About
Alan Cash is a literacy teacher, teaching English as a foreign language.
He traces his love of telling stories to his mother, who used to invent wondrous tales of Pink Chicken and The Marmalade Cat.
He has been writing ever since he could hold a pencil, and when he discovered science fiction there was no holding him.
He has been a member of the Birmingham SF and Fantasy Writer's Group since its inception over 27 years ago.
He has written loads of short stories, one of which was broadcast on the BBC.
He is now looking for a publisher for his latest novel "The Xandra Function", an SF techno-thriller, set in the world of computer gaming.
For further information just type in The Janus Effect Alan Cash into any search engine, which will take you to his website.
Not writing would be unthinkable!
Learning to Breathe Fire: The Rise of CrossFit and the Primal Future of Fitness
Description
<p><b>The absorbing, definitive account of CrossFit's origins, its explosive grassroots growth, and its emergence as a global phenomenon.</b><br /> <br />One of the most illuminating books ever on a sports subculture, <i>Learning to Breathe Fire </i>combines vivid sports writing with a thoughtful meditation on what it means to be human. In the book, veteran journalist J.C. Herz explains the science of maximum effort, why the modern gym fails an obese society, and the psychic rewards of ending up on the floor feeling as though you're about to die. <br /> <br />The story traces CrossFit’s rise, from a single underground gym in Santa Cruz to its adoption as the workout of choice for elite special forces, firefighters and cops, to its popularity as the go-to fitness routine for regular Joes and Janes. Especially riveting is Herz’s description of The CrossFit Games, which begin as an informal throw-down on a California ranch and evolve into a televised global proving ground for the fittest men and women on Earth, as well as hundreds of thousands of lesser mortals. <br /> <br />In her portrayal of the sport's star athletes, its passionate coaches and its “chief armorer,” Rogue Fitness, Herz powerfully evokes the uniqueness of a fitness culture that cultivates primal fierceness in average people. And in the shared ordeal of an all-consuming workout, she unearths the ritual intensity that's been with us since humans invented sports, showing us how, on a deep level, we're all tribal hunters and first responders, waiting for the signal to go all-out. </p>
Story Behind The Book
The background to "The Xandra Function" is the ever increasingly competitive computer games industry, and what may happen when a computer programme absorbs enough human input from the next generation of totally immersive game playing involving complete human brain and computer memory interface. What will happen then? Can a computer differerentiate between what is "real" and what it thinks is "real"?
Reviews
Fran McCallister is an intriguing creation- part geek, part female James Bond.The novel rattles along at an ever accelerating pace.<br />Recommended for anyone who enjoys intelligent imaginative thought provoking science fiction.<br />High level of suspense.<br />Less Sci-Fi- more a Romance
