Sep 23, 2026 | Book Recommendations & Reading Lists - Nonfiction, Spirituality and Religion
Cultish: The Language of Fanaticism by Amanda Montell
Harper Perennial, May 27, 2025
A unique look at cults, this book evaluates the notable language used by cults and other cult-like things.
Broken Faith: Inside One of America’s Most Dangerous Cults by Mitch Weiss and Holbrook Mohr
Hanover Square Press, April 6, 2021
Broken Faith gives an inside look into Jane Whaley’s terrifying cult the Word of Faith Fellowship.
Cults: Inside the World’s Most Notorious Groups and Understanding the People Who Joined Them by Max Cutler and Kevin Conley
Gallery Books, July 12, 2022
This book takes a deep dive into the stories of cult leaders and the cults they created.
Waco: David Koresh, the Branch Davidians, and A Legacy of Rage by Jeff Guinn
Simon & Schuster, April 16, 2024
Filled with interviews from some federal agents who were there, this book gives a unique perspective to the events that transpired in Waco.
Cult Following: The Extreme Sects That Capture Our Imaginations―and Take Over Our Lives by J.W. Ocker
Quirk Books, September 10, 2024
Written with the goal of addressing the questions many people have about cults and cult members, this book dives into the details of 30 well-known cults.
The Sound of Gravel: A Memoir by Ruth Wariner
Flatiron Books, April 25, 2017
In The Sound of Gravel, Ruth discusses her trying early life and her triumphant escape from the cult she grew up in.
The Road to Jonestown: Jim Jones and Peoples Temple by Jeff Guinn
Simon & Schuster, April 10, 2018
The Road to Jonestown provides a detailed look into the life of Jim Jones and the nightmare cult he created.
Uncultured by Daniella Mestyanek Young
Griffin, November 7, 2023
Uncultured tells the remarkable story of Daniella’s escape from the Children of God (aka The Family) cult and her ultimate success in the US military.
Sep 22, 2026 | Book Award Winners, Business and Money
Congratulations on your gold book award!
Synopsis
The Hard Truth
Nearly every HR leader tells me the same thing when they call, “We don’t think we have a problem. We just want an outside perspective.”
And every single time, they’re shocked by what we uncover. Pay inequity isn’t usually malicious. It grows quietly through outdated policies, negotiation disparities, lack of transparency, and unconscious bias. Over time, those small gaps become massive divides.
I’ve worked with organizations ranging from thirty employees to fifteen thousand, and every one of them had pay equity issues. But here’s the hopeful part: equity can be achieved.
This book offers a clear path forward—combining real-world experience, practical strategies, and proven frameworks to help organizations close wage gaps, comply with evolving laws, and build cultures rooted in fairness.
Equity isn’t a spreadsheet exercise. It’s a commitment. And it matters—to your people, your company, and society as a whole.
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Author Bio
David Weaver is an award-winning author of the bestselling business book Pay Matters: The Art and Science of Employee Compensation, the new book Equal Pay Matters: Closing the Wage Gap to Achieve Pay Equity, and the children’s book Pay Matters to Kids. He is the Founder of the Compensation and HR Group, an Instructor at the Compensation Analyst Academy, and the Executive Director of the Pay Matters Foundation, which is an independent and private nonprofit organization dedicated to providing people with knowledge about pay.
Learn more about the Nonfiction Book Awards here.
Sep 21, 2026 | Book Award Winners, Business and Money
Congratulations on your silver book award!
Synopsis
The Hidden Currency of Today’s Power
What separates resilient leaders and high‑performing teams from the rest?
• Not technology.
• Not process.
• Something far more foundational—and far more often overlooked: trust.
Trust has become more than a leadership ideal. It has become the driving power behind organizational and individual success. Organizations that operationalize trust as a strategic asset outperform those that simply treat it as a talking point.
In Win Via Trust, you will find clear insights and practical direction that will meaningfully elevate your leadership—wherever you are in your leadership journey.
From closing deals, developing high-potential employees, managing crisis, optimizing remote work, and incorporating AI, this book crystallizes what you need to know as a leader and provides real-world advice you can apply immediately.
The Trustworthy Decision Matrix, a simple 2×2 decision-making tool, helps you determine whether a situation is trustworthy or not and assign resources appropriately.
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Author Bio
Michael Rabinowitz is a life sciences executive who has spent over thirty years in large pharmaceutical companies (over 100,000 employees) and small biotech startups (fewer than twenty-five employees). He has held C-suite and other leadership roles in strategy, marketing, sales, finance, and business development functions in the US and globally. Within those roles, Michael has successfully launched billion-dollar products, turned around struggling businesses, developed innovative programs to educate medical professionals and improve patient care, and partnered with private and public industry leaders to advance healthcare around the world. Michael currently advises biotech CEOs in strategy and partnering as Principal of Intelluvia LLC. He has been the keynote speaker and invited guest at conferences and other events in several countries, typically focusing on leadership and business strategy. Michael holds an MBA from The Carlson School of Management, University of Minnesota, and a BA summa cum laude from Northwestern University. He has also participated in executive healthcare programs at the Harvard Business School of Harvard University and the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. Michael is married with three children.
Learn more about the Nonfiction Book Awards here.
Sep 18, 2026 | Book Award Winners, Science, Math, Politics, Social Sciences, Self-Development and Psychology
Congratulations on your bronze book award!
Synopsis
We built the smartest machines in history, and we programmed them to make us feel inadequate.
A Simple Guide to Being Alive is a bold, playful, profound science-backed manual for anyone who has ever felt overwhelmed by the modern world and wondered if there was a simpler, saner way to live.
This is no ordinary book. It is a life-changing software update for your nervous system disguised as something you can read on a plane. You’ll discover why anxiety isn’t your enemy, but a signal, what psychedelics teach us about how your nervous system shapes every moment of your existence, and why the simplest things, like a deep breath, a shared laugh, or a 20-second hug, can change your life more than any optimization hack ever could.
Dr. Rabin combines cutting-edge medicine with ancient wisdom to show that safety, not productivity, is the foundation of performance, joy, and longevity. Drawing from his work as a psychiatrist and neuroscientist, A Simple Guide blends the scientific method with unapologetic humor, inviting you to return home to your breath, your body, and your beautifully human self.
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Author Bio
Dr. David M. L. Rabin, MD, PhD, is a translational neuroscientist, psychiatrist, entrepreneur & inventor on a mission to cure mental illness. He has been studying the impact of chronic stress in humans for over 20 years, focusing on trauma, addiction, and human performance. Dr. Rabin is a Senior Research Scientist at the Institute for Human and Machine Cognition, the Chief Medical Officer and co-founder at Apollo Neuroscience, the Executive Director of The Board of Medicine nonprofit medical board, and Medical Director of The Apollo Clinic. In addition to hosting The Psychedelic Report and Your Brain Explained podcasts, Dr. Rabin regularly serves as an expert for news outlets such as The New York Times, Vogue, CBS News, The Washington Post, and The Wall Street Journal. In his spare time, he enjoys cooking, dancing, volleyball, sailing, and hikes with his wife Kathryn and their son Sammy.
Learn more about the Nonfiction Book Awards here.
Sep 17, 2026 | Book Award Winners, True Crime
Congratulations on your silver book award!
Synopsis
Bodies Were Found, the Case Went Cold, Then the Commish Took Over
For more than a decade, the Gilgo Beach serial killer eluded capture—dumping bodies on the beach, taunting victims’ families, baffling investigators, and dominating headlines in a frightened community with a police department riddled with corruption.
When Rodney K. Harrison became Police Commissioner of Long Island’s Suffolk County PD, he didn’t just inherit the cold case—he brought the killer to justice.
The Commissioner is the inside story of how one veteran cop reopened a stalled investigation, assembled a select task force, and hunted a killer hiding in plain sight. Drawing on his three decades of law enforcement experience as the highest ranking officer in the NYPD—including undercover drug buys, homicide scenes, and high-stakes leadership—Harrison reveals what it really took to lock up “the devil that walks among us.”
Harrison’s street smarts growing up in South Jamaica, Queens, rising through the ranks of the NYPD and commanding precincts in all five boroughs including Harlem, quelling violence on Staten Island after the Eric Garner incident, surviving a shooting during a drug buy gone bad where his partner was shot—all led to his final act in law enforcement, the one that made history.
This book pulls back the curtain on the Gilgo Beach serial killer case and the top cop who wouldn’t let it go cold again.
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Author Bio
Rodney K. Harrison is a nationally respected law enforcement leader whose storied thirty-two-year career in policing spans the toughest streets of every borough in New York City to the top ranks of the New York Police Department, the nation’s largest police force—and beyond. From undercover narcotics work to commanding entire boroughs, Harrison has worked every angle of modern policing, culminating in his role as Police Commissioner of Suffolk County, where his leadership revived the cold-case investigation of the Gilgo Beach serial murders and led to the arrest of the confessed killer in one of the most high-profile breakthroughs in recent true crime annals.
Learn more about the Nonfiction Book Awards here.
Sep 16, 2026 | Book Award Winners, Business and Money
Congratulations on your bronze book award!
Synopsis
Drawn from the weekly Monday Morning Radio podcast, this powerful anthology features 21 top thinkers offering more than 100 actionable insights you can apply immediately – whether you’re leading a team, building a company, or navigating your next business decision.
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Author Bio
Maxwell Rotbart is an educator, historian, and award-winning author who specializes in transforming complex ideas into compelling, accessible narratives.
Learn more about the Nonfiction Book Awards here.
Sep 15, 2026 | Book Award Winners, Self-Development and Psychology
Congratulations on your silver book award!
Synopsis
In Becoming a Diamond, life and leadership coach Nicole Lindhorst asks just that — then gently guides you through your own answers. Writing as the trusted friend you’ve prayed for — honest, encouraging, faith-filled, and unafraid to say the things most women only think — and using her Diamond developmental framework, she will help you:
-Cut through identity confusion and reconnect with your authentic self.
-Learn to see your purpose from a new lens of joy and fulfillment.
-Honor your self-worth and shut down negativity.
-Release your fear of judgment and express your uniqueness as a gift.
-Break free from paralysis and embrace confidence.
-Stop feeling scattered by focusing where it matters.
-Nurture supportive relationships and release those not serving you.
-Embrace all your gifts and encourage brilliance in others.
Packed with sparks of wisdom, provocative micro-perspectives and actionable steps that bring real results, this book meets you wherever you are. New chapter, old season, or finally ready to stop dimming your own brilliance, you’ll recognize the diamond God’s been shaping in you all along
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Author Bio
Nicole Lindhorst is a wife of more than twenty years to Mark, a proud mom of three — Emma, Owen, and Brody – and a lifelong entrepreneur who has built multiple successful businesses with equal parts grit, grace, and faith. Growing up in a divorced home taught Nicole the power of perseverance early on. She learned that hard work and heart – not circumstance — determine your direction. Rooted in small-town values and driven by big dreams, Nicole has made it her mission to inspire others to rise above limitations and rediscover the brilliance within. Through her coaching, re-treats, and her book Becoming a Diamond, she helps women navigate life transitions with confidence, purpose, and joy. When she’s not speaking, mentoring, or volunteering in her community, you’ll find her traveling, sharing laughter with friends, reading a good book, or binge-watching Netflix with a cozy blanket, her mini schnauzer Baylee and a glass of wine. An outspoken believer in God, Nicole says her greatest passion is to remind others that faith is the foundation of every transformation and that we shine most brightly when we trust the One who created us to sparkle. Nicole’s message is simple but powerful: You were never meant to shrink to fit in; you were created to shine.
Learn more about the Nonfiction Book Awards here.
Sep 14, 2026 | Book Award Winners, Health and Wellness
Congratulations on your gold book award!
Synopsis
Fue necesario el trabajo de dos doctores-uno en medicina y otro en economía-para curar el sistema de salud de los Estados Unidos.
Juntos, estos doctores desarrollaron Sé un Paciente Empoderado, un plan que:
• te devolverá a TI el control financiero,
• te conectará directamente a TI con el médico que prefieras,
• brindará redes de seguridad eficaces para los estadounidenses vulnerables.
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Author Bios
Dr. Deane Waldman, MD, MBA, is an Emeritus Professor of Pediatrics, Pathology, and Decision Science at the University of New Mexico. Over the course of his distinguished career, he has served in numerous leadership roles, including Chief of Pediatric Cardiology at the University of Chicago, Director of the Center for Healthcare Policy at the Texas Public Policy Foundation, Chairman of Ronald McDonald House Charities of New Mexico, and Director of the New Mexico Health Insurance Exchange Board.
Vance Ginn, Ph.D., (hard “G,” like “again”) is president of Ginn Economic Consulting and former chief economist of the Office of Management and Budget during the first Trump administration. He is a nationally recognized economist and dedicated advocate for free-market efforts that promote economic growth, opportunity, and fiscal responsibility. Frequently featured in major outlets such as Fox Business and The Wall Street Journal, Dr. Ginn’s insights translate complex economic topics into simple, actionable paths.
Learn more about the Nonfiction Book Awards here.
Sep 11, 2026 | Book Award Winners, Memoir
Congratulations on your silver book award!
Synopsis
Vince Colletta was one of the world’s most legendary comic book artists and without question the most prolific inker ever. His life’s work, an important part of the Golden Age of Comic Books, is explored by Colletta’s son, Franklin, accompanied by hundreds of pencil and ink illustrations depicting Colletta’s elegant and sometimes controversial style. For some comic book fans, Colletta was seen as a too-swift hack, while others recognized his versatility for creating both illustrative and graphic masterpieces including the most beautiful women in comics.
Best known for his time at Marvel, Vince Colletta instantly became their prominent romance artist and went on to contribute to the burgeoning superhero genre including early issues of Fantastic Four and Thor. He was also the Art Director at DC Comics, working on classic comics such as Batman, Wonder Woman, and Warlord. His legacy is more than just as an artist. Vince was the fastest and most dependable inker in the business. When pencilers or editors were late turning in their work, the pages were invariably given to Colletta at the last minute to complete in time to make printing deadlines.
Vince Colletta died in 1991, and his son, Franklin Colletta has formed this collection as a celebration and homage to his father, telling the incredible journey of an extraordinary man.
“Just mention the name Vinnie Colletta and the first thing that comes to mind is his gorgeous portrayal of beautiful females in his artwork … I had never seen anyone depict beautiful women in romance stories as dramatically or as glamorously.” – Stan Lee, Former Publisher and Editorial Director at Marvel
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Author Bio
Franklin Colletta is the son of legendary comic book artist, Vincent Colletta who was perhaps the most prolific inker ever. He is happy to be a part of the Black Spring Press family. Vinnie contributed to early issues of Marvel’s Daredevil, Fantastic Four, and Thor as well as DC Comics’ Batman, Wonder Woman, Warlord, Starfire, Girls’ Love Stories, and more.
Learn more about the Nonfiction Book Awards here.
Sep 10, 2026 | Book Award Winners, Memoir
Congratulations on your silver book award!
Synopsis
After 50 years gone, the author and his deaf adult son travel back to his home town to take care of his 105 year old grandfather. In his grandfather’s last year they discuss and reveal each others lives. Together they explore and compare his grandfather’s extremely religious path through life with that of the his own extensive and somewhat unbelievable secular life experiences. Through four family members lives, the discussion weaves through all the comforts, opportunities, inconsistencies, horrors and happiness provided in America for us all to reconcile with each other.
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Author Bio
Experienced and well travelled, winding down and setting an example. Enjoying life and imparting a lifetime of gained wisdom when asked. From start to finish, throughout his life, he has been one lucky S.O.B.
Learn more about the Nonfiction Book Awards here.
