Bookwords Books offers practical advice on finances

"Cover Your Nut: Practical Accounting in Plain English for the Real World," by R.G. "Bud" Phelps, is now available through Authorhouse.

Phelps wrote the book to provide common-sense financial advice to nonprofessionals after helping a relative set up a financial system for his business.

"I was explaining to him the accounting statement 'cover your nut,' and he said, 'What is that?'" Phelps said.

In short, according to Phelps, "cover your nut" is an accounting term meaning to sell enough goods or services to meet your expenses.

The term originally came from the Old West, he said.

When a peddler came into a hotel and needed a room but didn't have any money, the hotelkeeper would take their hub, or "nut," from the wagon wheel as a deposit. If the peddler sold enough, the nut was covered.

Phelps calls the book "a resource based on accepted accounting principles and on a number of real-world business examples" that will help keep other businesses on the track to financial success.

"Cover Your Nut" is available through www.authorhouse.com for $12.95 in trade paperback.

--"The Joslyns of Lynhurst: The True Story of George, Sarah and Their Castle," written by Daniel Kiper, will interest fans of local history.

Kiper, who served on the board of the Friends of Joslyn Castle for five years and has led tours of the castle since 1999, offers an account of the lives of George and Sarah Joslyn.

The pair created a media empire and amassed one of the largest fortunes in Nebraska after coming to the state in the 1880s. Their legacy is not only the castle but also the Joslyn Art Museum.

Fans of the castle and of Omaha history will enjoy Kiper's well-researched account, designed to be the authoritative word on the Joslyns. It is available at the museum's Hitchcock Gift Shop and at the castle during public tours. The book also is available by special order through local bookstores, or at www.amazon.com and other online bookstores.

The trade paperback book, published through iUniverse, is $15.95.

--Steve Fischer, author of the snappy "When the Mob Ran Vegas," will speak at noon Aug. 17 at the Omaha Press Club, on the 22nd floor of the First National Center, 1620 Dodge St.

I've never seen Fischer give a speech, but from talking to him on the phone, I know he can tell a great story. And his book, which covers the history of early Vegas casinos and the colorful characters who ran them, is full of juicy material.