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Best Sellers

Story Sanctum Books

In addition to featuring fiction and nonfiction stories, Story Sanctum also publishes books by our contributors and other writers interested in publishing under our imprint. Story Sanctum books span a wide range of topics from death to hope to everything in between. All our books contain a deep human element that drives home the story in a unique and unforgettable way. We encourage you to browse our growing library of books.

Want to publish a book with Story Sanctum? Contact us for publishing options. 

BEAUTIFULLY BROKEN

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Brokenness is not a sign of weakness. Rather, it is a sign of strength. Scars are a sign of healing, of hard work that has been done. Walking through life’s fires, it is inevitable that you will get burned. But God can make something beautiful from those ashes. Broken people are the most genuine people out there. They don’t live their lives as if nothing is the matter with them.

In Beautifully Broken, Ruth revisits the trauma of her childhood as a missionary kid in Nigeria, details her search for her biological parents, and shares her brave journey of living with ALS.

Ruth’s message to those who have been shattered by life’s cruelty is that God can mend broken people, making them into something beautiful.

This is the story of an ordinary girl who has lived an extraordinary life.

BRAVE VOICE

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Brave Voice is an invitation to listen to your own soul cries and to share your vulnerable self with others. Author Heather Bickel Stevenson chronicles her lifelong journey to find her authentic voice and use it for good.

Among hard relationships and chronic illnesses, Heather has had to learn that it is OK to not be OK, that helpers need help too, and that healing happens when we speak and listen from the heart. Sharing stories that have never been told before, she hopes to encourage others to courageously tell their stories for the good of the world.

If you are struggling to find your God-given voice, your unique passion and calling, this book will help you discover your own Brave Voice!

LIFE ON THE EDGE

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Hospice chaplain Suzanne Bea Slover Leahy has cared for hundreds of people on the edge of death. Life on the Edge is a moving collection of heartwarming stories packed with deep insights from Suzanne’s reflections on the front lines.

Death isn’t a subject people like to discuss, but the reality is, everyone is going to die. Suzanne not only normalizes dying, she humanizes it by reflecting on what it’s like to accompany individuals at the end of their lives.

Suzanne shares about the early days of her career, her experiences working at a cancer treatment center, as well as the present challenges of caring for patients during the COVID pandemic. With humor and grace, Suzanne honors the lives of her patients who have died, by passing on the wisdom they’ve taught her in their final moments.

Whether you’re a caregiver, family member, or individual, Life on the Edge will inspire you to make every moment count and to begin to face the reality of death without fear.

MY MOTHER'S WAR

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Hitler's forces were no match for Evelyn Fryd. 

 

My Mother’s War, by author and Holocaust survivor Michael Fryd, is a gripping memoir about a familiy's harrowing escape through the killing fields of Poland, to Paris, and finally to New York. This compelling true story follows Fryd's larger-than-life mother who outsmarted the Nazis and saved her family.

Michael Fryd was only three years old when Nazi Germany invaded Poland, triggering World War II and one of humanity’s darkest chapters. Forced to leave their home and everything they knew, Fryd's mother went to near impossible lengths to keep her family safe from Hitler’s clutches, including crafting clever lies, dealing in the black market, and even flirting with the enemy.

 

Evelyn Fryd epitomized the saying, "Well behaved women seldom make history."

STRANGE FIRE

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"Don't starve the monster, lest ye all should perish!"

You are about to enter into the world of the peculiar and the bizarre. Strange Fire is a collection of 15 stand-alone short stories by Story Sanctum co-founder Shawn Casselberry, that will grip your heart and keep you guessing to the end. Monsters are on the loose in Hollow Town and no child is safe who has the Mark. A social media influencer must learn to shed more than her apathy in Skin. A 15-year-old from the South Side of Chicago discovers he has special powers when he protects his best friend from police brutality in The Windy City Wizard. Writer Arthur G. Blum is ready to end it all when his fictional subjects stage an intervention in Characters. Strange Fire will transport you to unusual worlds and will transform you so you'll never be the same. (Proceeds from the book help defray costs of the Story Sanctum site).

THE ROAD NOT TAKEN

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In this fascinating memoir, Woods traces his 60-year odyssey in journalism, a career that included witnessing the bomb-shattered wartime devastation in Britain and the aftermath of much of the obliteration of German cities in World War II.

Poet Robert Frost described the road not taken as one of good and bad choices that have a lasting bearing on one’s future life and career. Woods shares about his choices and historical surroundings, and the literary and other characters he has encountered along the way. He also tells the harrowing story of the illness and death of his 19-year-old son.

 The Road Not Taken is a captivating account of Woods’ incredible life and career.

WHAT GIVES YOU HOPE?

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What gives you hope? For many of us, this query has the weight of a Zen kōan. It demands deep reflection, a wrangling of our minds. To plumb the Buddhist notion further, it may reveal that we are attached to concepts of hope that are illusory and no longer have realistic meaning in our chaotic world.

In this compilation, 18 people from multiple generations and diverse backgrounds answer this critical question. You will be inspired and challenged by their perspectives, leading you to ask yourself, “What gives me hope?”


Contributing authors: Michael J. Adee, Heiwa no Bushi, Yasmin Gudino, Melinda Sposto Harrelson, Melissa Johnson, Michael D. Kirby, W. Mark Koenig, Tobias A. Kroll, Hanna Leigh, Jerrod Lowry, Nancy Chester McCranie, Le Anne Clausen de Montes, Steven Nootenboom, Gary Poole, Chad Presley, Morgan Sanchez, Krin Van Tatenhove, and Sharon K. Youngs.

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