October 26, 2025

SACREBLEU! ANOTHER GOLD MEDAL!

BON JOUR, mon ami….. I am delighted to announce that my new U.S. history book, titled, WONDER OF THE WEST, has recently won a gold medal at the 2025 Paris Book Festival! Oi la la, what a pleasant surprise. The award was presented for the “Best U.S. History/Biography of 2025,” and marks the 5th literary award that the book has won. A scheduled award ceremony (which was supposed to be held in the Louvre Museum!) has been moved to the Jardin des Tuileries, so if you should find yourself in La Ville Lumiere (The City of Light) in early December please drop by for a glass (or two) of champagne.

In the meantime, please remember that copies of WONDER OF THE WEST can be readily obtained on Amazon.com, Barnesandnoble.com, and leading bookstores across the country. (That would be our country, the USA, not France.) So what else is new these days? Well, as I mentioned on my last blog, we met some wonderful folks on our recent river cruise. One couple, Peter Vernasco and Pamela Anderson, own Olivewood Ranch, and they produce the BEST olive oil I have ever tasted! They sent us a couple of bottles of their award-winning oil and it was truly marvelous. If you’re looking for a thoughtful gift this holiday season, you should check out their website. You won’t be sorry.

Pete and Pam were friends with Dr. Jim Gemmer (and his lovely better-half, Anne) The good doctor and I shared a memorable beer in the Black Forest and had some sparkling conversation throughout the voyage. As I’ve said many times, the best part of travel are the interesting folks you meet, and this trip was no exception.

Speaking of friends, I would like to thank Helena, The Princess of Portugal, and her charming husband, Baron Lee, for hosting another extraordinary gala feast last week. On this occasion, The Princess made FEIJOADA, the national dish of Brazil. (Basically a hearty stew) It was wonderful, and I managed to consume a meager two helpings… and lots of good, red wine. My wife loved the meal, but slightly embarrassed herself. She asked our host if a Brazilian was the number after a trillion!

Well, as I’m sure you know, Halloween is just around the corner. Need some fun facts? Do you know that 41% of Americans believe that ghosts really exist? (80% believe that they’re going to get an IRS refund!) Last year, Americans spent 700 million dollars on Halloween costumes! (Roughly what my wife spends at the mall each year.) I can’t prove it, but I really think that Halloween (which is America’s 2nd favorite holiday) was invented by someone affiliated with the American Dental Association. Have you ever seen what candy corn does to your teeth? Thank God it’s at least a vegetable.

For those of you who have inquired about the 2026 Caribbean Book Festival, I am thrilled to announce that I will be participating in several discussion groups. So far, I’ve signed up for gigs on St. Bart’s and St. Thomas, but I’m sure more stops will be added as the festival nears. I shall, as they say, keep you informed. Make sure to bring plenty of sunscreen and a generous supply of Alka-Seltzer. (I hear they sell rum on some of the islands!)

Well, amigos y amigettes, I must take my leave. My wife is dragging me (again) to our Sunday morning tennis lessons. I know how to play, but she insists that my game could improve. (Isn’t that why they invented cheating? To eliminate the need to practice?) In any case, remember my motto….. “When in doubt, call it out!” Have a wonderful (and joyous) week… and keep your eye on the ball. (Even though the racket works better!) Love to all,

Doc Yanoff

June 15, 2025

HAPPY FATHER’S DAY, 2025!

I know it’s been a while since we last spoke, but I’ve been “panhandling!” (Not begging, just vacationing in the gorgeous panhandle region of Florida.) The boss and I flew east to participate in a book signing and catch some rays on Rosemary Beach. (Just up the road from the setting of my new “Adam Gold Mystery,” titled, THE LONG HARD FALL. We spent 4 enjoyable nights at the lovely Pearl Hotel, which as the name implies is a real gem.

While we were roughing it in the wilderness of West Florida, I decided to go on Safari. (Not the African kind — the web browser on the internet) I did, however, encounter some wild animals, but I also made some new friends on Facebook. (Two from Burundi and one from Chad.)

Between Margaritas, I volunteered to be a judge at a local fashion show. Well, it wasn’t actually a fashion show… it was more of a wet T-shirt contest. (same idea, I told my wife) In any case, the young lady who won the contest was very grateful and offered me a lap dance. Unfortunately, she meant a real Lapp from Scandinavia. Nice girl, but her Viking horns kept poking me in the stomach.

By the way, what do you think caribou care about?

Moving on….. a few weeks ago I had the pleasure of discussing my new historical masterpiece, WONDER OF THE WEST, with the charming and intelligent ladies of the Flintlock Falls Book Club. It was a delightful afternoon, and I would like to thank the wonderful Sheila Niles for setting up the event. I look forward to our next meeting!

Some more earth-shattering news… THE LONG HARD FALL was recently selected (by a major NYC newspaper) as “one of the best summer reads of 2025.” (Which, technically, means that you MUST buy the darn book and read it ASAP in order to avoid any legal consequences.) Hey, I don’t make the rules.

The next trip on tap (besides more beer) is a long-awaited outing to Lake George, New York. Upon my arrival in the stunning Adirondack Mountains, I shall be doing some much-needed research for a new history book set in that region. We will be housed at the Sagamore Hotel for a week or so, and then it’s off to Forts William Henry and Ticonderoga. (My parents used to own a motel in Lake George, a place called the Flamingo Motel, so I spent quite a few summers on the Lake.) Which, by the way, was recently named the “cleanest lake in America!”

Well, I’m off (somewhat reluctantly) to the bagel store for breakfast. The last time I went there I asked if I could buy a bagel with cream cheese, and the youngster at the counter said, “I’m sorry, sir. We only take cash.” (Jeez, what is this country coming to?) On that note, I shall take my leave… but I wish you all a stupendous Father’s Day and much love…. Until we meet again, I remain,

Dr. Stephen G. Yanoff (a/k/a Doc Y)

May 18, 2025

SPRING HAS SPRUNG!

So what’s going on with the weather? The first day of summer in 2025 is supposed to be June 20, but do not be fooled by this arbitrary and capricious date! The last few days (five or six, mind you) have been real scorchers, one hundred or more degrees each day! (And it’s only May!) How hot has it been, you ask? Well, it was so hot that my water bed began to boil! I saw a funeral procession pull through a Dairy Queen! Texas cows have begun to give evaporated milk!

All right, enough jokes about the heat. How was your Mother’s Day? Mine was a little unusual. I took my wife to San Marcos for a hot air balloon trip, but the dang place was out of business. The owner was filling his balloons with COLD AIR, so his business never got off the ground. (Ouch!) Being a thoughtful hubby, I offered my wife some Kashmir. She thought I meant cashmere. Foolish girl. She missed an good trip.

Despite the heat, I have been diligently pursuing my infamous writing career, and I am thrilled to announce that the 7th installment in the “Adam Gold Mystery Series” has just been published and is now available on Amazon.com, Barnesandnoble.com, and leading bookstores across the nation.

The newest tale is titled, THE LONG HARD FALL, and has already received some rave reviews from the usual culprits at the N.Y. Times and elsewhere. In this book, Adam Gold, preeminent insurance investigator, is compelled to dive into the dark and dangerous world of shady builders in South Florida — and confront Russian mobsters, Chinese Intelligence, and Haitian street gangs.

If you’re looking for a great summer read, then this is the book for you. Please note that all royalties will be spent promoting my frivolous lifestyle and tequila consumption. On this you have my word.

Well, I hope you enjoyed today’s pun-filled blog. Do you realize how hard it is to explain puns to a kleptomaniac? Think about it. Those poor souls take things literally. (Just saying)

And on that note… Have a salubrious (and mildly salacious) week, and remember to be nice to your grand-children. (You will need them to smuggle alcohol into the nursing home!) Take care and we shall chat again soon. Love to all,

Doc Yanoff

P.S. If you will scroll down, you will see what the new book cover looks like.

December 24, 2024

‘TWAS THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS!

Actually, it still is the night before Christmas. (at least for the next few hours) In any case, allow me to quote a famous Texas farmer who said, “Hoe, hoe, hoe!” I would have made an earlier post, but my darn computer was out of whack. I’m not even sure what a whack is, but I seemed to be out of one. Nevertheless, I am back in business and would like to take this opportunity to wish all of my wonderful blog followers a MERRY CHRISTMAS and/or HAPPY HANUKKAH. I hope that Santa or FedEx brings you all the toys you asked for… assuming you’ve been a good little elf this past year.

In order to improve my mind, (good luck with that) I’ve been reading all of Shakespeare’s plays, and today I finished “As You Like it.” I enjoyed the play, but I’m a little confused by one of the lines. The famous line that reads, “All the world’s a stage.” If that’s true, and all the world’s a stage, where is the audience sitting? Just saying.

Anyway, I love the holiday season, and I especially enjoy watching some of the old Christmas movies. (anything except “Die Hard” and that Chevy Chase thing) My absolute favorite is the 1951 version of the classic movie, “A Christmas Carol,” starring Alistair Sim. I love all the special effects, but to be perfectly honest, the movie scares the Dickens out of me! (Come on, that’s not a bad literary joke!)

I haven’t always been a big fan of Christmas. I was kind of ugly as a child, so my parents would hang me up and kiss the mistletoe! Which reminds me, if a rocket scientist has a foot problem do they get treated for mistletoe? (Get it, missile-toe?) All right, that joke barely got off the ground.

So, aside from these lousy jokes, what else is new? Well, as you may have heard, my new history book, titled, WONDER OF THE WEST, recently won a major literary award and was named as “One of the Most Notable Book of 2024” by the good folks at Shelf Unbound Magazine. If you’re looking for a memorable gift this year, you can order a copy on Amazon.com or at Barnesandnoble.com (If you send me an airline ticket, I will come to your house and sign the book!) By the way, I’m talking about a round-trip ticket.

Two days from now we are off on another adventure, but this time we’re staying local (sort of) and taking the entire family to La Cantera Resort in San Antonio. They have wonderful decorations this time of year and the kiddies love to ride the boats that float along the river walk. (The water’s a little cold for swimming, unless you consume an appropriate amount of tequila.) Still, with great food and shopping nearby, I’m sure a good time will be had by all. (assuming the grand-kids don’t find out what room I’m in and wake me up too early!)

Lest I forget, (or drink too much tequila) allow me to wish everyone a HAPPY AND HEALTHY NEW YEAR! I hope 2025 is a marvelous year for you and yours, and I’m very grateful for your continued friendship and support. I’d like to dedicate this blog to my dear friends, Farah and Mike, who have gone through some tough weather in Florida… and deserve a MUCH BETTER year ahead. (with no darn hurricanes!)

I’ve included some random photographs of 2024… so scroll down if you’re interested… LOVE TO ALL!

Doc Yanoff