Books and Needlepoint

Thursday, January 1, 2009

I know - I signed up for another challenge - but this one has to do with all the books I read to my son who is 4! (His first day of school last fall - above) Becky from Becky's Book Reviews is hosting it and you can go there to sign up. I will only be reviewing these books if I think they are exceptional or if my son really liked them (so I have had to read them over and over and over!)

Here are some of her guidelines!~

Read 12 children's books in 2009.

'Children's books' are defined as anything written to be read (or read aloud) to children 12 and under.Examples of children's books are: board books, picture books, early readers, chapter books.

No list is required. If you choose to post one, you can change it as needed. But it isn't required at all.

Audio books work.Rereads are acceptable, but try to mix it up old and new if you can.Overlaps with other challenges are acceptable.You may consider yourself 'finished' with the challenge if/when you complete the twelfth book. (You could finish it January if you're ambitious. But there is no requirement to read one book per month all year long.)

If you want to keep going past twelve books, that's fine. I won't stop you!If you want to challenge yourself further you might consider going with a theme:

*Read twelve picture books published in 2009

*Read twelve children's fantasy titles published since 2000

*Read twelve children's books that have been made into a movie

*Read three books on shapes, three books on numbers/counting, three books on the alphabet, three books on colors.You get the idea. You can make it as simple or complex as you like!© Becky Laney of Young Readers

Here is my list - If it is listed, it has been read once - if there is a number in parenthesis following it - that is how many times we have read it!

More Fun With Maisy - Lucy Cousins
Katy Duck dance star - Alyssa Satin Capucilli
If You Give a Mouse a Cookie - Laura Joffe Numeroff
Pie in the Sky - Lois Ehlert
Get to Work, Trucks! - Don Carter
The Worm Family - Tony Johnston
This Train - Paul Collicutt
The Smushy Bus - Leslie Helakoski (2)
Matthew's Truck - Katherine Ayres
Good Morning Engines - Britt Allcroft
Alexander's Pretending Day - Bunny Crumpacker
Motor Graders - Jean Eick
The Wolf Who Cried Boy - Bob Hartman
Curious George Visits a Police Station
Going Places
The little mouse, the red ripe strawberry, and the big hungry bear - Don Wood
Toy Story II - Play a Sound
Blue's Music Maker - Play a Song
Hello, Robots - Bob Staake (3)
Reptar to the Rescue - Stephanie St. Pierre
Young MacDonald - David Milgrim
Little Boy - Alison McGhee and Peter Reynolds
The Night Before Christmas Pop Up Story Book (Better than Broccoli Books)
Nursery Rhymes (Wee Willie Winkie and Other Rhymes) Pop Up Book (Better than Broccoli)
Nursery Rhymes (Humpty Dumpty and Other Rhymes) Pop Up Book (Better than Broccoli)
My Subway Ride - Paul Dubois Jacobs and Jennifer Swender
Santa's Workshop Pop Up Story Book (Better than Broccoli Books)
Nursery Rhymes (Mary, Mary Quite Contrary and Other Rhymes) Pop Up Book (Better than Broccoli)
Old MacDonald Had a Workshop - Lisa Shulman
Itchy Itchy Chicken Pox
Walter the Farting Dog - William Kotzwinkle (2)
Curious George Goes to the Beach - Margret and H.A. Rey
Sleepy Cadillac - Thacher Hurd
Curious George and the Dump Truck - Margret and H.A. Rey
Shape Space - Cathryn Falwell
Maisy's Morning on the Farm - Lucy Cousins
Alphabet City
Kipper's Toy Box - Mick Inkpen
The Bestest Mom - Susan Hood
Sailor Boy Jig - Margaret Weis Brown
Hoppity Skip Little Chick - Jo Brown
Freight Train - Donald Crews
Curious George and the Hot Air Balloon - Margret and H.A. Rey
Happy Birthday Spongebob - J-P Chanda
Scooby Doo and the Disappearing Donuts - Gail Herman
If I Could Drive a Loader - Michael Teitelbaum
If I Could Drive a Tow Truck - Michael Teitelbaum
If I Could Drive a Fire Truck - Michael Teitelbaum
If I Could Drive a Dump Truck - Michael Teitelbaum

Wednesday, December 31, 2008

Chick Lit Challenge

Shared by Kristi

From January 1 through December 31, 2009, read at least 10 chick lit books. Books can overlap with other challenges and you can change your list at any time. I am hoping to fulfill this challenge by just reading either my ARC's or books for other challenges - so I will be filling in my list as I go. It is being hosted over at the Twiga Blog and you can go there to leave a comment to sign up.

Tuesday, December 30, 2008

Outlander Reading Challenge (Diana Gabaldon)

Shared by Kristi

I know - enought challenges already - but I had added these books to my TBR pile BEFORE this challenge was posted - so it just fits!

The challenge is to read or listen to each of the six Outlander books in order before the release of An Echo in the Bone (fall of 2009). This challenge is being hosted by A Reader's Respite and you can go here to see all the rules and to get the link to sign up.

Outlander
Dragonfly in Amber
Voyager
Drums of Autumn
The Fiery Cross
A Breath of Snow and Ashes

Monday, December 29, 2008

World War II Reading Challenge (War Through the Generations)

Shared by Kristi

This challenge is being hosted over at War Through the Generations.

Rules are as follows:

1. To participate in the WWII Reading Challenge, you must commit to reading at least five books throughout the year. We plan to read more than that, and feel free to do the same! The books can be fiction or non-fiction, and they can be about any aspect of WWII. WWII should be the primary or secondary theme, and it doesn’t matter whether the book takes place during the war or after the war. (Please visit the WWII Reading List page for some recommendations.) 2. You can count books you are reading for other challenges, so long as they meet the aforementioned criteria.

3. You can decide which books you’d like to read right away, or you can choose them during the course of the challenge. However, you must set a reading goal when you sign up. At the end of the challenge, those who met or exceeded their reading goals will be entered in a drawing (prizes to be announced later).

**Participants anywhere in the world are eligible for the drawing!**

For sign up rules please visit the challenge host here.

I will be reading 5 books - as I have at least 3 just browsing through their list that were already in my TBR pile! Here are some possibles -

- Sarah's Key - Tatiana de Rosnay
- Night of Flames - Douglas W. Jacobson
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Sunday, December 28, 2008

Mailbox Monday

Shared by Kristi

Mailbox Mondays is hosted by Marcia at The Printed Page so drop by and see what everyone else got in their box last week!

I had a great week this week - It was Christmas for me in my mailbox! I received these books from First Wild Card Tours -

Lessons From San Quentin - by Bill Dallas

A Lever Long Enough - by Amy Deardon

The Red Siren - by M.L. Tyndall

I also received these from Sourcebooks:

The Kingmaker - by Helen Hollick

Lady Anne and the Howl in the Dark - by Donna Lea Simpson

Fire Me - by Libby Malin

Wild Highland Magic - by Kendra Leigh Castle

Holly's Inbox - by Holly Denham

And from Santa I received the following:

The Pagan Stone - by Nora Roberts

1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die - by Peter Ackroyd and Peter Boxall

The Knifty Knitter

BUT - since my daughter has been patiently waiting for the computer - you will have to wait to hear anything about them until I have read and reviewed! Happy Monday!

Read Your Name Challenge

Shared by Kristi

The challenge is to read your name in book title first letters, ultimately spelling out your name. I am going to use my whole first name this time - so that would be Kristina.

That means:
1. Using your first name, or blogger name, or your pets name, or even your favorite literary character's name; whichever you like, choose books with first title letters that spell out your name. (Audio books and eBooks are also okay.)
2. Bloggers and non-bloggers alike are free to join.
3. If you have your own blog, go back to the host blog here every month and leave a comment containing the link to your challenge page containing the books you've read or each review you've written for books that count for this challenge. (Crossovers with other challenges are okay.) There will be a new post for this on the first of every month.
4. The challenge runs from Jan. 1st 2009, to Dec. 31st 2009. You may join at any time.

So go visit Victoria at her blog to sign up!

Friday, December 26, 2008

Numbers Challenge

Shared by Kristi

The challenge is to read 5 books whose titles have a number in them from Jan 1, 2009 to August 1, 2009. This includes written numbers like 'one' and numbers like 10th or first.

You can choose up to three that are on lists for other challenges. So two of the choices must not be on any list. You can re-read books but all books must NOT be read until January 1, 2009.

To join - sign up here.

My Possibilities:

Thursday, December 25, 2008

2009 Suspense & Thriller Reading Challenge

Shared by Kristi

Rules of this challenge:
* Read TWELVE (12) different sub-genres of thrillers in 2009.
* You do NOT need to select your books ahead of time. Also, you may change as you go.
* Your books can crossover into other challenges.
* You don't need a blog to join in this challenge. For those who do, this is important. When you sign up under Mr. Linky, list the direct link to your post where your S/T books will be listed. If you list just your blog’s URL, it will be removed.
*Challenge is being hosted by J.Kaye Book Blog and you can signup here.
*Listed at the host site is a very detailed list of sub-genres for thrillers.

Books:

Wednesday, December 24, 2008

Themed Reading Challenge (Feb 1, 2009 - July 31, 2009)

Shared by Kristi

This one sounds like a lot of fun - and I have already been forming themes in my head just based on the other challenges that I have signed up for. Here are the rules:

February 1, 2009 - July 31, 2009
The Themed Reading Challenge is a six month challenge designed to help readers clear books from their to-be-read stacks which center around a common theme or themes. Here are the “rules”:
Books should be chosen from the reader’s TBR pile (this may be an actual physical pile or a virtual pile).
The goal is to read 4 to 6 books linked by theme.
Overlaps with other challenges are allowed.
Readers may change their list of books at any time.

Readers may choose three different levels of participation:
Read at least 4 books with the same theme.
Read at least 5 books that share at least TWO themes.
Read at least 6 books that share MORE than two themes.

Themes can be geographic, genre, author, subject matter, or anything in between! Last year’s themes were wonderfully creative and varied and included such things as: books about books, books set in New England, books with a color in the title, books about vampires, books with the word ‘lady’ in the title, Gothic classics, fairy tales retold for adults, highschool classics, Asian culture, feathered friends, WWII, Canada, books in translation, and Beverly Cleary. There were many others I have not listed here!
The only thing limiting your choices is your imagination - so have fun!
Sign-ups for this challenge will close on March 30th.

My tentative theme is going to being Irish/Ireland - I will probably do option A even though I have listed 5 books. If I find another theme while I am reading them I will list it also.

Blessed are the Cheesemakers - Sarah-Kate Lynch
Revenge - Mary Stanley
Ireland - Frank Delany
Christine Falls - Benjamin Black
The Gathering - Anne Enright
The Secret Scripture - Sebastian Barry

Yeah - this theme bit the dust - it is now going to be books with Dead or words that mean dead in the title.

This is being hosted by Caribous's Mom.

Tuesday, December 23, 2008

Dewey's Books Reading Challenge

Shared by Kristi

I am relatively new to blogging, and had just started following Dewey's blog when she passed away. From all the posts remembering her, I am sorry that I did not have the chance to get to know her. I am going to take part in the reading challenge remembering her - because it seems only fitting to do so.

If you would also like to sign up, it is being hosted here. You can find all the rules there as well as the link to Dewey's archives.

I am going to choose Option 1 and my 6 books are listed below -

2003 - Into the Forest - Jean Hegland
2004 - The Lovely Bones - Alice Sebold
2005 - Alias Grace - Margaret Atwood
2006 - Outlander - Diana Gabaldon
2007 - Frankenstein - Mary Shelley
2008 - Christine Falls - Benjamin Black

Unshelved Reading Challenge (Feb 1, 2009 - June 1, 2009)

Shared by Kristi

I had never heard of the Unshelved Bookclub until I stumbled across this challenge. It is a comic strip book review that comes out each Sunday. So Becky of Becky's Book Reviews is hosting a challenge to read 3 books from the list.

Audio books welcome. Blog not required. Overlaps with other challenges allowed. Lists not required. But books must come from their archives. Remember, new books/strips are being added all the time.

Tentative books are:

Around the World in 80 Days - Jules Verne
The City of Ember - Jeanne DuPrau
Heir Apparent - Vivian VandeVelde

Monday, December 22, 2008

Art History Reading Challenge

Shared by Kristi

This one is going to take me out of my comfort zone - but it is only 6 books(I say that now.. hope it doesn't come back to bite me!) and the ones on their sample list look pretty interesting. So I am going to join this challenge.

To Join The Art History Reading Challenge and challenge yourself to read at least 6 books about art in 2009. These can be either fiction or nonfiction, and can span every genre from historical fiction to graphic novel.

Go here for some inspiration!

Sunday, December 21, 2008

Mailbox Monday

Shared by Kristi

Mailbox Mondays is hosted by Marcia at The Printed Page so drop by and see what everyone else got in their box last week!

Can I just say - my husband would kill me if he found out I just bought 11 more books at the thrift store! It is the most wonderful place for books! I just picked up 3 of the hard cover Thomas Kinkade books - Cape Light, Home Song, and The Gathering Place - that I had seen recommended awhile back on another blog - and for a mere $9 I got the rest of these books: (descriptions are from book covers)

Cold Mountain by Charles Frazier - Sorely wounded and fatally disillusioned in the fighting at Petersburg, Inman, a Confederate soldier, decides to walk back to his home in the Blue Ridge Mountains and to Ada, the woman he loved there years before. His trek across the disintegrating South brings him into intimate and sometimes lethal converse with slaves and marauders, bounty hunters and witches, both helpful and malign. At the same time, Ada is trying to revive her father's derelict farm and learn to survive in a world where the old certainties have been swept away.

Tell No One by Harlan Coben - For Dr. David Beck, the loss was shattering. And every day for the past eight years, he has relived the horror of what happened. The gleaming lake. The pale moonlight. The piercing screams. The night his wife was taken. The last night he saw her alive.

Everyone tells him it's time to move on, to forget the past once and for all. But for David Beck, there can be no closure. A message has appeared on his computer, a phrase only he and his dead wife know. Suddenly Beck is taunted with the impossible - that somewhere, somehow, his wife is alive..and he's been warned to tell no one.

Vanishing Acts by Jodi Picoult - Delia Hopkins has led a charmed life. Raised in rural New Hampshire by her beloved, widowed father, she now has a young daughter, a handsome fiance, and her own search-and-rescue bloodhound, which she uses to find missing persons. But as Delia plans her wedding, she is plagued by flashbacks of a life she can't recall . . . until a policeman knocks on her door, revealing a secret about herself that changes the world as she knows it - and threatens to jeopardize her future. With Vanishing Acts, Jodi Picoult explores how life - as we know it - might not turn out the way we imagined; how the people we've loved and trusted can suddenly change before our very eyes; how the memory we thought had vanished could return as a threat.

Rebellion by Nora Roberts - Scotland, 1745. Against the bloody background of the Battle of Culloden, another war was waged and won - the price was honer, the victory, love.

Scottish beauty Serena MacGregor's hatred of all English began as a child when she watched as a band of Englishmen attacked her mother. Her brother's friend Brigham Langston was no exception to Serena's loathing - despite his supposed loyalty to the Scottich cause . . and his good looks.

Although Brigham eventually proves himself worthy of the MacGregor family's respect, Serena is still reluctant to abandon her hatred for him and his heritage. But Brigham has other plans. Serena has captivated him with her beauty, her passion for life and commitment to her beliefs - and he refuses to let her antagonistic attitude keep him from winning her. And Serena must learn to open her mind - as Brigham opens his heart - to see the true love awaiting her.

Black Rose by Nora Roberts - Three women meet at a crossroads in their lives, each searching for new ways to grow - and find in each other the courage to take chances and embrace the future.

Roz is a woman of independent means who thought love was behind her, but when romance takes her by surprise, she won't allow anything to keep her from her second chance at happiness.

In the Dark of the Night by John Saul - For Chicago couple Dan and Merrill Brewster, a summer at Pinecrest, a rambling lakeside house, is an ideal vacation, and for their kids, Eric and Marci, Pinecrest is the perfect place to spend some time exploring. Eric and his friends discover a curious cache of objects stowed in a hidden room, but the boys' strange fascination with the forgotten possessions soon becomes an obsession. When a horrifying discovery surfaces, so does the chilling truth about the terrifying events that rocked the town seven years before, the mysterious disappearance of Pinecrest's previous resident, and a twisted legacy with a malevolent life of its own . . . and a bottomless hunger for new victims.

Darkfall by Dean Koontz - Strange Days ... Winter gripped the city. Terror gripped it, too. They found four corpses in four days, each more hideous than the last. Strange Nights ... At first the cops thought they were dealing with a psychopath. But soon they heard eerie sounds in the ventilation system - and saw unearthly silver eyes in the snow-slashed night. Final Hours... In a city paralyzed by a blizzard, something watches, something stalks...... DARKFALL.

The Reef - by Nora Roberts Marine archeologist Tate Beaumont has a passion for treasure-hunting. Over the years, she and her father have uncovered many fabulous riches, but one treasure has always eluded them: Angelique's Curse - a jeweled amulet heavy with history, dark with legend, and tainted with blood. In order to find this precious artifact, the Beaumonts reluctantly form a partnership with salvagers Buck and Matthew Lassiter.

Having to share this dream is more than Tate can bear, but she has little choice. As the Beaumonts and Lassiters pool their resources to locate Angelique's Curse, the Caribbean waters thicken and darken with shadowy deceptions and hidden threats. Their partnership is placed in jeopardy when Matthew refuses to share information - including the truth behind his father's mysterious death several years earlier. For now, Tate and Matthew continue their uneasy alliance - until danger and desire begin to rise to the surface .. .

And if you are still with me - I also got three books in the mail! (Bonanza week for me!) - {Descriptions are from Amazon.com}

Gatekeepers by Robert Liparulo

In the third novel of this young adult series, the mystery deepens in a house that is more than meets the eye. (I just finished the first book in this series - read my review here.)

It's hard to believe that things could have gotten worse for the King family-but they have. Dad's in handcuffs, the school bully has just found the secret portal that leads from the high school to the house, and Xander is sure he's found Mom, but they can't get back to her. Then Jesse arrives, and he seems to be a virtual Obi Wan of knowledge about the place. But is he the key they need to unlock the secrets, or just a crazy old man?
Dangers are increasing from within and without when Xander makes a startling discovery that explains why they haven't found any rooms that lead to the future. Alongside the threats, though, they're also starting to find some surprising allies.
All they have to do is get organized, get psyched, and get Mom. But that isn't nearly as easy as it sounds.

Grace for the Afflicted: A Clinical and Biblical Perspective on Mental Illness by Matthew S. Stanford, Ph.D.

Each day men and women diagnosed with mental disorders are told they need to pray more and turn from their sin. Mental illness is equated with demonic possession, weak faith and generational sin. Why is it that the church has struggled in ministering to those with mental illnesses? As both a church leader and professor of psychology and neuroscience, Dr. Stanford has seen far too many mentally ill brothers and sisters damaged by well meaning believers who respond to them out of fear or misinformation rather than grace. Grace for the Afflicted is written to educate Christians about mental illness from both biblical and scientific perspectives. Dr. Stanford presents insights into our physical and spiritual nature and discusses the appropriate role of psychology and psychiatry in the life of the believer. Describing common mental disorders, Dr. Stanford asks of each What does science say and what does the Bible say about this illness? Mental illnesses addressed in the book include Mood Disorders Anxiety Disorders Schizophrenia Dissociative Disorders AttentionDeficit Hyperactivity Disorder Eating Disorders Substance Use Disorders Borderline Personality Disorder

Be Strong & Curvaceous by Shelley Adina

After spending spring break in Mexico with her grandparents, Carly Aragon can't wait to get back to school at SpencerAcademy in San Francisco. With Lissa Mansfield and Gillian Chang by her side, she's ready for anything . . . except a new roommate.Lady Lindsay MacPhail, flamboyant daughter of the Earl of Strathcairn, quickly becomes Carly's worst nightmare. "Mac" not only swoops in and steals Carly's privacy, she's also dating Brett Loyola--Carly's biggest crush!But when Mac starts receiving strange, threatening e-mails, she and Carly must come together to figure out who's behind them and why. In the end, the fate of one girl will lie in the other's hands. Will the two learn to trust one another and trust God?

Happy Reading!

House of Dark Shadows by Robert Liparulo

Shared by Kristi

Title: House of Dark Shadows
Author: Robert Liparulo
Genre: Supernatural Fiction/Young Adult
Publisher: Thomas Nelson

From the cover: When the Kings move from L.A. to a secluded small town, fifteen-year-old Xander isbeyond disappointed. He and his friends loved to create amateur films . . . but the tiny town of Pinedale is the last place a movie buff and future filmmaker wants to land.

Bet he, David, and Toria are captivated by the many rooms in the old Victorian fixer-upper they moved into - as well as the heavy woods surrounding the house.

They soon discover there's something odd about the house. Sounds come from the wrong directions. Prints of giant, bare feet appear in the dust. And when David tries to hide in the linen closet, he winds up in locker 119 at his new school.

Then the really weird stuff kicks in: they find a hidden hallway with portals leading to far-off places -in long-ago times. Xander is starting to wonder if this kind of travel is a teen's dream come true . . . or his worst nightmare.

My review: Robert Liparulo where were you when I was growing up trying to read and comprehend Stephen King as a preteen/teenager! I found myself glad that I had my husband to curl up next to when I shut off the lights!

Upon first viewing their new home, Xander is suspicious - he feels like he is being watched, sounds are coming from the wrong direction, his family seem to "appear" where they shouldn't be. With much trepidation he moves in with his mom and dad, brother David and sister Toria. When he shares his misgivings with his father, his father agrees with him - but tells him that he should just trust him. There is a mystery surrounding what happened to the previous residents years and years before. The real estate agent tells them a story that they think the husband killed his wife and later ran off with the kids and possibly killed them too! Then - G (Xander's mom) finds HUGE footprints in the house.

Xander, David and their dad set out to explore the house from top to bottom - they get the basement done when dad has to go to town to check on his new job. As David and Xander continue to explore, they discover a linen closet that teleports them to their new school! But do they tell mom and dad? No way, and the secrets begin to pile up..

The man/creature with the big feet shows back up in the middle of the night and Xander and David follow him - and discover a secret hallway with many rooms. Each room is equipped with a different items representing a different "theme". Do they really want to go into each room? What will happen if they do? Do they live? Do they die? And when the man comes back to kidnap someone - who will it be? And why is Xander's father not surprised with the series of events?

Find out the answer to all these questions by reading the book! I must warn you that it leaves you with a cliffhanger and hungering for more! I have had the second book (Watcher in the Woods) on request through my library's interlibrary loan since I checked out the first one - and it still isn't in! I definitely give this book 5/5 stars!

Brad Meltzer Audio Book Giveaways over at Teddy Rose's Blog!

Shared by Kristi

Check out Teddy Rose's latest giveaway.

She has three audio books by Brad Meltzer that will go to three lucky winners! If you sign up for the giveaway - be sure to tell her you heard it here! The audio books are: The Book of Lies - The Tenth Justice - and Dead Even.

~GOOD LUCK EVERYONE~

2009 ARC Reading Challenge

Shared by Kristi

Now through December 31, 2009

This is a year long challenge.

Complete rules are listed at Teddyrose's blog. Thanks Teddyrose for hosting!

Here are my current ARC's - or ones that I am expecting soon:

The Sword and the Flute (Matterhorn the Brave Series #1) by Mike Hamel

Shared by Kristi

It's the 21st, time for the Teen FIRST blog tour! This is the very last Teen FIRST tour as Teen FIRST has merged with FIRST Wild Card Tours. If you wish to learn more about FIRST Wild Card, please go HERE.

Mike Hamel

and his book:

The Sword and the Flute (Matterhorn the Brave Series #1)

Amg Publishers (January 22, 2007)

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Mike Hamel is a seasoned storyteller who has honed his skill over theyears by telling tall tales to his four children. He is the author of several non-fiction books and numerous magazine articles.

Mike and his wife, Susan, live in Colorado Springs, CO. Their four children are now grown and their two grand children will soon be old enough for stories of their own.

From His Blog's About Me:

I am a professional writer with sixteen books to my credit, including a trilogy of titles dealing with faith and business: The Entrepreneur’s Creed (Broadman, 2001), Executive Influence (NavPress, 2003), and Giving Back (NavPress, 2003). I also edited Serving Two Masters: Reflections on God and Profit, by Bill Pollard (Collins, 2006).

My most enjoyable project to date has been an eight-volume juvenile fiction series called Matterhorn the Brave. It’s based on variegated yarns I used to spin for my four children. They are now grown and my two grandchildren will soon be old enough for stories of their own.

I live in Colorado Springs, Colorado with my bride of 34 years, Susan.

As you read this blog, remember that I’m a professional. Don’t try this level of writing at home. You might suffer a dangling participle or accidentally split an infinitive and the grammarians will be all over you like shoe salesmen on a centipede.

BTW – I have been diagnosed with Diffuse Large B-Cell Lymphoma, an aggressive but treatable form of cancer.

Mike's Blog, Cells Behaving Badly, is an online diary about Wrestling with Lymphoma Cancer.

To order a signed edition of any of the 6 Matterhorn the Brave books, please visit the Matterhorn the Brave Website!

Product Details

List Price: 9.99
Reading level: Ages 9-12
Paperback: 181 pages
Publisher: Amg Publishers (January 22, 2007)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0899578330
ISBN-13: 978-0899578330

AND NOW...THE FIRST CHAPTER:

Emerald Isle

Aaron the Baron hit the ground like a paratrooper, bending his knees, keeping his balance.

Matterhorn landed like a 210-pound sack of dirt.

His stomach arrived a few seconds later.

He straightened his six-foot-four frame into a sitting position. In the noonday sun he saw they were near the edge of a sloping meadow. The velvet grass was dotted with purple and yellow flowers. Azaleas bloomed in rainbows around the green expanse. The black-faced sheep mowing the far end of the field paid no attention to the new arrivals.

“Are you okay?” the Baron asked. He looked as if he’d just stepped out of a Marines’ recruiting poster. “We’ll have to work on your landing technique.”

“How about warning me when we’re going somewhere,” Matterhorn grumbled.

The Baron helped him up and checked his pack to make sure nothing was damaged. He scanned the landscape in all directions from beneath the brim of his red corduroy baseball cap. “It makes no difference which way we go,” he said at last. “The horses will find us.”

“What horses?”

“The horses that will take us to the one we came to see,” the Baron answered.

“Are you always this vague or do you just not know what you’re doing?”

“I don’t know much, but I suspect this is somebody’s field. We don’t want to be caught trespassing. Let’s go.”

They left the meadow, walking single file through the tall azaleas up a narrow valley. Thorny bushes with loud yellow blossoms crowded the trail next to a clear brook. Pushing one of the prickly plants away, Matterhorn asked, “Do you know what these are?”

“Gorse, of course,” the Baron said without turning.

“Never heard of it.”

“Then I guess you haven’t been to Ireland before.”

“Ireland,” Matterhorn repeated. “My great-grandfather came from Ireland.”

“Your great-grandfather won’t be born for centuries yet.”

Matterhorn stepped over a tangle of exposed roots and said, “What do you mean?”

“I mean we’re in medieval Ireland, not modern Ireland.”

“How can that be!” Matterhorn cried, stopping in his tracks. “How can I be alive before my great-grandfather?”

The Baron shrugged. “That’s one of the paradoxes of time travel. No one’s been able to figure them all out. You’re welcome to try, but while you’re at it, keep a lookout for the horses.”

Matterhorn soon gave up on paradoxes and became absorbed in the paradise around him. The colors were so alive they hurt his eyes. He wished for a pair of sunglasses. Above the garish gorse he saw broom bushes and pine trees growing to the ridge where spectacular golden oaks crowned the slopes. Birdsongs whistled from their massive branches into the warm air. Small animals whispered in the underbrush while larger game watched the strangers from a distance.

The country flattened out and, at times, they glimpsed stone houses over the tops of hedgerows. They steered clear of these and any other signs of civilization. In a few hours, they reached the spring that fed the brook they had been following. They stopped to rest and wash up.

That’s where the horses found them.

There were five strikingly handsome animals. The leader of the pack was from ancient and noble stock. He stood a proud seventeen hands high—five-foot-eight-inches—at the shoulders. He had a classic Roman face with a white star on his wide forehead that matched the white socks on his forelegs. His straight back, sturdy body, and broad hindquarters suggested both power and speed. A rich coppery mane and tail complemented his sleek, chestnut coat.

The Baron held out an apple to the magnificent animal, but the horse showed no interest in the fruit or the man. Neither did the second horse. The third, a dappled stallion, took the apple and let the Baron pet his nose.

“These horses are free,” the Baron said as he stroked the stallion’s neck. “They choose their riders, which is as it should be. Grab an apple and find your mount.”

While Matterhorn searched for some fruit, the leader sauntered over and tried to stick his big nose into Matterhorn’s pack. When Matterhorn produced an apple, the horse pushed it aside and kept sniffing.

Did he want carrots, Matterhorn wondered? How about the peanut butter sandwich? Not until he produced a pocket-size Snickers bar did the horse whinny and nod his approval.

The Baron chuckled as Matterhorn peeled the bar and watched it disappear in a loud slurp. “That one’s got a sweet tooth,” he said.

The three other horses wandered off while the Baron and Matterhorn figured out how to secure their packs to the two that remained. “I take it we’re riding without saddles or bridles,” Matterhorn said. This made him nervous, as he had been on horseback only once before.

“Bridles aren’t necessary,” Aaron the Baron explained. “Just hold on to his mane and stay centered.” He boosted Matterhorn onto his mount. “The horses have been sent for us. They’ll make sure we get where we need to go.”

As they set off, Matterhorn grabbed two handfuls of long mane from the crest of the horse’s neck. He relaxed when he realized the horse was carrying him as carefully as if a carton of eggs was balanced on his back. Sitting upright, he patted the animal’s neck. “Hey, Baron; check out this birthmark.” He rubbed a dark knot of tufted hair on the chestnut’s right shoulder. “It looks like a piece of broccoli. I’m going to call him Broc.”

“Call him what you want,” the Baron said, “but you can’t name him. The Maker gives the animals their names. A name is like a label; it tells you what’s on the inside. Only the Maker knows that.”

Much later, and miles farther into the gentle hills, they made camp in a lea near a tangle of beech trees. “You get some wood,” Aaron the Baron said, “while I make a fire pit.” He loosened a piece of hollow tubing from the side of his pack and gave it a sharp twirl. Two flanges unrolled outward and clicked into place to form the blade of a short spade. Next, he pulled off the top section and stuck it back on at a ninety-degree angle to make a handle.

Matterhorn whistled. “Cool!”

“Cool is what we’ll be if you don’t get going.”

Matterhorn hurried into the forest. He was thankful to be alone for the first time since becoming an adult, something that happened in an instant earlier that day. Seizing a branch, he did a dozen chin-ups; then dropped and did fifty push-ups and a hundred sit-ups.

Afterward he rested against a tree trunk and encircled his right thigh with both hands. His fingertips didn’t touch. Reaching farther down, he squeezed a rock-hard calf muscle.

All this bulk was new to him, yet it didn’t feel strange. This was his body, grown up and fully developed. Flesh of his flesh; bone of his bone. Even hair of his hair, he thought, as he combed his fingers through the thick red ponytail.

He took the Sword hilt from his hip. The diamond blade extended and caught the late afternoon sun in a dazzling flash. This mysterious weapon was the reason he was looking for firewood in an Irish forest instead of sitting in the library at David R. Sanford Middle School.

Audiobook Challenge

Shared by Kristi

Yeah - an audiobook challenge! I just discovered Audiobooks this year - it is great for reading some of those books that you want to, but that just seem to go on forever and ever!

Here are the guidelines:

1) You can join anytime at J.Kaye's Book Blog as long as you don’t start listening to your books prior to 2009.

2) This challenge is for 2009 only. The last day to have all your books read is December 31, 2009.

3) You can join anytime between now and December 31, 2009.

4) When you sign up under Mr. Linky, list the direct link to your post where your library books will be listed. If you list just your blog’s URL, it will be removed. If you don’t have a blog, leave the URL blank.

5) Our goal is to listen to 12 audiobooks in 2009. No need to list your books now. You can do so as you go.

6) Feel free to post a link to your reviews in the comment section here (over at J.Kaye's!). That way, we can visit your blog and read your review.

Thanks j.kaye for hosting this event!

- The Road - Cormac McCarthy

- Cross Country - James Patterson

- A Long Stone's Throw - Frank McCourt
- Holes - Louis Sachar
- Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince - J.K. Rowling

Saturday, December 20, 2008

Harlequin/Silhouette Romance Reading Challenge

Shared by Kristi

Ok - I have a bunch of romance books just growing old in our basement - so this challenge will make me dig them out and read some!

All of the books have to be from either the Harlequin or Silhouette imprint. It doesn't matter which one. The challenge is...

1) Read 1 book with a holiday theme.

2) Read 1 book by an author you never read before.

3) Read 1 book with one of these words in the title - wedding, marriage, husband or wife

4) Read 1 book set in a place you've never been before.

5) Read 1 book with a body of water in the title (i.e. water, lake, river, island, etc.)

That's a total of 5 books for the year.A few additional things...

1) You can change books in the middle of the year, nothing is written in stone!

2) Books used in this challenge may be used in other challenges.

3) Books can be in any format - paper, audio, ebook.

4) Please sign up by commenting to the post here.

5) Please go back and post your reviews as you read the books for the challenge.

6) You can also link to your own blog using one of the buttons found at the challenge website!

There will be a prize at the end of the challenge. I don't know what it will be yet, but everyone who completes the challenge will be entered into the contest!

My books:

Holiday- - Wolfe Winter by Joan Hohl
New Author - The Dreammaker by Judith Stacy
Wedding, Marriage, Husband or Wife in title - Thorne's Wife by Joan Hohl
Place where I have never been - Montana Mavericks Weddings by Diana Palmer, Ann Major and Susan Mallery
Body of water in title - The Sea at Dawn by Laurie Paige

Friday, December 19, 2008

2009 Pub Challenge

Shared by Kristi

Since I already signed up for another challenge where I have to read 9 books from 2009 - they should fit in well with this challenge also!

Here are the 2009 rules:

Read a minimum of 9 books first published in 2009. You don’t have to buy these. Library books, unabridged audios, or ARCs are all acceptable. To qualify as being first published in 2009, it must be the first time that the book is published in your own country. For example, if a book was published in Australia, England, or Canada in 2008, and then published in the USA in 2009, it counts (if you live in the USA). Newly published trade paperbacks and mass market paperbacks do not count if there has been a hardcover/trade published before 2009.