The Simple Touch of Fate: How the Hand of Fate Touched Our Lives Forever

Rating:
Summary: Great Read for All!
Review: "The Simple Touch of Fate" is a winner. I fell in love with this book. It is reality in a new light. People look at their own lives a little differently after reading this. It gives hope and inspiration a new twist. From Desert Storm to 9-11 and beyond, you will read real life drama at its best.

Now listen up all you guys, before you go thinking, ahh, another girly book, I want you to know there are many male contributors to this book, war heroes even, so please don't blow it off.

Judy Bridges, Columnist for; " The Stump" Literary Magazine

Rating:
Summary: Great Read for All!
Review: "The Simple Touch of Fate" is a winner. I fell in love with this book. It is reality in a new light. People look at their own lives a little differently after reading this. It gives hope and inspiration a new twist. From Desert Storm to 9-11 and beyond, you will read real life drama at its best.

Now listen up all you guys, before you go thinking, ahh, another girly book, I want you to know there are many male contributors to this book, war heroes even, so please don't blow it off.

Judy Bridges, Columnist for; " The Stump" Literary Magazine

Rating:
Summary: Turn Another Corner...
Review: ...and you might not have found this wonderful book. Now if that's not a great example of FATE, then I don't know what is. This book takes a look at and examines the "hand of fate" but, more importantly, how that hand is present in our daily lives. Its stories are unique, a cut above what you might find in other anthologies, and through them we discover that no matter what the story, how amazing or normal, we can somehow relate. The first thought that will pop into your mind is, "Hey, something like that happened to me once ..." And isn't that what great reading is all about???

Rating:
Summary: Well done !
Review: A nice read that allows one to ponder the nature of the Universe - coincidence or a guiding hand (or a bit of both). Whether they are stories of chance meetings that lead to romance, those of a more mystical nature, or the heart wrenching stories that involve surviving a great tragedy, the stories in this compilation are of excellent quality.

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Summary: Fate as a universal concept.
Review: Choose to call it what you may: destiny, luck, kismet or fate. The common thread in this anthology is the presence in everyday lives of a force that intervenes. While that force may cause a shift that bears tragedy, this collection of more than 50 personal tales focuses ultimately on the positive.

Culled from the experiences of people across the globe, each story carries the imprint of its author, allowing their personal perspectives to light the way to their conclusions. While some simply allow for the presence of destiny, others connect their experiences to a higher power, whether guardian angel or god. No matter the reader's theological stance, by the end of the book, readers are loath to attribute the events to simple luck. The stories, all of which are represented as factual, span several decades and cross the globe, adding elements of timelessness and universality to the concept of fate. This collection of stories from others opens the door to considering forces at work in your own life. Perhaps most satisfying though, is finally learning the answer to "Why did the chicken cross the road"?

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Summary: A revealing collection
Review: Collaboratively compiled and edited by Arlene Uslander and Brenda Warneka, The Simple Touch Of Fate: How The Hand Of Fate Touched Our Lives Forever is a rather impressive anthology of true stories revealing inexplicable connections, coincidences, and revelations of the right time and place which have changed people's lives forever. A revealing collection, The Simple Touch Of Fate showcases events that will inspire even the most dogged believer in blind chance to wonder "was this meant to be?"

Rating:
Summary: The Simple Touch of Fate
Review: In their book The Simple Touch of Fate, editors Arlene Uslander and Brenda Warneka have collected the stories of ordinary men and women whose lives have been changed by circumstance, choice, or divine intervention, otherwise known as fate. From the dramatic to the every-day, each of the contributors to the book share with readers an intimate look at how they feel their lives have never been the same since that moment.

From the man who missed Flight 11 out of Boston on the morning of September 11, 2001 because of an unscheduled meeting that ran long, to the man who missed his friends by going to the wrong bar, but ended up meeting the woman who became his wife, the contributors to the anthology bare their souls for us. Stories from war-torn parts of the world are arranged next to stories from contributors who could be your friends and neighbors. Events that happened more than fifty years ago are juxtaposed with those that could have occurred last week, giving each writer's story a 'just happened' quality that is sure to make readers take pause at the end of a chapter. Love, death, heartbreak, missed opportunities, and narrow escapes from disaster mark the pages of The Simple Touch of Fate, leaving the reader to ponder if everything really does happen for a reason.

Even the development of Uslander and Warneka's editorial relationship could be described as fate. Warneka was the first to respond to an online bulletin board posting of Uslander's seeking submissions for the book, then responded again when Uslander posted another request for help with the query letter for the book. "How could you have had books published if you can't write a good query letter?" Warneka wrote. The correspondence had begun, and the friendship, and collaboration, soon followed.

Uslander and Warneka have accepted some outstanding work from writers around the world for this book. While the writing style of dozens of authors obviously varies from story to story, the earnestness and honesty with which these writers share their experiences and convictions are unified by their belief that this event, phone call, or circumstance clearly happened for a reason.

The editors include an 'About the Editors' section that really adds to the reader's overall appreciation of the book. Learning more about Uslander and Warneka and how this project came about offers a nice behind-the-scenes glimpse at who these women are, and adds warmth to the book, like it's been put into your hands by a friend.

-Amy Brozio-Andrews, Absolute Write.com

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Summary: Reviewed for Denise's Pieces Book Reviews
Review: THE SIMPLE TOUCH OF FATE; HOW THE HAND OF FATE TOUCHED OUR LIVES FOREVER, is a collection of many short stories. It is a well-written compilation that will entertain and warm the hearts of readers. Whether you are a believer in fate or think that random happenings are merely a simple set of circumstances, this book will capture your interest and give you plenty of food for thought.

We have all heard a story or two about someone being in the right place (or wrong place) at a specific time that resulted in circumstances that altered a life forever. Do you believe that we get a "nudge" to go in a certain direction? If you do, you will love this book. If you don't, I can guarantee that you will be a believer of fate by the time you are done reading. The stories are written in a short, easy to read style. There are stories from different generations, during different wars, tales of people narrowly escaping death, and stories about the course of a life being changed by a split second decision. There is a narrative account of a man that escaped the horror of 9/11. There are stories about birth and death. Those are just a few of the descriptive, anecdotal pieces you will find in this book. The co-editors, to be truthful and accurate, have verified each story.

I found it to be very interesting and had a hard time putting this one down. The stories stay with you long after you turn the last page. There is such an assortment of incidents that people have recorded that it is almost impossible to deny that there is a force at work that is much bigger than we can see. I would highly recommend this book for readers that are easily touched by the human spirit and all the oddities that happen which cannot be explained.

Rating:
Summary: Thank you!
Review: What a great collection of stories! I'm still trying to figure out which one is my favorite! Each one of them is a unique and personal gift for the reader! I'm betting on a second edition!"

Rating:
Summary: Simple Touch of Fate
Review: What is fate? Are the paths of our lives already determined, without our ability to change them, or do they consist of choice, chance and luck, with coincidences thrown in here and there to spice things up? The individuals who contributed their stories to Arlene Uslander and Brenda Warneka's book, The Simple Touch of Fate, certainly belief in destiny - and how it has worked in their favour.

This is a collection of individual tales of unusual circumstances that seem to have no other explanation than that of fate for those concerned. What about Jacob, who through a series of events and a rearranged business meeting, missed the flight from Boston's Logon Airport at 8.45, that would have carried him to his death on September 11th? Or the story of Cynthia, who worked late one night - when she should have gone home - in her job as a nurse one to attend an emergency, and found the patient to be her real mother who had had her unwillingly adopted at birth?

The Simple Touch of Fate is a pleasing compilation of 55 stories and accounts that do not need a scientific justification of whether they are actually the result of some kind of divine intervention. It is how the individual makes sense of them that is important. How many people have missed flights that would not have led to their death? And how many people have been in circumstances which have led to their life lost? Does fate work both ways?

There may well be no explanation at all; it's just good luck and bad luck, but the enjoyment of this book comes from how the contributors interpret their own situations, and from amazement at how chance may throw out such odds, if fate is not a probable rationalization for you. Whether you believe in destiny or not, this collection makes a delightful book to read, pick up and dip into, as you desire.