East County Magazine
Book review:The Mission at Home: Navigating Military Assignments, TRICARE, Education, Benefits and Everyday Life with Your Child on the Autism Spectrum
Printer-friendly version Book by Jaime B. & Elizabeth Tracy Parent Reviewed by Pennell Paugh April 20, 2026 (San Diego) – Local authors Jaime and Elizabeth Parent have written a major reference for persons who have disabilities, with particular focus on those who have autism. While the book specifically addresses the services and needs of families in any of the military
Review of Ethan Talks to Animals: Eat Your Food Fussy Filo, by Nico Waters
Printer-friendly version Reviewed by Pennell Paugh April 20, 2026 (San Diego) — San Diego author Nico Waters has written a series of books for children. In Ethan Talks to Animals, second grader Ethan can talk to animals. Together with his dog, Chewie, Ethan helps their next-door neighbor’s cat eat his new diet. Printer-friendly version
Sarah Foles: A Short Story Collection by Travis Lee provides rich social commentary
Reviewed by Pennell Paugh March 22, 2026 (San Diego) — San Diego author Travis Lee has released a collection of short stories currently displayed in…
Irish Secrets and Lies by Debbie Wastling
Book by Debbie Wastling Reviewed by Pennell Paugh March 18, 2026 (San Diego) – Irish Secrets and Lies by Southern California author Debbie Wastling is…
‘I’m Adopted’ by Cynthia R. Gould is the cat’s meow
Reviewed by Pennell Paugh March 16, 2026 (San Diego County) — San Diego author Cynthia R. Gould has released her second chidren’s book, and second…
Cognitive behavioral therapy: healing through poetry
CBT Self-Therapy Poetry: A Right Brain Approach to Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and DBT Self-Therapy Poetry: A Right-Brain Approach to Dialectical Behavioral Therapy Books by Dharlene…
Ethan Talks to Animals: Eat Your Food Fussy Filo
Book by Nico Waters Reviewed by Pennell Paugh March 12, 2026 (San Diego) — San Diegan Nico Waters has written a series of children’s books….
Ethan Talks to Animals: Eat Your Food Fussy Filo
Book by Nico Waters Reviewed by Pennell Paugh March 12, 2026 (San Diego) — San Diegan Nico Waters has written a series of children’s books….
The Bloodstones of Power: The Norwesis Chronicles, Book 3 by Alain Lescart
Reviewed by Pennell Paugh February 25, 2026 (San Diego) — Alain Lescart, a resident of San Diego, entered his latest fairy story in the San…
The Bloodstones of Power: The Norwesis Chronicles, Book 3 by Alain Lescart
Reviewed by Pennell Paugh February 25, 2026 (San Diego) — Alain Lescart, a resident of San Diego, entered his latest fairy story in the San…
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Support community news in the public interest! As nonprofit news, we rely on donations from the public to fund our reporting — not special interests. Please donate to sustain East County Magazine’s local reporting and/or wildfire alerts at https://www.eastcountymedia.org/donate to help us keep people safe and informed across our region.
YOU GOT THIS: EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO MASTER AUTHENTIC PUBLIC SPEAKING
Printer-friendly versionReviewed by Pennell Paugh September 21, 2022 (San Diego) — As an authority on public speaking, San Diego author Lisa Kleiman shares thoughtful and thorough advice for any time you might need to speak to a group of people, even at funerals in You Got This: Everything You Need to Master Authentic Public Speaking. The book helps anyone
SUNBELT PUBLICATIONS, INC. LEAVES EL CAJON
Printer-friendly versionBy Pennell Paugh September 5, 2022 (El Cajon) — Sunbelt Publications, Inc.which has been located in El Cajon for 38 years, has moved its publishing headquarters and warehouse to Chula Vista. It is under new ownership. Long-time owners Lowell and Diana Lindsay, upon retiring, urged their employees to takeover the business. It is now owned by three long-standing workers: Lisa Gulick and Maria Groschup-Black, and Maria’s wife, Nichole. Sunbelt
‘I DID IT’ : GINA CHAMPION-CAIN EXPLAINS EPIC PONZI DOWNFALL TO LA JOLLA AUTHORS
Printer-friendly versionBy Ken Stone, Times of San Diego, a member of the San Diego Online News Association Photo: La Jolla couple Barbara Bry and Neil Senturia with their new book on Gina Champion-Cain. Times of San Diego photo illustration September 2, 2022 (La Jolla) – Gina Champion-Cain hasn’t read her own book. The former toast-of-the-town businesswoman, whose San Diego career became toast, is
REVIEW: RESET BY SARINA DAHLAN
Printer-friendly versionReview by Pennell Paugh August 27, 2022 (San Diego) – Reset, a romantic science fiction story by San Diego author Sarina Dahlan, is thought-provoking. Reset will make you cherish your life’s loves and losses—allowing them to give your life deep meaning and purpose. The story begins after the Last War destroyed most of the world. The Planner, who watched
RIVER WOMAN RIVER DEMON WEAVES A SPELLBINDING TALE
Printer-friendly versionReviewed by Pennell Paugh August 11, 2022 (San Diego) – River Woman River Demon by San Diego author Jennifer Givhan weaves together the threads of folk magick, with personal and cultural empowerment in a first-person spellbinding psychological thriller. (The term `magick’ is used by spiritual believers in in supernatural powers, to differentiate from `magic,’ or staged magicians’ tricks.) Eva Santos Moon is a Chicana artist who
WAREHOUSE DREAMS: A LOCAL AUTHOR’S DELIGHTFUL FANTASY NOVEL
Printer-friendly versionBook by Theresa Halversen Reviewed by Pennell Paugh July 21, 2022 (San Diego) — This delightful fantasy by San Diego author Theresa Halversen is a fast, fun read from the first page to the last. The story in Warehouse Dreams occurs in a world where the quality of each person’s genes reflects their parents’ wealth. Breds have the best
FRAZZLEBRAIN: BREAK FREE FROM ANXIETY, ANGER, AND STRESS USING ADVANCED DISCOVERIES IN NEUROPSYCHOLOGY
Printer-friendly versionBook by Gina Simmons Schneider PhD Reviewed by Pennell Paugh June 26, 2022 (San Diego) — While we often cannot control stressful life events, we can learn to control our brain’s response to those circumstances and reduce our suffering. Relief from worry and stress can be found through powerful techniques grounded in clinical experience and neuroscience described in Frazzlebrain.
THE THIRD SECRET: PROPHECY PROMPTS PAPAL INTRIGUE
Printer-friendly versionReviewed by Pennell Paugh June 9, 2022 (San Diego) – The Third Secret by Marco De Sio combines historical fiction and political intrigue. The tale is told through the life of an Italian immigrant, Big Al. His story takes us from a small fishing village in Italy to the United States, through two world wars, and into intrigue within
MYSTERY AT THE BLUE SEA COTTAGE: A TRUE STORY OF MURDER IN SAN DIEGO’S JAZZ AGE
Printer-friendly versionReviewed by Pennell Paugh May 28, 2022 (San Diego) – Mystery at the Blue Sea Cottage: A True Story of Murder in San Diego’s Jazz Age by James Stewart is a wonderful book for history buffs. The author investigates a real case during the 1920s. A jazz dancer’s body turns up on a San Diego beach. Twenty-year-old Fritzie Mann
THE COLONIZED AND THE SCRAMBLE FOR AFRICA: LA MESA AUTHOR’S TRUE STORY DEPICTS STRUGGLES IN KENYA
Printer-friendly versionReviewed by Pennell Paugh Author to hold book signing at Julian Library on May 10 at 1 p.m. May 5, 2022 (La Mesa) — The Colonized and the Scramble for Africa, the first of The Colonized series, provides true stories of how the author, Wanjirũ Warama, her family and community lived in abject poverty on British colonial farms in Kenya. Warama, a resident of La Mesa, is
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Support community news in the public interest! As nonprofit news, we rely on donations from the public to fund our reporting — not special interests. Please donate to sustain East County Magazine’s local reporting and/or wildfire alerts at https://www.eastcountymedia.org/donate to help us keep people safe and informed across our region.
East County Magazine
Pretty Happy: healthy ways to love your body
Printer-friendly versionBook by Kate Hudson Review by Heidi Hope October 5, 2025 (San Diego) – Pretty Happy is a New York Times best-selling self-help book written by my favorite actress, Kate Hudson. She thoughtfully researched each area and provided a variety of questions to ask, as well as suggestions to reference and ideas for carrying out each lesson to take
Lucas and Emily’s Food Bank Adventure by Dave Grunenwald
Printer-friendly versionReviewed by Pennell Paugh September 28, 2025 (San Diego) – Lucas and Emily’s Food Bank Adventure is a children’s book for 5- to 10-year-olds. It is designed to inspire children and their families to volunteer in community programs that help those in need. In the book, two friends and a grandparent visit a group that make and deliver sandwiches. Next,
Author Tanya Harris hosts book signing Sept. 21 at Grossmont Center to benefit domestic violence survivors
Printer-friendly versionEast County News Service September 5, 2025 (La Mesa) — Local author, domestic violence survivor and advocate Tanya Harris will host a powerful community book signing and awareness event on Sunday, September 21, 2025, from 11:00 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the gazebo at Grossmont Center mall (5500 Grossmont Center Dr., La Mesa). The community-focused event is designed to
Blood in the Water: an A.J. Hawke legal thriller
Printer-friendly versionNovel by Donald McInnis Reviewed by Pennell Paugh September 4, 2025 (San Diego) —Blood in the Water, though fictional, exposes a flaw in the United States’ tripartite federal government structure as established in the Constitution. The third branch of government, the Judiciary, cannot enforce its rulings, even when those rulings are necessary for protecting an individual citizen’s rights or the constitutional powers of