My guest today on the Online for Authors podcast is EB Mendel, author of the book If Frogs Could Fly. E.B. Mendel is an author in South Florida. If Frogs Could Fly is his first novel, and The Help of Angels, a historical novel, is his second. He has also recorded, produced, and published audiobooks from the same titles. He is currently getting ready to publish his 3rd novel, The Miraculous Adventures of Willy Maze.

In my book review, I stated If Frogs Could Fly is a contemporary fiction complete with magical realism and adventure. What I found most amazing was that the book was originally written in 2016 but mirrors our recent COVID pandemic to a great degree.

The story follows Ron Levine, a journalist, along with his wife and friends. Ron is invited to head to South America to find one of the lost tribes of Israel along with a crew put together by a Jewish Rabbi. Unfortunately, the crew finds more than they bargained for, including a new disease that spreads quickly throughout the world.

EB shows us what a world with an incurable, transmittable disease might look like. He then pairs this epidemic with a 1960s style culture of drugs, trips, and music. I have to admit that I got a little lost at times and wondered what was real and what wasn't. I suspect that was what EB hoped to have happen!

If you like a book that feels like a psychedelic dream, then If Frogs Could Fly might just be for you.

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You can follow Author EB Mendel:

FB: @Howard J Zeger

Purchase If Frogs Could Fly on Amazon:

Paperback: https://amzn.to/43ppiOR

Teri M Brown, Author and Podcast Host: https://www.terimbrown.com

FB: @TeriMBrownAuthor

IG: @terimbrown_author

X: @terimbrown1

Want to be a guest on Online for Authors? Send Teri M Brown a message on PodMatch, here: https://www.podmatch.com/member/onlineforauthors

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*As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

My guest today on the Online for Authors podcast is Tristian Smith, author of the book Against All Odds. Tristian Smith is not just an author—he's a living testament to resilience and transformation. His powerful memoir, "Against All Odds," chronicles his harrowing journey from a turbulent foster care system—where he lived in over 25 homes and attended 13 different schools—to emerging as a United States Army Officer, foster youth advocate, and inspiring speaker. Tristian’s unique story combines firsthand experience with a deep commitment to changing the narrative for foster youth. He brings not only a compelling personal history but also actionable insights on overcoming adversity, the importance of mentorship, and the urgent need for systemic reform in foster care. Podcast hosts looking for a guest who can engage audiences on topics ranging from personal transformation and mental health to advocacy and veteran experiences will find Tristian’s story both moving and motivational. Book him to share a narrative that is as impactful as it is inspiring.

In my book review, I stated Against All Odds by Tristian Smith is a memoir, as well as a how-to manual for surviving in and fixing the foster care system.

Tristian found himself in the foster system as a young boy. Like most kids in the system, they are there through no fault of their own. These kids keep hoping to find connection and security - something that, according to Tristian, is rare to find in the current foster care system.

After helping readers understand his own story and how it felt to be pushed and pulled from home to home like an object rather than a person, he spends the second half of the book talking to kids in the system and people concerned with the system.

After reading the book, I felt an urgency to find a way to help create a better system for the kids who find themselves in need of care. I have also begun looking into being a mentor for teens as they move toward aging out of the system. And Tristian's words to kids in foster care are words for anyone who finds themself in a difficult situation.

His goal is to help others while shining a light on a broken system. Without a doubt, he did just that.

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Join the Novels N Latte Book Club community to discuss this and other books with like-minded readers: https://www.facebook.com/groups/3576519880426290

You can follow Author Tristian Smith on LinkedIn: @tristianwsmith

Purchase Against All Odds on Amazon:

Paperback: https://amzn.to/4dhpROn

Ebook: https://amzn.to/4iSo0QZ

Teri M Brown, Author and Podcast Host: https://www.terimbrown.com

FB: @TeriMBrownAuthor

IG: @terimbrown_author

X: @terimbrown1

Want to be a guest on Online for Authors? Send Teri M Brown a message on PodMatch, here: https://www.podmatch.com/member/onlineforauthors

#tristiansmith #againstallodds #memoir #terimbrownauthor #authorpodcast #onlineforauthors #characterdriven #researchjunkie #awardwinningauthor #podcasthost #podcast #readerpodcast #bookpodcast #writerpodcast #author #books #goodreads #bookclub #fiction #writer #bookreview

*As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

My guest today on the Online for Authors podcast is Sarah Seltzer, author of the book The Singer Sisters.

Sarah is writer in New York City where she lives with her family surrounded by books, records, CDs—and a lot of snacks. Her debut novel THE SINGER SISTERS, about a family of folk rock singers who express their conflicts, secrets, betrayals and love through music, was published by Flatiron Books in summer 2024 and was a USA Today Bestseller!

She is an editor at Lilith Magazine and has been a journalist for many big and small publications from Jezebel to the New York Times reporting on activism and culture, and writing essays, cultural criticism, and the occasional opinion piece.

In my book review, I stated The Singer Sisters by Sarah Seltzer is a women's fiction with a dash of musical historical fiction thrown in for good measure. If you love a good family saga filled with generational expectations, family secrets, addictions, mental health issues, unplanned pregnancies, adoption, abortion, sexual orientation, and mother/daughter struggles, then this is the novel for you.

The key players are Judie and her sister Sylvia, folk singers who made a name in the 1960s and Emma, who is Judie's daughter and wants to make her own musical mark in the world- along with a great cast of secondary characters who give the book a beautiful flavor. Against the backdrop of a musical family, we soon become embroiled in family drama. As Emma begins her journey toward fame, she learns lessons about herself, her life, and her mother. And despite this story being about a famous family, it could be about you. It seems that all families have their love, secrets, shame, and problems!

I loved the nods to famous singers from the 1960s who were trying to be the next great Dylan as well as singers from the 1990s who were angry, combat boot wearing women trying to show the world how little had changed. But mostly, I loved moving along life with a family that was just trying to make it work. This is definitely a must-read!

Subscribe to Online for Authors to learn about more great books! https://www.youtube.com/@onlineforauthors?sub_confirmation=1

Join the Novels N Latte Book Club community to discuss this and other books with like-minded readers: https://www.facebook.com/groups/3576519880426290

You can follow Author Sarah Seltzer

Website: https://sarahseltzer.wordpress.com/

Social media: X: @sarahmseltzer

FB: @Sarah.Seltzer

IG: @sarahmseltzer

LinkedIn: @Sarah M Seltzer

Purchase The Singer Sisters on Amazon:

Paperback: https://amzn.to/4jiUtAo

Ebook: https://amzn.to/3FphALw

Teri M Brown, Author and Podcast Host: https://www.terimbrown.com

FB: @TeriMBrownAuthor

IG: @terimbrown_author

X: @terimbrown1

Want to be a guest on Online for Authors? Send Teri M Brown a message on PodMatch, here: https://www.podmatch.com/member/onlineforauthors

#sarahseltzer #thesingersisters #womensfiction #terimbrownauthor #authorpodcast #onlineforauthors #characterdriven #researchjunkie #awardwinningauthor #podcasthost #podcast #readerpodcast #bookpodcast #writerpodcast #author #books #goodreads #bookclub #fiction #writer #bookreview

*As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.