Ungolden Silence
by Lydia E. Brew
Beatrice James and Elaine Wilson work for a marketing firm in Houston, Texas. Life hasn't been easy for Elaine as she copes with her disability, and at the same time manages to function in her everyday life. The two coworkers and friends jump at the opportunity to help run a Disabled Awareness Campaign when Mrs. Stevens, from Washington D.C., calls the ladies up and pitches the idea. Elaine agrees to chair the campaign and Beatrice agrees to be second chair. Both women agree to meet with Mrs. Stevens in Washington to get the campaign set-up and running. All goes well until Thomas Paige enter the scene.
Mrs. Stevens herself is excited to meet, for the first time, the dapper and charming Thomas Paige, who is a well-known community leader. It doesn't take long for the charm to evaporate and Thomas to begin to shed his wool, revealing the wolf underneath the sheep's clothing. Elaine begins to sense that there's something more to Thomas than what he's presenting, but will it be too late when she finds out for certain?
Ungolden Silence will have you peeling off what's underneath a man's exterior, before peeling back the sheets.
Book Reviews for Ungolden Silence by Lydia E. Brew
MUST READ WITH SENSITIVE ISSUES
Reviewed by Misty Iputi
Ungolden Silence is one powerful book. It may be a work of fiction, however it has some real issues. The issues are to be addressed in the book. This book does give a look at the strength of Christian faith has in dealing with the problems. If I could give this more than 5 stars it would be well worth it.
Emotional Read
Reviewed by My Cozie Corner Book Reviews
"Ungolden Silence" is an easy read, but hard read that is well written and very emotional with a topic that needs more recognition. A recommended read to all women.
Book Like No Other
Reviewed by Mz Tiffany Divine Reviews
I just finished reviewing Ungolden Silence by Lydia E. Brew and I honestly can say it’s not like no other book I have read before. In Ungolden Silence you will meet Beatrice who will take you on a world wind journey of being raped and how it not only affects her but other’s around her. Lydia brings emotions out that you may never knew existed. I was immediately drawn into the characters and could feel the pain that some of them were going through. Lydia E. Brew does an awesome job with this book and I look forward to reading more by her.
Let the Victim Be Heard
Reviewed by Teresa Beasley
Ungolden Silence is an informative book about disability, rape with a hint of racism. Ungolden Silence brings out different emotions because it deals with a sensitive topic. Any type of abuse causes a difficult change in the victims’ lives. Rape is a violent act, mainly against women, that leaves a lasting effect on the victims. This was expressed throughout this book and needs to be read by all women young and old.
Powerful, Provoking and Inspiring
Reviewed by Beth Cutwright
Wow. I just finished reading Ungolden Silence. Usually I take a day or two to mull a book over before I try to write my review. But this book was so compelling, I felt the need to share my thoughts immediately, while they were fresh and burning in my soul. This book was definitely enlightening, powerful, painful and emotional. My emotions were totally invested, probably because the subject of rape is so frightening. If we can learn to discuss this type of material, I think we would all be better for it.
Excerpt from Ungolden Silence by Lydia E. Brew
As the four talked for an hour or so, Mr. Thomas Paige did not take his eyes off Beatrice. He ignored Elaine completely. He would often sit by Beatrice and, after a few minutes, she would move. Elaine could see that Mr. Paige liked Beatrice, but she didn’t return the feeling and was uncomfortable and a bit irritated with his attention. When Mrs. Stevens offered to show Elaine the baby grand piano in her music room, Mr. Paige and Beatrice were left alone. Beatrice decided she needed to get a few things straight.
“Look, you seem to be a nice guy, but I’m not interested. You’re making me very uncomfortable,” Beatrice added.
Mr. Paige did not seem to hear her. “Alone at last, Miss James,” he said in a soft, gentle voice as he stroked her face.
The second that Beatrice felt his fingers on her face, her anger turned to fear. She did not want to let Mr. Paige know that he frightened her.
“I did not give you permission to touch me! Listen, I’m not interested in you in any way. Please, just leave me alone!” Beatrice said angrily.
The pleasantness was gone and her teeth were clenched. However, before she finished her statement, Mr. Paige had his hands on her buttocks. In that instance Beatrice remembered when she was sixteen. It was a hot summer day and she was lying on the sofa half asleep. She awakened to her uncle kissing and caressing her face. He did not stop there. He unzipped his pants and began to slide his hand and was pulling down her panties when Judy came into the room. Beatrice’s mind came to the present.
“Oh now, I think that we can have a good time this week,” he said in the same manner as before.
“I said no! Now get your hands off me!” Beatrice snatched her body away from his reach, knocking his shades off. The man’s breath had a faint odor of alcohol. His eyes were glassy red. However, Beatrice did not take notice. She was so shocked from the memory of what her uncle did to her, and the fact that this man was making a move on her was overwhelming.
Mr. Paige returned to his seat and put his shades back on his face only because he heard Mrs. Stevens and Elaine returning. When Elaine walked in and sat down, she picked up on some strange vibes from Beatrice. There was a strange look in her colleague’s eyes. This troubled Elaine because she knew something was upsetting Beatrice.
This man had just made unwanted sexual advances to Beatrice, but she told Elaine and Mrs. Stevens that she had a headache.
( Continued... )
The audio reading your experienced today was performed by award-winning author EN Joy for Lydia.
© 2014 All rights reserved. Book excerpt reprinted by permission of the author, Lydia E. Brew. Do not reproduce, copy or use without the author's written permission. This excerpt is used for promotional purposes only.
Excerpt from Ungolden Silence by Lydia E. Brew
Shara stepped to the microphone and said, “Good evening ladies and gentlemen. Attitudes must change if this problem is going to be solved. I went to Washington the second that I heard Beatrice had been raped. The firm had a limo for Elaine and Beatrice so that Elaine could be as independent as possible. When I got to Washington, the rape and the act that a “community leader” was accused of rape was a major story. The limo driver just knew that the lady was a hooker, and he was mad. Again, it was the victim’s fault. This driver did not have the facts. Why didn’t I set him straight? Well, I thought I had to protect Beatrice’s privacy, right?”
“Right,” the crowd answered slowly.
“No, wrong, ladies and gentlemen. This is what we are talking about; wrong because rape is a crime! When it comes to sexual harassment or anything about sexual dysfunction, we don’t listen, we don’t tell. It is personal, private. No! It is a crime and everybody needs to tell the world. Beatrice was not the first female that the man raped; not even close to the first.
“Each case of rape is different. In Beatrice’s case, this man was chasing her all the time that she was in Washington. Am I blaming her? To a degree, yes.”
The audience seemed repulsed.
“People, please understand that what is being said here tonight is known by all people in the firm, especially top team members. I am not saying this to hurt my colleague. This is to make you see and understand what we are saying. The man who raped her stalked her all week. The women who saw the “bad” side of him kept quiet. That enabled him to cause more pain. He used that silence, and his list of victims got longer and longer. The women kept silent because they did not want to face the attitude that we as a society give them; oh, it was nothing.
“Well, it was something when Mr. Paige touched my colleague inappropriately the second they were alone. She did not want him. We must allow women to say what they do and do not want men to do to their bodies. We must change the attitude about sexual problems, and we must listen when a woman is trying to get a man to stop. When a woman says a man is bothering her, we must hear and make sure the man understands that he must stop.”
( Continued... )
The audio reading your experienced today was performed by award-winning author EN Joy for Lydia.
© 2014 All rights reserved. Book excerpt reprinted by permission of the author, Lydia E. Brew. Do not reproduce, copy or use without the author's written permission. This excerpt is used for promotional purposes only.
Purchase Ungolden Silence
Link: http://amzn.com/1425798918
We’re All Wearing the Racial Lens
by Lydia E. Brew
It is hard for African Americans to be totally objective when it comes to race United States. It is equally hard for White America huh? We all are wearing the racial lens on our eyes and we can’t see straight.
When thinking of how the United States was founded it was based on freedom, especially freedom of religion. The United States was to be the picture of a beautiful “world” where everybody would free. All men would be equal. However, here we are at the end of 2014 and we’re still not there yet.
I believe some of the Founding Fathers did want everyone to be free, but the slave owners needed their slaves. Believe it or not slavery was about money NOT one’s skin color or the intelligence of the Negro. The Founding Fathers needed the Southern colonies to ratify (approve) the Constitution that would abolish slavery, so the Negro became three-fifths of a person. Perhaps the Founding Fathers thought that eventually all citizens of the United States would be free.
Instead many were told that the Negro was from Africa and that they ware inferior to the White man. Africa is the cradle of humanity. Native Americans who were here first, and later forced on reservations, when they rebelled, the United States went to war. People were told that Native Americans were not civilized, so they were treated badly.
The list of what people are told about other races goes on and on. Even after the Civil War, the Emancipation of the slaves, the Civil Rights movement, and even now with an African American president, there is still something we can’t quite get together.
Many White Americans and African Americans can’t seem to understand that there is just one race. We are confusing race with culture. We need to remember the past by trying to let each and every person, black, white, homosexuals, whoever live the American Dream. The racial lens needs to be removed from our eyes. Somehow we have to stop letting the history of racism control our future existence together.
Shortly after President Obama was sworn in, a college professor lost his keys and broke into his own house. The man was an African American professor and the officer who showed up on the scene was White. The professor was under stress and had his racial lens on. The officer was trying to get the facts. He was doing his job – he did not know that the man lived there. The professor did not see that the officer was investigating a crime. All he saw was the racial turmoil history that the United States can’t seem to find a solution for continuous racial problems.
The racial problem is a human condition and it affects everybody in a different way. We need to take off our racial lens and see the problems in society. Ferguson and the “I Can’t Breath” cases are not just about racism, but point to a United States that can’t seems to be the nation that the Founding Fathers envisioned.
About the Author
Lydia E. Brew was born with cerebral palsy but has not allowed her physical limitations to stand in her way. Her writing provides insights into the world of the physically challenged. She graduated from Texas Southern University where she received The Society of Professional Journalist Sigma Chi Citation for Achievement. She was a member of the drama club and pledged Alpha0 Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated. Under the leadership of one of her journalism professors, Miss Brew penned her first book Edith, The Story of Edith Irby Jones, M.D. about the first African-American to graduate from The Arkansas School of Medicine. Upon finishing college, Miss Brew worked with the Houston Association of Black Journalists. She is a Christian and attends St. Stevens United Methodist Church.
Miss Brew founded Lydia’s Educational and Charitable Organization (LECO) when she decided to encourage young people to write. LECO did this by sponsoring a yearly contest in which the contestant had to write about positive role models who were alive and from the Houston area. Each student who wrote an eligible essay was given a certificate of participation. Winning writers received cash prizes.
Her second book titled Our Learn Together Book is a book for young readers based on the biography of Dr. Jones. It tells her story in a simplified format on one page and allows the reader to write their own biography on the other. There are activities in the back where younger children can learn developmental skills and older children can learn to do research.
Purchase Ungolden Silence by Lydia E. Brew
Link: http://amzn.com/1425798918
Intimate Conversation with Lydia E. Brew
Lydia E. Brew was born with cerebral palsy but has not allowed her physical limitations to stand in her way. Her writing provides insights into the world of the physically challenged. She graduated from Texas Southern University where she received The Society of Professional Journalist Sigma Chi Citation for Achievement. She was a member of the drama club and pledged Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated.
Miss Brew founded Lydia’s Educational and Charitable Organization (LECO) when she decided to encourage young people to write. LECO did this by sponsoring a yearly contest in which the contestant had to write about positive role models who were alive and from the Houston area. Each student who wrote an eligible essay was given a certificate of participation. Winning writers received cash prizes.
Her second book titled Our Learn Together Book is a book for young readers based on the biography of Edith Irby Jones, M.D. It tells her story in a simplified format on one page and allows the reader to write their own biography on the other. There are activities in the back where younger children can learn developmental skills and older children can learn to do research. She is a Christian and attends St. Stevens United Methodist Church.
BPM: Lydia, tell us about yourself and how you started writing.
I was born with cerebral palsy but never allowed my physical limitations to stand in my way. I hope that some of my writing also provides insights into the world of the physically challenged. Under the leadership of one of my journalism professors, I penned my first book Edith, The Story of Edith Irby Jones, M.D. about the first African-American to graduate from The Arkansas School of Medicine. Upon finishing college, I worked with the Houston Association of Black Journalists. I am a Christian and attend St. Steven’s United Methodist Church.
BPM: What motivated you to sit down and actually start writing this book?
When I did the first draft of the Ungolden Silence I did no research and I wrote from my daydreams. Like another author said; she made up and wrote the story. That is what I did. People who read the first draft of the story told me that I needed to do some research, which I ultimately did. My research showed that my story was not that far off.
One thing the book shows is that we do not know what a rapist looks like; it could be anybody. In my story, two women go to the nation’s capitol on business. When they first meet an African American man they did not think that they needed to be careful as if they were in a dark alley. He was a serial rapist. Most rapists are. People do not know what a rapist looks like.
I like both reading and writing drama. I chose this particular subject to write about because I did not like the way that the media was so-called “protecting” perpetrator of rape by withholding their names. Yes, rape is a violation, but so is murder. The minute a murdered victim’s family is notified, then the name of the victim is released. Domestic violence crimes are just like any other crime. In Ungolden Silence readers can see where secrets were kept and it led to other problems. Yes, I want to entertain with drama, but I also want readers to think about the problem of rape, which is a part of domestic violence.
BPM: Do you ever let the book stew – leave it for months and then come back to it?
My stories are from my daydreams and I guess you can say that they stew in my head until I put them on paper. I have many ideas in my head, but when I actually write them down, they may end up being something totally different, but will still represent the basic idea/concept. So, yes, a story must stew until everything is mixed in the pot and comes together to create a delicious literary feast.
BPM: Where do your book ideas come from? Are your books plot driven or character driven?
As I mentioned earlier, my ideas come from my daydreams. My stories are my daydreams transformed into the written word. In order for me to create a good character I need to see the character. What I do is use the body of a person that I know or am familiar with. I then give them the personality I need them to have to fit the role in the story that I’m placing them in. When it comes to saying whether my books are plot driven or character driven, it’s hard to say. Perhaps a little bit of both.
In Ungolden Silence, it’s definitely more plot driven because even though I wanted to create engaging and memorable characters, I did not want them their drama to overshadow the important subject matter of the story. It was a challenge to find that proper balance.
BPM: What separates this story from the millions of other books on the shelves?
Society needs to change the way that is deals with the social taboo of rape. Ungolden Silence is a novel that will leave the reader with many questions. It will also attempt to answer some of the questions that society asks but never seem to want the answers to. We must look at the history of how men have been allowed to treat women. It is important not to just know the information, it is important to act on it.
Ungolden Silence will illustrate that the criminal is a real person, and rarely do they commit crimes just for fun.
What makes Ungolden Silence different from the millions of other books out there, namely that deal with the issue of rape, is that it tells the story of rape and focuses on more than just the victim. There are many people affected by the crime, including the rapist and his family. Am I kidding? No. In a lot of cases the rapists are well respected. The novel is divided into four parts, The Silent Problem, The Aftermath, Hard to Come Forward, and Something to Consider. I specifically set out to break down all aspects of the issue, versus just the single one that most books about rape address. The book is available in digital forms.
BPM: What topics are primarily discussed? Did you learn anything personal from writing your book?
Ungolden Silence is about changing the way that society thinks about sexual abuse as well as the issue of protecting the name of sexual victims. In my opinion, we need to focus on the abuser and putting him or her away. Society hears the words “sexual abuse” and they start blaming the victim by asking what was she wearing or doing. We do not do this for any other crimes. For example: When a person is murdered, the name of the victim is given when the family is notified. But when a person is sexually assaulted then it is said that the person needs privacy because he or she had been violated. Hello, taking someone’s life is the ultimate violation. Society needs to understand that abuse of any kind is wrong. Ungolden Silence is an attempt to make society think about victims of rape and how other domestic crimes are treated.
BPM: Were there any challenges in bringing this story to life?
After I did the first draft of Ungolden Silence, I let a few people read it and the feedback was that I needed to do some research on domestic violence. I decided that each of the main characters should write an article for the magazine in which the characters work for. The story is fictional, however, the articles are real with true and factual information. The challenge was to write the articles from the point of view of that character. Writing novels and articles are two totally different animals. Articles are fact based, so of course, I had to get the facts of the subject matters my characters were writing about and weave it into a fiction story.
BPM: What are your goals as a writer? Do you set out to educate or inspire?
As a writer I think that a story has to incorporate a little bit of everything. It should educate, inspire and entertain. And at the end of the day, or should I say story, there should be an obvious message connected to a particular subject matter. Any story must grab the attention of the reader; that is part entertainment. A story can and needs to be both inspirational and educational. Who wants to close a book and be left feeling heavy and drained instead of uplifted or at least enlightened? That is what I think Ungolden Silence does.
BPM: What valuable lessons do you want readers to learn from your book?
It is my hope that while the reader will not only be entertained, they will begin to learn many things about the victim as well as the rapist or batter. Why does anyone stay with a person who abuses him or her? Why does an abuser say that it will never happen again but always does? The answer is never just that simple.
BPM: How can readers discover more about you and you work?
Readers can visit me at my website: www.ungoldensilence.com or email me at leco@wt.net
I have a blog readers can subscribe to and follow: www.lydiaebrew.wordpress.com
And, of course, they can reach out to me on Facebook: www.facebook.com/Ungoldensilence
Purchase Ungolden Silence by Lydia E. Brew
Link: http://amzn.com/1425798918
Pearl Page: Audio Postcard for Bookclubs
$79.00 Per Campaign, pay here.
Thank you for listening to this fantastic book preview! This audio-postcard presentation was created by Ella Curry of EDC Creations Creations Media Group. We offer the best in book publishing publicity! Visit the main EDC Creations website today to explore the many services we offer small business owners, event planners, authors and publishers at: http://www.edc-creations.com/publicity.htm We have several packages that will take your products to the top!
Create a Pearl Page Like This One in Minutes! Got a ebook or a new printed book...let us tell the world it's available! Reserve your own personal audio book preview page today and your Pearl Page will be ready for syndication in 3-5 days! Let us share your message with our database for the next 3 months. The bookcover (with link to bookseller) is showcased on Black Pearls Magazine front page sidebar for 3 months too.
Turn your speakers on and click the links. View samples of our various types Pearl Pages:
PP 1, PP 2, PP 3, PP 4 and PP 5
Pearl Pages are emailed to more than 165,000 readers of the EDC Creations newsletter, played on BAN Radio Show 3 times in 3 months and promoted via our mobile bookclub. View here. What a way to share your audio-visual introduction with readers! Fee: $79.00 for complete webpage and audio. Make all payments at the EDC Creations Payment Center, go here today. We look forward to sharing your information with our network! Ella will email instructions within 24-48 hours.
|
