Spin is everywhere and is a central fact of 21st century life. We all know "Spin" is a special slant, point of view, emphasis, or interpretation presented for the purpose of influencing people. But do you know it when you see it? Patricia Vaccarino's American Spin is not your ordinary how-to P.R. book. Spin is the heart of public relations and Patricia Vaccarino has been one of its prime practitioners for over twenty years. In American Spin, Patricia Vaccarino pulls back the curtain on how spinmeisters like herself tell you what to think about people, products, issues and companies-ideally in ways you are unaware of-with clarity and wit. With chapters like "Romancing Your Audience," "Getting Away with Murder," and "How to be a Master (or Look Just Like One)," she reveals the secrets of seeing through the spinmeisters' messaging, and how to use them to your own advantage.

American Spin (PR for People®)

Business & Money

Vaccarino, Patricia

Marketing & Sales

Xanthus Communications LLC and PR for People

Yonkers is a picturesque city on the Hudson River, but beneath the surface racism runs rampant and often explodes into the open. It's 1969 when blacks and whites don't mix in this highly segregated, working-class town. Gutsy white girl Cookie Colangelo loved her black kindergarten teacher, Mrs. Kerry, because she taught Cookie to love books. Even though people told Cookie if she let Mrs. Kerry touch her, she would turn black too, Cookie knew that wasn't true. She struggles to survive in a world that is racist and unjust. After Cookie was beaten by a nun at a Catholic school, she loses her innocence. She alternates between being a gangster and a hippie and is going down the wrong path as a small-time drug dealer. Then she meets shy black boy Herman Lynch, who is a natural dancer and he helps Cookie to fix her wounded knee by teaching her to dance. As their friendship develops, Herman opens up to Cookie about the dark secret he hasn't been able to share with anyone--he's gay. Cookie and Herman experience racism at the hands of other kids and grown-ups, especially a neighborhood busybody, the racist white widow, Fran Ochiogrosso, and the local Mafioso Louie Santamassino. These two grown-ups turn out to be Cookie's and Herman's greatest champions. Unbeknownst to Herman and Cookie, all along they have had an emotional bond in common with Cookie's kindergarten teacher Mrs. Kerry.

YONKERS Yonkers!: A Story of Race and Redemption

Literature & Fiction

Genre Fiction

Modus Operandi Books

From the edge of the Hudson River, we travel with fifteen year old Cookie Colangelo into The Heart of Yonkers. Close to the river's edge, it was hot enough to take your clothes off and think about jumping into the water. Cookie has been slow to mature sexually. When her sexual awakening does occur, it's a huge explosion, all-consuming and emotionally powerful. She desperately wants a boyfriend but will not settle for a dumb Yonkers guy. Then she meets Stanley de Falco and falls hard. This Vietnam War Vet has recently returned home. Stanley is vulnerable and trying to come to terms with his own humanity. While Cookie does everything in her power to seduce him, her age is an obstacle to consummating the relationship. Throughout this story, the presence of the river is a brilliant metaphor providing context for unforgettable characters. Ultimately, The Heart of Yonkers is about kissing...well, learning how to kiss, or maybe, it's about much more than kissing.

The Heart of Yonkers (YONKERS Yonkers!)

Xanthus Communications LLC & PR for People

Review\nYou can take the girl out of Yonkers but you can't take Yonkers out of the girl.\nWhile author Patricia Vaccarino has lived most of her adult life in the Pacific Northwest, her hometown in New York is the inspiration for many of her stories.\nTwo of Vaccarino's previous books, "YONKERS, Yonkers" and "The Heart of Yonkers," were working class coming-of-age novels.\nBut her latest effort, "The Death of a Library: An American Tragedy," is something different. The book is a mash-up of historical monograph and scathing indictment. Vaccarino explores the calculated political cronyism that brought down what many regarded as the crown jewel of her hometown, Yonkers' Carnegie Library.\nBuilt in an unusual octagonal shape, the Beaux-Arts style library was situated along one of Yonkers' main arterials, at the top of a hill right next to City Hall. The library conveyed an Acropolis-like air to the city that once had been a manufacturing hub, home to Otis Elevator and the Domino Sugar Refinery.\nBy the time Vaccarino was growing up in Yonkers, the city was in decline but the library remained "a sight to behold, a grand object of permanence and beauty, and a beacon of hope in a city that no longer reigned as a queen in manufacturing but was now being savagely torn up in the throes of urban blight and white flight."\nShe describes in detail the library interior -- a place of high ceilings, ornately tiled floors, lunette murals in the children's section and a seemingly limitless supply of books -- it seemed palatial to a working class youngster.\nI'd wager that many of us have similar strong attachments to the libraries of our youth. Often it was in the library that we first discovered our own agency: getting a library card, considering the librarian's book recommendations, then ultimately making decisions about which books to check out. Libraries, for many of us, are a foundational part of our existence.\nIt isn't hard to understand Vaccarino's devastation when, after moving away as a young adult, she returns to Yonkers to visit her grandmother and discovers that the Carnegie Library -- that seemingly eternal edifice on the hill, that bastion of books and ideas -- is gone. All that is left next to City Hall is a hole in the ground.\nThe library was demolished in a grandiose city renovation scheme but the promised developments never materialized.\nThat's not to say that nobody profited -- but local residents didn't see the benefit.\nIn her research for this book, the author uncovers racism, redlining, government oversight and ineffectual citizen opposition. Vaccarino writes at a fever pitch, naming names and alluding to "Trumpian" tactics and possible mob associations.\n"The Death of a Library" is a passionate requiem -- and an accusation against a political system that ignored the public voice. -Bookmonger, Our Coast Magazine\nI was disappointed when I reached the end because I wanted it to go on and on even though I knew that the author covered the topic exhaustively and with her heart. Clearly, the author is the perfect example of the long-term effect this beautiful building has had on many people. I cannot offer enough praise for her effort in writing a book that begged to be written for so many years. She answered the call and has made many current and former Yonkers residents happy. No one more than me. -Frank Cardone, Local Yonkers Historian\n"As a long-time devotee of the Carnegie Library, I devoured The Death of a Library eagerly, anxious to learn the true story of why we lost this treasure. Surprisingly, reading this meticulously researched book caused me to experience many of the same emotions I felt as a child climbing the marble stairs to this magical temple of learning, clearly a dominant influence on all our Yonkers lives. Transported to my youth, I was back in the time when imagination and the power of books could take me anywhere.\nVaccarino's analysis of the end of this mystical part of my life was disturbing, bringi

The Death of a Library: An American Tragedy

History

Americas

Product Description Cut By Cut draws the reader into a single November day in Seattle: pounding rain, wind, and the things Seattleites think about to get through the dark nights and often darker days: money, sex, power, and evolving relationships. Organized the way a film is cut, this is a superbly written, fast-paced story of betrayal and murder, and if you figure out who the murderer is before the ending, you will be the first. This is, literally and figuratively, a “cut” above other thrillers. Review "Cut By Cut is yet another in a fine string of new novels by the prolific and talented Patricia Vaccarino. It draws the reader into a single November day in Seattle: pounding rain, wind, and the things Seattleites think about to get through the dark: money, sex, power, and evolving relationships. Organized the way a film is cut, this is a superbly written, fast-paced story of betrayal and murder, and if you figure out who the murderer is before the ending, you will be the first. This is, literally and figuratively, a "cut" above other thrillers. Vaccarino never disappoints with her fine eye for characters, ear for language and attention to the little details that make it all work!" -John de Graaf, filmmaker and author "Four words describe noted film director Harry Hill - talented, charismatic, powerful, and dead. Brutally murdered alongside his next leading lady, the beautiful, blonde Jewell Cleary, whose hair is now caked in blood around an unrecognizable half-face. Cut By Cut is a love letter to author Patricia Vaccarino's adopted home town of Seattle, paired with her insider knowledge of the art and business of filmmaking to conjure up a modern noir crime thriller that grabs you by the throat and won't let go."-Manny Frishberg, Author of "The Emerald City" "An intricately-plotted mystery where no one's motives are pure. It will keep you guessing right up to the very end."-Susan Alice BickfordEdgar Award Nominee: Dread of WinterLeft Coast Crime Debut Author Nominee: A Short Time to Die "Cut By Cut is a relentless thriller that demands to be read in a single sitting!"-Jordan Riefe, Critic and Author "As a writer of thrillers, I love the action and have a keen eye for that sense of guessing the final twists. I very much enjoyed Cut By Cut with its unexpected and intricate plot. A really good novel."-Marcella Nardi, author of the Marcella Randi mystery series and Joshua and The Brotherhood of the Ark (Italian: Joshua e la Confraternita dell'Arca "The relentless rain on this dark November day in Seattle will leave you chilled to the bone. Superb plot. Masterful storytelling. Vaccarino once again proves that she is an exceptional writer, a cut above the rest." -David L. Laing, Author and Artist "Patricia Vaccarino cuts no slack in Cut By Cut. Is it a whodunit or a who's gonna? A mind-bending film industry murder mystery. Behind the scenes in Seattle, the movie production sequence of events unravels. The scenes are time-stamped in keeping with film industry standards - and to keep readers on their toes. Get the buttered popcorn ready as you sit down to enjoy this book!" - Dean Landsman, Author, Digital Strategist"There is graphic seduction and sex in this novel, as well as graphic violence. There is coarse language. And, as the author tells it, while the film industry may deliver a nice and shiny final product, the behind-the-scenes story is not for the faint of heart. This is a cutthroat business. "Cut by Cut" is both a gruesome and an engrossing whodunit." -- Barbara Lloyd McMichael, The Bookmonger, Our Coast Magazine

Cut By Cut

Cookie Colangelo’s story unfolds in Yonkers, circa 1973. She has to work in a crummy job at a chain drug store. Her boss openly fondles Cookie and the other girls who work there. Cookie borrows money so her friend, who is poor, black and in an abusive relationship, can pay for an abortion. When she catches two young black girls shoplifting in Ghetto Square, she becomes the unwitting catalyst for the eruption of a race riot and ends up getting fired from her job. In her struggle to survive, she makes many enemies: Toni Ferlinghetti, the Queen Bee of Italian Girls, Tony Amendolito, a local thug, and Mosella Moran, who carries a razor blade in her afro. After Cookie steals several hundred thousand dollars, the real fun begins. From Max’s Kansas City to the Upper East Side celebrity restaurant Elaine’s, Cookie Colangelo faces a grim reality—the world is rigged against everyone who is poor or from the working class.

So Not Yonkers (YONKERS Yonkers!)

Literary

From 2014 to 2021, Nicola Smith served as the seventh mayor of Lynnwood, Washington, a small city located in Snohomish County. Mayor Smith entered the realm of politics at a much needed time in American history when we yearn to have true leadership at all levels of government. During her two terms as mayor, she transformed Lynnwood into a welcoming, inclusive community, and prepared this city for its unprecedented growth. Mayor Nicola Smith left her city in a far better state than she found it. We can all take a lesson in stewardship from her. Stewardship affects every aspect of our lives, from how well we take care of our homes, our work and our families to how well we take care of our communities. Her story needs to be told beyond the borders of a small but growing city in the state of Washington. Her story embodies those qualities that we all need to look for when we elect all of our leaders. Mayor Nicola Smith is an inspiration to young people. She is an inspiration to us all.

Mayor Nicola Smith: Grateful Steward

Biographies & Memoirs

Community & Culture

North Star Publishing

Independently published

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Vaccarino, Patricia. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Vaccarino, Patricia

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Vaccarino, Patricia. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

American Spin (PR for People®)

YONKERS Yonkers!: A Story of Race and Redemption

The Heart of Yonkers (YONKERS Yonkers!)

The Death of a Library: An American Tragedy

Cut By Cut

So Not Yonkers (YONKERS Yonkers!)

Mayor Nicola Smith: Grateful Steward

The Death of a Library: An American Tragedy