“Why Be Normal?” by Martha I. Clyburn Left Its Mark at the 2023 Hong Kong Book Fair

Martha I. Clyburn’s “Why Be Normal?: Life Lessons From Pine Knot” was exhibited at the 2023 Hong Kong Book Fair, held at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, last July 19-25, 2023.

“Why Be Normal” is a memoir book about Bill “Pine Knot” Rector and how he impacted the lives of those around him. His principle in life was, “Why be normal?” Although he was intelligent, Pine Knot presented himself as a country bumpkin. When asked why he sometimes acts dumb, he would answer, “If people thought I was smart, they would always be bothering me, asking me questions.”

This book immortalizes the lessons Pine Knot shared with his friends and family. The pages would show how he was a private guy, having a few true friends, lots of acquaintances, and multitudes of people that knew him or knew of him. The author shares her memory of this humorist. The book has photos of the moments the author and Pine Knot shared moments together with family and friends.

Martha Clyburn used direct quotes from Bill’s book. These quotes are printed in brown to signify that they are exact copies with all their errors, many deliberate.

The author aimed to brighten a reader’s day with a tongue-in-cheek book that tells the life and lessons of a humorist and his legacy.

The display of this book at the 2023 Hong Kong Book Fair was made possible by the self-publishing and book marketing company, ReadersMagnet.

Readers can learn more about Pine Knot and his life by getting a copy of Martha I. Clyburn’s “Why Be Normal?: Life Lessons from Pine Knot” on Amazon. Learn more about the author and her other works at https://marthaclyburn.com.

“Why Be Normal?: Life Lessons From Pine Knot”
Author| Martha I. Clyburn
Published Date| June 25, 2019
Publisher| Independently Published
Genre| Humor, Memoir

Author’s Biography
Martha Irene Clyburn, born in Atlanta, Georgia, today lives in Hendersonville, NC. The trip through life from Atlanta to NC has been the basis for her poems and books. Always having a love of nature and especially the mountains she went to the mountain town of Dahlonega, Georgia for college at North Georgia College (today North Georgia College and University). Having spent 30+ years in the Atlanta area, but drawn back to the mountains, a move to Helen, Georgia’s Alpine Village, was the beginning of changes in her personal and professional life.

Her first book was crafts of the Blue Ridge Mountains written for adult education classes with students that have low reading skills. She then wrote “The Spirit of Helen – A Trip Through Time in Georgia’s Alpine Village” a history of the town which was a lumber town and changed to an Alpine Village. It has since become a leading tourist area in the mountains of North East Georgia.

As the years went by, Martha took care of family and friends who were ill. She was encouraged to write a book about her experiences as a caregiver. These experiences were put into print as “Toward Better Days” a generalized guide for informal caregivers. Included is information about legal papers needed, suggested resources, suggested forms for tracking schedules of medicines and treatments, and for information on the condition of the patient for reports to family members and doctors. Another section makes it easy to keep important phone numbers handy. All of this is mixed with graphics to brighten the day.

After a 16-year relationship with Bill Rector she wrote the memoir about him, “Why Be Normal?: Life Lessons from Pine Knot” was a true southern ‘Character.’ His manner of speech (southern/Alabamian) combined with his personal philosophy of life and unique sense of humor made Him one of a kind.

The last book by the author was totally for enjoyment. “A Little Coffee Table Book” is a collection of photos on various subjects such as pets, nature, family, etc. to bring good memories and smiles to the reader.

Although Ms. Clyburn spent many hours with her writings she spent her professional life working with people as a social worker and real estate broker. All of her personal and professional contacts, adventures, and travels have expanded her interests and lead to her writings.

Martha is planning future books which will contain more of her photos, musings and life experiences.

Contact Information

Leenie Sabayo

Author Relations Officer

ReadersMagnet LLC

Contact via E-mail