Dog-gone Novel Based On A True Story Of Christmas Magic

Every Christmas, I re-visit Hunting Elf, a doggone Christmas story. It's based on a true story that always reminds me there is some magic in the holiday.

Hunting Elf was my first novel. It is set in the world of Elf, a champion-bred Silky Terrier puppy who leads his accidental owners on more than one exciting chase through and around fictional Harrington, NY, a Westchester County suburb of New York City. Along the way, they encounter a set of strange and wacky neighbors, in-laws, outlaws, and dog lovers of various stripes and persuasions. It’s a comedic canine adventure.

Hunting Elf was first published as an online audio novel in podcast form. Word spread and thousands of episodes were downloaded by Elf lovers the world over, encouraging me to self-publish the trade paperback edition.  The reviews were enthusiastic.

“TRUTH is often stranger than fiction, and that is certainly so when author Dave Donelson tells the story of Elf, a Silky Terrier puppy with uncontrollable wanderlust and a posse of murderous dog fanatics in hot and hilarious pursuit.”
--read the full review at K9 Perspective

“Drawing on his life in a house with several champion show dogs - his wife, Nora Guzewicz, breeds and shows Bichon Frises — Mr. Donelson filled the novel with experiences recognizable by anyone who has ever raised a puppy. Elf lifts his leg in all the wrong places, chews on everything from an heirloom Oriental carpet to the CATV cable, and has an uncontrollable urge to dig up and eat delicacies like kitty paté, which gives a whole new meaning to the term ‘doggie breath.’”
--read the full review at the Larchmont Gazette

“Hunting Elf has a rollicking movement that pulls you into it and keeps you listening.”
-- read the full review at Dogster.com

Hunting Elf is now available as a trade paperback, Kindle ebook, other ebook formats from Smashwords.com, and an audiobook from Audible.com.

Dave Donelson distills the experiences of hundreds of entrepreneurs into practical advice for small business owners and managers in the Dynamic Manager's Guides, a series of how-to books about marketing and advertising, sales techniques, motivating personnel, financial management, and business strategy.

A Christmas Gift Helping Women In Africa

Same Sky is an innovative program that supports African women living with HIV/AIDS by teaching them a skill and providing materials that help them earn a living. They are given a marketable skill and steady employment, essential factors when it comes to rebuilding lives and supporting their families.

The women are taught to crochet and make bracelets using hand-blown glass beads. The jewelry is sold online and at events around the world, with all net proceeds reinvested into the company to buy more materials and employ more women. It began with a partnership with Gahaya Links in Kigali, Rwanda, and expanded to Zambia in 2011.

If you're in Palm Beach on December 9, you can see what Same Sky does--and support the cause--at Badgley Mischka, 251 Worth Avenue. Same Sky founder Francine Lefrak, Michele Herbert, and Carolyn Grace will be there from 6 to 8 PM. Check the Same Sky website for events in your area or to order directly.

Dave Donelson, author of Heart of Diamonds a romantic thriller about blood diamonds in the Congo.