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A Lesson in Murder, by Augustus (Gus) Cileone. Published by Oak Tree Press, Taylorville, IL, October, 2007. Winner of the Dark Oak Mystery Contest

WHEN A WEALTHY BENEFACTOR and alumnus of Eastern Friends School in Philadelphia is found murdered, details at the scene prompt Lt. Frank DiSalvo, a South Philadelphia native, to introduce himself at a faculty meeting. There he meets Maxwell Hunter, an English teacher who likes to lecture about the mysteries of literature. At first, DiSalvo brushes off Hunter’s offer of help, but when the second EFS-connected murder is discovered, he changes his mind.

With his sharp eye for detail, and uncanny ability to assemble the pieces of the picture, Hunter identifies the literary modus operandi … but can he predict the next attack to prevent another murder?

As the author I wrote this book because I have always loved reading mystery novels or watching mystery films. The more complicated the plot is, the more I like it. For this novel, I told a tale about murder involving a Quaker community. This story is an ironic one since Quaker pacifism is based on the belief that there is that of the divine in each individual.

I drew on personal experience and knowledge to write this story. I have a Master's degree in English, and I am a certified English teacher. The main character attended college at the end of the 1960's and early 1970’s, as did I. The police detective in the book is from South Philly, and I grew up there, and have lived my whole life in and near Philadelphia. My work as a medical claims examiner helped me with certain details referring to evidence. My wife was a teacher at Quaker schools. My daughter attended Quaker elementary and middle schools.

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Eat, drink, and be merry? It’s more like eat, drink, and be miserable. Feast or Famine is a novel which depicts what happens when the tension between the Catholic Church’s restrictions on self-indulgence and the Italian desire for food, gambling, physical passion, and expensive (although tacky) material things encounters the social upheaval of the late 1960’s and early 1970’s.

The main character, Mike Accordo, an English teacher, had not spoken for a long time after becoming catatonic following a traumatic event involving some students. As part of his recovery, he is in Florence, Italy, in the summer of 1987 with his mentor/surrogate mother/unofficial therapist, Ambrosia D’Italia. He is dictating his memoir so that he can hear his own voice again and be able to converse with his friend at the same time. The book focuses on South Philadelphians from the 1960’s to the 1980’s, and includes stories about gangsters, murder, drugs, and rock and roll.

Feast or Famine, by Augustus Cileone, is available at Amazon.com