Arcelio Lopez said: -

Estimado Angelo,

Estoy muy sobresaltado de alegria al ver tu libro "The Journey." Tengo que confesarte que no soy un buen lector por razon de que no me gusta leer por el tiempo que me toma terminar un libro por corto que sea y que por mi condicion, ADD, no me es posible concentrarme en una misma lectura por largo rato; PERO he leido tu libro con gran interes y ansiedad por saber ! que mas puede haber en las proximas paginas!. Al terminar cada capitulo, siempre pense que no te podria haber pasado nada peor de lo que acababa de leer, pero la cosa seguia "en crecimiento".

El asunto es que me lei tu libro en un solo dia mientras viajaba de Puerto Rico a Sacramento, fue un viaje largo que me requirio hacer varias paradas y no desperdicie ni un solo minuto para leeer por el interes que se apodero de mi. Es un libro de aventuras, rencillas, reconciliaciones y muchos otros con grandes matices sociologicos, sicologicos y geograficos entre otros.

Angelo, jamas en la vida me pude imaginar que tu has pasado por todas las situaciones que muy atinadamente narras en tu libro. Traduciendolo al Espanol yo preguntaria que como es posible que una persona que ha tenido tantas oportunidades en la vida haya que tenido que pasar por tanta miseria. Lo importante es que has podido sobrevivir con la ayuda, desde luego, del Senor, y tu deseo de superarte en la vida. Te felicito por todo lo que haz logrado vencer y haz obtenido como persona.

A parte de todo lo anterior tengo a bien decirte que me ha fascinado tu estilo de escritura; muy amena, directa y animada pese a los pasajes tristes y dolorosos en que revelas tus experiencias y sinsabores.

Me entusiasmo mucho tu narracion del Camino, pues creo que ya sabes que estoy planificando hacel El Camino y si Dios lo permite tengo planes para llevarlo a cabo en algun momento entre los meses de abril a junio del 2009. Mi Camino no va a ser facil pero no me intersan mucho las cosas faciles, me gusta nucho la aventura y el reto, a parte de que espero que El Camino me brinde la oportunidad para reflexionar y comunicarme con el Senor en forma mas abierta y espiritual como tal vez nunca lo haya podido hacer anteriormente.

Recuerdos y saludos de parte de Carmen y siempre hacia adelante ...sin mirar hacia atras.

Un afectuoso saludo,
Arcelio

2008-08-27 16:31:26

Z-Car said: -
www.z-car.com

I have recently started reading a fascinating book written by Angelo Solera, a local Baltimore community activist. The Journey El Camino¯, tells a gripping account of his life, from his earliest days to the present. His tale of his life begins with Angelo as an immigrant teenager and ends with a man who has completed his journey from addiction to the life of a community activist. It is clearly written from his heart, an honest tale that keeps you turning pages to see what happens next. His relationship with his son is touching and moving, often expressing feelings that will stir empathy with parents everywhere. He is pained by his struggle to overcome his own deepest troubles so that he can be the Father to his son that he knows he deserves. Even today, that pain is able to stir strong emotions.

Angelo was inspired to write this book after walking the 400-mile pilgrimage to Santiago of Compostela, Spain, in 2005. A tradition that dates back to the Roman Empire, the trek winds through the wilderness, mountains, small villages, towns and mayor metropolitan centers of Spain. Along this trip, Angelo begins to discover himself, uncovering many of his personal demons and fears - love, hate, passion, obsession and dependence to name just a few.

"It's a tough journey for all of us" says Solera. "We're all human, and we all want to be somebody and feel like we belong.¯" He comes from Spain, but now he belongs to America. He's written the whole story in the English language he has embraced. I have recently come to know Angelo, and I am deeply impressed with his ability to open his life up to all. His book can help all of us look deeper into our own lives.

After nearly three years, his book is complete, and using his own money, he has self-published his memoir. You can find out more about Angelo's Journey on his website, and can buy his book for only $15 here. I urge you to read the free preview on his website and if you like it, purchase a copy for yourself or as a gift. You will be helping Angelo complete his journey, and supporting an author/publisher with a dream.
2008-08-12 09:27:50

Brad Grochowski from AuthorsBookshop.com said: -
There are a lot of ways to launch a book, and tonight Angelo Solera did it right with the launch party for his brand new book, The Journey: El Camino.

Angelo enlisted the help of Baltimore's Creative Alliance to host the event, and partnered with U.S. Hispanic Youth Entrepreneur Education (USHYEE) and made a community event out of it.

It was a multi-media event as well, with a 20 minute video slide-show of beautiful photographs Angelo took while on his 400 mile hike from southern to northern Spain, followed by a reading and then a question-and-answer session.

The physical foot journey, El Camino, is only in part the Journey of the title of his book. It serves as a metaphor for Solera's journey through life - from his arrival in the U.S. as a teenage illegal immigrant, through a frustrating marriage, drug addiction, divorce and recovery, through his bid for office as a City Councilman in Baltimore, and finally to the peace of mind and heart that he earned by crossing 400 miles of ancient roadways in his home country.

So, thats the book. But his event tonight was great, and I think we can all take a bit from it.

We can launch a book, and thats great. Our friends and family will come and it will be, as it should be, an end and a beginning. A celebration of the completion of writing and publishing, and a celebration of the beginning of marketing and selling.

I think that in getting the community involved, by reaching out to the Baltimore art community and Baltimore's Hispanic community, and sharing the significance of the event in this way, he managed to celebrate both that ending and that beginning, but also something much more.

By sharing the event with two seperate elements of our community, I think he allowed both to feel a sense of ownership of his book. He allowed us to feel that he wrote the book as one of us (I place myself in the art community camp as I my polish heritage keeps me a far cry from claiming a place in the latino camp), and that in doing so, was sort of giving us a voice, and a goal, and a model to live up to.

Leaving the party, I think we all felt a sense of investment in the book and a hope that it could have life. How rare it is that this happens to a book these days.


This book is different. It's special. I haven't read it yet, not the final draft anyway, and not more then pieces of earlier drafts, but I already know there is something special about it. I know this because of the people it brought together tonight, the way it made us feel, the people I am sure it will continue to bring together and the way I am sure it will make them feel.

In putting his event together tonight the way that he did, Solera helped us invest in his dream.

We are all launching books, now or later. I think it is instructive how well his party worked tonight, and we might all do well to remember, instead of, "Come see my new book," that we offer "Come share my new book."

You can visit Angelos website for more info about the book, to read an excerpt, see some of the beautiful photos, or watch the video we saw tonight. His website is at AngelosJourney.com and you can order the book there or at AuthorsBookshop.com.
2008-06-23 23:52:40