Author Archives: John Walters

Book Review: Lara: The Untold Love Story and the Inspiration for Doctor Zhivago by Anna Pasternak

At the beginning, I need to make two things clear: this is an excellent book, and I almost couldn’t bring myself to read it because of the packaging. I realized by the time I had read a dozen pages that … Continue reading

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A Second Look: Sunflower: A Novel

A sequel of sorts to The Misadventures of Mama Kitchen:  In early 1970 a new era, the Age of Aquarius, seems to be dawning. Penny, who adopted the name of Sunflower on the way to the Woodstock Music and Arts … Continue reading

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Vision of a Bright Flower in a Remote Jungle: An Encouragement to Self-Publishers

Let’s go on a journey together, you and I, far, far from our familiar habitat, to the most remote corner of the Earth. Where do you envision it? Deep in the Amazon jungle, perhaps? In the remote wastes of the … Continue reading

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A Second Look: The Misadventures of Mama Kitchen

My second novel:  Sarah Tabitha Jones, a twenty-year-old fascinated by the youth culture of the late 1960s, leaves her middle-class home and wanders to a wilderness commune and then to the Haight/Ashbury in search of truth. On the way she … Continue reading

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Book Review: How to Change Your Mind: What the New Science of Psychedelics Teaches Us About Consciousness, Dying, Addiction, Depression, and Transcendence by Michael Pollan

This fascinating book focuses on the new research that has been done in the last decade or so in the field of psychedelics. On the way, the author visits various institutions where studies are being carried out and interviews scientists, … Continue reading

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Book Review: Rendezvous With Rama by Arthur C. Clarke

I never read this book back in the early seventies when I was absorbing a lot of science fiction and attempting to make some sort of impact as a science fiction writer – even though it was highly acclaimed and … Continue reading

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Book Review: Best American Travel Writing 2016 Edited by Bill Bryson and Jason Wilson

I’ve been wondering lately: if most of what I write is science fiction and fantasy, why don’t I read more of it? I don’t keep up with even a fair percentage of what comes out in the genre every year. … Continue reading

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Book Review: Nebula Award Stories Six Edited by Clifford D. Simak

Reading this book fascinated me on several levels. First of all, it’s an old Pocket Book edition that retailed when it came out in 1972 for 95 cents. I bought it in excellent condition at a science fiction convention for … Continue reading

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A Second Look: America Redux: Impressions of the United States After Thirty-Five Years Abroad

A memoir of my culture shock after living for many years overseas. Here’s the back cover copy:  In 1976 John Walters left the United States in search of adventure and literary inspiration. He lived for many years in India, Bangladesh, Italy, … Continue reading

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Book Review: The Way of the Writer: Reflections on the Art and Craft of Storytelling by Charles Johnson

I came across this book while browsing a shelf of materials about the Pacific Northwest or by Pacific Northwest writers and filmmakers. I’m almost always up for interesting books on writing, although I had not heard of Charles Johnson. It … Continue reading

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