Holy Cow! Press enters the electronic age of publishing. Jim Perlman's Minnesota literary press recently released Amy Lou Jenkins' Every Natural Fact: Five Seasons of Open-Air Parenting. For the first time in its 33 year history, a Holy Cow! Press book is available in traditional and electronic book format.

Publisher Jim Perlman and writer Amy Lou Jenkins both enjoy the feel of a book, the texture of turning pages, the physical presence, even the smell of a book. Yet when Jenkins and publisher Jim Perlman began to discuss formatting Every Natural Fact, an essay collection rooted in celebration of the natural world, they both agreed that issues of sustainability needed to be a part of their publishing plans.

"Our new venture into the world of eBooks has been a matter of contemplation for some time-would book lovers prefer to download books onto a handheld reader and thereby abandon the traditional printed format? Every Natural Fact is our first eBook available at the urging of its author; now all of our publishing contracts include the electronic book formatting," says Perlman.

"I'm not ready to give up the sensual pleasure of holding a book in my hand, but I have to recognize that books do come from trees and more and more readers look to eBooks as convenient and sustainable options in book ownership," says Jenkins. She adds, "I am running out of room for books; my shelves are full. Stacks of books line the perimeter of my office. An eBook reader might avert the TV producers from Horders from knocking on my door."

"Ebook publishing is the fastest growing segment of the book business, and we might as well join the crowd, while waiting for the convincing proof it's the right thing to do," says Perlman.

Holy Cow! Press was founded in 1977 by publisher Jim Perlman, with the intent of seeking out and publishing the finest of Midwestern literary works and then finding a regional and national audience. The press has published some 100 books of poetry, fiction, essays, memoirs, biographies and anthologies centered on important themes. The current and backlist titles can be found at www.holycowpress.org. 

What others are saying about Every Natural Fact:

"Any reader drawn to the outdoors will cherish Every Natural Fact and its author's sensual intelligence potted in the fertile soil of a boundless curiosity for the world. Amy Lou Jenkins is the Anna Quindlen of the north woods, the Rachel Carson of the good land of Wisconsin, bequeathing to her son and to all of us an indestructible sense of wonder." — Bob Shacochis, National Book Award-winning author of Easy in The Islands and The Immaculate Invasion.

"What makes this book such a marvel is the way the human and the non-human are kept in perfect balance: the psychological dance of a mother and son, with all its funny, touching, realistic two-steps, intersects with the desire to be opened up to the mystery and rapture of the natural sublime. It is a splendid fusion, as much about parenting and education and generation gaps as it is about patient observation of landscapes in flux. Jenkins' polished literary style makes it, sentence by sentence, a joy to read."—Phillip Lopate, author of Waterfront



EBooks may be downloaded from Amazon, Barnes and Noble and other eBook sellers. More at www.AmyLouJenkins.com.

About Amy Lou Jenkins:

Amy Lou holds a BSN in Nursing and Professional Communication and an MFA in Literature and Creative Writing from Bennington College. She teaches as a university adjunct and at writing retreats, conferences and workshops. Her environmental and nature writing has been honored by, The Florida Review Editors Award in Nonfiction, Literal Latte Essay Awards, Flint Hills Review Nonfiction Award, X.J. Kennedy Award for Nonfiction, and twice by the Ellis/Henderson Outdoor Writing Award. Her nonfiction has also won first place in the Jade Ring Award for Essay Writing, Wisconsin Regional Writing Award in Essay, Memoir, and Travel Writing. She is the recipient of a Mesa Refuge writing fellowship for environmental writing. She lives in Milwaukee, Wisconsin with her husband, son, and two spoiled dogs.