Coming of Age, Outcasts Bond: Tears of the Phoenix

Debut novelist Lonnie Beerman convincingly recreates the dark side of a small southern

town in this coming of age story of three young boys who are able to band together as

outcasts in a forbidding world of prejudice and bigotry.

McKinney, TX - Jan 16, 2012 - Author Lonnie Beerman has released Tears of the Phoenix. Beerman's novel is the carefully told tale of three boys moving toward manhood while sorting out their relationships with their fathers and with the sometimes harsh adult world they are wondering how best to enter.

Each of the three young heroes of Beerman's debut novel has found himself an outcast among his peers, isolated by playground taunts and by being the butt of every ill-

tempered joke at school. One day a violent playground assault by bullying boys suddenly brings the three of them together and -- no longer isolated -- they find they now each have someone they can call a friend.

The compressed world of isolation they have been living in opens up for them that summer as their new friendships with each other blossom and they bond happily in the shared adventures of warm vacation days.

Soon old prejudices and bigotries of their small town return, however, and the boys struggle to cope with a once again dark world, despite their new solidarity together. Then one hateful remark reveals a secret that threatens to destroy one of the boy's worlds, and the others must grapple with new questions they find difficult to sort out.

The boys' families have also begun to draw closer together and while personal tragedies change their lives, all draw closer together and all find new shoulders to lean on during these heartbreaks. The boys' mothers, in particular, discover new friendships of their own and begin to discover more about themselves as they watch their sons grow.

Beerman shows how at that age boys are forced to ponder their relationships with their fathers, or the lack of a relationship with one, and the new novelist engages readers well in the tragedies and family secrets that prompt these three boys to wonder what it means to be a man and what it will mean to them eventually to be fathers.

About the author:

Lonnie Beerman is married and is the father of a daughter and a son. He's a dog lover and an avid car enthusiast. In this first novel Lonnie delves into the complexities of family relationships and social bigotries and offers insight into the importance of love, friendship and acceptance.

Unwind by Neal Shusterman

Don't be fooled by the cover, this is no ghost story.


In a society where unwanted teens are salvaged for their body parts, three runaways fight the system that would "unwind" them.

Connor's parents want to be rid of him because he's a troublemaker. Risa has no parents and is being unwound to cut orphanage costs. Lev's unwinding has been planned since his birth, as part of his family's strict religion. Brought together by chance, and kept together by desperation, these three unlikely companions make a harrowing cross-country journey, knowing their lives hang in the balance. If they can survive until their eighteenth birthday, they can't be harmed - but when every piece of them, from their hands to their hearts, are wanted by a world gone mad, eighteen seems far, far away.

When I started reading this book I thought, "Oh great, it's only the beginning of the book, and it's already being rushed." But as I kept reading, I realized it was the perfect way to start an amazing story! It's defiantly on my "Top Ten" list. I couldn't put it down. It kept me on the edge of my seat the whole way through. It challenges readers about life - not just where it begins, and where it ends, but what it really means to be alive. I would recommend this book for ages 11 and up.

The second book is expected to be published in August 2012 and a third in the near future!

~Sci-Fi Chick ~ chick