Marble Shorts

“A sense of nostalgia pervades this charming work which introduces readers to extraordinary collectors—people who collect off-beat adventures, lasting friendships, and fascinating skills, as well as marvelous marbles. This is a summery, sunny book that can warm a winter’s day. It is a book to slow down with, to savor and enjoy, and perhaps coax up a memory or two.”
–Kathy Koplik

“Marble Shorts is a collection of gems. Profiles, pictures, and personal observations about passion, all inspired by those perfectly round glass objects that generate smiles throughout the world. Cathy Callen introduces us to connoisseurs, history, manufacturing, and, most importantly, the sheer enchantment of those magical pieces. In this case, one can judge a book by its cover; the photo of a blue marble between the toes of a baby's foot promises the delightful read to be delivered.”
–Romalyn Tilghman, author, To the Stars Through Difficulty, 2018 Kansas Notable Book

“Cathy Callen checks all of the boxes with this delightful book. You can’t imagine how many times I interrupted what my wife, Nancy, was doing to relate or read aloud what I’d just read.”
–Jack Kline, author of Rhapsody

“I enjoyed learning about the people in the stories—all of whom began their marble journeys at different stages of their lives and for somewhat different reasons, although as I read through the book, it seemed clear that love of color, focus on art and science, and personal memories created their individual journeys toward creating their various collections.”
–Gayle Stuber

“Ms. Callen has a great appreciation of enthusiastic people who take pleasure in simple joys. It is a perfect release for these anxious times.”
–Jim and Lene Brooke

“What a hoot! “I picked one just for you.” And the research is not only thorough and educational, it has a humorous/adventurous edge, like going online to Ask a Mathematician to find that a million marbles can be stored in a one-cubic-meter space. I am convinced, but it is hard to believe. And then you go from Piaget and ‘object permanence’ to Newton and the use of the theory of gravity in marble runs to inspire us to ‘join others who looked beyond the edge.’ That is educational fun . . . as are the mysteries.”
–Tom and Joan McKee

The author is attending marble shows across the county and working with vintage toy stores and nostalgia shops to carry to the book.