Gift of the Phoenix Coming Soon!!

(Click above to see my book trailer!)

Okay, here's the big news in my life right now (other than readjusting to 111 degree heat - sheesh!). I'm releasing my novel, Gift of the Phoenix, in September 2012! It will be available in both print and ebook formats, on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Apple, Sony, etc, etc.

Exciting, yes?? :)

I just wrote an email to about half of my pre-release readers (the other half of their email addresses are on pieces of paper 1000 miles away in Boise). Anyway, I sent them an email sharing the news and remembered I meant to post something about it here as well.

I will cheat by embracing technology's greatest innovation: the copy and paste feature. ;)

A few months ago, Kevin encouraged me to release Gift of the Phoenix as an ebook and offered to create a cover. I figured I had nothing to lose. The Indie publishing market is not what it was six years ago. While it will always be flooded with poorly-written novels, there are more success stories than ever and it is not the black mark on your career it once was. Sadly, traditional publishing houses continue to decline. They are even less likely to take on new authors than they were six years ago and some have frozen their new acquisitions altogether. Meanwhile, some successful Indie authors are turning down contract offers with traditional publishers. They're making good money on their own and like having control over their own careers.

I don't know whether I'll self-publish future novels (I'm currently working on one titled The Crossroads) or try the traditional route. I'll make that decision when another book is done. But releasing Gift of the Phoenix will not harm a traditional career, and may help if the book sells well.

So, I'm going for it!

Please check out my Kickstarter page to view the book trailer (which I LOVE!!!) and to keep an eye on future updates about the book. Eventually I'll have a website up for the book, but right now it's under construction. I'll do another post when it's somewhat presentable. :) 

I'd really, really appreciate any help you can give spreading the word about the book. If you know other readers who you think would enjoy it, please tell them about the book!

Books sink or swim on word of mouth, so please talk it up if you can. :)

If you feel comfortable doing so, send them to my Kickstarter page to view the trailer. It's a great way for people to pre-order the book, if they're interested. :)

And that's it! My big news! Do the happy dance with me! :)

Book Blurb: Book of a Thousand Days

Book of a Thousand Days, by Shannon Hale, was sweet, original, and satisfying. Another one I'll have to go out and buy. (I've had good luck with books lately!) Here's the blurb for it:

"When Dashti, a maid, and Lady Saren, her mistress, are shut in a tower for seven years because of Saren’s refusal to marry a man she despises, the two prepare for a very long and dark imprisonment. As food runs low and the days go from broiling hot to freezing cold, it is all Dashti can do to keep them fed and comfortable. With the arrival outside the tower of Saren’s two suitors—one welcome, the other decidedly less so—the girls are confronted with both hope and great danger, and Dashti must make the desperate choices of a girl whose life is worth more than she knows. With Shannon Hale’s lyrical language, this little-known classic fairy tale from the Brothers Grimm is reimagined and reset in a land inspired by the Asian steppes; it is a completely unique retelling filled with adventure and romance, drama and disguise." (From the official website.)

Book Blurb: Joan of Arc

This is a book I read for the kids' school library (all books have to be reviewed by parents before going on the shelf), so it's really geared for kids in the upper elementary grades through junior high. Personally, I've found books like this can be a great way to get an overview of something (or someone) I'm not familiar with. I knew just the tiniest bit about Joan of Arc, so I wanted to know more, but I wasn't interested enough to check out a full 300+ page adult book on the subject. (This one was just 130 pages.) It had plenty of artwork, pictures, and maps, and a clear and compelling narrative voice. I appreciated the simplified overview of the rift between France and England at that time, as well as the straightforward way the religious aspects of her story were told. All in all, this book really brought the story to life for me. I was absolutely fascinated by this woman (well, girl really). Regardless of what people think about her hearing "voices," her story is simply amazing. It makes me want to browse the history section the next time I go to the library, and look for a good "kid's" book on an interesting subject. If you're interested in Joan of Arc, I recommend this one

Book Blurb: Three Cups of Tea

My post about this book will be a little different from my other book blurbs. I'm going to start with the blurb, and add my thoughts at the bottom:

"In 1993 Mortenson was descending from his failed attempt to reach the peak of K2, the world’s second highest mountain. Exhausted and disoriented, he wandered away from his group into the most desolate reaches of northern Pakistan. Alone, without food, water, or shelter he eventually stumbled into an impoverished Pakistani village where he was nursed back to health.

While recovering he observed the village’s 84 children sitting outdoors, scratching their lessons in the dirt with sticks. The village was so poor that it could not afford the $1-a-day salary to hire a teacher. When he left the village, he promised that he would return to build them a school.
From that rash, heartfelt promise grew one of the most incredible humanitarian campaigns of our time: Greg Mortenson’s one-man mission to counteract extremism and terrorism by building schools—especially for girls—throughout the breeding ground of the Taliban.

Mortenson had no reason to believe he could fulfill his promise. In an early effort to raise money he wrote letters to 580 celebrities, businessmen, and other prominent Americans. His only reply was a $100 check from NBC’s Tom Brokaw. Selling everything he owned, he still only raised $2,000. But his luck began to change when a group of elementary school children in River Falls, Wisconsin, donated $623 in pennies, thereby inspiring adults to take his cause more seriously. Twelve years later he’s built fifty-five schools.

Mortenson and award-winning journalist David Oliver Relin have written a spellbinding account of his incredible accomplishments in a region where Americans are feared and hated. In pursuit of his goal, Mortenson has survived an armed kidnapping, fatwas issued by enraged mullahs, repeated death threats, and wrenching separations from his wife and children. Yet his success speaks for itself. This year the schools will educate 24,000 children."

***

This book had me enthralled from the very beginning. Greg's story is simply amazing. The way he started on this journey to begin with, and the way he struggled to get that first school built, was inspiring. While at first I really had to concentrate to keep the foreign names and cities straight (I bookmarked the map near the front for easy reference), it was worth it. The people and culture of Pakistan are fascinating. And not at all what I expected. That story alone makes the book worth reading.

Near the end of the book, as the events surrounding September 11 take center stage, I began to see the connection between what Greg's doing and the war on terror. While he had spent several hard years just to get a handful of schools going, the Taliban (heavily funded by Saudi oil) sprouted up dozens upon dozens of their own "schools" in the course of just one year. These madrassas were everywhere, teaching extremist doctrine to poor people who had literally no other options or resources.

The madrassas are successful because the students are so often people with zero education, and therefore easily led down the Taliban's path. To call these madrassas a "school" is a stretch. The Taliban often forbids reading any book except the Koran. When the Taliban took over Afghanistan before 9/11, they held public book burnings. Even the medical school in the capital city of Kabul was forbidden textbooks, and Taliban guards monitored classrooms to make sure they did not so much as put anatomical drawings on the chalkboard.

These medical students in Afghanistan realized what was happening, and resented it. But the impoverished young men from the rural villages of Pakistan, with little or no education, were easy targets for the Taliban. The effects of their "schooling" continues to this day, to everyone's detriment. While reading about the events which took place in Pakistan and Afghanistan in the year leading up to 9/11, it was easy to see the critical importance of education for these poor communities. (For more information, the website http://www.threecupsoftea.com/ is a great site to visit, as well as the Central Asia Institute, which is the organization Greg operates to get these schools built.)

The majority of the book, however, focuses on the small scale events, long before 9/11 ever took place. I came to have such an affection for the Americans and Pakistanis who made the dream of these schools a reality.

This book touched me on so many different levels. It made me want to do more, somehow, for this world I live in. I'm still struggling to figure out what that means for a stay-at-home mom of three. Not all of us can be Greg Mortenson. But I don't believe we have to be. I think we're each supposed to figure out what we are meant to do. As I think about what it took to get those schools built, I realize that aid came from many people, in ways both large and small. And it was all needed. I think that's probably true for any humanitarian effort, whether it be building schools in Pakistan or serving the needy in our own communities. Something quoted in the book comes to mind:

"We ourselves feel that what we are doing is just a drop in the ocean. But the ocean would be less because of that missing drop." - Mother Teresa

No one can fill the ocean on their own, not even Greg Mortenson. So what is my drop supposed to be? I believe raising my boys is the number one thing I can do so they can go out into the world and be productive citizens. But is there something else I should be doing? If there is, wouldn't it teach my children to think beyond themselves as well? (Greg Mortenson's parents were humanitarians too.)

I don't think I have to do anything "grand," but at the same time it's so easy to do nothing because what we can do feels too small to make a difference. How do I hang onto this fire, and turn it into action?

Here's another quote from the book that makes me think:

"When your heart speaks, take good notes."

Judith Campbell

What is my heart telling me?

Book Blurb: The Last Lecture

There's a tradition at some universities for professors to deliver what's called a "Last Lecture." They're supposed to imagine that it's the last lecture they'll ever give. When Rancy Pausch was asked to give his last lecture, he knew it really would be just that. He had been diagnosed with terminal pancreatic cancer, and had only months to live.

Perhaps you've already heard about this - apparently it's been all over the news - but I live in my own little world over here so I didn't hear about it until last Saturday. Katy showed me her copy when Brian and I picked up the kids, and told me I could borrow it after her mom . Well, Sunday we go to Brian's parents' house for Fast Sunday dinner, and I see the book sitting on the counter. Kathy's next to have it. I understand that. But it can't hurt to pick it up and just read the first few pages, right?

Three hours later, I was done.

I guess that's how you weasel your way to the front of the line. Hee hee.

Anyway, it's an amazing book, full of optimism and advice on how to live a great life. More than that, it's about chasing your childhood dreams. I loved all the little nuggets of wisdom in it. I think my favorite was the story about his childhood football coach, wherein it is demonstrated that you don't give a child self esteem, rather, self esteem is something a child earns. I've witnessed the truth of this with my own children.

If you want to watch the lecture and learn more about Randy, go to the website here.

Book Blurb: The Chosen

This is definitely a literary book, so if that's not your thing you may not like this book. But if that is your thing, check this one out because it's brilliant. I love the writing, I love the characters, I love the story. I'm also fascinated by different religions, so I liked the learning about the background of Hasidic Judaism.

As an aside, the author is an Hasidic Jew who pretty much went against his religion by writing books at all. The main character in My Name is Asher Lev (another great book by Potok) is also an Hasidic Jew who is an artist and struggling with what that means within the confines of his upbringing. I loved that one too, but I'm highlighting The Chosen because I thought it was even better. I'm also wanting to read Davita's Harp by this author. Has anyone read it?

Here's a blurb for The Chosen:

Few stories offer more warmth, wisdom, or generosity than this tale of two boys, their fathers, their friendship, and the chaotic times in which they live. Though on the surface it explores religious faith--the intellectually committed as well as the passionately observant--the struggles addressed in The Chosen are familiar to families of all faiths and in all nations.
In 1940s Brooklyn, New York, an accident throws Reuven Malther and Danny Saunders together. Despite their differences (Reuven is a Modern Orthodox Jew with an intellectual, Zionist father; Danny is the brilliant son and rightful heir to a Hasidic rebbe), the young men form a deep, if unlikely, friendship. Together they negotiate adolescence, family conflicts, the crisis of faith engendered when Holocaust stories begin to emerge in the U.S., loss, love, and the journey to adulthood. The intellectual and spiritual clashes between fathers, between each son and his own father, and between the two young men, provide a unique backdrop for this exploration of fathers, sons, faith, loyalty, and, ultimately, the power of love.

Book Blurb: A Girl Named Zippy

A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana by Haven Kimmel. I read this a few years ago for book club, and loved it. It's a memoir, which I don't normally read, but it came highly recommended so I gave it a try. Unlike the heavier reading of books like Jane Eyre, this is a quick read and often laugh-out-loud funny. It's a great book! Once again, for the blurb I'm combining the best from Publishers Weekly and Library Journal:

It's a clich to say that a good memoir reads like a well-crafted work of fiction, but Kimmel's smooth, impeccably humorous prose evokes her childhood as vividly as any novel. Born in 1965, she grew up in Mooreland, Ind., a place that by some "mysterious and powerful mathematical principle" perpetually retains a population of 300, a place where there's no point learning the street names because it's just as easy to say, "We live at the four-way stop sign." Hers is less a formal autobiography than a collection of vignettes comprising the things a small child would remember: sick birds, a new bike, reading comics at the drugstore, the mean old lady down the street. The truths of childhood are rendered in lush yet simple prose; here's Zippy describing a friend who hates wearing girls' clothes: "Julie in a dress was like the rest of us in quicksand." Over and over, we encounter pearls of third-grade wisdom revealed in a child's assured voice: "There are a finite number of times one can safely climb the same tree in a single day"; or, regarding Jesus, "Everyone around me was flat-out in love with him, and who wouldn't be? He was good with animals, he loved his mother, and he wasn't afraid of blind people."

Nicknamed "Zippy" for her energetic interpretation of a circus monkey, she could not be bothered to speak until she was three years old, and her first words involved bargaining with her father about whether or not a baby bottle was still appropriate. Born in 1965, Zippy lived in a world filled with a loving family, peculiar neighbors, and multitudes of animals, including a chicken she loved and treated like a baby. Her story is filled with good humor, fine storytelling, and acute observations of small town life.

Book Blurb: The Looking Glass Wars

I couldn't decide which cover to post, so I put them both up. :)

I just finished reading this. It doesn't fall into the same category of fabulous as do the other books I've talked about, but this was still a really fun read. It's the first in a trilogy (naturally) and I'm excited to read the next one. If you're looking for an easy, fun read, try this one. Here's the blurb from the cover:

"The Looking Glass Wars unabashedly challenges the world’s Carrollian Wonderland assumptions of tea parties, dormice and a curious little blonde girl to reveal an epic, cross dimensional saga of love, murder, betrayal, revenge and the endless war for Imagination. Meet the heroic, passionate, monstrous, vengeful denizens of this parallel world as they battle each other with AD-52’s and orb generators, navigate the Crystal Continuum, bet on jabberwock fights and slip each other the poisonous pink mushroom. Finally, someone got it right. This ain’t no fairytale.

Alyss Heart, heir to the Wonderland throne, was forced to flee through the Pool of Tears after a bloody palace coup staged by the murderous Redd shattered her world. Lost and alone in Victorian London, Alyss is befriended by an aspiring author to whom she tells the surreal, violent, heartbreaking story of her young life only to see it published as the nonsensical children’s sojourn Alice in Wonderland. Alyss had trusted Lewis Carroll to tell the truth so that someone, somewhere would find her and bring her home.

But Carroll had got it all wrong. He even misspelled her name! If not for the intrepid Hatter Madigan, a member of the Millinery (Wonderland’s security force) who after a 13 year search eventually tracked Alyss to London, she may have become just another society woman sipping tea in a too-tight bodice instead of returning to Wonderland to battle Redd for her rightful place as the Queen of Hearts."

Book Blurb: These Is My Words

This book is so fabulous that I was half-way through it and already wanting to read it again. This is one I plan to own so I can read it again and again. Since I'm not a big re-reader, that's about the biggest endorsement I can give. I finished this on the way home from Texas, and raved so much about it that Brian decided to read it too. He flew through it and loved it as well. This is a must read!

My only warning is that this diary-style novel starts out with a little bit of poor spelling and grammer to reflect the character's lack of formal learning at the time. Don't worry that the whole book reads like that. It's really just a few pages at the beginning until her grammer improves.

Okay, one more warning. Be prepared to lose sleep over this book. You won't want to put it down.

Here's a blurb from Amazon. (They have two blurbs, and the first contains spoilers, so be careful if you go there...)

"This novel in diary format parallels the early history of the Arizona Territories as Sarah and her family travel from the New Mexico Territory and settle down to carve out a new life on a ranch near Tucson in the 1880s. Sarah's diary, based on the author's family memoirs, is a heartwarming and heartbreaking fictional account of a vibrant and gifted young woman. Sarah starts out as an illiterate, fiery 17 year old. Eventually, her writing becomes as smooth and polished as Sarah herself as she becomes a tenacious, literate, and loving wife and mother. A treasure trove of discovered books becomes the source of her self-education. Turner describes the trip in such detail that one has a sense of having traveled with Sarah, experiencing all of its heartache and sadness, its backbreaking exertion and struggles, its danger and adventure, its gentle and lighter moments. Life in the new country brings the constant fear of Indian raids and the threat and reality of floods, fire, and rattlesnakes; bandits; rough men, and pretentious women all have an effect on the protagonist but her strong marriage makes the effort worthwhile. Sarah centers her world around her home and family but maintains an independent spirit that keeps her whole and alive throughout her many trials and heartaches. This is a beautifully written book that quickly captures readers' attention and holds it tightly and emotionally until the end."

Book Blurb: Jane Eyre

This is one of those books I've heard about my whole life and had absolutely ZERO desire to read. (Could we come up with a more bland title? I mean, really.) In recent years though, I kept hearing about how much people love it, which at least made me think about trying it. Then I read about this huge survey which asked readers to name their favorite book of all time. (Harry Potter made the top ten, which I'm sure you were dying to know.) But what stood at the very top of the list? Jane Eyre.

Well, I had to see what all the fuss was about. I'm so glad I did. This book is fantastic, even by modern standards. It's definitely one of my all time favorites. I don't usually re-read books (too many unread books to explore), but I recently re-read Jane Eyre for book club. The first couple hundred pages, I found myself wondering what made me love it so much before. I mean, I was definitely enjoying it. But it's a rare book that I LOVE and I remember LOVING this book. When I first started the re-read, I didn't see why.

Until we get to Mr. Rochester.

Oh yeah. NOW I remember why! Their relationship is great and cracks me up at times. And the plot (and plot twists) in the middle and end of the book are excellent. So yeah, if you can't tell, I highly recommend this book.

I admit, I hesitate to post a blurb about it. None of the blurbs I found do it justice and I doubt I could do much better. Here's the blurb I can tolerate, but trust me, the book is even better than this makes it sound:

"A novel of intense power and intrigue, Jane Eyre has dazzled generations of readers with its depiction of a woman’s quest for freedom. Having grown up an orphan in the home of her cruel aunt and at a harsh charity school, Jane Eyre becomes an independent and spirited survivor—qualities that serve her well as governess at Thornfield Hall. But when she finds love with her sardonic employer, Rochester, the discovery of his terrible secret forces her to make a choice. Should she stay with him whatever the consequences or follow her convictions, even if it means leaving her beloved?"

Book Blurb: "Terabithia" and "Jip"

My all-time favorite book as a child was Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson. If you haven't read it, you should. It rocks! I didn't re-read a lot of books as a child (I don't re-read a lot now either, for that matter) but I've re-read this one countless times. Even as an adult I think I've read it two or three times. I can't wait to read it to my kids, but they're still a little young for it. Plus, I know I'm gonna cry cuz this book always makes me cry! Anyway, I found several different cover images online, but I wanted the cover I was familiar with so I scanned my copy. It has the right cover, you see. :)





You probably know they made a movie out of this book. When I first heard about it, I was so excited! Then I saw the preview. First, if I hadn't read and loved the book so much, I think I would have liked the movie. It looked pretty cool. But I was irritated because half the preview was nothing like the book at all. It's like they made it into a fantasy or something, and this book is NOT a fantasy. Like, at all. It's weird. Stinkin' Disney.



Here's what's on the back cover of mine:



"We need a place," she said, "just for us. It would be so secret that we would never tell anyone in the whole world about it." She lowered her voice almost to a whisper. "It might be a whole secret country, and you and I would be the rulers of it."

It was Leslie's idea to create Terabithia, their secret kingdom in the woods where they reigned as King and Queen. There no enemy - not their teacher Monster Mouth Myers, their bullying schoolmates, Jess's four sisters, or even Jess's own fears and Leslie's imaginary foes - could defeat them. Jess's friendship with Leslie, and the worlds of imagination and learning that she opens up to him, change him forever and enable him to cope with the unexpected tragedy that touches them all."



Typing that brought the story back to me and gave me chills. I think I'm gonna leave this on my desk and put it in line for books to read. I LOVE this book!



Anyway, last time I was at the library looking for books to read to the kids (we finished Mouse and the Motorcycle by the way - it was fun!) I saw more books by Katherine Paterson. I picked out this one for myself. Jip, His Story:

I read it and all I can say is "Wow." This lady did it again. Like Terabithia, it's an award-winner. And like Terabithia she pulls no punches. Even though these are children's books, I think they're more than appropriate for adults. Her execution is flawless. Her characters are fantastic. Her themes and storylines touch on serious subjects that not just any writer could handle. After reading Jip, I recalled a couple things I read about her awhile ago. This is from a really interesting bio on her site. She talks about how much she loves writing, but then she says this:

"But there are days when I wonder how on earth I got involved in this madness. Why, oh why, did I ever think I had anything to say that was worth putting down on paper? And there are those days when I have finished a book and can't for the life of me believe I'll ever have the wit or will to write another.

Eventually a character or characters will walk into my imagination and begin to take over my life. I'll spend the next couple of years getting to know them and telling their story. Then the joy of writing far outweighs the struggle, and I know beyond any doubt that I am the most fortunate person in the world to have been given such work to do."

At the time I wondered about her feeling like she could never write a book again. After reading Jip I think I understand. Her books are intense to read. I can't imagine what they must be like to write.

I also think this little snippet about her is funny:

"Despite her years of experience, crafting her stories and plots is still not easy. Usually, when a novel is not quite complete, Paterson becomes frustrated with the novel and feels that it can't be finished. She then complains to John [her husband] who simply acknowledges that she's reached 'that stage' again. This sends her back to her desk in a huff to get the novel finished."

I think Brian and Elyse can relate to that. It's reassuring to know that even phenomenal writers like her go through the same crazy emotional behavior experienced by writers like me.

Anyway, she's a phenomenal writer. There were several other Paterson books on the library shelf. I think I'll just have to read them all.

Book Blurb: The Hiding Place

Okay, in my opinion, this is one of the few books that I believe should be required reading for everyone. This amazing true story shows us human courage and compassion at its finest.

Here's a blurb:

"An old watchmaker in Holland. His two daughters, Corrie and Betsie. Simple, ordinary people. Yet these three unlikely heroes became the center of a major underground operation: To hide Jewish refugees from the occupying Germans. These kindly, law abiding people broke every rule in the book to save the lives of the men, women and children being hunted by the Nazis. Their home became a hiding place, but the cost of their bravery was betrayal and in the dreaded Ravensbruck concentration camp, they had to create another hiding place for those around them."

Book Blurb: The Diary of Mattie Spenser

I've decided that whenever I finish reading a book I liked, I'm going to post up a blurb about it on here. This one, The Diary of Mattie Spenser, by Sandra Dallas, was excellent. As I was reading, I kept forgetting it wasn't real. I loved it. I also read The Persian Pickle Club by the same author and loved it too. I'll definitely read more by her. Anyway, here's what was on the back cover of the Mattie Spenser book:

"No one is more surprised than Mattie Spenser herself when Luke Spenser, considered the great catch of their small Iowa town, asks her to marry him. Less than amonth later, they are off in a covered wagon to build a home on the Colorado frontier. Mattie's only company is a slightly mysterious husband and her private journal, where she records the joys and frustrations not just of frontier life, but also of a new marriage to a handsome but distant stranger. As she and Luke make a life together on the harsh and beautiful plains, Mattie learns some bitter truths about her husband and the girl he left behind and finds love where she least expects it. Dramatic and suspenseful, this is an unforgettable story of hardship, friendship, and survival."