San Francisco Book Review on “The Joy Thief” by Sean McCallum

The Joy Thief is an inspirational tale about overcoming one’s fears. The author, a firefighter and crisis intervention specialist, tells a story about a girl who becomes traumatized by a seemingly ordinary experience. The terrifying day began with a spider jumping on the little girl’s face. When the girl reacted (by screaming), her mother arrived in a huff, insisting that she keep down the noise. When she left, the door slammed behind her, causing the girl to feel an overwhelming amount of fear. This social-emotional rhyming story proves children can experience events that alter their way of thinking.

The girl’s “joy thief” (which is visually represented as a spider) follows her wherever she goes, reminding her of the fear she felt that day and preventing her from experiencing heightened feelings of happiness. She is finally able to talk with her mother and opens up about how she’s felt controlled by her fear lately. Adults may not realize that a certain event can contribute to a heightened state of panic that can continue to grow, making it difficult to participate in daily activities. The author encourages open communication by providing a guide for adults to stay present and open with children.

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Author Sean McCallum
Star Count 5/5
Format Trade
Page Count 32 pages
Publisher Loving Healing Press
Publish Date 01-Apr-2022
ISBN 9781615996667
Bookshop.org Buy this Book
Issue June 2022
Category Children’s
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Geometric Patterns, Angles and the Guitar

SKU 978-1-61599-751-0
$15.95
A 'Chordological' Shifting Perspective
1
Product Details
UPC: 978-1-61599-751-0
Brand: Modern History Press
Binding: Paperback
Edition: 1st
Author: Steve Persaud
Pages: 26
Publication Date: 08/01/2023

A Novel Approach to Learning Guitar Chord Progressions

This treatise seeks to encourage guitarists of all levels to find their voice by experimenting and creating chordal ideas by playing notes on any part of the fingerboard to come up with their own chord shapes and patterns and not necessarily familiar, geometric shapes. These chord progressions can express an emotion or tone, be it sad, happy, humorous, mysterious, and the next step is to use an online chord app (if needed) to determine the names of the chords that were created. Guitarists who compose instrumental pieces will not be limited by conventional chord shapes but can come up with unusual chordal ideas that highlight their creative and compositional abilities against a background of shapes and patterns.

"This is interesting! I am an intermediate-level guitar player, and I am only familiar with moving basic chord shapes vertically, but I do think it would have been very useful if I had been familiar with these chord shapes, and this concept of moving them horizontally, earlier in my learning process." -- Dennis Dezentje, The Netherlands

"I have read this book repeatedly and found it quite interesting. It did not take long to recognize the genius it unleashed. As I explored Persaud's Geometric Patterns, Angles and the Guitar and applied its principles, I most certainly wished I had had access to it much earlier during my exposure to advanced guitar methods." -- Hezekiah Dean, District Superintendent of Education (retired), Bahamas

"This method can revolutionize the way a student is taught to play a musical instrument. Many students have problems processing words. For many of them, learning through visualizing shapes and the pattern of movements will be easier because the concept is more concrete. Geometric Patterns, Angles and the Guitar will have great success with both tactile and visual learners." -- Mary Moncur Grey, B.A., Dip Ed., MBA

"The author provides an interesting geometrical concept, something that the mathematically oriented guitarist will certainly appreciate. Geometric Patterns, Angles and the Guitar will open up a less-trodden path for guitarists, allowing them to explore chord construction, sounds and tonalities. Welcome to music creativity beyond basic music theory." --Rehman Abdul, M.S., P. Eng., Geotechnical Engineer

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