Best Time of Year - A story of the west - A novel by Brad Forge. Check this one out. $19.95

Available on CD-Rom in PDF format, ISBN 09645867-7-0

How to Purchase Books Through The Mail: Books may be purchased by sending a check or money order to:   Dr. Wm. J. Veigele Astral Publishing Co. 333 Old Mill Road # 324 Santa Barbara, CA 93110-3655   Sea Bag of Memories ebook on CD-ROM in PDF format on CD-ROM Price: $19.95 California orders only - add $1.00 sales tax for each ebook. Only $2.95 Shipping and Handling   PC Patrol Craft of World War II (Paperback) $34.95 California orders only - add $2.71 sales tax. Best Time of Year ebook (CD-Rom in pdf format) $19.95 CA orders only - add $1.55 sales tax Chelydra Serpentina (Paperback) $19.95 CA orders only - add $1.55 sales tax Aleutian Fury ebook (CD-Rom in pdf format) $24.95 CA orders only - add $1.94 sales tax Golf is Like Love (Paperback) $12.95 CA orders only - add $1.00 sales tax. Operation GB (Paperback) $24.95 CA orders only - add $1.94 sales tax. Funny Facts of Physics (Paperback) $19.95 CA orders only - add $1.55 sales tax   Shipping and Handling $5.75 S&H for the 1st book title - add $1.75 for each additional copy when shipped to the same U.S. address. Air Mail : $9.95 per book US Domestic Only Overseas : $12.00 Surface Mail or $20.00 Air Mail For each ebook on CD-ROM: $2.95 S&H- add only $1.00 for each additional CD Sales Tax   California Residents add 7.75%

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From the back cover of Aleutian Fury

     Battling the worst weather in the world sixty five young men crowded on a small U. S. Navy ship combat Japanese in the Aleutian and Kurile Islands of the North Pacific and Bering Sea. Fifty foot seas and hundred knot winds lash the ship and its crew as they confront the enemy. Pete Charleson, an enlisted man, and Gordon Scorer, an officer, nurture their hatred for each other and vie for the same girl they left in Portland, Oregon. The tragedies of war eventually change their hatred to respect. At the end of the war Pete returns to the States for the girl he loves but finds instead a surprise that changes his life.

     The story illustrates the fear, danger, camaraderie, and fun shared by the young men. It is laced with the raw and boisterous humor known to sailors and that shows what life was like aboard a small U. S. Navy ship during World War II.

Sample of PC Patrol Craft of World War II.

Under an overcast sky in April 1944, sixty United States Navy sailors assembled on Pier One of the Commercial Iron Works in Portland, Oregon. Flicking up their collars, the men huddled in their pea coats against the cold wind that swept across the murky backwater of the Willamette River. They grumbled and griped about the routine of the Navy that had kept them standing there for half an hour.

"Attention," bawled a First Class Boatswain's Mate. Anxious for action, the men snapped to attention. Upon the Boatswain's next commands, the sailors shouldered their seabags and shuffled into three ranks. Then, one rank after the other, the men strode across a downward-sloping gangplank to a small ship that looked fresh and clean in her new coat of gray war-paint. Christened on 22 May 1943, Navy officials would soon designate her USS PC 793. With them, those young men brought aboard their ship the enthusiasm and confidence of youth, the fervor of patriotism, a quest for adventure, and no previous sea duty.

What Readers Said:

. . . a job "Well done."

You have made PC sailors proud of our heritage.

There are no words that can describe what a wonderful job you did in writing.

. . . bringing to the forefront the history of the PC Patrol Craft as a historical event.

. . . a fine job . . . something that has been needed for a long time.

It is beautifully done and don't think you missed a ship in the entire PC fleet.

I started to thumb through the book and got so engrossed that three hours later I got to my other mail.

Putting it all together in one reference book is great.

The pictures and illustrations help put it all together.

I will cherish this book.

. . . fantastic book.

I get excited with every page . . . absolute excitement.

. . . very happy ex-sailors . . . reminded of good things they just might have forgotten.

The most accurate book about PCs.

I started it and couldn't lay it down until it had been finished.

. . . one of the best books . . . masterpiece. Well written and wonderfully illustrated.

It will remain in my library as a prized possession. .

. . evoked the special characteristics and atmosphere . . . aboard PCs . . .

What Reviewers Wrote:

. . . especially recommended .. . . The first book to cover the entire history and many exploits of the wartime Navy's 173-foot steel-hulled sub-chasers, this handsomely produced .. . . effort is truly a must for naval buffs as well as ship modelers. Sea Classics Magazine.

Dr. Veigele does an admirable job of bringing to life the 361 little ships and the nearly 50,000 men who went to sea in them during WWII. I recommend this.. . . history of an important class of ship .. . . Internet Modeler

A substantial tome on an under-reported topic. Probably the only - but certainly the best - book on PCs. . . Stone and Stone World War II Books

What a remarkable gift Bill Veigele has given the patrol craft veterans and all those interested in the naval history of World War II. [It is] the consummate account of this class of forgotten ships .. . . P C Patrol Craft of World War II is the definitive history of the 173-foot subchaser .. . . Patrol Craft Sailors Association Newsletter

Book Feature of the Month. A five Star Review. World War II Bookstore Website.

None [PCs] have been preserved, however, and their exploits are largely forgotten. "Patrol Craft of World War II", is an effort to rectify this oversight. The 400 page hardcover volume examines every aspect of the PC . . . It is supplemented by 118 b&w photographs, and 30 pages of excellent drawings .. . . These drawings . . . provide invaluable information for the model builder as well as anyone curious about the nuts and bolts of these hearty vessels. The book's description of life aboard a PC is particularly fascinating. I highly recommend this book both to students of the US Navy and would be PC modelers. There is a wealth of technical information between its covers and even a set of fold out plans. But the book's most valuable legacy is the way in which it captures the essence of life aboard these tough little ships. William Veigele can take pride in having written the definitive book about PCs and in doing so he has preserved their memory for future generations. Warship

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Samples of Sea Bag of Memories

"The young men who served on small ocean going ships of the Navy and the Coast Guard of the United States during World War II were mostly reservists with no or little sea duty. The small craft these men sailed included submarine chasers, escort ships, patrol vessels, gunboats, mine sweepers, and cutters. They were bantam craft. Life aboard them was crowded and cramped and allowed no privacy. Their sailors had little room for personal possessions. They stored them in a gray, cylindrical, canvas sack, their Sea Bag. A Sea Bag was a sailor's retainer for all he owned. Rummaging through its contents he could trace his ships and stations, places visited, actions, friends made, and shipmates lost. The storehouse of his memories of his time in the naval service was his Sea Bag. Creativity among sailors has a long history. Down through the ages men who have gone to sea have left their traces in yarns told, song and chanties sung, and art and handcrafts. Among the small craft sailors also were musicians, poets, writers, artists, and craftsmen. They lived, fought the enemy, stood watches, ate, and slept in close uncomfortable quarters with little time or space for private thoughts or actions. Yet, they, played music and wrote, drew, painted, and crafted items that were original, humorous, and artistic. It is a tribute to these men that, despite the limitations on their personal lives, their restricted freedom of thought and action, and the dangers they confronted, they found the time and the mental and physical discipline to compose and construct what they did. Their original works are not only tributes to them but to the tenacity of the human creative spirit. The strains of their music, songs, and tales are no longer with us, but some of their material work still exists. This book contributes to the preservation of some of those original creations generated by the small ship sailors of World War II."

From Chapter I of Golf is Like Love

Would you like to knock ten strokes off your handicap? I would, and I will. And I've already dropped eight strokes the past year. If I can do that so can you.

What's the secret?

1. A perfect swing
2. Illegal golf balls
3. Nuclear powered clubs
4. A Ph.D. in psychology
5. All the above

The answer is, "None of the above."

[I struggled with my game, but my scores kept rising.] Then it hit me. The problem was that I had become too serious about the game, too worried about the mechanics of the golf swing, and too involved with control of my mind. Golf had become work instead of play. I had overlooked the need to relax, smile, and enjoy the game. I had forgotten that golf is like love. It should be fun. To improve my golf meant I had to play golf, to think of it as only a game. To shoot scratch golf or get a lower handicap was not important. What was important was to play to whatever score and handicap I got and enjoy it. In twelve months my handicap fell from twenty to twelve.

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Browse in Chelydra Serpentina

There was no breeze. The water was dead calm. Then, not far from the boat behind Doug, the surface bulged. Low waves spread, rolled toward him, and refracted around the ends of the boat into his view. "That's strange. What caused these waves?" He frowned, and turned to look back over his left shoulder. The surface of the lake exploded in a blast of spray. A huge beaked head lunged upward, jaws spread. Sharp jagged teeth flashed. Green eyes, dull as death, glared at Doug. A black, knobbed carapace, covered with algae and slime, vaulted behind its head and along its back. Muscular scaly arms stretched forward. Razor-sharp claws darted toward Doug. His nostrils became clogged with the stench of decayed slime and the putrid, rotted meat breath of the creature.

"My God!" The spinning rod dropped from his grip and clattered against the bottom of the boat. Doug threw up his hands. Too late. The claws grasped his right shoulder and left arm. The creature tugged, and Doug leaned back and grasped the starboard gunwale of the boat. A wave of terror surged through him. Chelydra clambered up onto the boat and swarmed over Doug.

 

What one reviewer said: "This book is current genetic science fiction with a dose of terror and suspense."

What another reviewer wrote: "This intriguing read is written from both the human and reptile point of view. . . . the complexity and care with which Sanders creates his monster, the giant snapping turtle turned humanoid turned human male. What is particularly worthwhile in this novel is the way in which the horrifc situation is resolved. Lake [the evolved monster] is confronted with his past in a touching final scene that is unique in horror. This is one horror novel . . . worth reading for its originality."

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Check out Best Time of Year

In the far distance, behind where John sat astride his horse, Matt saw that dark clouds had gathered over the mountains. Snow will fall soon here, and then Sarah will have to leave to go back to the Barnett ranch. It won't matter now, though, Matt thought. In his mind, he saw Sarah waking in the morning in bed close to him, their arms touching each other, her woman's scent, her smile, and her hair tracing long black curves on the white pillow. Most mornings he would awake before she did and lie there taking pleasure in seeing his woman next to him. It seemed like a miracle that she was there after all the years he had been without her and had wanted her so much. Could he take that vision of her with him when he died? Or does a man fight death, think only of the horror, and have his pleasant thoughts wrenched from his mind before the blackness falls over him? Well, I'll surely find out soon enough, he thought.

Rough hands snapped Matt back to reality as they bound his arms behind him, hoisted him up, and threw his leg over a saddle. Mex's stallion, they had tossed him on, rambled away surrounded by the men and held in check by Mex holding the reins. The sun glared like a fiery demon that peered down on its devout and maniacal followers giving them its approval for an ancient rite of a human sacrifice. Long drooping branches of willow trees along the stream, now in long shadows, swayed in the light breeze. They were like old black-garbed women mourning at an open grave, that was soon to be filled. In the distance, Matt watched a cloud of dust lift from the ground. It was like a little dust devil, and Matt's mind wandered back to the time when he had gone on the buffalo hunt and the beginning of the stampede. That cloud of dust he had seen then had changed many things in his life. No matter what caused this one, though, it can't change anything to help me, to keep me from hanging, he thought.

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Browse in Operation GB

“I told you a dozen times, I don’t know why he attacked me.” The chair Pete sat on was not a guest chair, but it was not hard and straight-backed with a swinging, unshaded, two hundred watt light bulb overhead like in old cop and gangster movies. And the chair was off to one side of Captain Brad Moinan’s desk, at an angle. That made Pete feel less like a criminal. There were not even a good cop and a bad cop, just one cop. He seemed to be the good cop. The policeman was grilling him, but with finesse. If you get caught in your home at midnight, with your fired shotgun on the floor, a bloody blade with your finger prints on it laying in a corner, and a stabbed dead man as a guest, you could expect to be questioned by the police.

 

What reviewers said:

"A fast paced story with intrigue, suspense, and exciting naval actions. "

"Interesting plot and surprising and shocking discovery of what was on the boat. "

"It arouses suspicions about secret weapons of World War II."

"The romantic element is clean, sincere, and surprising."

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