Reader comments about Marcus Wilder travel columns in the San Antonio EXPRESS-News. "Marcus Wilder is a consummate traveler and a one of a kind yarn spinner."-Tracy Barnett, Travel Editor, San Antonio EXPRESS-News "Mark is Mencken, Ann Coulter, and Chaucer rolled into one."-Joseph Columbus Smith, Journalist "Love what you are doing with your stories of the Camino. I live the Camino every day in my own way."-Sue Kenney, Canadian author, Lecturer, and Pilgrim "I read your reports with pleasure. Met een vriendelijke groet."-Pieter, The Netherlands "I have been reading with interest your story in the newspaper and sharing with my students. I teach Spanish . my students follow the Camino via the Internet."-Cesiah, International Languages Department Coordinator "We are living it through Marcus Wilder's eyes. Thank you for a lovely armchair travel adventure."-Elizabeth, San Antonio "My mother forwarded one of your travel stories to me. I enjoyed it immensely. Your writing is refreshing because you notice the details that make places, people, and events come alive."-JoeLyn, Dallas "I am fascinated by your stories."-Memo, Laredo "I bookmarked your page. I was captured."-Waltrud, Chicago "I love learning about other cultures and have really reveled in the sense of interacting with the people in your narrative."-J.J., San Antonio

Reader comments about Marcus Wilder travel columns in the San Antonio EXPRESS~News. Marcus Wilder is a consummate traveler and a one of a kind yarn spinner.Tracy Barnett, Travel Editor, San Antonio EXPRESS-News Mark is Mencken, Ann Coulter, and Chaucer rolled into one.Joseph Columbus Smith, Journalist Love what you are doing with your stories of the Camino. I live the Camino every day in my own way.Sue Kenney, Canadian author, Lecturer, and Pilgrim I read your reports with pleasure. Met een vriendelijke groet.Pieter, The Netherlands I have been reading with interest your story in the newspaper and sharing with my students. I teach Spanish my students follow the Camino via the Internet. Cesiah, International Languages Department Coordinator We are living it through Marcus Wilders eyes. Thank you for a lovely armchair travel adventure.Elizabeth, San Antonio My mother forwarded one of your travel stories to me. I enjoyed it immensely. Your writing is refreshing because you notice the details that make places, people, and events come alive.JoeLyn, Dallas I am fascinated by your stories.Memo, Laredo I bookmarked your page. I was captured.Waltrud, Chicago I love learning about other cultures and have really reveled in the sense of interacting with the people in your narrative.J.J., San Antonio

Reader comments about Marcus Wilder travel columns in the San Antonio EXPRESS-News. "Marcus Wilder is a consummate traveler and a one of a kind yarn spinner." Tracy Barnett, Travel Editor, San Antonio EXPRESS-News "Mark is Mencken, Ann Coulter, & Chaucer rolled into one." Joseph Columbus Smith, Journalist "Love what you are doing with your stories of the Camino. I live the Camino every day in my own way." Sue Kenney, Canadian Author, Lecturer, and Pilgrim "I read your reports with pleasure. Met een vriendelijke groet." Pieter, The Netherlands "I have been reading with interest your story in the newspaper and sharing with my students. I teach Spanish . my students follow the Camino via the Internet." Cesiah, International Languages Dept. Coordinator "We are living it through Marcus Wilder's eyes. Thank you for a lovely armchair travel adventure." Elizabeth, San Antonio "My mother forwarded one of your travel stories to me. I enjoyed it immensely. Your writing is refreshing because you notice the details that make places, people, and events come alive." JoeLyn, Dallas "I am fascinated by your stories." Memo, Laredo "I bookmarked your page. I was captured." Waltrud, Chicago "I love learning about other cultures and have really reveled in the sense of interacting with the people in your narrative." J.J., San Antonio

This ordinary woman’s true account of her far from ordinary life provides a very real, and very personal insight into how resilient the human spirit can be. The untimely death of her mother sees this modest woman, while still a young child, thrown into a cruel world, where she encounters war, torture, sexual abuse, domestic violence and far, far more. Throughout, she longs for her beloved mama and the loving home she once knew. However, that can never be, and she constantly has to face the trauma of a brutal world. Often, she just wants to give up and end it all, and almost succeeds on several occasions. The birth of her son becomes a saving grace, and though she continually has to fight to survive, she becomes determined to do so. This remarkable true tale portrays the ravages of war and torture, and the hardships of constant abuse. From the start, her inherent innocence, incredible naïvety, and loving nature are constantly under attack. That one person alone could survive so much is remarkable. Her courage and strength are an inspiration. Readers will feel they have gained the strength, hope, and resilience to face and overcome their own challenges. And to know they can go on to live fulfilled lives.

John R Leigh, born in Bolton, Lancashire, and educated in Cambridge, was musical, mathematical, scientific and literary. At school in the 1930s, his headmaster told him there would be no more wars and no need for more scientists. His life then ranged first from languages teacher, radar technician and RAF flight lieutenant in WWII, to marriage with a talented and literary American wife. After the war, John changed career to retrain in engineering—for a married man, a brave decision. Over the years, the keen theatre-going couple saw many diverse plays. Convinced that he had found an original approach to seeing Shakespearean dramas, he spent happy years describing and refining his thoughts: what ideas, prejudices and religious beliefs would surface in the minds of Shakespeare’s own audience, the groundlings and nobles? In our day, we cannot help but react with our own beliefs and social customs; yet in Globe Theatre, how would people have responded to seeing a ghost in the early sixteenth century? Rather differently than nowadays, John thought. (Hamlet studies form the greater part of his collected work.) Suppose you were seeing Hamlet for the first time: hence the title ‘The Naïve Shakespearean’.

This book is a concise and balanced biography of Innocent III. While giving the student and general reader a good sense of this pope and the medieval papacy, it can also provide insights for scholars well-versed in his pontificate.