| Upper Access Authors, expert sources of information for journalists |
Authors, Experts, and Interview Subjects
The Upper Access Directory of Experts is a feature
for journalists. It includes several of the Upper Access authors who are
actively available for interviews and expert commentary on subjects that
are in the news. Click on the icon next to the author's name for more information.
For additional information or to arrange an interview, contact Steve Carlson
at 1-800-310-8320, or 802-482-2988, or steve@upperaccess.com.
(two author/experts)
Lisa Carlson is a consumer advocate and occasional hell-raiser, helping people to control
the funeral arrangements for their loved ones without being exploited
by the funeral industry. She is executive director of the nonprofit Funeral
Ethics Organization. She is co-author
of Final Rights: Reclaiming the American Way of Death. On a lighter note, she's also the
author of I Died Laughing: Funeral Education with a Light Touch,
a collection of jokes and cartoons that can serve as icebreakers to discuss
the inevitable and begin the planning process.
Joshua Slocum is the current executive director of Funeral Consumers Alliance. With over 100 local chapters nationwide, FCA is the primary voice for consumers in dealing with the funeral industry. Now, he has joined forces with Lisa Carlson as co-author of the ultimate funeral consumer handbook, Final Rights: Reclaiming the American Way of Death.
He is a dynamic public speaker, and often consulted on funeral issues by government officials, lawyers, and journalists.
In addition to the book, Slocum and Carlson have joined forces with their informative Web site, FinalRights.org.
Henri de Marne writes the column "First Aid for the Ailing House," syndicated
by Universal Uclick (formerly United Feature Syndicate) in newspapers throughout the US and Canada.
The column has been running for over 38 years, and in that time he has
answered questions about just about every issue a homeowner can face.
Now, he is attracting new readers with his popular blog site, About the House with Henri de Marne.
The site and the book with the same title are published by Upper Access.
Myron Arms
is a small-boat sailor whose observations and writings about the northern
ocean have fascinated sailing enthusiasts and environmentalists for over
40 years. His highly acclaimed and most recent book, True North: Journeys
into the Great Northern Ocean, chronicles decades of adventure and thrilling
landscapes that may never be seen again. Another book , Servants of
the Fish: A Portrait of Newfoundland after the Great Cod Collapse,
is a gripping and detailed first-hand account of a major environmental disaster,
including interviews of the players—the fishermen, the business people,
the politicians.
Matthys Levy
is author or co-author of several books that make complex science
readily accessible to the layperson. These include the best-selling Why
Buildings Fall Down, Structural Design in Architecture, Why the Earth
Quakes, Earthquake Games, and Engineering the City. In his
new book, Why the Wind Blows: A History of Weather and Global Warming,
he tackles the most serious environmental issues facing the world today.
Frances Hill
is widely known as the historian who brought us detailed accounts of one
of the most fascinating periods of American history, the Salem witch trials.
She has now found chilling similarities between the Puritan ideologues
of the Massachusetts Bay Colony and the neoconservative ideologues of
the Bush Administration. Her analysis appears in the controversial new
book, Such Men are Dangerous: The Fanatics of 1692 and 2004.
A professional journalist whose background includes both print and broadcast
media, Hill can provide fascinating historical information and sharp analysis
of today's world events
Lawrence
McAuliffe has unique credentials to discuss the impact on Americans
of the Vietnam war. After having completed service as a Marine lieutenant,
he returned to serve as a Catholic chaplain up along the DMZ in 1968-'69,
and is a disabled veteran of that conflict. His new novel, Purple
Sun, is a gripping saga that keeps readers turning the pages to
follow the plot, while casting new light on questions of war and peace,
life and death, heroism, and many of the other issues that are again prominent
in American discourse today. Those writing news and features, or hosting
talk shows that cover those subjects, are finding that Lawrence McAuliffe
has insights unique to a man who went through his intense experiences.
Stephen C.
Putnam is starting a revolution in the way medical professionals
think about—and treat—Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
(ADHD). His book, Nature's Ritalin for the Marathon Mind: Nurturing
your ADHD Child with Exercise, shows that exercise has the same
benefits as prescription drugs, without the unwanted side effects. While
medication may also be needed in many cases, regularly scheduled aerobic
exercise is now increasingly accepted as a way to treat ADHD and greatly
improve quality of life.
Kitty Werner
has been giving advice to homeowners for years on everything from maintenance
and repairs to insurance and property taxes. Her new book is The
Savvy Woman's Guide to Owning a Home: How to Care For, Improve and Maintain
Your Home.
Mark Pendergrast
is a journalist and author of several books, including Victims of
Memory: Sex Abuse Accusations and Shattered Lives, widely acclaimed
as the most thorough coverage of the "recovered memory" controversy. Although
this form of therapy is now almost universally rejected by mainstream
mental-health professionals, Pendergrast notes that it continues to pull
apart a great many families, and may possibly be a factor in a few of
the allegations of pedophilia by priests.
