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The fourth and final volume of the Anthems of al-Andalus series, John D. Cressler takes the reader to Spain and tells the tale of forbidden love during a bloody war that heralds the end of a golden age. As much a tale of fiction, it is also one of history, which most never learn about in the west.

Most of modern Spain was under Muslim control from 711 to 1492 C.E. This time was one of deep influence in world events, including the rediscovery, translation and dissemination of the lost works of science, medicine, and philosophy of the ancient Greeks. The Umayyads were great lovers of books and learning, and the 10th and 11th centuries was a period of religious and spiritual acceptance, where Muslim, Jewish and Christian communities embraced one another. The three traditions sparked a cultural revolution. 

This discussion with host Lawrence Knorr provides insight into centuries past, and how faiths lived and grew together and inspired immense change, now seemingly lost.

John D. Cressler is the Schlumberger Chair Professor in Electronics at Georgia Tech. His debut novel, "Emeralds of the Alhambra," was released by Sunbury Press in 2013, followed by "Shadows in the Shining City," and "Fortune's Lament." He is also the author of non-fiction works that include "Silicon-Germanium Heterojunction Bipolar Transistors," "Silicon Earth," and "Extreme Environment Electronics." You can find out more about him at his website.

 

 

Murial Robertson is a rebellious woman of the late 19th century but has to keep a fair amount of that under wraps. Attached to the security detail of her Senator father, Murial longs to break from his grip, yet must also protect him. 

When her father is threatened by an unknown stalker known as "The Serpent," it is up to Murial to discover his identity. Aided by her cousin Walter and a lawman named Jack, Murial begins an odyssey of intrigue, action and self-discovery in the novella "The Serpent's Star."

Author and artist Sarah Ickes has brought Murial to life, spurred by her interest in art, history, westerns, Steampunk and suspense. She discusses these and future works on the Brown Posey Press Show. A graduate of Harrisburg Area Community College, Ickes can be found at area events, on social media and at her website. Sarah lives in Newville, Pennsylvania.

Baseball cards were collected, traded, and used in games we made up as kids. In recent decades, however, the collectibles market has turned these into a multi-million-dollar business. They are the stuff of memories, the object of historians, and an addition to some people's portfolios. A recent discovery of a rare set of T206 cards sold in cigarette packs in the early 20th century has become a book, "What's in Ted's Wallet?" 

The owner of these cards was Theodore "Ted" Edison, the youngest son of Thomas Alva Edison. In the summer of 1909, Ted began collecting these cards and soon amassed a collection of 61, including 58 players. Many of them ended up in the Baseball Hall of Fame, such as Ty Cobb, Frank Chance, Walter Johnson, and Christy Mathewson. He kept them in a wallet made that year, and they were found among Ted's donated papers in the 1990s. When J.B. Manheim and co-author Lawrence Knorr found these during archival research on Edison and baseball, they knew they had a book!

J.B. Manheim is Professor Emeritus at The George Washington University, where he developed the world's first degree-granting program in political communication. He is also the founding director of the School of Media & Public Affairs. He is the author of "The Deadball Files," a five-volume series on the early years of professional baseball in the 20th century. He is a member of the Society for American Baseball Research, the Internet Baseball Writers Association of America, and International Thriller Writers.

 

"Promised Rewards" is a tale that takes the reader through 9th Century England, and follows an aspiring Bard, who tells the tales of the axe-wielding hero Sigurd. They don't quite start out that way, but seeking adventure means conflict, friendship, and perhaps even love as the two make their way through uncertain times.

The story is one of many from Clif Flynt, who joins the Brown Posey Press Show to discuss how Bard and Sigard came about. With a background in folk music, computer programming and as a technical author, Clif has turned his skills toward short stories and the soon-to-be ongoing epic of his heroes.

Clif is also the author of "You're Not From Around Here, Are You?" These and other works can be found on his website. He lives Michigan.

The full, eventful, and rich life of Lew Wallace is examined in detail in "Lew: The Life and Times of the Author of Ben Hur." Biographer Michael E. Fox appears on the Sunbury Press Books Show to discuss Wallace's career, and how one of the most popular novels of the 19th century was not religious, but a semi-autobiographical account of his own times.

Fox traces Wallace's early life in Indiana (Fox was raised in Crawfordsville, where Wallace was sent for schooling at the age of nine, and where he retired), his experience in the Mexican War, and his time serving as a field commander under General Ulysses S. Grant during the western campaigns of the American Civil War. Wallace also served as Governor of the New Mexico Territory, where he completed "Ben Hur," and as a US Minister to the Ottoman Empire.

Wallace's greatest work, "Ben Hur: A Tale of the Christ" is considered the most spiritually influential novel of the century. He also wrote several other novels and a biography of President Benjamin Harrison, a fellow Indianan and Civil War general. 

Michael E. Fox developed friendships during his childhood with men who knew Wallace. He is a graduate of Purdue University, an attorney, and with a Master of Law (LLM) with Honors. He has worked for Eastman Kodak and served as President of Screen GP Americas, a maker of high-speed, high-resolution printing equipment and is considered a pioneer in modern-day printing and publishing technology. Now retired, he lives in Southern California.

 

Book 3 of the Rian Krieger's Journey takes Roger A. Smith's tomboyish heroine to Russia in "The Blackmailer." Thirteen-year-old Rian (that's Ree-in) runs away to Russia in 1838 to assist her uncle and cousin as they build a railroad for Tsar Nicholas I. There's a problem, though perhaps not for Rian--she is masquerading as her uncle's coachman, a boy. Rian's bravery and resourcefulness are soon noted by the Tsar, and Rian finds herself assigned to his palace, companion to Grand Duke Konstantin, his young son. 

Across the ocean, an economic depression has struck the US, and in Philadelphia, where Rian's family is based. Jules Freeman, a man who fled slavery years before works as foreman of Krieger Coach, while his home serves as a stopover on the Underground Railroad. He is then tasked with a new project, one that intrigues and challenges him.

Roger A. Smith continues to combine his love of history with a story that has been ignored for nearly two centuries. In his third appearance on the Sunbury Press Books Show, Smith discusses what brought Rian, her family, and friends to life, and how a girl who has already accomplished much in her life will live history. A teacher of mentally gifted students, a farmer, an entrepreneur, and director of a rural arts council, Smith lives on Cape Cod in Massachusetts. Find out more about him at RogerASmith.com