Chanticleer Book Reviews

Tag: Journey Awards

JOURNEY Book Awards for Narrative Non-Fiction 2020 CIBA Award Winners
The Journey Book Awards recognize emerging new talent and outstanding works in the genre of Narrative Non-Fiction and Memoir. The Journey Book Awards is a genre division of Chanticleer International Book Awards and Novel Competitions (CIBAs).

Chanticleer International Book Awards is looking for the best books for our Journey Awards featuring true stories about life events, unique experiences, personal journeys, overcoming adversity, and more. These books have advanced to the Premier Level of Achievement in the 2020 CIBAs.

We also are now offering the following CIBA Non-Fiction Divisions:
- The Journey Awards for Narrative Nonfiction
- The Mind & Spirit Book Awards for Mindfulness and Well-being
- The Nellie Bly Book Awards for Investigative and Long-Form Journalism
- The I & I Book Awards for Insight and Instruction for How-To, Guide Books, Self-Help, Cook Books, etc.
- The Harvey Chute Book Awards for Business, Finance, and Enterprise
- The Hearten Book Awards for Uplifting and Inspiring
New in 2021 will be the Military Veterans and First Responders Non-Fiction works.

The 2020 JOURNEY Book Awards First Place Category Winners and the JOURNEY Grand Prize Winner were announced by Janet Oakley on Saturday, June 5, 2021 at the Hotel Bellwether and broadcast via ZOOM webinar and Facebook Live.

It is our privilege and profound honor to announce the 1st in Category winners of the 2020 JOURNEY Awards, a division of the 2020 CIBAs.

This is the OFFICIAL 2020 LIST of the JOURNEY BOOK AWARDS First Place Category Winners and the JOURNEY Grand Prize Winner.

Congratulations to all!
- Karen Keilt – The Parrot’s Perch: A Memoir of Torture and Corrupti0n in Brazil
- Susan E Casey – Rock On: Mining for Joy in the Deep River of Sibling Grief
- Laila Tarraf – Strong Like Water: How I Found the Courage to Lead with Love in Business and in Life
- Steve Mariotti – Goodbye Homeboy
- Steve Rochinski – A Man of His Time: Secrets from a Halfway World
- Susan E. Greisen – In Search of Pink Flamingos: A Woman’s Quest for Forgiveness & Unconditional Love
- Renee Hodges – Saving Bobby: Heroes and Heroin in One Small Community
- Barbara Clarke – The Red Kitchen
The Grand Prize Winner for the CIBA 2020 JOURNEY Awards is:

Karen Keilt for

The Parrot’s Perch:
A Memoir of Torture and Corrupti0n in Brazil

The 2021 JOURNEY Book Awards winners will be announced at CAC22 on April 10, 2022. Save the date for CAC22, scheduled April 7-10, 2022, our 10 year Conference Anniversary!

Submissions for the 2022 JOURNEY Book Awards are open until the end of August. Enter here!

Don’t delay! Enter today!

A Note to ALL the WINNERS: The coveted CIBA Blue Ribbons will be mailed out starting in July. We will contact you with an email to verify your mailing address and other items. We thank you for your patience and understanding.
June 18, 2021
The 2020 Finalists for the 2020 JOURNEY Book Awards for Narrative Non-Fiction CIBAs
The Journey Book Awards recognize emerging new talent and outstanding works in the genre of Narrative Non-Fiction and Memoir. The Journey Book Awards is a genre division of Chanticleer International Book Awards and Novel Competitions (CIBAs).

Chanticleer International Book Awards is looking for the best books for our Journey Awards featuring true stories about adventures, life events, unique experiences, travel, personal journeys, global enlightenment, and more. We will put books about true and inspiring stories to the test and choose the best among them.

These titles have moved forward in the judging rounds from the 2020 SHORT LIST to the SEMI-FINALIST POSITION and have now progressed to the Premier FINALIST Level of Achievement in the 2020 CIBAs.

The following works have advanced in the 2020 Journey Book Awards for Narrative Non-Fiction.
- Karen Keilt – The Parrot’s Perch
- Susan E Casey – Rock On: Mining for Joy in the Deep River of Sibling Grief
- Laila Tarraf – Strong Like Water: How I Found the Courage to Lead with Love in Business and in Life
- Patricia Eagle – Being Mean–A Memoir of Sexual Abuse and Survival
- Susan E. Greisen – In Search of Pink Flamingos: A Woman’s Quest for Forgiveness & Unconditional Love
- Janice Morgan – Suspended Sentence
- Sharon Dukett – No Rules
- David Crow – The Pale-Faced Lie: A True Story
- Christine Nicolette-Gonzalez – My Mother’s Curse: A Journey Beyond Childhood Trauma
- Ilene English – Hippie Chick
- Barbara Clarke – The Red Kitchen
- Amy Byer Shainman – Resurrection Lily: The BRCA Gene, Hereditary Cancer & Lifesaving Whispers from the Grandmother I Never Knew
- Steve Mariotti – Goodbye Homeboy
- Steve Rochinski – A Man of His Time: Secrets from a Halfway World
- Tiffani Goff – Loving Tiara
- Isaac Alexis M.D. – The Seductive Pink Crystal
- Renee Hodges – Saving Bobby: Heroes and Heroin in One Small Community
- Deborah Burns – Saturday’s Child
- Lydia Ola Taiwo – A Broken Childhood: How To Overcome Abuse: A Recovery Guide
These titles are in the running for the First Place Winners of the 2020 Journey Book Awards for Narrative Non-Fiction.

Which of these works will move forward in the judging rounds for the 2020 Journey Book Awards for Narrative Non-Fiction?

Good luck to all as your works move on to the next rounds of judging.

The First Place Category Winners, along with the CIBA Division Grand Prize winners, will be selected from the 23 CIBA divisions Finalists. We will announce the 1st Place Category Winners and Grand Prize Division Winners the CIBAs Ceremonies June 5th, 2021 virtually (Free) and LIVE at the luxurious Hotel Bellwether in Bellingham, Wash.

Register today!
We are now accepting submissions into the 2021 Journey Book Awards. The deadline for submissions is April 30th, 2021. The winners will be announced in April 2022.

Please click here for more information.

Don’t Delay! Enter Today!

As always, please do not hesitate to contact us with any questions, concerns, or suggestions at Info@ChantiReviews.com.
May 11, 2021
The 2020 JOURNEY Book Awards for Narrative Non-Fiction – the Semi-Finalists for the JOURNEY Division of the 2020 CIBAs
The Journey Book Awards recognize emerging new talent and outstanding works in the genre of Narrative Non-Fiction and Memoir. The Journey Book Awards is a genre division of Chanticleer International Book Awards and Novel Competitions (CIBAs).

Chanticleer International Book Awards is looking for the best books for our Journey Awards featuring true stories about survival, overcoming issues, trauma, and threatening life events, along with turbulent personal journeys.

Due to an unprecedented number of 2020 Journey Book Awards, we split off the Heartwarming, Inspirational, Heartwarming, Humorous, and Happiness. Think of Chicken Soup for the Soul.

We also are now offering the following CIBA Non-Fiction Divisions:
- The Mind & Spirit Book Awards
- The Nellie Bly Book Awards for Investigative and Long Form Journalism
- The I & I Book Awards for Insight and Instruction for How-To, Guide Books, Self-Help, Cook Books, etc.
- The Harvey Chute Book Awards for Business, Finance, and Enterprise
- The Heartening Book Awards
New in 2021 will be the Military Veterans Non-Fiction works.

These titles have moved forward in the judging rounds from the 2020 Journey Book Awards LONG LIST to the 2020 SHORT LIST and now have progressed to the 2020 SEMI-FINALISTS. The Semi-Finalists’ works will compete for the Finalists positions.

The following works have advanced in the 2020 Journey Book Awards for Narrative Non-Fiction
- Karen Keilt – The Parrot’s Perch
- Susan E Casey – Rock On: Mining for Joy in the Deep River of Sibling Grief
- Laila Tarraf – Strong Like Water: Lessons Learned from Leading with Love
- Ashley Conner and Cierra Camper – Memoirs of Michael: The Hurricane Project
- Patricia Eagle – Being Mean–A Memoir of Sexual Abuse and Survival
- Susan E. Greisen – In Search of Pink Flamingos: A Woman’s Quest for Forgiveness & Unconditional Love
- Mendek Rubin & Myra Goodman – Quest for Eternal Sunshine
- Janice Morgan – Suspended Sentence
- Marianne Ingheim – Out of Love: Finding Your Way Back to Self-Compassion
- Sharon Dukett – No Rules
- Judy Gaman – Love, Life, and Lucille
- David Crow – The Pale-Faced Lie: A True Story
- Christine Nicolette-Gonzalez – My Mother’s Curse: A Journey Beyond Childhood Trauma
- Scott Hunter – And the Monkey Lets Go: Memoirs Through Illusion and Doubt
- Mary Charity Kruger Stein – Fatherless, Fearless, Female: A Memoir
- Ilene English – Hippie Chick
- Barbara Clarke – The Red Kitchen
- Amy Byer Shainman – Resurrection Lily: The BRCA Gene, Hereditary Cancer & Lifesaving Whispers from the Grandmother I Never Knew
- Tamra McAnally Bolton – A Blessed Life: One World War II Seabee’s Story
- Steve Mariotti – Goodbye Homeboy
- Steve Rochinski – A Man of His Time: Secrets from a Halfway World
- Barbara Clarke – The Red Kitchen
- Tiffani Goff – Loving Tiara
- Kathleen Pooler – Just the Way He Walked: A Mother’s Story of Healing and Hope
- Isaac Alexis M.D. – The Seductive Pink Crystal
- Renee Hodges – Saving Bobby: Heroes and Heroin in One Small Community
- Ted Neill – Two Years of Wonder
- Deborah Burns – Saturday’s Child
- Stefanie Naumann – How Languages Saved Me: A Polish Story of Survival
- Lydia Ola Taiwo – A Broken Childhood: How To Overcome Abuse: A Recovery Guide
- Lilly A Gwilliam – Generations of Motherhood: A Changing Story
- Marilea C. Rabasa – Stepping Stones: A Memoir of Addiction, Loss, and Transformation
- Christine Ristaino – All the Silent Spaces
These titles are in the running for the Finalists of the 2020 Journey Book Awards for Narrative Non-Fiction.

Which of these works will move forward in the judging rounds for the 2020 Journey Book Awards for Narrative Non-Fiction?

Good luck to all as your works move on to the next rounds of judging.

The Semi-Finalists’ works will compete for the First Place Winner positions, and then all will be recognized in the evenings at VCAC21 April 22-24th from 6-8 p.m. PST.

The First Place Category Winners, along with the CIBA Division Grand Prize winners, will be selected from the 23 CIBA divisions Finalists. We will announce the 1st Place Category Winners and Grand Prize Division Winners the CIBAs Ceremonies June 5th, 2021 virtually (Free) and LIVE at the luxurious Hotel Bellwether in Bellingham, Wash.

Register today!
We are now accepting submissions into the 2021 Journey Book Awards. The deadline for submissions is April 30th, 2021. The winners will be announced in April 2022.

Please click here for more information.

Don’t Delay! Enter Today!

As always, please do not hesitate to contact us with any questions, concerns, or suggestions at Info@ChantiReviews.com.
April 12, 2021
HENRY: A Polish Swimmer’s True Story of Friendship from Auschwitz to America by Katrina Shawver – Jewish Holocaust History, Historical German Biographies, Jewish History

Katrina Shawver, a journalist for a Phoenix newspaper, was seeking a story for her weekly column. She had heard from a friend that a Holocaust survivor named Henry Zguda and his American wife, Nancy, lived in Phoenix. She called Zguda and was invited to come to his home, only a few blocks from her own. Shawver quickly bonded with both Henry and Nancy. Then she and Henry decided to have a series of weekly interviews, which she would draw on for her column and, later, for a book—this biography.

The horror story of Henry Zguda, a Catholic Pole born and raised in Krakow, Poland, begins with Henry walking down the street toward the YMCA for swim practice in 1942. A Gestapo car screeches to a stop beside him. Two men leap out, arrest Henry on the spot, throw him into the car, and take him to prison. After several days of torture, a practice used by the Gestapo to obtain information (of which Henry had little), he is taken to the train station and shoved into a cattle car so filled with people that it is impossible to do anything but stand, shoulder to shoulder. The door is slammed shut, and the train pulls out of the station. Henry has no idea what fate awaits him.

Most of his fellow passengers were Jews, which Henry was not, but under these circumstances, it made no difference. They did what they could to accommodate each other over days of travel, until they reached their final destination, Auschwitz. Many of the Jews would find themselves in the gas chamber in short order. Only those strong enough to work were allowed to live—at least long enough to finish building the camp.

His story covers more than two years in Auschwitz and Buchenwald. As a young man, he is characterized by his courage and tenacity to live under the most horrendous circumstances and his valor and compassion in helping his fellow prisoners—most of whom he met there, and some who had been childhood friends in Krakow. Somehow, Henry never lost hope, which would have been a death knell…as it was for many prisoners. He characterizes himself as lucky, very lucky.

Henry tells Shawver about his youth in Krakow. Most of all, his love for swimming. Henry was a member of the swim team at the YMCA founded and built by Americans. Despite the German presence, he had fun with his family and friends.

It is with some reluctance that he begins to give her details of his years in the concentration camps, but that is what she needs to know. Supporting his memories are photographs obtained after the war as well as official cards recording his Auschwitz registration, train passenger lists, personal effects inventories, and records of money sent to him by his family. These offer interesting details of life in the camps, as do some of Henry’s more pleasant memories. Prisoners participated in theater performances and concerts for the prison staff and their families as audiences.

As the interviews proceed, Henry intuits when it is time for him to tell Shawver what transpired as the camps’ main objective—killing Jews—was fulfilled. He explains how Jewish prisoners met their fate through such horrible means as being left, still alive, hanging from hooks in dark basements; being lined up in rows and shot to death in view of other prisoners, including family members; being told they must remove their clothing to have showers, only to be herded naked into the gas chambers (their clothing left behind as booty for the guards who led them to their fate); or being tortured to death by nonchalant Germans.

But in 1944, WWII finally drew to a close. As American forces approached the concentration camps, the Germans fled. The prisoners were free! Some prisoners left on their own, while others awaited the Americans bringing food, clothes, medical care, and the means to go home. Henry returned to Krakow, to spend time with his mother and earn money for her to continue living there and for him to emigrate to America.

It was difficult for Henry to relate his story, and it is difficult for us to read it. Still, both Henry and Shawver saw in this effort a purpose—to warn all people that they must do everything possible to ensure that the atrocities of WWII never occur again.

Henry: A Polish Swimmer’s True Story of Friendship from Auschwitz to America won First Place in the CIBA 2018 Journey Awards for Memoir.

July 8, 2020
NO TOUGHER DUTY, NO GREATER HONOR by GySgt L. Christian Bussler – Iraq War Biographies, Memoir, War Biographies

From a family with a long history of military service dating back to the civil war, GySgt L. Christian Bussler brings to life his experience as a Mortuary Affairs marine and sheds light on a duty that few ever talk about. He is called to duty for his first of three tours in Iraq in February of 2003 after spending many years training as a reservist.

This fear becomes reality when he narrowly escapes an IED blast with his life. Afterward, Bussler wrestles with the guilt of going back home injured, leaving his team behind to fight without him. The final and longest section of No Tougher Duty, No Greater Honor mirrors the length of the final and longest tour from 2005-2006. This tour especially proves to be the most challenging for not just Bussler, but his whole team, and it leaves them all forever changed.

Despite its heavy topic, No Tougher Duty, No Greater Honor is rich with Bussler’s humble and humorous personality and is full of informative detail. People read memoirs to learn about the lives of others and gain new perspectives, and as the pages quickly turn, the wide range of emotions felt by Bussler and those around him are beautifully described. The addition of personal photos adds to the authenticity and genuineness of Bussler’s story as a Mortuary Affairs officer.

A defining quality of No Tougher Duty, No Greater Honor is Bussler’s unrelenting humbleness and is best expressed when he reflects about going home injured and leaving behind his fellow marines to continue fighting without him. He also presents an important question about whether to try and maintain a distance from the reality of the Mortuary Affairs or to embrace the fallen angels’ stories and their connections to those left behind.

In the closing part of the book, comes the defining moment of Bussler’s career where the deep emotions of grief are at the forefront. From this comes the ever honest and humble reflection,

“Maybe in a weird way, this book is my attempt to keep their memories and their sacrifices alive, because I saw with my own eyes how much they paid for a freedom that so many take for granted, and I truly, from the bottom of my heart, hope that I demonstrated exactly that throughout this work.”

Though now retired from the Marines, GySgt L. Christian Bussler is still active in the veteran community and acts as a mentor for other veterans. A truly magnificent and heartfelt memoir, No Tougher Duty, No Greater Honor is a must-read for every American.

No Tougher Duty, No Greater Honor won first place in the CIBA 2018 JOURNEY Awards for narrative non-fiction.

February 5, 2020
A QUEST for TEARS: Surviving Traumatic Brain Injury by Seán Dwyer – Memoir, Traumatic Brain Injury, Inspirational

A Quest for Tears by Sean Dwyer is a captivating memoir written four years after the author suffered a Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) as the result of a rear-end car collision.

While such casualties often foster long-term, unpredictable damage and seem a medical mystery, here Dwyer’s goal is to share his unique roadmap of struggles and experiences, while also advocating for fellow TBI survivors.

At age fifty-four, Dwyer was a college educator, fluent in Spanish, and a creative writer who had authored two novels and a work of nonfiction. A prolific songwriter, he was also blessed with an excellent memory, supportive of the talent of colleagues, and was always able to display his emotions easily. But in the aftermath of his January 29, 2015 accident, life changed.

Initially diagnosed with whiplash, back sprains, a leg wound, and soft-tissue damage to his arm, subsequent tests revealed a concussion and TBI. Now, in addition to dealing with the expected discomfort of his outer physical injuries, Dwyer was forced to navigate the arduous, mired path of debilitations faced by those dealing with head trauma. From a first-person perspective showcasing determination and resilience, Dwyer journeys through a slow, laborious labyrinth towards recovery. With a touch of wit, he applies the moniker

“Sean 2.0” to his injured self, and like a software upgrade, he begins to explore the new cognitive alterations of his brain.

Dwyer now faces life with an extreme sensitivity to light. Also, there is the absence of the familiar “earworm” that once inspired music and stories. His now quiet brain struggles for words has difficulty reading and lost the sense of musical enjoyment. Minimal laughter and a noticeable inability to shed tears lead him to wonder, “Am I going to be an emotional zombie for the rest of my days?”

Dwyer went from being a man with high regard for hygiene and fashion standards to an individual preferring comfortable attire and choosing vibrant novelty socks that delighted his injured brain. Painful head movements during a simple haircut caused him to eliminate the grooming event for two years. This was the new Dwyer.

Dwyer seeks numerous treatments over several months, from physical therapy and acupuncture to neuropsychologists and craniosacral practitioners. During a visit with a priest, he looked for help from the sacrament of healing. Attending conferences with fellow TBI survivors proves an essential part of his recovery, as he learns progress can still occur well beyond the one-year mark of the initial injury. Lightening the intensity of this autobiographical account, Dwyer distinguishes the one-year “smashiversary” of his accident with a celebration at a local Mexican restaurant. Along with a cathartic, hanging car pinata, a gifted plaque featuring the accident photo Dwyer was always quick to produce in conversation, is humorously preserved with the fitting caption “stronger than steel.”

The importance of the much-needed understanding and support he received from his wife and family, the medical community, and a vast tribe of friends, students, and colleagues continues to be imperative in Dwyer’s recovery.

Mock classroom set-ups helped him acclimate to possibilities for teaching, while fellow writers proved compassionate in fueling his need to find new pathways for creative expression. Dwyer weaves poignant moments throughout his story, including an unexpected conversation with a wheelchair-bound boy who inspired him to push through his newfound obstacles. He also highlights the guiding force of his beloved elder feline companion, Sophie, who proved the utmost source of comfort throughout his ordeal.

Written primarily as a resource for TBI survivors, their caregivers, and members of the medical community who often fail to distinguish the difference between intelligence and brain health, Dwyer’s A Quest For Tears is a remarkable achievement. Ultimately it proves a positive affirmation of the human spirit, focusing on the ability to learn and adapt when faced with the unique challenges brought on by sudden brain injury — a powerful and inspiring read.

A Quest for Tears won First Place in the CIBA 2018 Journey Awards for Memoir/Biographical works.

November 2, 2019
SOULSTROLLER: Experiencing the weight, whispers, & wings of the world by Kayce Stevens Hughlett – Women’s Biographies, Personal Transformations, Self-Help

In a creative blend of existential memoir and artful travel journal, Kayce Stevens Hughlett’s SoulStroller takes readers along on an adventurous journey of self-discovery. Reminiscent of Elizabeth Gilbert’s popular Eat, Pray, Love, Hughlett focuses on family issues, ancestral memories, and dreams explored within the context of personal travels, focusing on the importance of moving beyond our comfort zones.

Here we come to learn that a SoulStroller is a term used for an individual who ventures into the fullest version of their true selves. Guided by intuition and spiritual essence, they stroll through life with a feeling of curiosity, compassion, contentment, and gratitude. Like a pilgrim on a quest, they follow their heart, rather than move ahead with a tourist mentality of set goals and to-do lists.

Raised with the traditional expectations of the “good girl,” Hughlett lived the first 30 years of her life within 150 miles of Oklahoma City, an area of white, middle-class, conservatives. The blinders came off when she moved to Seattle. Divorced, and remarried with two children, Hughlett indicates that when everything is FINE, sometimes that refers to the acronym for “fucked up, insecure, neurotic, and exhausted.”

It is during a trip to Mexico in search of a therapeutic boarding school for her troubled son that she finds a sense of peace and a firm idea of place as she falls in love with the desert landscape. With the outstretched arms of the saguaro cactus offering a sense of peace, it is in this moment that everything changes.

Hughlett’s journeys go far beyond visits to the likes of the Eiffel Tower and Louvre. Whether enjoying the delicacy of an eggplant and cheese sandwich on the banks of the Seine or meeting a charmingly eccentric and her poodle, Hughlett learns to distinguish the essential rhythms of her own life.

Hughlett writes with a comfortable conversational voice that invites readers into her world view; one that she approaches with both exuberance and trepidation. The overall narrative unfolds in a generally chronological sequence, though journal entries and recollections can at times reflect past memories or events.

Insightful words from several authors, poets, scholars, and artists are used to grace the opening of each chapter, including contributions as varied as those of Roald Dahl, Thich Nhat Hanh, Gloria Steinem, and Henry Miller. Mark Twain’s quote seems to epitomize the central “SoulStroller” sentiment in “Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”

Each section of the book concludes with a simple practicum highlighting suggestions for readers to venture into their own SoulStrolling mindset. Exercises range from quiet meditation and writing prompts, to practicing self-kindness and ideas for travels off the beaten path.

While Hughlett considers that her story may be too personal or esoteric for some readers, her work speaks to her positive growth, as her travels and experiences have allowed her to trust her own voice and value the lessons of her own journey. This is a book that strings together individual pearls of wisdom that have universal appeal.

SoulStroller by Kayce Stevens Hughlett won 1^st Place in the CIBA 2018 Journey Awards for Narrative Non-Fiction.

October 2, 2019
GOING THROUGH HELL to get to HEAVEN by Dr. Scot Hodkiewicz – Christian Personal Growth, Spiritual Growth, Christian Self-Help

Scot Hodkiewicz thought he had his life planned out to the last detail, but a few seconds of horror on the highway would change everything.

Award-winning author Hodkiewicz was a veterinarian with a beautiful wife, Mona, who participated in his practice, three children, two dogs, and a vacation cottage. They were all returning from some seasonal maintenance to that cottage one Sunday morning when a drunk driver crossed the median and rammed into their car.

Hodkiewicz passed out almost instantly from the pain of the impact. His wife Mona was also knocked unconscious, leaving their oldest child, ten-year-old Alexa, to help the EMT team gain entry to the car. The children were miraculously the least inured; they and their mother were rushed to the nearest hospital while Scot had to be extracted with the “Jaws of Life” and air-lifted by one of the many “angels” the family encountered in this time of life-threatening peril.

The author sustained the worst injuries from the accident, with a crushed leg that would eventually lead to dependence, for a time, on painkilling meds. As he notes: “Within a few seconds, we had gone from a normal, healthy family traveling with hundreds of other cars down the highway to a mangled mess of broken and battered bodies.” Little did they know at the time, worse was to come.

In the ensuing weeks and months, the family became more attached to their church and spiritual practice. This link to God, in Scot’s case, almost a conversational connection, would become even more vital when they found that there was more trouble ahead.

Their struggle with the various diagnoses, hopes, false hopes, and deceptive despair remarkably brought a new kind of shared strength. When Mona learned that the crash injuries were just the start of her struggles, she took to heart what her husband had been telling her. She began to personalize the idea that everything that happened was part of God’s plan. The accident itself, world-shattering as it was at the time, was a blessing in disguise and how God chose to reveal His true plan for them; a plan that was so much better than their own.

Now Hodkiewicz avows that he has become more diligent in watching after sick animals and is, in general, more charitable toward his fellow humans. After their church gifted the family food until they were able to take care of their own needs, he followed their example, giving money and other assistance to those he encountered in need. Even Alexa, now in her teens, felt this impulse, involving the family in mission trips.

Hodkiewicz writes with singular conviction and self-abnegating humor that gradually reveals his faith in God’s plans for true happiness in place of his own schemes for worldly success. His medical acumen provides the reader with a wealth of detailed information about the injuries that he and his wife sustained, and his sense of justice allows him to acknowledge that the person from whom he learned most in all this terrible trauma was the man who so carelessly drank, got behind the wheel, and nearly destroyed five lives.

Going Through Hell to Get to Heaven is a memoir about love that moves from one person to another in the form of grace, and about a family that came to see the actions of ordinary people as angelic and divinely purposed. The ordeal and subsequent blessings that Scot and Mona have experienced can, hopefully, inspire others.

Going Through Hell to Get to Heaven by Dr. Scot Hodkiewicz won 1st Place in the CIBA 2017 Journey Awards for Narrative Non-Fiction.

August 19, 2019
GOODBYE to MAIN STREET: A Family Memoir & Sequel to Prairie Son by Dennis Clausen – Memoir, Family Relationships / Saga, Multi-Generational Memoir

Growing up in an estranged family atmosphere brings questions that beg for answers in this complex multigenerational memoir.

Author Dennis M. Clausen recalls his early years growing up in the latter half of the last century with a detached, mostly absent father and a disabled, emotionally conflicted mother. In his tribute to small-town America, the author eloquently sketches the Minnesota village where he spent most of his youth, a place where the awnings on Main Street were opened and shut at the same time each day, and family secrets were hinted at but never discussed. Among the secrets was the enigma surrounding Clausen’s father, Lloyd, a wanderer who could never settle in one place, keep one job or stay with one woman for very long.

There are many idyllic elements to Dennis’s upbringing. Though poor and often struggling for basic necessities, his mother and siblings got by, sometimes helped by the largesse of the community. On occasion, a visitor might sleep on the couch, and tuck nickels or dimes strategically into the sofa’s cushions, leaving Dennis and his brother, Derl, the means to go to the local movie theater. The boys also managed a paper route together.

Reaching college age, there was no money, so Dennis stayed in his hometown at a newly created branch of the university. There he was fortunate to have as a mentor a legendary professor of American literature who recognized what the town’s librarian had noticed years before: that Dennis had great zeal for reading.

As Clausen matured and closely observed the clan he was born into, certain flaws appeared in the pleasant but rather fuzzy picture that had been painted for him. He felt increasingly guided by hints – and finally by some handwritten memoirs from his father – to explore their shared past. In the years of Clausen’s youth, polio was a killer stalking the country and then was miraculously eliminated, but the psychological concept of “attachment disorder,” which undoubtedly afflicted Lloyd, was unheard of. In sifting through his father’s memorabilia, Clausen learned that Lloyd’s adoptive parents always regarded their charge more as free labor than loved one. In Prairie Son, Clausen has written vividly of Lloyd’s life as a mistreated orphan. The many remarkable results of that investigative work comprise the second portion of Goodbye to Main Street, complete with documentation and photographs in what can be seen as Clausen’s second vocation as the family detective.

Clausen’s work has garnered a following among family both here and abroad who have contributed to his diligent search for his ancestry and among orphans and children of orphans who sense his empathy. There are many poignant moments in his coming-of-age account that will resonate with the experiences of an earlier generation of Americans. Perhaps this is the pull of Clausen’s memoir, the story of how one boy grew to manhood and overcame the odds, to become something other than what he was born into: from grinding poverty to successful academic.

Now, after making numerous nostalgic visits to the old hometown and to various gravesites as part of his delving into family lore, he has come to see life as “a journey” and to respect its mysteries.

Goodbye to Main Street won 1st Place in the CIBAs 2018 Journey Awards for Narrative Non-Fiction.

August 2, 2019
JOURNEY BOOK AWARDS for Narrative Non-fiction – the Grand Prize Winner and First Place Category Winners – 2018 CIBAs
The JOURNEY BOOK AWARDS for Narrative Non-Fiction, a division of the Chanticleer International Book Awards.

We are excited and honored to officially announce the Grand Prize Winner and the First Place Category Winners for the 2018 JOURNEY Book Awards for Narrative Non-fiction at the annual Chanticleer Authors Conference and the 2018 Chanticleer International Book Awards ceremony. This year’s ceremony and banquet were held on Saturday, April 27th, 2019 at the Hotel Bellwether by beautiful Bellingham Bay, Wash.

We want to thank all of those who entered and participated in the 2018 Journey Book Awards.

Susan Marie Conrad, the author of the previous Journey Grand Prize Winner, INSIDE: One Woman’s Journey Through the Inside Passage, announced the First Place Award Winners and the Grand Prize Winner for the 2018 JOURNEY Book Awards at the Chanticleer International Book Awards Banquet and ceremony.

PublishDrive and Hindenburg Systems awarded additional prizes to the 2018 JOURNEY Book Award winners. Thank you!

2018 Journey Book Awards for Narrative Nonfiction First in Category Winners
- A Quest for Tears: Overcoming a Traumatic Brain Injury by Sean Dwyer
- From Liberty to Magnolia: In Search of the American Dream by Janice S. Ellis
- SoulStroller: experiencing the weight, whispers, & wings of the world by Kayce Stevens Hughlett
- No Tougher Duty, No Greater Honor – a memoir of a Mortuary Affairs Marine by GySgt L. Christian Bussler
- Goodbye to Main Street by Dennis M. Clausen
- HENRY: A Polish Swimmer’s True Story of Friendship from Auschwitz to America by Katrina Shawver
- The Day the Musick Died by Cheryl Hughes Musick
Honorable Mention: The Loose Ends Become Knots by Austin M. Hopkins

Congratulations to the First Place Category Winners of the 2018 Journey Book Awards for Narrative Non-Fiction

And now for the JOURNEY Book Awards Grand Prize Winner

From Liberty to Magnolia: In Search of the American Dream by Janice S. Ellis took home the 2018 JOURNEY Book Awards for Narrative Non-Fiction Grand Prize Ribbon!

An email will go out to all First Place Category Winners and Grand Prize Winners with more information, the timing of awarded reviews, links to digital badges, and more before May 31st, 2019 (approximately four weeks after the awards ceremony). Please look for it in your email inbox.

When we receive the digital photographs from the Official CAC19 professional photographer, Dwayne Rogge of Photo Treehouse, we will post the photographs of the JOURNEY winners on this page.

Click here for the link to the 2018 JOURNEY Semi-Finalists.

This post will be updated with photos and more information. Please do visit it again!

The deadline for submissions has been extended for the 2019 JOURNEY Book Awards is May 15, 2019 Midnight (PST).

Our next Chanticleer International Book Awards Ceremony will be held on Saturday, April 18th, 2020, for the 2019 CIBA winners. Enter your book or manuscript in a contest today!

As always, please do not hesitate to contact us with any questions, concerns, or suggestions at Info@ChantiReviews.com.
April 30, 2019