About the Author of Suburbanites on Safari

Alex Shaland at the desk with a computer and books in the background

Many of our readers who follow my wife Irene Shaland’s books, magazine articles, and lectures know me as a photographer who’s photos appeared in Irene’s publications and slide presentations. But only few know that I am also a writer myself. Now, that my first book Suburbanites on Safari is in print and sold in several countries, I felt it appropriate to say a few words about my writing career.

Continue reading “About the Author of Suburbanites on Safari”

Book Review: Birds for beginners in Southern Africa by Philip Coetzee

Review by Philip Coetzee

If you look for a field guide, this is the wrong book, but if you want to understand more about birds, about their biology, habits and habitat, this is the perfect book.  In a fun way, with random cartoons and loads of colorful illustrations, the life of birds is described, from the size of the eggs, the type of chicks, how they fly, migration and where the birds can be found.

Continue reading “Book Review: Birds for beginners in Southern Africa by Philip Coetzee”

Book of Jewish Short Stories: The Dao of Being Jewish

Cover image and about The Dao of Being Jewish book, a collection of Jewish short stories
Our new ad for Irene Shaland’s book “The Dao of Being Jewish and Other Stories”

Introducing Irene Shaland’s latest book, a collection of Jewish short stories: 

“The Dao of Being Jewish and Other Stories.”

Link to eBook  Edition: https://amzn.to/2HhwSng

Link to Paperback  Edition: https://amzn.to/2T1u5kK

Link to Large Print  Edition: https://amzn.to/2Cqhi6l

This book is full of Jewish survival stories and fascinating tales. It shines the light on the history of Jewish communities in ten countries of Europe, Asia, and Africa.” – GTA Books.

Two and a half millennia ago, a small party of Jews explored new trading routes for King Solomon, settled in the south of India, and lived there peacefully until today. Similarly, during the ancient Roman period, many Jewish merchants traveled to China over the Silk Route and some made it their permanent home.  

Also, before the Edict of Expulsion in 1492, Sicily was home to over 50 Jewish communities, possibly numbering 50,000 people. So, how did the Diaspora bring these wandering Jews to so many places around the globe? And why did Jews live happily in India and China for centuries and not experience antisemitism, while the story of the Jews in Europe went from persecutions and massacres to unspeakable horrors of the Holocaust? Finally, why do we see the rise of antisemitism and violence again in the 21st century?

You will find answers to these questions and much more in the current edition of Irene Shaland’s artfully illustrated book The Dao of Being Jewish and Other Stories. She collected these fascinating stories while visiting ten countries in Europe, Asia, and Africa and interviewing the locals in their homes, synagogues, and even cemeteries. Now, Irene Shaland’s book, replete with her husband’s photos, takes you on your own exciting journey of discovery from Austria and the Czech Republic to Scandinavia, from India and China to Sicily and Sardinia, and from East Africa to Stalinist Russia.

Learn more about Irene Shaland.

The Dao of Being Jewish and Other Stories Released

cover of Irene Shaland book the Dao of Being Jewish and Other Stories

New book of stories from Irene Shaland is now available in paperback. In The Dao of Being Jewish and Other Stories Irene Shaland presents a collective Jewish narrative from various parts of the globe. She takes the reader on a fascinating journey, both familiar and unknown, from Europe to Asia and Africa, from Vienna to Delhi and Nairobi. The fate of the brilliant Jewish community of Vienna annihilated during the Holocaust shines a disturbing light on the stories of the current rise of Antisemitism in Scandinavia and throughout Europe.

Continue reading “The Dao of Being Jewish and Other Stories Released”