She's the most famous woman in history, yet almost nothing is known about her. Although she's portrayed as the gentlest and most tragic of all women, her name has been used as an excuse for internecine hatred and wars between peoples.
But who was Mary, mother of Jesus Christ? What type of family did she have? What was the community like in which she grew from child to teenager forced to marry a man three times her age?
And why have virtually all the details of her early life been obscured and censored by the writers of the Bible?
In The Book of Mary, novelist Alan Gold looks at first century Israel under the iron heels of Roman occupation and uncovers what life was like for a young woman in a distant outpost of the most aggressive and merciless Empire in history. Following Mary's story from teenager to a young woman married to a widower, to mother, and then to become a devotee of the new religion her Son had created. This tragic yet virtually unknown woman is forced to witness the excruciating pain of her son's crucifixion.
Bedwetting is an irritation for parents, but a nightmare for their children. Up to 20% of youngsters beyond the age where they're supposed to no longer need nappies, still wet their beds, or suffer leakage during the day.
Bedwetting children tend to be withdrawn from their friends, often ridiculed at kindergarten, or school, and socially isolated when it comes to sleepovers.
Now, two world-ranking pelvic floor doctors have discovered a cure for bedwetting that:
Cutting-edge medical research has proven that bedwetting has NOTHING to do with a child's laziness, full-bladder, deep sleep, or inattention. Bedwetting and daytime leakage are due to under-exercised muscles and loose ligaments in a child's pelvic floor. Strengthen these through simple exercises (which we've turned into games kids will love playing) and the problem goes away. END BEDWETTING NOW is a simple easy-to-follow guide for parents and grandparents to give their children a happy, and fulfilled life.
END BEDWETTING NOW is a simple easy-to-follow guide for parents and grandparents to give their children a happy, and fulfilled life.
Alan Gold's latest book, Redemption, brings his multilayered and epic Heritage Trilogy to its conclusion.
In the first two Heritage books, Alan Gold examines two important moments in Jewish history: the present, when Israel/Palestine conflicts have come to a boiling point, and the end of World War II and establishment of the modern State of Israel. His third Heritage book takes readers even further into the past and examines the Jewish experience during the Spanish Inquisition, the Ottoman Invasion of Jerusalem, and the Napoleonic Wars. The through line for these five hundred years of history is the search for King Solomon's treasure in Jerusalem.
In the midst of such political upheaval, a St. Petersburg doctor plans to marry a Sochi innkeeper's daughter on the shores of the Black Sea. The two lovers find themselves torn apart by the turmoil of the times and the trial of Alfred Dreyfus on treason charges.
Through his characters, Gold explores Jewish identity in Europe and the Middle East. To some, the Temple of Solomon may hold the secret to great wealth and golden treasures, but to many others it is a powerful symbol of cultural identity meant to be preserved and protected.
In a city where women are seen not heard, Artemisia Gentileschi dreams of becoming a great artist.
She grows up in a family of painters - all men and she knows she is more talented than her brothers and even her father, but she cannot choose her own future because she's a woman. She's clever, ambitious, resilient, and driven and wants to experience the world, but she knows her place and she belongs to her father and her future husband.
She goes from lesson to lesson, honing her craft and paints in private but she's only allowed to paint the women who inspire her. When her mother died her father became very strict and followed the pope's edicts about modesty, limiting the subjects she could paint.
When one of her father's collaborators enters her life, Tassi, and he becomes her tutor, a handsome dashing figure, who represents everything that a life of freedom might offer. Until the unthinkable happens and her torture begins.
Henry II, now in his late 50's, exhausted from a lifetime of war remains one of the greatest Kings who ruled England. The founder of the 'Devil's Brood', he and his advisors modernized England's government and society and much more. But it was his jealous family life which caused his life to fall apart. Alys was the timid 8-year-old daughter of the King of France when sent to England and ultimately forced into marriage with Henry's violent son Prince
Richard, but he ridiculed and rejected her. Within six years, Alys had developed into a ravishing beauty, who was suddenly appealing to the old King himself.