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THE
CELTIC HEART tells the
adventurous, epic tale of spirit, love,
loss, and the difficult choices made by
three generations of the Brigantes clan.
These Celts once lived off the coast of
North Wales on an island named Mona mam
Cymru (“Mother of Wales”). Known for its
fine horses, this place was the granary of
the Celtic nations as well as the last
Druidic stronghold.
Follow the passionate
lives Brigantes clan and the tumultuous
events leading up to the Roman Invasion in
A.D. 61. As their tribal way of life is
threatened, the courageous natures of the
Chieftain Solomon, the Druidess Saturnalia,
and the young warriors Kordelina and Aonghus
are tested by the universal questions of
good and evil. Filled with ritual dream
images, romance, and intrigue, The Celtic
Heart will take you on an unforgettable
journey into the history, lives, and hearts
of the legendary Celts. |
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PERIHELION
“per-&-'hEl-y&n:
New Latin, from peri- + Greek
hElios\sun:the point in the path of a
celestial body (as a planet) that is nearest
to the sun –”
Perihelion is the
story of three people whose different worlds
collide in the idyllic times before World
War I. The novel begins in 1910 and spans
the years leading up to 1916 and the Western
Front. Padraic Hennessey is an Irish
merchant seaman who later becomes a soldier.
Mimi Picou is a part-slave New
Orleans mistress who dreams of one day
crossing the lines of race and gender
prejudice to become a fine artist. Robert
Lemieux is white gentry. He is appointed
to senate at a time when the discovery of
Louisiana oil can turn a man of privilege
into a king.
At the turn of the last
century the bevy of Creole mansions along
Basin Street in New Orleans, Louisiana, were
transformed into some of the most glamorous
legalized brothels in the United States.
Now, immortalized as Storyville, this area
was the cradle of jazz music as well as a
hub for illegal heroin trade. The outbreak
of World War I in 1914 brought an end to
this bawdy era while abruptly terminating
the peace and prosperity of the Victorian
age. Brutality and destruction shattered the
innocence and faith of people who suddenly
realized that their world was perilously
fragile.
It is June 1910.
Twenty-four-year-old Padraic Hennessey
is the rebellious youngest son of a
prominent Dublin financier. He has just
signed on for a two year stint on a merchant
ship, preferring to experience adventure at
sea over the obligations of marriage and
medical school. His travels take him to New
Orleans during Mardi Gras and a freak winter
heat wave. One sweltering night out on the
town, he visits the enticing but volatile
red light district. There he meets Mimi
Picou. She is the Octoroon niece of a
Basin Street madam. As was the custom of the
day, Mimi was sold as a virgin at the tender
age of ten to Robert Lemieux, the
well-bred young heir of a family of white
planters. Inhibited by tribal traditions and
choosing a marriage of pedigree to his
second cousine, Robert has still continued
to love and provide well for Mimi over their
sixteen year alliance. He has also educated
her; a luxury for a woman who is one-eight
African blood. While Mimi loves him deeply,
her grief over never becoming his wife as
well as the still birth of their only child
prompts her to escape the entanglements of
being a kept woman. Her subsequent role in a
botched heroin deal sends her into Padraic’s
arms and triggers irreversible consequences
that nearly cost them their lives.
By the summer of 1916
Padraic is in the Royal Army Medical Corps.
He is on the Western Front trying to survive
the troglodyte conditions of trench warfare.
A commissioned officer, he sees action in
two horrific, but pivotal allied offensives
at Thiepval Ridge and Schwaben Redoubt in
the Somme river valley. Mimi is an artist
living on the left bank of Paris. Robert is
now a well-established Louisiana senator. He
comes to France to meet with allied leaders
on President Wilson’s behalf. Once there,
happenstance reunites him with Mimi. He
subsequently seeks to win back her love and
rescue her from the devastation of war torn
Europe.
Perihelion
examines the perplexities of true love and
personal redemption through the risks each
character must take to fulfill their destiny
and triumph over an outside force of which
there is no control, the Great War. |
LITTLE
FREDDIE AT THE KENTUCKY DERBY
By Kathryn Cocquyt
Illustrated by Sylvia Corbett
Jacket Illustration painted by Chip Pace
128 pp. 7 x 9 14 Illus.
ISBN: 1-56554-159-6 $9.95 pb original
Pelican Publishing Co.
1-888-5-PELICAN
“Little Freddie is a story about having the
courage to make your dreams come true,” says
author Kathryn Cocquyt. “With enough desire,
hard work, and care for those around you,
even the loftiest of dreams can be
achieved.” The story of Little Freddie, a
Kentucky Derby racehorse, teaches children
the valuable lesson of believing in one’s
self and discovering one’s inner strength.
Cocquyt maintains that horses have a world
all their own, where people are simply
incidental. Using this approach, combined
with her love of the animals and her
experience as a stable hand and horse
breeder, the author created Little Freddie
at the Kentucky Derby. This delightful,
character-building tale for children ages
8-10 is the story of a horse who wins not
because he is necessarily better than the
others but because he believes he can.
Cocquyt started writing this book after the
death of the real Little Freddie’s mother
(Romantic Myth), desiring in some way to
change the horse’s destiny. Having completed
the book, Cocquyt is able to say, “My vision
of them is as I have written it.”
Little Freddie learns lessons in trust,
respect, and humility as he travels from
stable to stable and race to race. Leaving
his mother and friends to pursue his goal of
being the greatest racehorse ever, Little
Freddie becomes more disciplined and builds
confidence in himself.
LITTLE
FREDDIE’S LEGACY
By Kathryn Cocquyt
Illustrated by Sylvia Corbett
152 pp. 7 x 9 16 Illus.
ISBN: 1-56554-000-X $13.95
Pelican Publishing Co.
1-888-5-PELICAN
“This mini-biography of a racehorse named
Freddie and his offspring Baroness
interweaves themes of compassion, patience,
determination, and hard work into a reality
that is at times sad and at times
triumphant.” --Children’s Literature
Kathryn Cocquyt’s character, the racehorse
Little Freddie, certainly became a legend in
her first children’s book. The anticipated
success of Cocquyt’s second title about his
successor and daughter is closing in on his
popularity. In the new book, Little
Freddie’s Legacy, Freddie has just returned
to the pastures of his parents a proud
Kentucky Derby victor. He soon realizes that
there is more to life than races as he falls
in love with the beautiful blind mare,
Rosie, and sires his first foal, a filly
named Baroness.
As Freddie’s daughter, Baroness is destined
to continue in his racing legacy. But early
on she suffers an emotional defeat. At the
Keeneland horse auction, she fails to
impress a buyer during her first showing.
The experience is one she is hard-pressed to
forget and causes her to lack
self-confidence. Baroness learns to face a
number of challenges when she is bought by a
young girl and taken to Ireland. Young
Tiffany teaches Baroness with compassion,
training her to run with the reins, not with
a whip. With the help of her young owner,
the foal of a Derby winner becomes what she
has always dreamed of being—a
championship-grade racehorse.
The moment of glory comes as Baroness climbs
the ranks of the Irish racing circuit to
compete in the acclaimed race, the Oaks.
Still fighting her lack of confidence,
injuries, and the fierce competition of the
Emerald Isle’s biggest horse race, Baroness
learns that the price of being a legacy is
far greater than just living up to a name.
Little Freddie’s Legacy is a fun and
exciting adventure story. It teaches
children how to achieve their dreams and
gain self-confidence through hard work and
patience. The first-place finishes and
last-place realities are positive examples
of overcoming difficulties. |
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