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AUTHOR MESSAGE
To my readers...
Thomas Jefferson wrote to John Adams: “I cannot live without my books.” Like the Master of Monticello, I have loved books from the time that I was a boy. They were my passion, my inspiration, and ultimately my aspiration. At one point, I had so many books in my bedroom that I was forbidden to buy any more. Even after the loophole of having others buy them for me or receiving them as gifts was closed as well, I remained a confirmed bibliophile. While I had feasted on the words of Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, Theodore Roosevelt, Abraham Lincoln, Thomas Edison, and a host of others such as Dwight Eisenhower, Eddie Rickenbacker, Winston Churchill, Carl Sandburg, I continued to hunger for more. These men and those that wrote about them were my heroes. Finally, as an alternative, I started to write my own books. Fortunately, most of these literary efforts no longer exist....
In the beginning I wrote for my own enjoyment and pleasure. Biographies, poetry, short stories, anthologies, I loved being able to explore writing in these different genres. Then it occurred to me that this was quite possibly the elusive talent with which I may have been blessed. While I have never been known as particularly musical or artistic, I have been able to tell stories and so it was that I aspired to be an author and a storyteller of the printed word.
Years ago, I read Goethe’s thought that “In every man’s writing, the character of the writer must lie recorded.” As a result of that comment, I have attempted to write with both purpose and integrity.
Thomas Carlyle wrote: “He who would write heroic poems should make his whole life a heroic poem.” I don’t know if I have done that, but I have attempted to write about things that have been important to me, or remain my purpose for living. I have attempted to both write about what I know, and also that which I do not in an effort to broaden my horizons.
While I initially wrote solely for my pleasure, now I write for yours. There is no greater gratification or self-actualization than to receive an e-mail or post card from someone who professes to “not being a reader” but who will then go on to relate how they have willingly deprived themselves of sleep, and often food and drink, because they have been captivated by one of my humble literary efforts.
Books have the potential to be eternal in nature. They can be a person’s legacy. If I can touch one person’s soul with one of my books, it will have been worth the effort.
Thank you for reading my written word, and sharing your thoughts! Keep them coming!
Don
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ALL BOOKS BY DON LEVIN
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© 2008 - 2010 DON LEVIN |
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