I'm not jealous that the first book produced by Rush Limbaugh since 1993, called Rush Revere and the Brave Pilgrims: Time-Travel Adventures with Exceptional Americans, immediately took the top spot on the Amazon hard cover bestseller list. His new book has already reached #152 overall in the Kindle store, #1 in its category for Teen/Young Adult historical fiction -- on first day it was officially available for sale. Nor am I jealous that Rush Revere has received twice as many reviews on the first day of release as all five of my books put together -- mostly because I'm glad that I don't have to contend with his vicious critics, who seem to resent him for breathing. Twelve of the initial forty-one reviewers of Rush Revere only gave the book a one-star rating. Those uber-negative reviews were obviously written by snarky and intolerant liberals. At least one of them was honest enough to begin his review by saying: "Did I read the book? No..." Then how can you review it? None of the most negative reviews were of the "Amazon Verified Purchase" variety. About half of the five-star reviews were verified -- but in fairness, I don't know how the pro-Limbaugh fans have had enough time to read the book and write a review, either. Remember, it was only released today. There is absolutely no reason for me to envy Rush Limbaugh's success selling books on Amazon. In our capitalist society, demand is the only constraint on the total size of the economic pie. My problem isn't that Rush's radio listeners prefer his book to mine. My biggest problem is that his … [Read more...]
The 2013 Readers’ Favorite international book awards
Award-winning author John L. Leonard sounds pretty good, doesn't it? The 2013 Readers' Favorite international book awards ceremony will be held next month in Miami. My wife and I have made plans to attend. She's my editor and publisher, deserving the trip just as much as me. And why are we going? Three of my five books, edited and published last year, were entered in the 2013 contest. My collection of short stories about animal rescue called Always a Next One: true stories of dog fostering, was awarded the highest honor, the gold medal for Nonfiction/Animal books. Reviewers offered some very kind words. One said: The author wrote in a conversational manner, as if he were sitting with me and personally telling me his tales. Another critic wrote: This is a book that belongs on animal lovers' reading lists everywhere. My book Counterargument for God won the gold medal for Nonfiction in the category for Religion/Philosophy. One reader wrote, This is a must for anyone struggling with their own faith or trying to get a loved one to see that God does exist. Mr Leonard's style of writing keeps one interested while presenting very scientific material. Another review said: As I review this book, I find myself wanting to quote the author. His presentation is tactful, eloquent and stated in a logical manner. John Leonard has extensively researched the scientific arguments he discusses in this book. He also deftly asks questions that should have atheists questioning their beliefs. Even my alter-ego for fiction, Rocky Leonard, got into the act. My novel … [Read more...]
The Movie Test
My wife and I met twenty-five years ago, as of this December. She was literally the teacher, and I the student when I took a week-long UNIX system administration course just before the Christmas holiday in 1988, mostly because my co-worker friend Mark signed up, but decided at the very last minute that he didn't want to attend. I was looking for someplace to hide so my boss couldn't send me to another yet customer site. The single "fly-and-fix" debugging expert in my group,I'd been on the road for almost eight straight months, six of which I spent living in Hong Kong. I just wanted to stay close to home, so I took Mark's place, even though I had no interest or need to take the class. It seemed that Lisa and I were destined to meet, fall in love, and get married. Both of us were "on the rebound" as they say...Lisa came as a package deal from her divorce that hadn't even been finalized, with an adorable three-year-old daughter who is now the mother of our three grandchildren, and I remained a little gun-shy after a failed international romance. Needless to say, we were advised to slow things down after I announced our wedding date had moved forward from September to May, less than six months after we first met. We didn't listen. If I had any lingering personal doubts about my bride-to-be, it was that she seemed too good to be true. However, I wasn't completely sure that I trusted my own judgment. Perhaps a few of the naysayers advising unnecessary caution had some subtle influence on my thinking at the time, or perhaps it was fact I'd been burned … [Read more...]
I blame you for whatever is wrong with Miley Cyrus
Don't blame me. It's your fault. Yes, you. You buy her records. I don't. Obviously, you watch crap like the MTV Video Music Awards. Somebody does. I most certainly don't. You wrote about it on your blog, or talked about it on Facebook. You must, because somebody does. Okay, so I finally broke down and wrote about her too, but only in reaction to her first post-show interview. But I only intend to divulge the cure for crap like this that poses for entertainment, make my point, and move along; no dwelling on this subject. Here's the secret to putting an end to these lurid displays: turn the channel. Don't buy that CD. Avert your eyes from that train wreck. If I'm never as famous as Miley Cyrus is today, please listen and believe me as I give thanks to God. Whoever coined the phrase "ignorance is bliss" certainly had a valid point. The less I knew about the Miley Cyrus performance at the VMA, the better. Only a few years ago, my granddaughter idolized Miley Cyrus, at least in her Disney persona, Hannah Montana. What in God's name happened to Miley? I never watched the Disney program, of course, but my daughter assured me the show was harmless, wholesome entertainment. Thankfully, I also didn't watch Miley Cyrus perform her infamous "twerking" soft porn dance routine at the VMA, neither harmless or wholesome. It was nothing short of pathetic and disgusting. What message did that send to young and impressionable minds? Now if you were as blissfully ignorant about this twerking phenomenon as me, this video may help. Jae Tracie offered a … [Read more...]
