Books by W. Nikola-LIsa

Home Page

Forthcoming

Recent Work

Backlist

Bookshelf

Recent Work

 



 
Ezra Jack Keats at Play in the World of Children's Books. Gyroscope Books, 2024.

In this collection of essays, I explore the centrality of play in the work of author illustrator Ezra Jack Keats, highlighting the whimsical antics of Keats's characters as well as Keats's own playfulness as an accomplished graphic artist. The book is available in hardcover, paperback, and as an e-book. Ask your local bookseller owner to order a copy for you, or, for online sales, click the link at the bottom of the page. 

"Keats's world comes alive within Nikola-Lisa's luminous writing..." Booklife (7/5/24)


 



 

Ichiro and the Great Mountain. With images curated by the author. Gyroscope Books, 2022. 

Told in brief, repetitive episodes, Ichiro and the Great Mountain follows a free-spirited boy through the stages of life as he searches for his true self, making this literary folktale a story of becoming or, in the Buddhist tradition, a story of self-realization. 

Winner of several literary awards

   an Indie Press Distinguished Favorite 

   an IBPA Ben Franklin Silver Medalisrt 

   a Midland Authors Silver Medalist 

   a New York City Big Book Award Finalist 

the beautifully designed and bound Ichiro and the Great Mountain makes a great gift item for readers young and old.

Order a copy from your local bookstore or, for online sales, click the link at the bottom of the page. 


 



 

From Lectern to Laboratory: How Science and Technology Changed the Face of America's Colleges. Gyroscope Books, 2019. 

This micro-history addresses how antebellum colleges in the northern states struggled to include science and technology into their liberal arts curricula. Included in this sweeping history are the origins of the lyceum movement, the importance of West Point's engineering program, the rise of the nation's polytechnic schools, the internal struggles at Harvard and Yale, and the creation of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. If history is your thing, From Lectern to Laboratory will certainly satisfy your reading desires.

Ask your local bookstore to order a copy, or, for online sales, click the link at the bottom of the page.


 



 

The Men Who Made the Yankees: The Odyssey of the World's Greatest Baseball Team from Baltimore to the Bronx. With archival images selected by the author. Gyroscope Books, 2014. 

Winner of both an SCBWI Spark Award and a Literary Classics "Best Books" Lumin Award for nonfiction, The Men Who Made the Yankees tells the often overlooked history of the New York Yankees from their arrival in upper Manhattan as the Hilltop Highlanders in 1903 to their first World Series title in 1923. 

Unlike most histories of the early Yankees, this book takes you back to the origin of the American League . The Yankee story really starts here, in the late 1890s, with the transformation of a Midwestern minor league—the Western League—into a dominant major league under the skillful hands of Ban Johnson, a seasoned reporter from Cincinnati who took over the Western League and progressively moved it eastward to compete with the dreaded National League. 

Available in hardcover, paperback, and ebook. Ask your local bookstore owner to order a copy, or, for online sales, click the link at the bottom of the page. 


 



 

Dog Eared: A Year's Romp Through the Self-Publishing World. Gyroscope Books, 2017.

Winner of several literary awards, including

   an Indie Book Award 

   an Indie Reader Discovery Award

   a Book Excellence Award

   and a Reader Views Award

Dog Eared tells two stories: first, my year-long journey navigating the self-publishing world, and, secondly, reflections on my life as a published author. To say the least, in both respects, it's been an up-and-down experience. Ask your local bookstore owner to order a copy, or, for online sales, click the link at the bottom of the page. 

"A quirky, informative, and highly absorbing journey into the world of self-publishing, as told by a master storyteller." Holly Brady, Director of the Stanford Publishing Course


 



 

Circles, Lines, and Squiggles: Astrology for the Curious-Minded. Gyroscope Books, 2021.

An American Book Festival's "Best Book" finalist and a Reader Views Bronze Award Winner, Circles, Lines, and Squiggles is my deep dive into the mysterious world of astrology. Using my natal chart as a reference point, I try to solve the riddle of why an astrologer told me that I had all of the writer's destiny marks except one—contact with publishers. But you'll find out more than what he said about that: you'll learn how astrology works, all of its many twists and turns (to help you, I've included a brief appendix that encapsulates the major dynamics involved in reading any natal chart).

Ask your local bookstore owner to order a copy, or, for online sales, click the link at the bottom of the page. 


 



 
To see a complete list of my books
with purchase links, please click here.