident keeper.
  • Preserving the Legacy (1970s–present) — how families and communities carry the memory forward.

The human thread runs throughout: Hannah Hill dragging a boat across broken ice to fetch a doctor for her ailing husband; Irvin and Janie Lynch raising eight children at Mahon's Light; the Spencer children at Liston Range, for whom a station with no plumbing or central heat was simply home. The closing chapters turn to memory itself—how granddaughter Penny Czerwinski turns Dorothy Lynch Morris's recollections into classroom presentations (complete with Toby, the coal-chute-riding pig), and how preservation has shifted from maintaining structures to transmitting living culture.

Beyond maritime history, the book frames larger questions: how skilled occupations earn legitimacy and respect, what happens to experienced workers when technology renders them "unnecessary," how communities lose institutional memory when federal employees vanish from daily life, and why we mythologize obsolete professions while forgetting the people who actually performed them. It positions itself not as a technical catalog of lighthouses—those exist—but as a recovery of the keepers as real, embedded, civic human beings.


༺ MY REVIEW ༻

 

Expect to Learn a Lot in the Pages. I love Dave Tabler's writing style. He packs a lot of research and history into his pages without turning it into a dry history lesson. He pulls detail from newspapers, government documents, congressional testimony, family histories, and other records, but the writing stays approachable and surprisingly personal. Instead of simply giving us dates, lighthouse specs, and a timeline of Delaware's maritime history, Tabler introduces the people who actually kept the lights burning. Their lives, their marriages, children, hardships, notable rescues, community involvement, and everyday routines make the historical facts quite engaging. This book challenged my perceptions of the lonely, eccentric lighthouse keeper. Many of them actually raised families and participated in their communities while working their keeper jobs. The stories of the families—and particularly the women and children whose experiences could easily have disappeared from the historical record—were some of the most interesting parts for me.

Biography and History Lovers will Enjoy this Book. I think this book will appeal to more than just lighthouse enthusiasts (though that is why I originally grabbed it!) Readers who enjoy American history, maritime history, Delaware and regional history, and nonfiction focused on ordinary people should really enjoy this book. It's also great for those of us who love life stories and memoirs and short biographical pieces. The book covers a lengthy time period, from the colonial era through the eventual automation of the lights, so you can see not only how lighthouse keeping changed over time--but how an entire occupation gradually disappeared. 

Would I recommend Delaware Keepers? Absolutely. I appreciated the combination of detailed research, historical photos and human stories, and I came away knowing far more about lighthouse keepers than I expected when I began. The author doesn't romanticize their lives, but he doesn't reduce them to hardship either. If you enjoy history and biographies, this book offers a great look at Delaware's lighthouse keepers.

 

༺ ABOUT THE AUTHOR ༻

 

Dave Tabler

Ten year old Dave Tabler decided he was going to read the 'R' volume from the family's World Book Encyclopedia set over summer vacation. He never made it from beginning to end. He did, however, become interested in Norman Rockwell, rare-earth elements, and Run for the Roses.

Tabler's father encouraged him to try his hand at taking pictures with the family camera. With visions of Rockwell dancing in his head, Tabler press-ganged his younger brother into wearing a straw hat and sitting next to a stream barefoot with a homemade fishing pole in his hand. The resulting image was terrible.

Dave Tabler went on to earn degrees in art history and photojournalism despite being told he needed a 'Plan B.'

Fresh out of college, Tabler contributed the photography for "The Illustrated History of American Civil War Relics," which taught him how to work with museum curators, collectors, and white cotton gloves. He met a man in the Shenandoah Valley who played the musical saw, a Knoxville fellow who specialized in collecting barbed wire, and Tom Dickey, brother of the man who wrote 'Deliverance.'

In 2006 Tabler circled back to these earlier encounters with Appalachian culture as an idea for a blog. AppalachianHistory.net today reaches 375,000 readers a year.

Dave Tabler moved to Delaware in 2010 and became smitten with its rich past. He no longer copies Norman Rockwell, but his experience working with curators and collectors came in handy when he got the urge to photograph a love letter to Delaware's early heritage.

It turned out to be the start of something. Tabler has since written Delaware Before the Railroads, Delaware from Railways to Freeways, Delaware from Freeways to E-Ways, Delaware at Christmas, Delaware Behaving Badly, and Delaware Keepers.

 

༺ CONNECT WITH THE AUTHOR ༻

 

Website

X

Facebook

Pinterest

Instagram

Goodreads

 

༺ BUY THE BOOK ༻

 

Amazon

Audible

Barnes & Noble

Broadway Books

Books-A-Million

 

 

iRead Book Tours

 

༺ JOIN THE CONVERSATION ༻

 

Be the first to see cover reveals, upcoming releases, exclusive excerpts, author features, and more. Join our growing community of readers and book lovers.

➡️ Join our Newsletter

Read more
Posted by at 10:26 AM No comments: Edit
Labels: , , ,

Monday, August 24, 2026

Inspirational NonFiction Spotlight: No Straight Lines to the Stars by Ken Kisco

A childhood ambition to become a rocket scientist might sound like the beginning of a carefully plotted career, but Ken Kisco’s route to aerospace began somewhere much closer to sea level. In No Straight Lines to the Stars: An Unlikely Journey from Lifeguard Tower to Launchpad, the lessons he learned watching Southern California beaches—preparation, composure, quick judgment, and acting despite fear—become part of a much larger story about entering America’s space and defense programs. Kisco’s path is compelling precisely because it refuses the tidy trajectory its title rejects, connecting lifeguard rescues, engineering, professional setbacks, personal disappointments, and a decades-long determination to keep moving toward a dream first imagined at ten years old.


No Straight Lines to the Stars

An Unlikely Journey from Lifeguard Tower to Launchpad

Narrative Nonfiction / Inspirational

Date Published: August 4th, 2026

Publisher: Acorn Publishing

 

༺ ABOUT THE BOOK ༻

 

No Straight Lines to the Stars is the inspiring true story of a young lifeguard who dared to believe his life could reach far beyond the horizon. 

 

On the beaches of Southern California, Ken Kisco learned that preparation saves lives. From rip-current rescues to split-second emergencies, he discovered that courage is not the absence of fear, but the decision to act in spite of it. Those early lessons in resilience and composure pushed Ken to believe he could accomplish anything . . . including his lifelong dream of reaching the stars. 

 

Through relentless perseverance and unwavering faith, Ken rose into the heart of America’s most advanced space and defense programs, contributing to human spaceflight initiatives and supporting groundbreaking technologies. His unusual start as a lifeguard helped advance his career, distinguishing him from his Air Force and Navy peers. Yet, his toughest challenges were personal—he faced deep disappointment when a space mission was canceled and learned lessons about trust and integrity from a romance-turned-ruse. 

 

Ken’s journey reveals that success is rarely linear. Setbacks became launchpads, adversity became refinement, and purpose became a compass. Part memoir, part inspiration, and part behind-the-scenes look at America’s quest for the stars, this is the unforgettable story of a man who proves that bold dreams, combined with grit and heart, can launch an ordinary life into an extraordinary one.

 

༺ WHY READ THIS BOOK ༻

 

Kisco’s story is built around an unusual connection: the habits that mattered while guarding a beach later followed him into highly technical aerospace work. That gives No Straight Lines to the Stars more to explore than the achievement of a childhood goal. The book looks at what happens between ambition and accomplishment—the preparation before an emergency, the resilience required after a professional disappointment, and the personal judgment shaped by experiences that have nothing to do with engineering credentials. 

 

Readers also get a behind-the-scenes perspective on a career connected with human spaceflight and advanced defense technologies, but the larger focus remains on the unpredictable route Kisco took to reach that world.

 

 

༺ WHO WILL LOVE IT ༻

 

No Straight Lines to the Stars should appeal to readers who enjoy true stories about unconventional careers, especially those interested in aerospace, human spaceflight, engineering, or the people working behind major technological programs. It also has a clear place on the shelf for readers drawn to memoirs about persistence rather than effortless success. Kisco’s progression from Southern California lifeguard to aerospace systems engineer gives career-minded readers a particularly interesting angle, while the canceled mission and other personal setbacks keep the story focused on how a dream changes when real life refuses to follow the expected route.

 

༺ ABOUT THE AUTHOR ༻

 

 

At ten years old, Ken Kisco dreamed of becoming a rocket scientist, a goal that shaped his life. He earned multiple degrees, including master's degrees from the University of Southern California in systems management and from San Jose State University in industrial psychology. 

 

As an aerospace systems engineer for NASA, Rockwell International, and Boeing, he developed new technologies and earned recognition as an American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) Fellow. 

 

Ken now shares his passion by mentoring USC engineering students, inspiring them to dream boldly. When not traveling, he and his wife enjoy San Diego's beaches, where they live.

 

༺ CONNECT WITH THE AUTHOR ༻

 

Website

Instagram: @Kennasaman

 

༺ BUY THE BOOK ༻

 

Amazon

 

༺ enter the GIVEAWAY ༻

 

 

༺ LAST WORD ༻

 

The title No Straight Lines to the Stars captures more than Kisco’s career path. His story repeatedly returns to the idea that useful preparation can come from unexpected places and that a setback can change the route without ending the destination. The lifeguard tower and the launchpad may appear to belong to entirely different lives, yet Kisco connects them through the decisions, discipline, and resilience he carried from one stage into the next. For readers interested in the human story behind technical achievement, that unlikely continuity may be the most revealing part of his journey.

 

 

༺ JOIN THE CONVERSATION ༻

 

Be the first to see cover reveals, upcoming releases, exclusive excerpts, author features, and more. Join our growing community of readers and book lovers. 

 

➡️ Join our Newsletter

 

Read more
Posted by at 7:40 AM 1 comment: Edit
Labels: , , , ,

Wednesday, August 19, 2026

Self Help Book Spotlight: Burned Out by Iris Waichler

First responders are trained to move toward emergencies that most people instinctively move away from, but the effects of those calls do not necessarily end when a shift is over. In Burned Out, licensed clinical social worker Iris Waichler turns her attention to the cumulative trauma experienced by firefighters, paramedics, and EMTs—and to the families who often experience its consequences alongside them. Built from candid conversations with first responders and their loved ones, the book looks beyond the emergency itself to the physical, emotional, and relational toll that repeated exposure to trauma can create.

 



Non-Fiction, Self-help

Date Published: May 29, 2026

Publisher: Manhattan Book Group

 


༺ ABOUT THE BOOK ༻

 

Burned Out evolved from conversations I had with a friend who had been a firefighter for 30 years. He shared stories about traumas he and his fellow firefighters experienced while on the job. We discussed universal challenges that first responders face in terms of not knowing what to do with this trauma, recognizing its symptoms, and the impact it had on family members and loved ones. I interviewed male and female paramedics, firefighters, and Emergency Medical Technicians (EMT's) around the country to get their candid personal stories and experiences. I also interviewed family members. We all shared the goal of wanting to. help fellow first responders and family members understand the dynamics of trauma, its impact, and how they can get support to cope with its consequences with renewed understanding and resilience.

 

Key themes of book:

1. What types of trauma do first responders experience on the job?

2. How does it impact them physically and emotionally?

3. How does it affect their relationships with family members and loved ones?

4. How can first responders and family members understand and cope with these traumas?

5. What ways can they effectively communicate and understand the ramifications of trauma?

6. Where can they go for help to deal with the trauma and learn to heal from it?

 

Message for readers: My hope for those who read this book is that you will have a greater understanding and appreciation for the sacrifices our first responders and their families make in the service of others. I believe reading these personal accounts in combination with the information, support, and resources provided will be invaluable to all who take the time to read Burned Out. I hope you will share it with others you believe might find it beneficial.

 

༺ WHY READ THIS BOOK ༻

 

Burned Out addresses a part of emergency service that can remain largely invisible to the public: what happens after first responders repeatedly witness serious injury, loss, crisis, and human suffering. Waichler brings together the voices of firefighters, paramedics, EMTs, and family members rather than treating occupational trauma as an experience that affects only the responder. Her clinical social work background adds another layer to those firsthand accounts, with attention given to recognizing trauma, understanding its effect on relationships, communicating about it, and finding appropriate support.

 


༺ WHO WILL LOVE IT ༻

 

Burned Out is particularly relevant for firefighters, paramedics, EMTs, and the spouses, partners, relatives, and friends trying to understand what repeated exposure to emergencies can mean away from the scene. Counselors, healthcare professionals, social work students, and others whose work intersects with emergency personnel may also find value in the combination of personal experiences and information about trauma. The book's focus on both responders and their families makes it especially suited to readers interested in resilience, communication, relationships, and the less-visible consequences of serving on the front lines of crisis.

 

༺ ABOUT THE AUTHOR ༻



Iris Waichler has been a well known patient advocate and licensed clinical social worker for the last 40 years. She began her career working with geriatric patients who experienced catastrophic illness and counseled them and their families about adapting to these medical problems. She helped them understand their medical condition helping them to cope with the disease and its impact on their lives.
 
She is an award winning author. In addition she is a prominent speaker presenting on topics related to infertility and caregiving. She has been featured in Redbook, Parade, MindBodygreen.com., Forbes Magazine and Next Avenue Magazine. She also has done many radio shows and podcasts.
 
Iris has taught and supervised social work students, medical students, interns, residents, and nurses about patient rights, ethics.
 
Ms. Waichler found herself in the role of a patient when she battled infertility for many years. The feelings of loss and helplessness she personally experienced were profound. She promised herself if she was successful in having a child she would do everything she could to help other people fighting infertility.
 
She authored a second award winning book, RIDING THE INFERTILITY ROLLER COASTER, A GUIDE TO EDUCATE AND INSPIRE. This book won 4 awards including 2 best book of the year awards. The response was so great she began doing individual and group counseling with people who had infertility. She volunteered for RESOLVE, a national infertility group, and went on to do a series of radio interviews, magazine articles, workshops, and speeches on infertility topics.
 
Her book, ROLE REVERSAL, HOW TO TAKE CARE OF YOURSELF AND YOUR AGING PARENTS, has won 8 major book awards. Her experience in caring for her beloved father, who died at age 97, triggered her passion in reaching out to others who suddenly find themselves in a caregiver role and are uncertain about what to do or where to go for help. In this book she shares her father’s inspiring story and her personal and professional experience in assuming the challenges that come with being a caregiver for an aging loved one.
 
Iris has been doing freelance writing for the last 18 years. The focus of her work has been on health related topics. She also does workshops and speeches offering caregiving tips for caregiver family members and educating healthcare professionals.
 
Ms. Waichler lives in Chicago with her husband, Steve, and her daughter, Grace and her mini golden doodle Brandi. She loves to travel whenever she can and to spend time with friends and family.
 

༺ CONNECT WITH THE AUTHOR ༻


Website

Facebook

Author Facebook

LinkedIn

X


༺ BUY THE BOOK ༻


Amazon

Barnes & Noble

 

༺ LAST WORD ༻

 

Burned Out places attention on the people behind the uniforms after the immediate crisis has passed. By bringing first responders and their family members into the same discussion, Waichler examines trauma as something that can reach beyond an individual and into the relationships surrounding them. The personal accounts at the center of the book also give readers a reason to consider what support can look like after years of responding to other people's worst moments. For those who want a clearer understanding of that often-unseen part of emergency service, this is a thoughtful place to begin.




༺ JOIN THE CONVERSATION ༻

 
Be the first to see cover reveals, upcoming releases, exclusive excerpts, author features, and more. Join our growing community of readers and book lovers. 
 

 ➡️ Join our Newsletter

 

 

Read more
Posted by at 6:20 PM 1 comment: Edit
Labels: , ,