AMY'S BOOKSHELF REVIEWS & PODCAST Professional Book Reviewer. Podcast Host

A fascinating window into America's past via one of our favorite foods.

There is no humbler food than bread, none easier to take for granted. So ancient that it shows up in prehistoric sites, bread is still full of surprises. Heirloom grains and artisan loaves fetch top dollar, while home bakers pour their passion into naan and challah, anadama and pistolet.

In this book, award-winning author Andrew Coe provides the definitive history of American bread, from European settlers' introduction to corn through the COVID-era sourdough craze. Each chapter follows an emblematic loaf that connects flour, water, salt, and yeast to the evolving story of American agriculture, industry, immigration, and ideas about health.

Why did supermarket white become America's dominant bread, and how did rustic old-world bagels, ryes, and rolls find their way into our kitchens? Who was the early nineteenth-century dietary reformer who started the whole-grain revolution? Why not knead? An enriching and enlightening cultural chronicle, American Bread answers these questions and more and offers carefully sourced historical recipes to inspire the home baker.

Evette and Evan only need to find a dead dragon. Mission accomplished but now something else had found them.

The community comes first – no matter what.

For ten years, the Utopia Tower experiment has been a resounding success. Conceived by a tech billionaire, it's a state-of-the-art apartment complex featuring AI-powered robot butlers and automated laundry. It offers a life-changing opportunity: rent-free living is for residents who adhere to the "Five Pillars of Harmony" and maintain the building's pristine reputation. It is a tight-knit community where neighbors look out for one another, ensuring that nothing endangers their sanctuary and their right to continue living there.

Antonio, a young lawyer, moves into the tower to care for his grandmother, eager to join this idyllic social experiment. But the veneer of perfection cracks when two young men—both considered bad apples and threats to the community's serenity—die in unusual circumstances within a single month. Despite warnings to leave well enough alone, Antonio suspects a connection and digs deeper. He discovers that, in a building designed for total harmony, asking the wrong questions can make you the next problem to be handled. Is there a killer hiding among the residents? Is the billionaire founder protecting his investment by manipulating the artificial intelligence system? Or is the truth far more terrifying?

In an environment where preservation of the collective is the prime directive, how far will the community go to protect itself?

She befriended me. She betrayed me. Now, she needs me.

A phone call from jail pulls attorney Lennon Gallagher back into a past she's spent years trying to escape. Complicated doesn't begin to describe the bond between Lennon and the caller, a former law school classmate. Now, Erin stands accused of the very violence Lennon has spent her career fighting against. It's a conflict of interest, but isn't everyone entitled to competent and effective legal defense?

What starts as a plea for help spirals into a murder trial that threatens to incinerate Lennon's professional reputation as well as her upcoming marriage. Guided by her best friend, seasoned lawyer Miranda Quinn, Lennon digs for the truth, only to find a mountain of evidence that points to Erin's guilt. The cost of loyalty is high, and the stakes are even higher as Lennon questions if Erin was ever truly her friend.

But does that make her guilty of murder?

A story of friendships, true and false, and going the extra mile for the ones we love.

"They shared Sarah like they shared everything else: the car, the flat, their shirts. Rick had her Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. Rob - Tuesdays, Thursdays, Sundays. Saturdays she did her own thing…"

One woman, two men, one shared arrangement. But can they all be satisfied with this? A humorous risqué short, first published as ‘Heads Or Tails’ by Skrev Press.

What would happen if the most powerful man in the country were in the throes of a personality condition that left him only a few cards to play—manifested by a limited, precise, and implacable set of destructive personality traits—that inevitably inflict harm and havoc on all those in his orbit?

In Puppet on a String, Dr. Vincent Greenwood, trained in the rigorous assessment process for clinical psychopathy:

Separates fact from hyperbole in evaluating Donald Trump's mental health.

Goes beyond offering an "informed opinion" and provides a detailed, evidence-based forensic analysis of whether Trump fits the criteria for a fateful and ominous personality disorder.

Demonstrates that this assessment meets the "gold standard" of reliability, validity, and rigor —and, because of the publicly documented life history of the man, it does not require a clinical interview.

Explains how this condition accounts for the dizzying array of Trump's extreme behavior patterns.

Explores the relationship of his personality to the threat to democracy.

Accusations of "derangement syndrome" will wither in the face of the startling, evidence-based arguments in Puppet on a String. In a time of destructive chaos, knowledge is power—and we need that power more than ever.