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Fireworks Over Toccoa Contest
I have recently read Fireworks Over Toccoa by Jeffrey Stepakoff. I’m working on my review, which will be posted next week. [Sneak Peak: I think people will find this to be a fun beach read this year.]
In the meantime, I wanted to let you know about an incredible contest being held by St. Martin’s Press. It’s underway beginning this week and will be open until March 30, the novel’s publication date.
Here are the details Sarah sent me (emphasis mine!):
Go to the book’s website. There, you will find:
- A note from author Jeffrey Stepakoff
- An enormous online excerpt from the book
- An audio excerpt
- Crazy awesome sweepstakes
- 1 grand prize winner will win a romantic picnic basket for two complete with caviar, crackers & cheese, cookies, chocolates & truffles and MUCH more (see below – doesn’t that basket look decadent??)
- 300 runners-up will receive a copy of Fireworks Over Toccoa.
Now, go and enter the contest. Good luck!
Garth Stein Giveaway ~ Raven Stole the Moon
I reviewed Garth Stein’s Raven Stole the Moon on Tuesday and I am very excited to host a giveaway of this book today. Sarah from Terra Communications graciously is making this giveaway copy available to one of my readers. Thank you so much, Sarah!
One of the most interesting aspects of this novel was the background on the spirituality of Alaska’s Tlingit people. Raven, for whom the book is titled, is an important figure. The kushtaka were granted special powers by Raven and their role is this novel is the most chilling. To enter this contest, leave a comment here telling me if you’ve read much about the spirituality of indigenous people. If so, what has been your favorite story?
For a second entry, tweet about this contest. Be sure to let me know by including @lithousewife in your tweet.
This contest will be open for 1 week. I’ll accept entries until 11:59 PM EST on March 18. I’ll announce the winner on March 19th. Good luck!
Random Bookish Questions & Winners
- Why do some novels get “a novel” appended to their title while others don’t?
- How is it determined whether a book is first published in hardcover of trade paperback? Is it a genre issue? The strength of the author?
- Why don’t all publishers use the same paper that HarperCollins used for the below pictured edition of Gregory Maguire’s Wicked? It smells so good! All books should smell that good.
Trust me. This book smells wicked good.
Now that I’ve asked my questions with no real hope of a response (but if you know, please do share!), I’d like to announce the winners of two of my recent giveaways:
Winner of O, Juliet:
All knowing Random.org selected #5. #5 just happens to be Kathy from Bermudaonion’s Weblog! Congratulations, Kathy! I’ll get your book out to you this weekend.
Winners of The Kitchen House
I still haven’t lost the glow after meeting Kathleen Grissom. I am really excited to be able to send the following two winnners signed copies of her wonderful novel, The Kitchen House!
It’s lucky #10 and #6. Congratulations to Ti from Book Chatter and Jeanne Duperrault. Please send me your mailing addresses and I’ll get your books in the mail to you!
Have a great weekend, everyone! I’m off work until Tuesday, so I’m looking forward to reading, blogging, and more reading.
Blogiversary and Tainted Winners
I cannot tell you want kind of day it was today. I found out late this morning that my web hosting provider had to remove access to an essential file, causing my blog to be out of commission for most of the day. I guess you don’t truly realize how much something is a part of your life until it’s unavailable. I will never take my web hosting for granted again.
In thanksgiving for it being back up and running (yay!), I am announcing the lucky winners of two of my recent contests: my 3rd blogiversary and Tainted by Brooke Morgan.
Winner of Tainted
Congratulations to Lisa for Lit and Life! Lisa, I’ve got your address, so keep an eye on your mailbox.
Blogiversary Winners
I used Random. org to select three numbers between and including 1 and 88. Here is what the great randomizer on the net sent back:
1G iPod Shuffle: Congratulations to Sam!
3 book Grab Bag: Congratulations to Bonnie from Redlady’s Reading Room!
1 book Grab Bag and Bookmarks for the Library of your Choice: Congratulations to Melissa from The Betty and Boo Chronicles!
If your name isn’t listed here, I have another giveaway in progress for one of two signed copies of Kathleen Grissom’s The Kitchen House.
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An Afternoon with Kathleen Grissom
I loved Kathleen Grissom’s debut novel, The Kitchen House. As soon as I knew she would be in my area, I made plans to see her. When I told Jaime from Confessions of a Bibliophile about the event, she agreed to come with me. Saturday was a blogger’s day out for me.
We’ve been having a lot of winter weather in Southwest Virginia, but Saturday proved to be a clear, if not windy, day. I had never been to the Givens book store in Lynchburg before. I was pleasantly surprised because the Givens in Salem looks a lot like one in this video. The Lynchburg store sells both new and used books as well as children’s toys. We were there a few minutes early, giving me time to buy additional copies of The Kitchen House and to do a little browsing.
They set up Kathleen’s reading by a fireplace with a portrait of Edgar Allen Poe above it. It was really a nice area. I hadn’t been expecting her to be looking for me, so I was pleasantly surprised to learn that she had read my review. She was as happy to meet me as I was to meet her. She introduced Jaime and I to Eleanor Dolan, the poet who has mentored her along the way. Both women were warm and charming.
I brought my new Flip video camera along to capture some of the event to share with you. One word of caution: I won’t be receiving any Oscars for best cinematography any time soon. I don’t have a full-sized tripod for my Flip (a definite wish list item), so I did the best that I could. The first video is a little shakier than the last two.
Kathleen began the reading by explaining how The Kitchen House came into being. Here is a clip about the origins of her novel and her reading of the Prologue:
Kathleen also read one of my absolute favorite scenes from the book. It is between Lavinia shortly after she became acclimated to life on the Pyke plantation and Papa George, Mama Mae’s husband:
The final clip is in answer to a question about Kathleen’s next novel, which takes place in her native Canada:
I really enjoyed listening to Kathleen talk about the book and her writing process. An afternoon with a book blogging friend and a new author. What a nice way to spend the day.
After the reading, there was a book signing and I bought a copy to have singed to giveaway here. To make it even better, Kathleen, after reading my review, brought another copy with her to giveaway. So, I have two signed copies of The Kitchen House to giveaway here!
This contest is open to U.S. and Canadian readers and will be open until Monday, March 1st at 11:59 EST. For a chance to win, simply leave a comment here.
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TSS ~ Sometimes It Even Happens Here
Every time I read about people getting the chance to meet authors on book tours, I get really jealous. Living in SouthWest Virginia, the opportunity to visit an author while on a book tour is few and far between. Next Saturday, that will change at least for the day.
Kathleen Grissom, the author of The Kitchen House, will be stopping in Lynchburg at Givens Books at 2pm on February 13th. The book was published on the 2nd, so it’s hot off the presses. It got me out of my reading blahs. I just could not put it down. I read The Kitchen House last month and absolutely loved it. Check back here on Friday for my review. I will also be posting about the book tour during my next Sunday Salon post. If all goes well, I’m hoping to have a signed copy to giveaway.
In the meantime, you can check out Kathleen’s site. On her About The Kitchen House page. There are some great resources there, including pictures I wish I had seen while I was reading the book. There is a book trailer as well. I just finished watching it. A slight word of caution: if you don’t like to know much about a book before reading it, you might want to hold off on it.
Now, be honest. How many of you thought I was referring to this weekend’s snow storm? Well, that news also fits my post title. We had a great time sledding in the snow and making a snowman. Thankfully we were able to make it to church this morning and then to the mall. I had a serious case of cabin fever since this weekend was the second in a row that we were snowbound. Yesterday morning I took a short video of our front yard. We didn’t get hit as hard as some of my book blogging girlfriends in Northern Virginia or Maryland, but it was an anomaly for the Roanoke Valley. I want to thank everyone who stopped by on our Friday snow day.
Reading and Reviews This Week
This week I read and reviewed Tainted by Brooke Morgan as part of the author’s TLC Book Tour. I’m hosting a giveaway of Morgan’s debut novel, so be sure to check out my review.
I also finished Half Broke Horses by Jeannette Walls. I started that during my reading malaise and put it down because I didn’t want it to be ruined by my lack of reading enthusiasm. I thought it was a great companion to The Glass Castle and will be reviewing this novel soon.
For those of you not watching the Super Bowl (I’m assuming anyone reading this isn’t – who watching the big event would also read book blogs during the show?), I hope you enjoy your evening snuggled up with a good book. I’ll be reading Twilight of Avalon by Anna Elliot.
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#218 ~ When She Flew ~ Book Tour and Giveaway
When She Flew by Jennie Shortridge
Today it is my great pleasure to be Jennie Shortridge’s host on her TLC Book Tour for her novel, When She Flew. I would like to thank her for sending me both a copy of her book for review as well as one to give away to a lucky reader. Please see the end of my review for a list of the blogs who are on this tour with me.
I have a lot of fun working as a tour host for TLC Book Tours. They always have great books and authors on tour. Check out their website for more information on this tour and the others that they are hosting.
My Review
What our ancestors would have considered minimally acceptable living conditions greatly differs from what would be considered acceptable today. Houses are not a recent invention, but even in the early 1900s people in the United States lived in sod homes as the America expanded West. Those same ancestors survived and thrived, leading us to where we are today. Regardless, choosing to live in the outdoors on property you don’t own is now against the law. If you do so with your minor child, you run the risk of having your family broken up by Social Services and being charged with neglect. Raymond Wiggs discovers just after bird watchers tip off the police after spotting his daughter Melinda alone after she wandered off too far entranced by a beautiful blue heron. After locating the two along with several of her fellow police officers from Columbia, Oregon, Jess Villareal questions whether the state is capable of determining what is best for this family. She questions whether she can actively participate in taking Lindy away from Ray – even for a short time. As divorced mother estranged from her only daughter and grandson, her career in the police force is the only thing that makes her feel whole. Is Jess willing to risk even that to ensure that this small, peculiar family remains together?
Birds play a prominent role in this novel. The title evokes flight and Lindy is fascinated by them, devouring all that she can about the birds native to the Pacific Northwest. It is not surprising that from the very beginning of this novel, which opens with Lindy’s report on barn owls, I was reminded of the following verse from the Gospel of Matthew:
Look at the birds of the air, that they do not sow, nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they? ~ Matthew 6:26
While I might not want to live in a forest, many birds do and they are just fine. Ray and Lindy had made peace with nature and lived there happily for many years before they were discovered. Given that it has been done since the beginning of time, why couldn’t – and why shouldn’t – someone with the proper knowledge of the outdoors live in a well-constructed tree house? If that person is a loving parent who makes his child’s well-being and education a priority, why shouldn’t that person be left alone to raise his family as he sees fit? Yesterday’s luxuries are today’s requirements it seems. In another 100 years, would society find our homes and our parenting neglectful? Has society lost sight of what is truly important to sustain life? There isn’t an easy answer to these questions, which are sure to spark some interesting and lively conversations.
Until agreeing to host this TLC Book Tour, I had never read any of Jennie Shortridge’s fiction. I am so thrilled that I took a chance on her and on When She Flew. I found it to be thought-provoking, fast-paced, and fun to read. The plot never suffered as we learned more about Jess and Lindy’s past, their insecurities, their regrets, and their joys. It felt right that a mother longing to be part of her own daughter’s life again would fight so hard to see that Lindy and Ray stayed together. She provides Lindy with the strong and secure female role model her mother could never be. It also made me question my perceptions of what makes a home both physically and emotionally. I was as entertained throughout this novel as I was satisfied when I finished it.
Giveaway
I have a copy of When She Flew to give away to one of my readers. This contest is open to readers from the United States only. I would love to make it international, but my shipping budget isn’t what it used to be earlier this year.
Entering this contest is easy. Simply leave a comment here telling me what your favorite bird is and why. The contest is open until 11:59 pm EST on Saturday, December 19th. I’m planning on announcing the winner on December 20th, my dear husband’s birthday.
For the record, my favorite bird is the American Robin, the State Bird of Michigan. Isn’t he beautiful against the backdrop of the tulips? I wonder if he isn’t really Dutch like me?
+++++
Jennie Shortridge’s TLC Book Tours TOUR STOPS:
Thursday, December 3rd: The 3 R’s Blog: Reading, ‘Riting, and Randomness
Monday, December 7th: Linus’ Blanket
Tuesday, December 8th: Book, Line, and Sinker
Wednesday, December 9th: Luxury Reading
Monday, December 14th: Book Addiction
Tuesday, December 15th: Hey, Lady! What’cha Readin’?
Wednesday, December 16th: A Novel Menagerie
Thursday, December 17th: Book Club Classics
Monday, December 21st: Entertainment Realm
Tuesday, December 22nd: Dolce Bellezza
Monday, December 28th: Book Chatter
Tuesday, December 29th: Caribousmom
Wednesday, December 30th: Presenting Lenore
Monday, January 4th: The Brain Lair
Tuesday, January 5th: Redlady’s Reading Room
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Birthday Bash Winners (finally…)
Over a month ago I celebrated my birthday by giving away 8 books: 6 of my own and 2 from Danielle at Sourcebooks (thanks again, Danielle!). I meant to draw the winners the week of the girls’ birthdays, but that was a hellish week and I’m just now feeling like I’m fully recovering. I may not be prompt on when drawing prizes, but hopefully these prizes were worth the wait for the lucky winners:
Goody Bag #1: The Tudor Rose by Margaret Campbell Brown (compliments of Sourcebooks) goes to…
Alessandra from Out of the Blue
Goody Bag #2: A Match for Mary Bennet by Eucharista Ward, O.S.F. (compliments of Sourcebooks) goes to…
Stephanie
Goody Bag #3: The Trials of Honorable F. Darcy by Sara Angelini goes to…
Teresa W.
Goody Bag #4: Foreign Tongue by Vanina Marsot goes to…
Melody from Melody’s Reading Corner
Goody Bag #5: Capote in Kansas: A Ghost Story by Kim Powers goes to…
Jaime from Confessions of a Bibliophile
Goody Bag #6: The Devil’s Company by David Liss goes to…
Marg from Reading Adventures
Goody Bag #7: Pope Joan by Donna Woolfolk Cross goes to…
Lahni from Nose in a Book
Goody Bag #8 Sorrow Wood by Raymond L. Atkins goes to…
Serena from Savvy Verse & Wit
Congratulations to all of my winners! I’ll be sending you an email, but if you see this post first, please send me your mailing address. I hope you enjoy your goody bags!
TSS ~ Neverwhere and Beyond Prizes
I’m finally and truly back in the swing of things and getting geared up for this month’s theme: Neverwhere and Beyond. I announced it on Monday and will have a full week of coverage next week. I promised a post about the prizes and I think they’re pretty darn exciting.
Instead of holding several different contests throughout the month, I’m going to give out all of the prizes on December 1st. I’ve created a separate page for signing up using Mr. Linky. You can go there for the logistics, but you’ll basically get one entry per comment per any post that displays the Neverwhere and Beyond graphic and a bolded code number at the bottom. Check out my introductory post for its code. I’ve updated that post. I’ll use the code number to identify the post and then verify that the winner did leave a comment before awarding a prize. Verifying only the winning entries will be easier than verifying each entry. This is a trial to see if this seems to work well for everyone. Please feel free to let me know what you think via email.
Without any further ado, here they are the prizes up for grabs during Neverwhere and Beyond month:
1 Coraline bookmark (25 winners)
I ordered these bookmarks from the American Library Association because I thought they were adorable. They come in packs of 100. I wanted to include a picture here, but the image is funky from the ALA’s website. Here is a picture:
51 Coraline bookmarks (one for the winner and 50 for the public library of the winner’s choice)
1 Neil Gaiman poster (1 winner)
This poster is from the ALA as well. Here is picture:
1 Copy of the 3D version of the movie Coraline (2 winners)
Grand Prize: A collection of each of the Neil Gaiman books I review this month (1 winner)
Jennifer from Book Club Girl has graciously provided a copy of each of the Neil Gaiman books I’m reviewing this month! Thank you so much, Jennifer! This collection will include (covers may vary):
Fragile Things: Short Fictions and Wonders
To enter for a chance to win these prizes, go to the Neverwhere and Beyond page and use the following code: N&B-P.
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The Lace Reader Winner
My “It’s time to pick a winner” helper is slacking off once again. I completely forgot to draw a winner for my second copy of The Lace Reader. Sorry about that! It got lost in the BBAW shuffle I’m afraid. I came across this copy after reshelving my books after taking the pictures for my True Confessions post. Yet one more thing to feel guilty about. LOL!
Via List Randomizer, the winner is:
Jemima from The Reading Journey!
Congratulations! I hope you enjoy this even half as much as I did. Please send me your mailing address and I’ll send this on your way.
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Book Blogger Con
Have you heard about the 1st Annual Book Blogger Convention that will be held in NYC during the BEA? You should check it out. I know it will be a fantastic experience. Unfortunately I won't be able to attend due to family obligations, but I'll be trolling blogs for up to the minute news.
WE Magazine’s A Woman Blogger to Watch
Literate Challenges
What's in a Name? 3
Random Reading Challenge
