Bücher veröffentlicht von Sunstone Press

"What the Owl Saw," the second volume in the Buenaventura Series and the sequel to "The Brujo's Way," opens in December 1705 with a terrifying nightmare that fills Don Carlos Buenaventura, a powerful brujo in his sixth life, with dread. Feeling the need to strengthen his brujo powers, always weakened by town life, he rides out into the wild mountain landscapes around Santa Fe in order to practice his sorcerer's technique of transforming himself into hawks and owls. Transformations are exhilarating, but they do not dispel his sense of an impending menace. In addition, as he tells his friend Inéz de Recalde, whom he has rescued from a difficult past and to whom he has declared his love, he is impatient to move forward in his quest for wisdom on what he calls the Unknown Way. Into this picture comes a trio of itinerant entertainers, a magician and two women dancers, who offer an ambiguous promise. Can they lead him to deeper realms of consciousness, or are they agents of his enemy, the evil sorcerer Don Malvolio? The magician and his alluring companions introduce Carlos to dances that transport him into ecstatic mind states, but he remains uncertain about what master they serve. Despite the risk of exposing his secret brujo identity and of being disloyal to Inéz, Carlos allows himself to be drawn ever farther into their web of dark and dangerous enchantments. Includes Readers Guide.

Don Carlos Buenaventura, the protagonist of "The Last of Our Kind," is a powerful brujo living in Santa Fe, New Mexico, a remote settlement on the edge of Spain's North American empire. The year is 1706. Comanche war parties are boldly conducting raids nearby, French traders and soldiers are aggressively expanding toward New Mexico from the Great Plains, and agents of the Spanish Inquisition have arrived in search of a brujo suspected of being in Santa Fe. That brujo is Don Carlos, respected citizen under the name of Don Alfonso Cabeza de Vaca, his true identity known only to a small coterie of friends. Given the many dangers that threaten the town, will he be able to bring his powers to bear and still keep his brujo identity secret? When his mortal enemy, a sorcerer with formidable powers, arrives on the scene in the midst of these troubles, how will Don Carlos figure out a way to deal with him? Includes Readers Guide.

What do turtles eat? How are their babies hatched? Why can a turtle pull his head inside his shell? What kinds of turtles make the best pets? How should pet turtles be fed and where should they be kept? All these and many other questions are answered in this natural science picture book for young readers. As in "Pinto's Journey," "Starlings," "Coyotes," "Cats," and "Goats," also by Wilfrid Bronson and published by Sunstone Press, the text is in large, clear type, and there are many illustrations on each page.

Here, in a comprehensive, practical, and extremely readable volume, an author-artist whose many nature books are favorites with children gives an absorbing account of goats-the countries from which they came originally, the merits and characteristics of the major breeds, the reasons why they are especially valuable to us, and the methods of raising them for pets or for profit. He describes the most scientific way to house, feed, and care for either a herd of goats or for a single goat. In addition to practical information on raising goats, Mr. Bronson gives fascinating background material about them and their place in history. The reader discovers, for instance, that traces of some of the early legends and superstitions about goats are still to be found in our language today. From Pan, the half-goat god of the ancient Greeks who had the mischievous habit of startling travelers in lonely places, comes our word "panic." Then we learn that in pagan times communities would confess their sins annually to a goat, which was later allowed to escape to the wilderness, supposedly taking the sins with it; hence our word "scapegoat." In his simple, inimitable style, known to many readers through such books as "Cats," "Starlings," "Coyotes," "The Wonder World of Ants," "The Grasshopper Book," "Horns and Antlers," "The Chisel-Tooth Tribe," and "Turtles." Mr. Bronson provides a humorous and informative text, enhanced by detailed drawings on nearly every page.

James C. Wilson's memoir begins in Pula, Yugoslavia, circa 1972, where he is accused of threatening Marshal Tito, the President of Yugoslavia. It flashes back to the States and his anti-war activities at the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago and elsewhere. He then travels to Paris and Strasbourg where he spends time in exile with a French companion who speaks no English and dislikes Americans, and who finally leaves him for a group of pilgrims on their way to India. Returning to the States, he finds refuge in the counterculture community of Santa Fe, New Mexico, which becomes his spiritual home.

In New Mexico, during Lent and Holy Week each year, the Penitent Brotherhood enacts a primitive Passion Play, which in its traditional ritual of self-torture represents a curious survival of the Middle Ages. Much lurid journalism has been devoted to the Penitentes, but in this sympathetic account by Alice Corbin Henderson, an eye-witness, the ceremonies are presented in their true aspect, with the historic background and reason for the survival clearly indicated. From this it appears that the religious custom of self-inflicted penance was introduced into the Southwest as early as 1598 by the Franciscan priests who accompanied Don Juan de Onate and his soldiers and colonists on their way to the permanent settlement of the province of New Mexico-originally embracing all of our present Southwest. From that day the customs then inaugurated have been traditionally observed by the humble descendants of the "e;Conquistadores."e; Alice Corbin and William Penhallow Henderson lived in New Mexico and know its people and its colorful landscape intimately. The striking illustrations in black and white that appeared in the original 1937 edition by William Penhallow Henderson are an integral part of the text of this new edition. Also included in this edition along with an introduction by Lynn Cline is "e;Alice Corbin, An Appreciation"e; from "e;New Mexico Quarterly Review"e; in 1949, an article by Marc Simmons from "e;The Santa Fe New Mexican,"e; and a review of the book from "e;New Mexico Quarterly"e; at the time of publication of the original edition in 1937 by T. M. Pearce.

Adolph F. Bandelier, Charles Fletcher Lummis, and Father Anton Docher are names closely associated with the early colonial days in New Mexico. All of these characters appear in this narrative of Isleta Pueblo which tells the story of Father Docher's life in the Indian pueblo from the day when he first arrived along the road that was bad, but the sunset beautiful in 1891 until the time of the death of his two great friends, Bandelier and Lummis, and his own death several months later in 1928. Father Docher's job was not an easy one, but his great patience and understanding helped him through many difficulties. The story goes into many of these and into much of the legend and superstition of Isleta Pueblo which the Padre encountered during his long life there. He was particularly interested in the story of Father Padilla, the Franciscan friar who came with Coronado's band, whose body was buried in the church at Isleta but which refused to stay underground. JULIA KELEHER was a member and Professor in the English Department of the University of New Mexico from 1931 to her retirement in 1959. She was also a professional writer and edited each of her brother, William A. Keleher's books, all of which have been published by Sunstone Press in its Southwest Heritage Series. Her collaboration with Elsie Ruth Chant resulted in this fascinating collection of incidents for all readers interested in the American Southwest. She was married to Lloyd Chant and raised two children, George Ashley Chant and Julia Jane Chant.

Following the discovery of the decapitated corpse of Arthur Rochford Manby in his nineteen-room mansion in Taos, New Mexico, there quickly arose two schools of thought as to the event. One sect accepted that he was gruesomely murdered, while the second held to the belief that he had staged his death and left behind the cadaver of a stranger. The case was a bizarre enigma wrapped in riddles, confusion, betrayal and greed. Finally for posterity, and as relief to the guilty, it was labeled an unsolved crime. Today it is referred to as the "e;Manby Mystery of Taos."e; This book contains very little mystery. Rather, it is the tragic account of Manby and his 35-year career in manipulation, extortion, high-grading and murder. Arriving in New Mexico from England in 1883, the 24-year-old Manby began his personal odyssey for El Dorado: the dream of building a vast empire in the Southwest. He finally does so in 1913 when becoming the owner of the 61,000 acre Martinez Grant of Taos. But after three years it slips from his grasp and he is left nearly penniless. In his last years he gradually decays mentality and emotionally. Looked upon as an eccentric, no one realizes how ill he has become. Finally having a falling out with a quartet of compatriots, in July, 1929, he is murdered and decapitated.

In 1951, when Sister of Charity Mary Joaquin Bitler was called to Santa Fe, New Mexico to be the Supervisor of Nursing at Santa Fe's antiquated St. Vincent Hospital, she remarked that the 1910 Catholic hospital was surviving on "e;nerve and hope."e; Later, as Administrator (1960 - 1976), she was lauded locally and nationally for her achievements in health care and for bringing that care to the poor of New Mexico. Considered by many a brilliant businesswoman, she turned St. Vincent's into a state-of-the art facility in its time, managed by a community corporation. Sister Mary Joaquin's story tells of a very complex personality. A tough hospital administrator, she had many admirers as well as some enemies; a devout nun, she drew strength from her religion to open her heart to the poor and the sick, while she herself suffered a chronic and debilitating illness. In 1977, after succeeding in her goal to build Santa Fe a new and greatly expanded community-owned hospital, Sister Joaquin retreated to a life of contemplation and prayer in a little hermitage in central Mexico. Appalled by the poverty and sickness around her-the distended stomachs of hungry children, the heart-breaking number of infant deaths from dysentery and other parasitic diseases-she opened a small clinic in her hermitage to treat the villagers, most of whom had never seen a doctor or had any access to health care. Her last years were spent living as a hermit in New Mexico's Christ in the Desert Benedictine Monastery until her death in 2003. "e;Charity's Sister"e; is a book that will appeal to students of medicine, Southwest history and women's history, as well as being a testament to one woman's profound strength of will, to one who always sought divine guidance in dealing with adversities in her own life and in the many lives she touched.

This is the true story, told in fictional form, of one of the greatest of all American Indian chiefs, Cochise of the Chiricahua Apaches. Indians were once thought of as warlike, and the encroaching white men as wanting peace, but it was the white men who forced Cochise into war against his will. History tells us that Cochise and his tiny band of warriors not only held the United States Army at bay for more than ten years, but they were often on the offensive. It is a heroic and extraordinary story. The story ends with the equally extraordinary way in which peace was made, when Major General Howard, the bible-reading soldier, and Cochise, the religious-minded warrior, found that they could trust each other. The many illustrations are by L. F. Bjorklund, well-known for the accuracy of his interpretation of Indian scenes.

It's the autumn of discontent for David Berger--a season of mixed emotions. Retired after a lucrative but unfulfilling career, he lives alone by choice in a modest, sparsely furnished cottage in affluent Fairfield, Connecticut. True, he's proud of finally becoming a published author--a lifelong dream--although he will admit good-naturedly that fame has eluded him. True, he still loves his wife, Mandy--but a decade ago, a tragic loss drove them apart. And now he watches with regret as their married son, Philip, is manipulated by a possessive, mercenary wife. Still, David hasn't lost his sense of humor or his humanity. And he is determined to transform his autumn into spring--to reignite his romance with Mandy and rebuild their relationship with Philip. Surprisingly, the key to this transformation is a new friend, a fascinating, audacious, unpredictable lesbian author who insists on being the Muse for his latest novel. With her prodding encouragement, David's book leads him on an intense, emotional journey through the sometimes funny, sometimes sad memories of his life and loves toward a better new day. After a thirty-five-year career in public relations, MELVYN CHASE Chase retired from corporate life, but continued to work as a consultant. He also began to write fiction. In 2005, Sunstone Press published his first collection of short stories, THE TERMINAL PROJECT AND OTHER VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY--a finalist in the 2007 New Mexico Book Awards--and in 2008, his first novel, THE WINGTHORN ROSE. Chase was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York. He earned a B.A. in English Literature at Brooklyn College and an M.A. at New York University. He and his wife, a retired editor and publicist, live in suburban Connecticut, only a short drive from their son and daughter and four grandchildren.

The community of Cuba, New Mexico, its institutions and economy are changing rapidly and radically. Our town is losing its former identity and its precious historical resources. Personally, I feel an urgent need to capture as much of our history as possible. I hope to share what I can from my perspective in the form of plticas. In Spanish, plticas means conversation, talk or chat, as well as discourse or a communication of ideas or information. Those of us who experienced Cuba before the age of electronic devices used to relate through plticas. With our passing, the resources from the past will become less accessible unless they are written down. The stories and the fascinating people who once made our world special will fade away. The modern reader is invited to share our history and join in appreciating who we were as a community. Like any other place, Cuba's history illustrates compassion and pain as well as conflict, cooperation and endurance. These stories and observations have relevance in this place and elsewhere, now and in the future.

Love: Tender. Spiritual. Lustful. Liberating. Suffocating. A different truth, a different quest for each of these lovers, dreamers and schemers. Katherine McKenzie, a young woman living in Boston in 1918, yearns for love but is afraid of it. When tragedy sets her adrift, she returns to her rural Kansas roots where she rediscovers her past and confronts her fears. In a second story, a lonely and discouraged man finds new hope in the mystical message of an inspired dreamer who reached for the heavens. Is music truly the food of love? A pair of cautionary tales warns that no matter how sweet the song, one must always ask, "e;Who is the singer?"e; The dark side of love lurks here too-in those who love only themselves and pay the price for their wicked dreams. And there is a bittersweet tale of love remembered on the threshold of death. The final pages, sadder still, speak of love forgotten when remembrance of things past has faded. These are eternal tales of Love-its many faces, its many meanings. Includes Readers Guide

In her large body of work that spanned more than half a century, Alice Marriott gave a wide audience fresh and lively accounts of the complex cultures of the Southwestern American Indian. Trained as an anthropologist/ethnologist, the first woman to graduate with a degree in that field from the University of Oklahoma, she coupled her scientific and creative writing skills to produce books that have become classics. Maria: The Potter of San Ildefonso, a definitive study of Pueblo Indian pottery making, has remained in print for sixty years. The memoirs that comprise this volume were written by Alice Marriott four years before her death in 1992, at the age of 82. They were her response to a request from Still Point Press for a full autobiography. Her frail health at the time-she was ill with Bell's Palsy, blind in one eye, recovering from multiple fractures from falls-prevented her from writing more. Nevertheless, the pieces she did complete are delightful personal stories, told in that unique Marriott style, still engaging and humorous today.