Diego and the Goofy Witches of Beigua is the author's response to two major topics: diversity and bullying. In her book, she weaves into the story these two themes. We are truly stronger by learning to respect and celebrate our diversity and addressing the topic of bullying and its resulting negative impact upon ones self-confidence. Bullying does not discriminate against age, race, gender, nor disability. It exists, unfortunately, everywhere and can do harm at any age. Donna Marie uses humor in finding solutions to these highly sensitive issues in todays landscape. The story is about the goofy, fun-loving witches of Beigua in Italy, who are faced with the cruel bullying of the banshees and have decided to leave their beloved homeland until Santa comes up with an ideahis good friend, a pelican named Diego from Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, who likes to fly upside down. And oh! He likes to wear a sequined sombrero and catlike-framed purple sunglasses. He comes to the rescue, well, sort of! Diego must deliver six letters from Santa to six different continents to six witches of different cultures to help the goofy witches of Beigua solve their problem of being bullied. The goofy witches learn that they are stronger with their new witch friends by being culturally different than all being from the same place. Sometimes you get great ideas when you share your different ways of solving a problem and learn to work as a team to stop being bullied. The author welcomes all those who read this book to share their thoughts and ideas and welcomes everyone to the land of the goofy witches of Beigua!

Santa and His Merry Companions. This book, Santa and His Merry Companions, completes the trilogy, beginning with The Reindeer Dog and then the book, Diego and the Goofy Witches of Beigua. This story, Santa and His Merry Companions, begins on Christmas Eve, when Santa and everyone at the North Pole are preparing for the big night to deliver presents around the world. Santa checks his mail one more time, and there is a letter from his friend Peony Penguin, who lives in the Antarctica. She tells Santa not to come because something strange has been happening there. Birds are turning into icicles and dangling in the cold Antarctica sky. This has never happened before. She does not want Santa and the reindeer or Carlo the Official Reindeer Dog to end up like popsicles! But Santa has a plan that he shares with this pal Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. Rudy, as Santa calls him, is afraid and is worried that this plan will not work and that they will get stuck in the sky forever and ever! After a long discussion, Rudy agrees with the plan, and Santa contacts his friend Diego, the famous pelican of Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. Diego will lead the caravan, as he can fly low to the ground, and he can signal to Rudy the weather conditions while the reindeer are pulling the sleigh with Santa and Carlo. Alongside Diego will be Zorbella, one of the goofy witches of Beigua, and her snow globe, Sophia, giving the latest weather forecasts; and zooming with them will be all the goofy witches of Beigua, their witch friends, and the banshees. Santa is hoping that one of the witches or banshees will figure out a magical potion to stop the freeze and allow Santa to bring presents to the animals and birds of the Antarctica. But Santa knows this is risky business, and he has never experienced such a situation, other than the usual bumpy sleigh rides and landings, including the numerous times the goofy witches, such as Florinda, who flies upside down, as well as the famous acrobatic pelican Diego nearly crashed into his sleigh! Will this plan work, or will they be all frozen in the Antarctic sky?

The Reindeer Dog is the authors gift to all children and adults who believe in the magic of Christmas and Santa Claus. The setting for the story is the North Pole and a little village in the Liguria region of Italy called Alpicella. Alpicella is the village where the authors grandfather, Nonno Antonio, was born. When she was a little girl, her nonno, Italian for grandfather, would tell her stories about his village. As a child she thought this village must be a magical place to live. In the story The Reindeer Dog, Santa is on his customary flight on Christmas Eve. He arrives on the rooftop of a home in Alpicella where he discovers a very special gift. This story wraps within it the history of Liguria, customs celebrating Christmas in different parts of the world, and a touching story of an unexpected gift for Mrs. Claus. The author welcomes families from all different backgrounds to share and gather together to read her story of love.

Twenty-four hours per day. Sixty minutes per hour. Sixty seconds per minute. The mind keeps on steering. The heart keeps on pumping. Congratulations and be blessed you are still living. I know something and someone is tarnishing your heart and mind, so here’s a one-of-a-kind convincing file, circulating in one-of-a-kind task things and created in different and special forms. May you recognize matters by reading.

WALL STREET JOURNAL BESTSELLER Every year upon arriving in Plobien, the small Breton town where he spends his summers, American writer Mark Greenside picks back up where he left off with his faux-pas–filled Francophile life. Mellowed and humbled, but not daunted (OK, slightly daunted), he faces imminent concerns: What does he cook for a French person? Who has the right-of-way when entering or exiting a roundabout? Where does he pay for a parking ticket? And most dauntingly of all, when can he touch the tomatoes? Despite the two decades that have passed since Greenside’s snap decision to buy a house in Brittany and begin a bi-continental life, the quirks of French living still manage to confound him. Continuing the journey begun in his 2009 memoir about beginning life in France, (Not Quite) Mastering the Art of French Living details Greenside’s daily adventures in his adopted French home, where the simplest tasks are never straightforward but always end in a great story. Through some hits and lots of misses, he learns the rules of engagement, how he gets what he needs—which is not necessarily what he thinks he wants—and how to be grateful and thankful when (especially when) he fails, which is more often than he can believe. Introducing the English-speaking world to the region of Brittany in the tradition of Peter Mayle’s homage to Provence, Mark Greenside’s first book, I’ll Never Be French, continues to be among the bestselling books about the region today. Experienced Francophiles and armchair travelers alike will delight in this new chapter exploring the practical and philosophical questions of French life, vividly brought to life by Greenside’s humor and affection for his community.

In a story that stands above the throngs of travel memoirs, full of gorgeous descriptions of Brittany and at times hysterical encounters with the locals, Mark Greenside describes his initially reluctant travels in this "heartwarming story" (San Francisco Chronicle) where he discovers a second life. When Mark Greenside—a native New Yorker living in California, political lefty, writer, and lifelong skeptic—is dragged by his girlfriend to a tiny Celtic village in Brittany at the westernmost edge of France in Finistère, or what he describes as "the end of the world," his life begins to change. In a playful, headlong style, and with enormous affection for the Bretons, Greenside shares how he makes a life for himself in a country where he doesn't speak the language or understand the culture. He gradually places his trust in the villagers he encounters—neighbors, workers, acquaintances—and he's consistently won over and surprised as he manages to survive day-to-day trials. From opening a bank account and buying a house to removing a beehive from the chimney, he begins to learn the cultural ropes, live among his neighbors, and make new friends. Until he came to this town, Greenside was lost, moving through life without a plan, already in his 40s with little money and no house. He lived as a skeptic who seldom trusts others and has an inclination to be alone. So when he settles into the rhythm of this new French culture—against the backdrop of Brittany's streets surrounded by gorgeous architecture and breathtaking landscapes—not only does he find a home and meaningful relationships in this French countryside, he finds himself. I'll Never Be French (no matter what I do) is both a new beginning and a homecoming for Greenside. It is a memoir about fitting in, not standing out; being part of something larger, not being separate from it; following, not leading. It explores the joys and adventures of living a double life. He has never regretted his journey and, as he advises to those searching for their next adventure, neither will you.

Il Circolo is a reunion story, the rediscovery of family and roots. Its the real dolce vita, lived to the tune of Italian Girls Just Want to Have Fun. If you like laughing, eating, and shopping, youre in for a romp of a read. Magnifico! Mark Greenside, author of Ill Never Be French (No Matter What I Do