Allan Azouz

[allanazouz]

Greetings. I am a recently published horror author. My novel, Shadows of Souls, has been a long time in the making.

Being a NYC high school teacher, I have learned the meaning of horror and am well able to write in that genre.

People say that the most interesting thing about me is that I speak seven languages, including one that is only spoken by about 100,000 people in the world. I think the most interesting thing about me is that I can grow a Van Dyke very quickly.

[Chris OConnor]

Grow a Van Dyke? What's a Van Dyke?

Interesting intro. I have respect for anyone that can teach in NYC, especially the higher grades. I'd love to hear some of your horror stories too. Feel free to create a thread and tell us about your experiences.

Oh, and welcome to BookTalk.org.

[allanazouz]

Just to complete a thought:

a van dyke is a kind of a beard that is usually incorrectly referred to as a goatee. It is a moustache that grows down and is filled in with beard. A goatee is just the hair growing under the lip and on the center of the chin.

[Banana]

Which languages? That's pretty cool!

[Suzanne]

Hello and welcome allanazouz!

Being a NYC high school teacher, I have learned the meaning of horror and am well able to write in that genre.

I would also enjoy hearing about your adventures with the public school system of NYC.

Good luck with your book!

[allanazouz]

You might be surprised at some of the languages:

I do speak a little bit of English (I have a better command of Middle English, and can even understand a sizable amount of Old English)

On top of that, I speak Spanish, Italian, Hebrew, some German, Mandarin, and Ladino. I would wonder how many of you have heard of that last one. I am probably the last generation in American still to speak it. There are still some radio shows in Israel conducted in Ladino, but only for about an hour a day.

[Suzanne]

Have you ever cursed at your students without them knowing it?

I have wanted to learn another language. I think some people have a natural talent for this, sounds like you are very talented.

[allanazouz]

I've never cursed at them, but I have left them wondering if I have. I will often say, "Sheket b'vakash," which my Hebrew school teachers used to yell at us. My students will ask why I switched languages. I reply that they obviously don't understand English, so I decided to try something else. They usually respond, "You were probably cursing at us, and we wouldn't even know it."

I don't know if I have a talent for languages. A lot of it was necessity. My grandmother only spoke Ladino (and Greek, Turkish and French), I needed Hebrew for my religious training, and I had friends whose parents only spoke Chinese -- thus I learned it.

In my current school, there are quite a few Chinese kids. I have shocked them by being able to speak with their parents about behavior and missing homework.

[Suzanne]

Could you provide a link to your book?

Thanks

[allanazouz]

Here's the link to my book on Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/Shadows-Souls-All ... 258&sr=8-1

In the new book I'm working on, a medieval vampire novel, I even include some Ladino. I was debating on whether or not to do so, but I figured why not use my specialized knowledge?

Incidentally and tangential to nothing, here is one of my favorite book quotes. It is from Titus Andronicus:

Chiron: “Thou hast undone our mother."
Aaron: “Villain, I have done thy mother."