21 ratings | 5 reviews | avg rating:4.48

Stephen’s Year In Books

Stephen’s 2025 Year in Books

Take a look at Stephen’s Year in Books, including some fun facts about their reading.

Go to Stephen’s 2025 Year in Books

Stephen Shender’s Followers (30)

Stephen’s Bookshelves

to-read (5)
currently-reading (36)
read (63)
did-not-finish (0)

Stephen’s Friends (34)

Micielle

186,050 books | 1,160 friends

Angel Lederhause

5,893 books | 1,133 friends

Frederick Rotzien

168,567 books | 4,035 friends

J. Schlenker

549 books | 2,066 friends

Vanessa Luther

522 books | 712 friends

Leona

19,387 books | 152 friends

Joshua Grant

1,096 books | 1,537 friends

Sabrina Bain

13,124 books | 1,279 friends

More friends…

Stephen Shender

Goodreads Author

Born

in Chicago, The United States

Website

https://www.paieapress.com

Genre

Historical Fiction, Ebooks, Biography

Influences

Herman Wouk

Member Since

January 2013

edit data

During a professional writing career spanning 30 years, I worked as a congressional press aide in Washington, D.C., newspaper reporter and editor on California's Central Coast (Monterey and Santa Cruz counties) political speechwriter in Washington, D.C. (Clinton administration), corporate speechwriter in Los Angeles, marketing communications writer in Silicon Valley, and freelancer before retiring in 2003. A native of Chicago's North Side (or "Norside" as true Chicagoans say), I am thankfully a no-longer-suffering, lifelong Chicago Cubs fan.

Once There Was Fire, A Novel of Old Hawaii is my first book. I began writing it on Nov. 16, 2004 and finally published it on Amazon on Dec. 6, 2016.

I am presently working on a sequel. I aim to get this o ...more

Learn more
Ask the Author

To ask Stephen Shender questions, please sign up.

Combine Editions
Stephen Shender’s books

Average rating: 4.02 · 126 ratings · 20 reviews · 3 distinct works • Similar authors

	Once There Was Fire: A Novel of Old Hawaii 4.02 avg rating — 125 ratings — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Once There Was Fire: A Novel of Old Hawaii really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 1 rating	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Once There Was Fire 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

* Note: these are all the books on Goodreads for this author. To add more, click here.

30 posts
Stephen Shender's Blog

Final thoughts on "Chief of War"

The Apple TV+ historicaldrama shortchanged viewers on Hawaiian history and culture

The first season of Apple TV+’s “Chief of War” is complete. Whatto make of it? Rotten Tomatoes gives the series about the fight to unify theHawaiian Islands an overwhelming 93 percent approval rating, based on a survey ofcritics’ reviews. Here’s a brief sampling:

The San Jose Mercur

Stephen is Currently Reading

Stephen Shender is currently reading

Sensational: The Hidden History of America's “Girl Stunt Reporters”

by Kim Todd (Goodreads Author)

bookshelves: currently-reading

Rate this book

Clear rating

1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

23 hours, 5 min ago

Stephen Shender is currently reading

The Famine Plot: England's Role in Ireland's Greatest Tragedy

by Tim Pat Coogan (Goodreads Author)

bookshelves: currently-reading

Rate this book

Clear rating

1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

Feb 26, 2026 11:23AM

Stephen Shender is currently reading

Justinian's Empire: Triumph and Tragedy (The Fall of the Roman Empire #4)

by Nick Holmes (Goodreads Author)

bookshelves: currently-reading

Rate this book

Clear rating

1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

Jan 23, 2026 10:15PM

rss
Stephen’s Recent Updates

Stephen Shender is currently reading Sensational: The Hidden History of America's “Girl Stunt Reporters” by Kim Todd (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
23 hours, 5 min ago · like
Stephen Shender finished reading The Traitors Circle: The True Story of a Secret Resistance Network in Nazi Germany—and the Spy Who Betrayed Them – Berlin's Elite Defying Tyranny in 1943 by Jonathan Freedland	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
May 20, 2026 09:57PM · like
Stephen Shender finished reading The Jungle by Upton Sinclair	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
May 19, 2026 10:41PM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Jungle by Upton Sinclair. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Jungle by Upton Sinclair <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Stephen Shender finished reading Forsyte Saga - Complete by John Galsworthy	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
May 10, 2026 05:17PM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Forsyte Saga - Complete by John Galsworthy. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Forsyte Saga - Complete by John Galsworthy <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Stephen Shender is currently reading The Jungle by Upton Sinclair	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
May 09, 2026 08:52AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Jungle by Upton Sinclair. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Jungle by Upton Sinclair <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Stephen Shender is currently reading Forsyte Saga - Complete by John Galsworthy	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Apr 16, 2026 09:04AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Forsyte Saga - Complete by John Galsworthy. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Forsyte Saga - Complete by John Galsworthy <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Stephen Shender finished reading The Worst Hard Time: The Untold Story of Those Who Survived the Great American Dust Bowl by Timothy Egan (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Apr 15, 2026 10:34PM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Worst Hard Time by Timothy Egan. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Worst Hard Time by Timothy Egan <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Stephen Shender is currently reading The Worst Hard Time: The Untold Story of Those Who Survived the Great American Dust Bowl by Timothy Egan (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Mar 28, 2026 10:23PM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Worst Hard Time by Timothy Egan. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Worst Hard Time by Timothy Egan <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Stephen Shender is currently reading The Famine Plot: England's Role in Ireland's Greatest Tragedy by Tim Pat Coogan (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Feb 26, 2026 11:23AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Famine Plot by Tim Pat Coogan. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Famine Plot by Tim Pat Coogan <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Stephen Shender finished reading The Plantagenets: The Warrior Kings and Queens Who Made England by Dan Jones (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Feb 26, 2026 11:23AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Plantagenets by Dan Jones. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Plantagenets by Dan Jones <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">