Meet/Contact Me
Author of the award winning E-book Visual Illustrations, Steve Groll is an ordained minister and graduate of Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary. He has worked in California churches for forty years, and has a special calling and love of working with children. He has served as camp pastor, guest speaker at children retreats, led children revivals, and is presently serving as children’s pastor at the First Southern Baptist Church in Palm Springs, California. Steve and his wife, Paulette, live in Cathedral City, California where they have lived and served for the past twenty years.
My book is published through Tate Publishing, a mainline publishing house dedicated to working with aspiring authors and giving their book its best chance in the marketplace. If you’ve ever thought about publishing a book, you should visit www.tatepublishing.com.
To contact Steve please email him at sgroll@dc.rr.com
Foreword
I sat mesmerized watching all the kids sitting mesmerized as they listened to Steve Groll weave his captivating stories. I’ve had the privilege of witnessing this at camps for children and young teens since the early 1990s. For more than 20 years, I have traveled the country as a full-time speaker/musician. When I am asked for a recommendation for a children’s event, Steve Groll always comes to mind first. His humble, gentle manner makes his storytelling that much more enthralling. On top of that, he has even unselfishly shown me how to do several of his illusions!
I love to read fiction, as my bookshelves can testify. I believe there is an intellectual art to telling or writing stories as well as a gift with which one is born. Steve Groll has both of these. As I have read just about everything CS Lewis has ever written, I have observed another dimension to his fictional writings – they can be read at face value for their fascinating and captivating storylines but even beyond that, most recognize deeper levels of meaning and allegories that give wisdom and insight well beyond the surface story. Steve Groll has mastered this art as well.
As I was growing up, I remember reading a series of books about some young investigators who solved crimes and mysteries. Even though I enjoyed them very much, at some point I made a conscious decision to stop reading them because there was not much of positive value that would ultimately help improve my quality of life or result in making this world a better place (unless I decided to become a private detective or a CSI like everyone else these days!). There was nothing bad about these books, but there also was not much that would fulfill or enrich my life.
As I think back on those days, it would have been so wonderful to have a book like “Beyond the Dead Forest” to read. Not only does it have the suspense, mystery, and intrigue leading to that “what’s going to happen next” fascination, but it is also filled with valuable insight and wisdom that can help us all in making wise decisions to enhance our lives and those we love. To quote the character called “The Guardian” in the book, “The kind of foundation you build your life on, determines how well you will survive against the challenges of life.” In a very unassuming and natural, yet action-packed way, the book shares principles that can help us clearly see the difference between right and wrong in this world of ambiguity, as well as the thrilling consequences when we choose correctly!
I love to use humor when communicating to a group (though you’d never know it from reading this foreword). I kind of have a Mary Poppins style . . . just a spoon full of humor helps the message go down. Steve employs a similar style by using suspense and mystery to captivate a reader and then before you realize it, you have just absorbed a powerful life-changing truth that may bring a tear to your eye or result in making this world a better place in which to live. He paints word pictures through experiences and not lofty abstract ideals that tend to land somewhere over our heads. I was amazed to see how this “other-worldly” fictional adventure even dealt with such relevant topics as greed, deceit, self-esteem, peer pressure, and even drugs!
As I read this book, I could hear Steve’s voice reflecting his genuine down to earth storytelling manner. Since I have heard him tell some of the stories in this book “live,” let me suggest using it as a springboard for discussion within a small or large group of people. Many of the chapters could serve as standalone short stories that would be excellent discussion starters for various groups.
And then again, maybe life is weighing you down these days and you just need to escape . . . to forget about responsibilities and decisions. I welcome you to travel Beyond the Dead Forest. You just might find yourself mesmerized and seeing life through the eyes of another dimension.
Larry Bubb – International Speaker, Recording Artist, Homiletical Humorist, CEO & Founder of Larry Bubb Ministries, Former TV Show Host (not to be confused with Former Child TV Star)
