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See the complete list of finalists and winners of Next Generation Indie Book Awards at www.indiebookawards.com/winners.
A Holocaust-centered memoir and a faith-based murder mystery have won honors for two local authors in the 2017 Next Generation Indie Book Awards.
"The Liberator's Daughter" by Deborah J. Levine and "Dying for Revenge" by Barbara Golder were finalists in the awards program, which was established 11 years ago to recognize independent authors and publishers. Awards are presented in more than 70 categories by the Independent Book Publishing Professionals Group in cooperation with Marilyn Allen of Allen O'Shea Literary Agency.
Levine, founder of Cross Cultural School of the South, placed in the memoir category for "The Liberator's Daughter." The book is an account of the horrors her father experienced in World War II as a U.S. military intelligence officer assigned to interrogate Nazi prisoners of war. The book also shares the encouragement her father gained from the letters his wife, Levine's mother, wrote in response.
Deborah Levine, author of "The Liberator's Daughter."Levine wasn't even aware her father's letters existed until late in his life. He hardly talked about his World War II experiences, she says.
He was a liberator of a death camp and "his description of these work camps with bodies strewn all over and the smell was unbelievable," she says.
Levine says she found her father's revelations "stunning," especially his descriptions of how the death camp operators thought and how "they had been educated to think this way."
Barbara Golder, author of "Dying for Revenge."Levine is also author of several other books, including "Going Southern: The No-Mess Guide to the South." She blogs for The Huffington Post and is editor-in-chief of the American Diversity Report. "The Liberator's Daughter" is available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble. Signed copies may be purchased through her website, www.Liberators Daughter.com.
Golder, a former hospital pathologist and malpractice attorney from Lookout Mountain, Tenn., was a finalist in the Christian fiction category.
At its core, her fast-paced novel is a traditional murder mystery, but readers will find inspiration, not sex and violence, as they turn its pages.
"I think there is a place for literature that brings out the best in us instead of just depicting the worst in us," says Golder.
Golder says her book includes some violence - a murder is central to the plot, after all. But the narrative shows how it's possible to move from the natural response of revenge to seeking justice and, finally, showing mercy.
"Dying for Revenge" is the first in a series called The Lady Doc Murders. It is available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble. Readers may purchase the book locally at River Gallery, 400 E. Second St., and the Basilica of Sts. Peter and Paul, 214 E. Eighth St. The next book, "Dying for Compassion," is available for advance order on Amazon and Kindle. It will be released this summer.
The way pop culture portrays mainstream traditions and values has changed over the last 40 or 50 years to be at odds, even hostile, to the way many people live, especially people in the South, says Golder.
"This culture stuff we look at in the movies, on TV and in books is living in a different world," she says. "I don't know about you, but [erotic romance novel] '50 Shades of Grey' is not my world, and I was kind of surprised that the people were buying into this."
"People spend a lot of time talking about what we eat and drink," she says. "It's equally important to consider what we put into our minds and heart."
Contact Yolanda Putman at yputman@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6431.
"The Liberator's Daughter" by Deborah J. Levine
"Dying for Revenge" by Barbara Golder