Uvi Poznansky's Blog, page 91

Complex, intriguing characters

A short and sweet review for my WWII spy thriller, Marriage before Death:

5.0 out of 5 stars Comple, intriguing charactersBySQon May 20, 2018Format: Kindle Edition|Verified Purchase Loved the complexity of the characters, Lenny & Natasha and the way the story unfolds. Uvi Poznasky paints an intriguing picture in this thrilling love story. She is a master at leading you deep into her world. Fabulous read!

THE CYCLE OF LIFE

Thrilled to find this review by Barbara Mojica, a top contributor (Children's Books, Coloring, Pets) for my Childrens' Book (for the child in you), Now I Am Paper:

5.0 out of 5 stars THE CYCLE OF LIFEByBarbara MojicaTop Contributor: Children's Bookson May 20, 2018Format: Paperback This book is a beautiful commentary on the cycle of life. A tree grows in the forest. It is happiest when a young girl arrives to spend time in it. One day the child carves an arrow in its trunk, but soon after she disappears. Now the tree is lonely and sad. Much time passes until one day someone arrives with an ax to chop the tree down. The tree is ground into wood chips and eventually pressed into paper. Now that paper becomes the book which tells her story.

The language is sensual and flowing, evoking the sounds and smells of the forest. Poznanksy has chosen an elaborate Gothic font that complements the mood of the poem, though readers of the Kindle version are able to click on it to make reading easier. Watercolor illustrations penned by the author enhance the mood of the poetry. This book is targeted for an audience in the two to ten age range. Young readers will enjoy the images but may not appreciate the message of the poem. I think that adults will find it a treat as well.

Just in case this journey would end badly for me

I turned on my heels and hastened away. Soon I found myself in a wooded area. Worn out by the long, sleepless night I curled over my knees down at the root of a Beech tree. It was smooth to the touch, which brought back a memory of another forrest. I recalled how as a child I had been caught there, scoring the bark with my pocket knife. At the time, I had promised my father never to do that again. And yet here I was, all these years later, with an urge to leave behind some clue, some evidence of my being here, just in case this journey would end badly for me. I took out my bayonet and with it carved a big heart, into which I wrote, Natasha. One day when I am long gone, she might come here to piece together what happened during my last days. She might find this symbol, this scar that would never heal. I could just imagine her standing here in awe. My love for her would continue to grow, higher and higher, along with the trunk.Above me, beyond the black shapes of branches snaking around each other, a reddish hue began to wash across the sky. At first I thought it was the first hint of sunrise. With great delight I rose to my feet, only to realize my mistake. Far from being the subtle light of dawn, there it was, in full glare. Fire.  
Lenny in Marriage before Death


★ Love reading? Treat yourself to a gift ★Still Life with Memories
Volume V: Marriage before DeathEbook: Kindle ★ Nook ★ Apple ★ Kobo ★ Google Play ★ SmashwordsPaperback: Amazon ★ Barnes&NobleAudiobook: Amazon US ★ Amazon UK ★ Audible ★ iTunes

"Ms. Poznansky has done it again, but this time--and I don't say this lightly--she has written my favorite book to date in her stable of literary gems... The tension was riveting."  - Aaron Paul Lazar, Author

How hard can that be?

Lately, a lot of advice for writers seems to center on spewing words at a higher speed, with the reasoning that the faster you write, the better you become at your craft. While I don't dispute the age-old truth that 'practice makes perfect' I would like to suggest the exact opposite to you. Every day, when I start writing the next passage of my upcoming novel, I set one mission before me. It's simple: write one good paragraph. 

One benefit of my method is that rarely, if ever, do I suffer from writer's block, because the target I set for myself is not daunting. It's just a paragraph. How hard can that be?

Well, let me tell you, it ain't easy! It takes a lot for me to be satisfied with a paragraph. Even though I know what I want to deliver, forming words around it in a crisp manner--a manner that sweeps the reader into the story and inside the skin of the character--is far from being a breeze. How do I know that I've achieved my mission? I know it when there's a click in my mind. Yes, I actually hear a click when the paragraph is just what I want it to be.

Once I hear the click, the creative juices take over and I continue writing at high speed, usually at the rate of two or three pages a day, and cycle through the new paragraphs until I hear the music of all these clicks. Or not. But the speed is a result of my method--not the sole target of it.

The method is a bit similar to how I approach watercolor painting. My mission is to create beautiful puddles, without messing them up by overworking the piece. 


Here is my recent watercolor painting (inspired by a bone.) The idea for it came to me because of a suggestion of my art teacher, Chris Hero, to concentrate on the edges of the paper rather than on its center. So, the center of the painting is the white space that connects the creature to its prey.

Interesting Artwork + Compelling Story = Enjoyment for All Ages

Just discovered a great review by Top Amazon Reviewer Dee Arr, for my illustrated Children's Book, Now I Am Paper:

5.0 out of 5 stars Interesting Artwork + Compelling Story = Enjoyment for All AgesByDee ArrTop Contributor: Harry PotterTOP 100 REVIEWERon May 17, 2018Format: Kindle Edition|Verified Purchase It is seldom that one finds a treasure that has the power to delight young and old readers at the same time. Uvi Poznansky delivers with an enchanting story enriched by the original artwork that accompanies it. The dazzling watercolors are guaranteed to fascinate children while adults will find themselves lost in the sensitive emotions that wind their way in and out of the story of a child and a tree.

The author takes poetive license with her rhyming scheme, and I loved the way the rhythm of the poetry wins out over the chosen words. The Gothic fonts match the mood of the book, with sweeping loops that mimic the tree and leaves. I found the idea of writing the description on a leaf drawing very original. If you are reading the book on a Kindle Fire and find the text difficult to read, you can bring up a box with normal text with a simple double-click.

This is a nice, simple tale with a learning opportunity at the end. Five stars.

A Father's Love

Just discovered a new Audible review of my historical fiction book, The Edge of Revolt:
Amazon CustomerBeliever
825 reviews    776 helpful votes

The Edge of RevoltThe David Chronicles, Book 3By: Uvi PoznanskyNarrated by: Bob Sterry A Father's Love Overall  ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
    4 out of 5 starsPerformance  ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
    5 out of 5 starsStory  ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
    4 out of 5 starsReviewed: 05-12-18
I got this story via audiobook boom and this is my voluntary review. First off I would like to say the narrator did a great job. King David is brought face to face with many of the mistakes he made in having sons by many women. This is historical fiction but based on fact. Sons turning on father but father never stops loving sons. I did not listen to the first two but this one is still a good stand alone.

Interesting Addition to a Familiar Tale

Just found this great review by Top 100 reviewer Dee Arr for my novella, A Favorite Son:

5.0 out of 5 stars Interesting Addition to a Familiar TaleByDee ArrTop Contributor: Harry PotterTOP 100 REVIEWERon May 13, 2018Format: Kindle Edition|Verified Purchase This is a variation of a Bible story, fleshed out and with full rein given to various degrees of motivation. Author Uvi Poznansky tells the story of Jacob and Esau in a modern setting, allowing her to bring a new awareness to the thoughts and reasoning of Jacob (Yankle in Ms. Poznansky’s tale). Diving into the inner workings of a character’s mind is one of the author’s strengths.

The story is a mixture of the story we are familiar with coupled with enough indications for us to know this is a modern tale (automobile and Rolls Royce being two of the many clues provided). Updating the story to present times allows the author the ability to inject her own voice, permitting a deeper look into the internal issues that can plague a family. The jump from a few passages to a novella provided a quick and interesting read. Five stars.

My blue period

I'm into my blue period now, painting watercolors with blue ink. Here's a new watercolor painting, still untitled. Inspired by a bone, I painted it without plotting in pencil, wet-on-wet technique, and reflected its shapes in the background, as if seen on a flexible mirrored surface.

Beautiful, Poignant, Powerful

Donna Fasano is a USA Today Bewstselling author, a three-time winner of the HOLT Medallion, a CataRomance Reviewers Choice Award winner for Best Single Title, a Desert Rose Golden Quill Award finalist, a Golden Heart finalist, and a two-time winner of Best Romance of the Year given by BigAl's Books & Pals Review Blog. Her books have sold 4 million copies worldwide and have been published in two dozen languages.. I'm thrilled to find her review for my WWII Spy Thriller, Marriage before Death:

5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful, Poignant, PowerfulBy~DJ Faz~on May 10, 2018Format: Kindle Edition|Verified Purchase An achingly sweet love between a man and a woman, danger and desperation set amid a ghastly war, beautiful, poignant, powerful—all of these describe Marriage Before Death. I was touched by Lenny’s deep affection for Natasha, shocked by the horrors of war, mesmerized by the author’s alluring descriptions of 1944 France. This story is both bold and riveting. Although Marriage Before Death stands on its own, I recommend reading books 1-4 of the series in order to get the most from this fascinating novel.

What can I tell you about my mother?

What more can I say, son? What can I tell you about my mother? She was a woman of many charms. Her clothes were striking, her footwear unconventional—but her most prized possession was a long-sleeved goatskin coat. It had a different feel, a different touch than the hide of a kid in our herds, because it came from afar, from the slopes of the snow-covered mountains in the North, where the goats, I am told, have fine, long, human-like hair. Why my mother had brought this coat with her, why she kept it all these years, I will never know. Your guess is as good as mine. It was of no use here, in the scorching heat of this wasteland. Perhaps it reminded her of her childhood in that distant country, Harran, where the air was cooler, and the sunlight more slanted. She would often lament how far out of reach that place was. Out of reach, getting more remote and more remarkable with time, like a memory of youth. The land there, she said, was more fertile, and the language more refined. According to her, it was the cradle of civilization. Most winters, there was an abundance of rain, and the mud-brick homes there were taller, better insulated and less given to the wind than our flimsy tents.Yes, she treasured that coat, and would let no one—not even me—touch it. If there was any mending to be done, she would do it herself, which caused the maidservants to raise their eyebrows. It was kept safely in her chest, hidden from the eyes of the world, until the day came when she ripped it to shreds. I will never forget it. If I close my eyes, close them tight, then—in an instant—I can see it happening again, right here in front of me. 
Jacob in A Favorite Son


★ Love reading? Treat yourself to a gift ★A Favorite SonEbook: Kindle ★ Nook ★ Apple ★ Kobo ★ Google Play ★ SmashwordsPaperback: Amazon ★ Barnes&Noble Audiobook: iTunes ★ Amazon ★ Audible
"With masterful storytelling and rich, poetic prose that feeds all of the senses, she has breathed life into an old tale, giving it layers and depth which gives the reader a thought to pause and think."  - Michelle Bellon, Author