Books published by Amador Publishers, LLC

Author-artist Zelda Leah Gatuskin explores the nature of time, human perception, and the social forms we establish to manage our inner and outer realities in this creative non-fiction journal. An introductory section describes her motivation and process. The writings which follow range from impressionistic, stream-of-consciousness styles to more linear works, interspersed with poetry, doodles, collages, and parts of dreams.Gatuskin first published this thought-provoking collection of art, poetry and prose in a limited artist''s edition in 2003 by producing a few dozen copies in her studio. It was converted to this trade paperback edition in 2009. Like her earlier collection, the highly praised Ancestral Notes: A Family Dream Journal, Time and Temperature is a journey of self-discovery in which Gatuskin addresses a wide range of subjects with compassion, humor, honesty and creativity. The "big questions" she tackled when she began this work in the 1990s are forever with us, and perhaps even more timely as the years go by. In the author''s own words, writing about her process: "My thoughts then, as now, were concerned with the pace and complexity of modern life, humankind''s relationship to nature, what we believe and why and if it''s true. Time-and-Temperature is my shorthand for the deep human need to measure, to pinpoint, to fix ourselves in an inherently fluid reality. Are we getting it right? Might we stop a moment to think and observe? Is this even possible amidst the daily barrage of pop-culture ad-speak, political rhetoric, and our mass media''s insane blend of pacification and fear-mongering?"Gatuskin''s sincere questions, serious ideas, unusual art, and liberating wordplay will inspire and guide readers as they contemplate their own observations, assumptions and beliefs about life, work, art and society. From the book: "When we notice where our vocabulary comes from, and where our thoughts come from, and where our fears come from, our likes and dislikes, we can begin to contemplate change."

Myth and Mortality: Testing the Stories, by Harry Willson, relates the author''s field of expertise, that is, mythology, to the field of Death and Dying. Years of counseling the sick and dying, and years of searching with students for answers to life''s big questions, have helped him with this task. Informed by personal experience and scholarly study, Willson challenges readers to examine the ideas and beliefs they may have accepted by default, and to make a conscious choice to replace all that breed guilt, hatred and fear with those that bring joy, compassion, and enthusiasm for life. He suggests that fear or denial of death is the result of our unwillingness to set aside ego. The actual work of preparing this book was triggered by the way Willson''s parents died: his mother suddenly and easily, doing her self-appointed task which was caring for her ailing husband, and his father slowly and miserably, not believing in the end what he had so assiduously taught others all his life. "His mythology let him down," Willson says. The first twenty-six pages of the book tell that dramatic story -- "Two Deaths One Summer."Then follow essays entitled, "The Denial of Death," "Our Aging Population," and "We Need a Mythology. The last one introduces the main body of the book, which works through thirty-two different beliefs or metaphors dealing with death, and gives frank evaluations of how helpful they may be for persons confronting death. They are arranged according to the source of the myths under analysis.Willson deals first with Stories from Infantile Wishing. Then he proceeds to stories from Contemporary Media, from Socio-Political Movements and from Practical Observation. His most striking innovation is the distinction between Stories from Religion, which are designed to preserve Ego, and Stories from Philosophy, which enable us to transcend Ego.The book ends with an essay, "Whose Task Is This?" in which the author challenges each reader to be in some way ready to be responsible for his or her own departure. Ego is the problem.

Both History and Fate are catching up to Esmarelda and George Drumm, who have taken liberties with Time in order to stay together. Now, fleeing the Goathorn Mountains after their escapades with The Two Magicians, they find that their lives have been turned upside-down.Across the Spiral in Caliente, New Mexico, Robyn's universe is also shaken. Her metaphysical shop, The Lost Unicorn, is still serving as a way station between worlds, and the mammoth cottonwood tree in back has become an actual portal. Mr. Brooks, the Emissary, and others she thought she would never see again after last year's Harmony Convention debacle, resurface.At The Top Of The World, Weaver Oshi contemplates the tangled threads of Fate that have brought together more than one pair of Time-crossed lovers. When all of the Witches', Gypsies' and New Agers' magic has played out, where -- and when -- will everyone end up?Here is the passionate, mind-blowing, music-and-dance-filled resolution to the Time Dancer's conundrum.

Can one really navigate the vast sea of Time? Celtic fiddler George Drumm is intrigued by symbols etched on the cairns of his remote Sumweir Isle home by ancient Wanderer tribes. The closed double spiral is said to depict the alternating timelines of two parallel worlds. When George learns that there are still Wanderer peoples crisscrossing the great continent, he sets out to find them and learn their secrets. Across the ocean, George soon finds the Wanderers and woos them with his music. He travels with one group after another, at last joining a Gypsy caravan far inland. When time-dancing Gypsy Esmarelda drops in on them from the Future, romance blossoms. But the couple is out of sync in Time. Esmarelda is on a mission to rescue her cat Audy, presumably stolen by her nemesis, Malcom the Master Seer. Her quest takes her, and then George, to the parallel, frighteningly un-magical Alternate World. But in the dusty town of Caliente, New Mexico, the lovers find a friend in Robyn, proprietor of The Lost Unicorn metaphysical shop. As Esmarelda and George leapfrog across the Spiral Map of Time in search of lost cats, missing satchels and each other, they share glimpses of their enchanted universe with Robyn, and confirm what she has always suspected: There is a world of Magic just the other side of our dreams.The Spiral Map of Time Trilogy details the romantic, magical adventures of the time-traveling Gypsy dancer Esmarelda, and her colorful crew. In Book 1 Esmarelda launches a search that takes her to the unresolved past and into the Alternate World where she is aided by Robyn at The Lost Unicorn gift shop. Esmarelda finds love along the way, but can she keep it? In Book 2 "The Two Magicians, from nowhere to forever" two Master Seers hold the key to colorful carpets that enable Robyn to dance across the Spiral Map of Time into the magical parallel world. This time, Esmarelda must come to Robyn's rescue. In Book 3 "The Ten Years: double or nothing" to be released in Spring 2020, both Past and Future catch up to Esmarelda. Fleeing the Goathorn Mountains after the Two Magicians escapade, she finds that her life has been turned upside-down. Across the Spiral, Robyn's universe is also shaken. The Lost Unicorn, must again serve as a way station between alternating worlds.Praise for The Time Dancer:A twisted, clever, spellbinding fairy tale for the 1990's. Gatuskin creates a vivid and bizarre universe, certain to satisfy the appetites of enthusiasts of such authors as Lewis Carroll and J.R.R. Tolkien. -- Michael Bush, Manhattan Theatre ClubGatuskin weaves a delightfully magical story which tricked me into thinking she was from another time, or maybe a Gypsy in a past life. I'll never look at my cats the same again. --Lisa Law, author, FLASHING ON THE SIXTIESAs a teacher of Belly Dance and its esoteric significance, I would highly recommend that my students read this magical tale. --Swari Hhan

Stemming from the author's involvement with the Humanist Society of New Mexico and the Feminist Caucus of the American Humanist Association, these essays include strong appeals for women's equality, social justice and economic fairness for all, support of fine arts and media education, and rejection of dehumanizing violence in screen entertainment. The collection is introduced with an adaptation of a talk presented in 2010, Art and Religion and Science and Reason, followed by 52 essays selected from Zelda Gatuskin's articles for the HSNM Newsletter (2011-2014) and her blog, The Tree (2012-1016). Topics include modern life and human history, art and science, philosophy and religion, pop culture and mass media, money and politics, our dealings with each other, and our relationship to nature. Gatuskin argues for passage of the Equal Rights Amendment, which would grant U.S. women equal status to men under our Constitution, and for a renewed commitment by all people and nations to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the text of which is included as an appendix to the book. Causes aside, Gatuskin concludes that getting along with each other has little to do with what we say we believe (or don't believe), and everything to do with genuine respect.

Continuing their adventures from The Time Dancer escapade, Esmarelda, George Drumm, and Sylvestor the cat have their hands (and paws) full with with unwelcoming Witches, shape-shifting Familiars, half-mad Magicians, and inquisitive New-Agers."The participants were like children to me, harmlessly playing at games they knew nothing about. I loved them and pitied them. Poor souls had no idea how many turns of the Spiral lay ahead before they would turn the corner to reclaim this world of magic they vaguely remember and deeply desire. They felt close to it in Piper Canyon, and indeed they were. Uncomfortably close."The coming of the Summer Solstice Harmony Convention to Piper Canyon has increased the leakage between parallel timelines, there below The Top of The World where Future meets Past, and our rational world turns into a world of magic. With Robyn and her belly dance troupe joining the Harmony Convention on one side, and time-traveling Gypsies Esmarelda and George Drumm approaching the mystical Goathorn Mountains on the other, Brooks, Minder of the Knot and the Loophole, must work valiantly to keep everyone where they belong and prevent Time from unraveling. Before he is done, he will expose the dark history of the five sisters of the Goathorns Coven, the recent transgressions of their transmogriphying Familiars, the secret lives of the Two Magicians, and his own deepest desires.