The Prizm Division of Torquere Press has published my novel, Josef Jaeger, set in the early days of Nazi Germany.This is a 100,000 word book aimed at Young Adult readers, but it’s suitable for mature readers as well.
You can buy it here: Prizm Books
You can also buy it through the Barnes & Noble and Amazon websites.
Awards & kudos
My novel placed first in the Young Adult category in the 2010 Rainbow Excellence Awards competition sponsored by the Rainbow Romance Writers association.
Josef Jaeger won the Rainbow Award for the Best Coming Of Age/Young Adult novel published in 2009. This is an international competition sponsored by Elisa Rolle’s website.
Josef Jaeger placed thirteenth in the Young Adult novels competition for 2009, sponsored by the Predators & Editors website. This competition included all YA novels published in 2009, not just those aimed at LGBTQ readers.
The American Library Association’s Rainbow Project strives to ensure that books appealing to GLBTQ youths are present on shelves of school and public libraries throughout the United States. Each year a “recommended reading” list is compiled of books deemed appropriate for GLBTQ, YA readers, and Josef Jaeger has been nominated for inclusion in the 2011 list.
A review of Josef Jaeger was also published in June 2009 at the Flamingnet website. This is a site where teenage members of Flamingnet post reviews of books aimed at teenage readers. My novel was rated “nine” on a scale of one-to-ten, ten being the highest rating possible. Accordingly, Josef Jaeger has received a Flamingnet “Top Choice” Award. The reviewer said, “. . . it was one of the most interesting books I have encountered.”
Several book reviews of Josef Jaeger have already been published and they’ve all given my novel high praise:
“Joseph Jaeger has to be one of the best YA novels I have read in some time. I think we need more books like this for young people.”
Regina at Coffee Time Romance
“Of all the Young Adult novels I’ve read, not just amongst those with LGBT characters, it stands out for the level of tension and the complexity of emotions.”
Sue at An Ally’s Book Blog
On June 11, 2009 I was interviewed by Ellen Friedrichs, who authors the GLBT Teens Blog at about.com. Ellen reviews books aimed at GLBT teenage readers, and she has placed Josef Jaeger on a short list of recommended summer reading for GLBT teens
Josef Jaeger’s “Top Choice” award from Flamingnet received mention in the July 2009 Book Buzz column authored monthly by John Morgan Wilson and published at the Lambda Literary Foundation website:
Elisa Rolle, a prolific reviewer of fiction, awarded Josef Jaeger a “five-star” rating she recently posted in Amazon’s website.
Daisy Porter, a public librarian and writer, who posts reviews at the Queer YA: Fiction For LGTBQ Teens blog, had this to say about Josef Jaeger:
“Historical gay novels are necessarily problem novels, but this one avoids the clichés of the genre. Josef is about as comfortable as he can be with his sexuality and finds several willing partners. The love story is sweet, and the plot is action-packed. Recommended.”
J. M. Snyder, an author of GLBT fiction for both adult and YA readers, reviewed Josef Jaeger for the Rainbow Reviews website. Here’s what she had to say:
“The accuracy of detail brings 1933 Germany alive for the reader, and the motley crew of characters adds human faces to the names we’ve read about in our history books. Those interested in historical fiction, particularly young adult stories or romances, will thoroughly enjoy this book as much as I did.”
Snyder gave Josef Jaeger a 4-1/2 star rating on a scale of one to five stars, five stars being the highest possible rating.
Kristin Dodge, who posts reviews on her Books For Breakfast blog, had this to say about Josef Jaeger:
” … the writing is clean and concise. There are beautiful passages of imagery, like jagged snow peaks “looking like monstrous teeth biting into brilliant sky.” Fishback’s use of language is poetic at points, like a master brushing paint on a canvas. For the author’s sake, I hope this book gets banned because then it will receive the attention it deserves.”
Kristin gave Josef Jaeger a “four” rating on a scale of one-to-five, “five” being the highest possible rating. Kristin’s a prolific consumer of quality fiction (she read and reviewed 150 books in 2008) and she doesn’t tread lightly in her reviews, so I’m delighted by her assessment of Josef Jaeger.
All Romance Ebooks is one of the largest online sellers of romance e-books in the U. S. On July 6, 2009 I received notification from the company that Josef Jaeger has already become one of their best-selling Young Adult titles. If you check the listing for Josef Jaeger at the All Romance website, you’ll see a silver star displayed in the listing, indicating the novel is a best-seller in its category.
The Speak Its Name review site recently issued a highly favorable review of Josef Jaeger: http://speakitsname.com/2010/01/26/review-josef-jaeger-by-jere-m-fishback/ The reviewer, Hayden, said:
“Josef Jaeger is a real treat, one of the more intelligently-written YA books I’ve had the pleasure to read. It’s thought-provoking, wonderfully dense, and well-researched, touching on one of the darkest moments in world history. Kudos to Jere’ Fishback for giving us a behind-the-scenes look into the rise of Hitler without sentimentalizing things or toppling into melodrama through his use of clean, concise language and Josef’s matter-of-fact voice.”