Wonderful Wins: Mother's Day Giveaway - 5 books

I won these five books in the Mother's Day giveaway at Marta's Meanderings and Hachette Books!

The Road Home by Rose Tremain

About the book: After losing both his job and his beloved wife, Lev journeys from Eastern Europe to London in search of employment to support his family. At first he is homeless, but before long he lands a job, finds shelter, and even begins to make friends. While he embarks on an affair with a fellow restaurant worker (and dodges the attentions of other women), Lev's new life remains constricted. Homesickness dogs him, not only for nostalgic reasons but because he doesn't belong, body or soul, to his new country. But can Lev really go home again?

Rose Tremain's prodigious talents as a novelist are on full display in a work that freshly illuminates the immigrant experience--and never loses sight of what is truly important in our lives. (from the book cover)

About the author: Rose Tremain's fiction has won the Whitbread Novel of the Year (Music and Silence) and has been shortlisted for the Booker Prize (Restoration). The Road Home was one of the four finalists for the Costa Novel Award and was the winner of the Orange Broadband Prize for Fiction. Tremain lives in Norfolk and London with the biographer Richard Holmes. (from the book cover)

Beginner's Greek by James Collins

About the book: What if you met the love of your life. . .and then lost her phone number? Then what if, when you finally managed to find her again, she was about to marry your best friend? The complications only begin there for Peter and Holly, the winning duo at the center of this buoyant, generous, lushly romantic, brilliantly understated comedy of manners. Whatever your own experience in matters of the heart, Beginner's Greek is a novel that will make you believe that true love really does exist. (from the back cover)

About the author: James Collins was formerly an editor at Time and has contributed to The New Yorker and other magazines. He grew up in New York City and now lives in Virginia with his family. This is his first novel. (from the book)




Odd Mom Out by Jane Porter

About the book: Advertising executive Marta Zinsser is no poster child for her wealthy Seattle suburb--and nothing could please her more. This former New Yorker wears combat boots, not Manolos, and drives a righteous Harley hog instead of a Mercedes SUV. Now she's launching her own agency in this land of the Microsoft elite, even though her ten-year-old daughter wishes she'd put on a sweater set and just be normal. Can this ex-urbanite remain uniquely herself without alienating the inner circle of smug, cookie-cutter executive wives? And when push comes to shove, can she stop being the proud odd mom out and take a chance at something frighteningly--and tantalizingly--new? (from the back cover)

About the author: Jane Porter is also the author of Flirting with Forty and The Frog Prince. She lives in Seattle, Washington, with her two sons. (from the back cover)


Mommy Grace: Erasing Your Mommy Guilt by Dr. Sheila Schuller Coleman

About the book: You ARE a wonderful mother. You just don't know it.

Mothers tend to feel they are not good enough at the colossal job of parenting. many fear they are even harming their kids by not being flawless. They confess:

• I lost my temper and yelled at my son to stop acting like a baby.
• I ran out of groceries and fed my kids fast food instead.
• My daughter failed her spelling test--I was too tired to help her.
• I used the television as a babysitter instead of reading to my kids.
• I slept in and missed my devotion time.

Good news: MOMMY GRACE can help erase your mommy guilt! In these short, funny, and moving stories, Sheila Schuller Coleman offers portraits of authentic motherhood--foibles and all. She also reveals how to avoid the "perfect parent" trap and embrace the reassurance God provides. The fact is, God designed each mother for her particular kids, and--the best news of all--He makes up for our human weakness with His grace.

The true "supermom," Sheila writes, doesn't have it all together. Just the opposite! A supermom is someone who is real and brave enough to admit her limits and ask God for help. A supermom lets God fill in the gaps in her less-than-perfect parenting.

Inspirational and heartwarming, MOMMY GRACE is comfort and strength for the weary mom. Sheila affirms, "You are not alone. I pray you will realize that mommy guilt is actually a gift - an opportunity - to experience mommy grace. In the process your love affair with Christ will be magnified and you will never be the same."

Get rid of that guilt! And rest assured: You truly are a wonderful mother. (from the book jacket)

About the author: Dr. Sheila Schuller Coleman is the daughter of Robert H. Schuller, founding pastor of the Crystal Cathedral. Sheila has had a diverse career as an author, a public schoolteacher, and most recently as a private Christian school administrator. She currently serves as director of family ministries at the Crystal Cathedral and writes a column, "Ask Sheila," which is published monthly in Powerlines, a Crystal Cathedral publication reaching four hundred thousand readers. Sheila has a doctorate in educational leadership and administration. She and her husband, Jim, have been happily married for thirty years and are the parents of four grown sons. (from the book jacket)



Your Best Life Now for Moms by Joel Osteen

About the book: #1 NEW YORK TIMES bestselling author Joel Osteen revisits his seven core principles from YOUR BEST LIFE NOW to offer a guide to successful living for moms. YOUR BEST LIFE NOW FOR MOMS will help women through the vast parenting responsibilities and teach them how God can pour out "His far and beyond favor" on them and their children. (from Amazon website)

About the author: Joel Osteen is the senior pastor of Lakewood Church in Houston, Texas. Listed by several sources as America's largest and fastest-growing congregation, Lakewood church has approximately 45,000 adult attendees every week. Millions more watch Joel's messages as they are broadcast on national and international television networks. He resides in Houston with his wife, Victoria, and their children. (from Amazon website)

ARC Arrival: Blue Jean Baby by Sally Parmer

Blue Jean Baby: One Girl's Trip Through the 1960's L.A. Music Scene by Sally Parmer

Publisher: Sally Altman

I received this book through Bostick Communications.

About the book: Blue Jean Baby by Sally Parmer aims to unveil the truth about the sixties, showing how the beauty and inspiration of that decade is offset by war, riots, loss and oppression.

The 1960s were a tumultuous time of peace, love and misunderstanding, says author Sally Parmer in her uniquely personal novel, Blue Jean Baby. Contrary to popular belief, says Parmer, the youth in the sixties were actually an oppressed culture that had not yet morphed into the socially-freed individuals of the seventies and early eighties. Parmer was a teenager in Los Angeles during the sixties, and her exploits cast an honest light on what Parmer calls "the most wonderful and the most terrible" time of her life.

From chronicling her start in the L.A. music scene as a singer/songwriter and then as a groupie, to her abusive relationships and home life, Parmer shows how music saves her, and how after mothering a rock star's child, she finally finds her new calling in musical theater. Filled with watershed sixties' moments and insider views about the music scene, Parmer means this to be a book not just for those who remember the sixties, but for those who need to know what it was really like to live it.

According to Kirkus Discoveries, Parmer "tells her story without glamorizing or romanticizing it. And without a drop of remorse, self-pity or false humility. 'There will never again be a decade so remarkably transitional, terrifying and beautiful as the sixties,' she says, and it rings true." (from Bostick email)

About the author: Sally Parmer writes for and performs in musical theater and teaches the arts. She holds degrees in composition, theater arts and Shakespeare, and has won several awards for her stage plays and screenplays. A paid songwriter since the age of 15, she has written more than 50 plays, edited several magazines and published two novels, a raft of textbooks and a dozen self-help books. (from Bostick email)

Blue Jean Baby
Publisher/Publication Date: Sally Altman, April 2009
ISBN: 978-1-4392-2982-8
190 pages

ARC Arrival: The Cross by Arthur Blessitt

The Cross: 38,102 Miles, 38 Years, 1 Mission by Arthur Blessitt

Publisher: Authentic

I received this book from TBB Media.

About the book: On June 13, 2008, Arthur Blessitt walked his 38,102nd mile in Zanzibar, off of the coast of Tanzania, completing a journey that began in 1969. Arthur started walking with a twelve-foot cross on December 25, 1969, and has successfully carried a large wooden cross into every nation and major island group of the world.

Follow Arthur's journey from his initial call from God to carry a cross from Hollywood, where he was known as "the minister of Sunset Strip," across America to its capital, Washington, DC.

Accompany Arthur as he hacks his way through the Darien Jungle from Panama to Colombia. You'll join Arthur and his son, Joshua, as they take the cross to South Africa in 1986. Enter into the stories of how God used them to bring people spiritual, physical, and relational healing during the final tumultuous days of racial apartheid. Trek with Arthur and his wife, Denise, as they cross desert sands to take the cross to Saudi Arabia when the nation was closed to tourists. Follow them as they walk with the cross in the various regions of the former USSR just weeks after its collapse. You'll be amazed by how people in all cultures respond to the cross.

As Arthur has traveled around the world, he has found the cross to be a universal symbol of God's love that breaks down the barriers of language and culture. He writes, "Perhaps I'm the only person in history who has been physically shaped by the weight of a cross. But the changes the cross has brought to my physical body are not important. What is important is how the cross has changed my life, and the lives of so many others, from the inside out!" (from the back cover)

About the author: Arthur Blessitt has devoted his life to carrying the cross in every nation. When he isn't traveling, Arthur speaks nationally and internationally. He is married to Denise and has seven children. (from the back cover)

The Cross
Publisher/Publication Date: Authentic, January 2009
ISBN: 978-1-934068-67-0
240 pages

ARC Arrival: Lost Mission by Athol Dickson

I could not find a cover picture of this book.

Lost Mission by Athol Dickson

Publisher: Howard Books

I received this book for a First Wild Card Tour in September.

About the book: Buried beneath the dirt-poor barrios and ultra-wealthy enclaves lining the hills of southern California lies a haunting secret that will challenge one community's understanding of morality, sin, and faith.

Hundreds of years ago, an idyllic Spanish mission was hastily abandoned and buried along with the evidence of a crime. When a construction project disturbs the ruins of this beautiful structure, four unrelated people -- each having a stake in the building's fate -- get pulled into the mystery of the mission's past and presented with difficult moral choices. In every case, a greater good could be served with a compromise of some basic moral value. But their choices could also perpetuate the very crime that left the mission forgotten hundreds of years ago -- a mystery that is gradually revealed through research into a piece of art excavated at the mission site.

Lost Mission is a spiritually compelling work that captivates, entertains, and instructs. Athol Dickson's writing style has been likened to Octavia Butler's (Publishers Weekly) and Flannery O'Conner's (The New York Times), and his novels are known for their richly evocative settings, unforgettable characters, intense suspense, and unique elements of magical realism. In Lost Mission, four distinctly different individuals have to decide whether they will repeat the mistakes of the past or uphold righteousness together. (from the back cover)

About the author: Athol Dickson is an award-winning author of several novels. His Christy Award-winning novel River Rising was named one of the "Top Ten Christian Novels of 2006" by Booklist magazine. He lives in California with his wife. (from the back cover)

Lost Mission
Publisher/Publication Date: Howard Books, September 2009
ISBN: 978-1-4165-8347-9
288 pages

ARC Arrival: The Pravda Messenger by Robert Cornuke

I was unable to find a cover picture of this book.

The Pravda Messenger by Robert Cornuke with Alton Gansky

Publisher: Howard Books

I received this book for a First Wild Card Tour in September.

About the book: In this riveting spiritual thriller, a follow-up to The Bell Messenger, a teenaged girl has the power to detect when someone speaks a lie -- a special gift that plunges her into a plot of international intrigue and suspense.

Tanya Novack and her father Yuri, a recent widower, visit a monastery near Leningrad in Soviet-era Russian. There a priest presents her with a gold snuff box from the stone coffin of a monk named Feodor Kuzmich, suspected to have actually been Czar Alexander. KGB officers capture her father, sending him to a Siberian gulag. Tanya escapes and flees to America.

Years later, on a goat farm in the mountains of Colorado, Tanya is presented with an antique Bible -- the same Bible that changed the lives of so many in The Bell Messenger. Her intuitive powers are put on high alert when she notices that the Bible contains the hand-written name Feodor Kuzmich, sending her to an expert on Russian history and politics in Washington, D.C. to learn more about the mysterious monk - and the equally mysterious Bible. Her unique inheritances -- her intuitive gifts, the historical Bible, and the gold snuff box she hasn't seen since her father was captured -- catapult her across the glove, with unscrupulous people who want only to profit from her gifts close behind. Will Tanya unravel the mystery of her past before she's captured and exploited -- even killed?

Full of ancient mysteries and that same powerful Bible from The Bell Messenger, The Pravda Messenger is an exciting collaboration between a real-life archaeologist and a bestselling suspense novelist that is sure to leave readers breathless. . .and wanting more. (from the back cover)

About the authors: Robert Cornuke is the author of several books and an internationally recognized expert on biblical history and archaeological investigation. He has appeared on the History Channel, National Geographic Television, CBS, MSNBC, CBN, Fox, and TBN's Ripley's Believe It or Not.

Alton Gansky is the author of twenty novels and six nonfiction works. Previously a firefighter and an architect, he has spent twenty-two years in pulpit ministry. (from the back cover)

The Pravda Messenger
Publisher/Publication Date: Howard Books, September 2009
ISBN: 978-1-4165-4984-0
272 pages

Blue Like Play Dough Blog Tour

Blue Like Play Dough by Tricia Goyer

Be sure to watch for this one around the blogosphere this week as it tours with Random House. I have about 50 pages left in the book and plan to finish it this evening. It is a very good book and I love the way that it shows all those "imperfect" mothering moments that we all try to hide and deny that we have - and shows how God uses those to help us grow - or to mold us (you know - like play dough). But enough from me - I will be posting my review later this week!

Summary (from Random House): In the everyday stretch and squeeze of motherhood, Tricia Goyer often feels smooshed by the demands of life. In Blue Like Play Dough, she shares her unlikely journey from rebellious, pregnant teen to busy wife and mom with big dreams of her own. As her story unfolds, Tricia realizes that God has more in store for her than she has ever imagined possible.

Sure, life is messy and beset by doubts. But God keeps showing up in the most unlikely places–in a bowl of carrot soup, the umpteenth reading of Goodnight Moon, a woe-is me teen drama, or play dough in the hands of a child.

In Tricia’s transparent account, you’ll find understanding, laughter, and strength for your own story. And in the daily push and pull, you’ll learn to recognizes the loving hands of God at work in your life… and know He has something beautiful in mind.

Author bio: Tricia Goyer is the author of numerous works of fiction and nonfiction, including Generation NeXt Parenting and the Gold Medallion finalist Life Interrupted. Goyer writes for publications such as Today’s Christian Woman and Focus on the Family, speaks to women’s groups nationwide and has been a presenter at the Mothers of Preschoolers (MOPS) national convention. She and her husband, John, live with their family in Montana.



I currently have a giveaway going on for Blue Like Play Dough which ends Aug 4th.

If you can't wait for the giveaway - purchase Blue Like Play Dough.

Wonderful Win: Stand the Storm by Breena Clarke

Stand the Storm by Breena Clarke

Publisher: Back Bay Book/Hachette Book Group

I won this book from Dar at Peeking Between the Pages. Thanks Dar!

About the book: Even though Sewing Annie Coats and her son, Gabriel, have managed to buy their freedom, their lives are still marked by constant struggle and sacrifice. Washington's Georgetown neighborhood, where the Coatses operate a tailor shop and laundry, is supposed to be a "promised land" for former slaves but is effectively a frontier town, gritty and dangerous, with no laws protecting black people.

The remarkable emotional energy with which the Coatses wage their daily battles - as they negotiate with their former owner, as they assist escaped slaves en route to freedom, as they prepare for the encroaching war, and as they strive to love each other enough -- is what propels Stand the Storm and makes the novel's startling denouement so powerfully affecting. (from the back cover.)

About the author: Breena Clarke grew up in Washington, DC, and was educated at Webster College and Howard University. She is also the author of the novel River, Cross My Heart, which was a selection of Oprah's Book Club and became an international bestseller. (from the back cover)

Stand the Storm
Publisher/Publication Date: Back Bay Books, Reprint June 2009
ISBN: 978-0-316-00705-4
352 pages

Do you care about animals? (giveaway)

Do you want to help them but don't know what you can do? Then this giveaway is for you!
The Practical Guide to Animal Rights (Simple Acts of Kindness to Help Animals in Trouble) by Ingrid Newkirk

Please visit my post about The Practical Guide to learn more about this book. To enter this giveaway - please let me know if there is anything you have done to help or rescue animals or why you would like to win this book (or who you would like to win it for). This is open to U.S. only. I have one book to giveaway and this giveaway will end Aug 17. Must leave email address in entry to be valid.

The Practical Guide to Animal Rights
Publisher/Publication Date: St. Martin's Griffin, May 2009
ISBN: 978-0-312-55994-6
496 pages

Me, Just Different Blog Tour and Review

Me, Just Different by Stephanie Morrill

Publisher: Revell/Baker Publishing

First sentence: I wanted to refuse Eli, but I couldn't after the night we'd had.

My synopsis: Skylar was your typical rich party girl - hanging out with the "in" crowd, going to all the cool parties -- until someone slips something in her drink at a summer bash. Eli, a good friend and her best friend's ex, steps in and rescues her from what could have been an even worse situation. Skylar feels indebted to Eli and so slips into being his girlfriend. She also makes a vow to change her life, stop drinking and start going to church again.

Unfortunately Skylar's troubles are just beginning. Her parents have stopped counseling and if her dad is ever home long enough from work he usually just fights with her mom. On top of that, both Skylar and her sister Abbie have broken their mom's rule of not dating. Abbie's secret goes a bit deeper.

Then Connor and his family move to town. The friction between he and Skylar is almost instantaneous. This guy just seems to rub her the wrong way, but everywhere she turns, he seems to be there.

Add to this all the drama that comes with trying to fit in and navigate the halls of high school. How will Skylar deal with her senior year?

Read the first chapter of Me, Just Different.

My opinion: I really enjoyed reading this book! I would go so far as to say that it was one of the best YA Christian fiction books I have read this year. It showed all the confusing feelings that teens (at least teen girls) have regarding relationships with best friends and boyfriends. How important family really is and the security that it does or doesn't provide. During all this it weaves in very subtly the importance of a relationship with Christ, how forgiving He is and how He will always be by your side. Highly recommend!

About the author: Stephanie Morrill is a member of the American Christian Fiction Writers Association and the Teen Lit writers' group. When she isn't writing or traveling, she's likely reading or experimenting with new recipes. Morrill also serves in youth ministry. She lives in suburban Overland Park, Kansas, with her husband and young daughter.

Me, Just Different
Publisher/Publication Date: Revell, July 2009
ISBN: 978-0-8007-3377-3
256 pages

Mailbox Monday/In Your Mailbox 7-27-2009

Mailbox Monday is hosted at The Printed Page or In Your Mailbox at The Story Siren. Please stop by those posts and take a look at what packages everybody else got this week!

Purchased Pages:

1. Night World - L.J. Smith
   
2. The Apostle - Brad Thor
   
3. Path of the Assassin - Brad Thor
4. Lions of Lucerne - Brad Thor

Wonderful Win:

1. The Bone Factory - Nate Kenyon

Arc Arrivals:

1. I Can See You - Karen Rose
2. The Invention of Everything Else - Samantha Hunt
   
3. The Brutal Telling - Louise Penny
   
4. The Weight of Silence - Heather Gudenkauf
   
5. The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind - William Kamkwamba
   
6. The Friends We Keep - Sarah Zacharias Davis
   
7. The Husband Project - Kathi Lipp
   
8. The Hope of Refuge - Cindy Woodsmall
   
9. Sugar Time - Jane Adams
   
10. Best Friends Forever - Jennifer Weiner
    
11. Mercury in Retrograde - Paula Froelich
    
12. The Year of the Flood - Margaret Atwood
    
13. Undone - Karin Slaughter
14. Rose House - Tina Ann Forkner
15. The Confidential Life of Eugenia Cooper - Kathleen Y'Barbo
    
16. June Bug - Chris Fabry
    
17. The Practical Guide to Animal Rights - Ingrid Newkirk

Tome Travelers

1. Bad Cat - Jim Edgar
2. No Second Chance - Harlan Coben
3. Third Degree - Greg Iles
4. Right as Rain - George Pelecanos
5. By the Light of the Moon - Dean Koontz
   

Blog Awards

I have been honored to receive some awards this month - so I am going to take this opportunity to acknowledge them (I love getting awards!) and to pass them on!

I received the Humane Award from J.Kaye at J.Kaye's Book Blog. Her's was one of the first blogs that I discovered last year when I started blogging and it is still one of my favorites.

The Humane Award is to honor certain bloggers that are kindhearted individuals. They regularly take part in my blog and always leave the sweetest comments. If it wasn't for them, my site would just be an ordinary book review blog. Their blogs are also amazing and are tastefully done on a daily basis. This award is to thank them for their growing friendships through the blog world.

J.Kaye awarded this to a great group of bloggers - some of which would have been on my list also, but I tried not to duplicate any of her recipients, so I am going to award this one to the following bloggers:

Bridget at Readaholic
Audra at Anonymously Uncensored
Tonya at Storytime with Tonya and Friends
Mary at Bookfan Mary
Alyce at At Home with Books
Teabird at Tealeaves

The Kreativ Blogger Award I received from Nightdweller at Bibliophiles 'R' Us. Thanks Nightdweller!!

The rules are:

Once you receive this award, you are to list seven of your favorite things and then nominate seven other blogs.

Here are my seven favorite things in no particular order:

1. Family/kids
2. Books
3. Cadbury Creme Eggs
4. Candy Corn
5. Sleeping late
6. Back rubs
7. Cross stitch

I am awarding this to these seven blogs/bloggers:

1. Kelly at The Novel Bookworm
2. Gwendolyn at A Sea of Books
3. Amy at Park Avenue Princess
4. Beth at Beth's Book Review Blog
5. Mari at Bookworm with a View
6. Kim at The Book Butterfly
7. Tina at Fantastic Book Reviews
   

I also received this Lemonade Stand Award from LuAnn at Reading Frenzy. Thanks LuAnn!

The Lemonade Award is a feel good award that shows great attitude or gratitude. Here are the rules for accepting the award:

1) Put the Lemonade Award logo on your blog or post.
2) Nominate at least 10 blogs that show great attitude or gratitude.
3) Link to your nominees within your post.
4) Let the nominees know they have received this award by commenting on their blog.
5) Share the love and link to the person from whom you received your award.


I have passed this one on before so I am only sending it on to 5 blogs this time:

1. Jonita at The Book Chick
2. Libby at Libby's Literary Library
3. Rhapsodyinbooks Weblog
4. Melissa at Booknut
5. Scrap Girl at Serendipity

I was also tagged by Rebecca at Lost in Books for the What's on My Desk meme. Here are the rules:

Grab a camera and take a photo of your desk! Or anywhere you stack your books/TBR pile. And no tidying!

Add this photo to your blog.

Tag at least 5 people!

Come back here and leave a link back to your photo in the comments section.

That’s it.

I have some built in bookshelves that I used to use, but they quickly became too full and so now I utilize the floor space under these built ins.

And to be honest - since these pictures were taken, I also have a large pile on my desk that are waiting to be "featured" as arrivals, as well as a stack next to the tbr shelves that were garage sale pickups!



So for this meme I am going to tag:

1. Marcia from The Printed Page
2. Linda Ellen at Bambi Reads
3. Jessica Marie at Books Love Jessica Marie
4. Yvonne at Socrates Book Reviews
5. Cindy at Cindy's Love of Books

ARC Arrival: The Year of the Flood by Margaret Atwood

The Year of the Flood by Margaret Atwood

Publisher: Nan A. Talese/Doubleday

I actually got one of these from Doubleday through Shelf Awareness! I am very excited to get this one!

About the book: The times and species have been changing at a rapid rate, and the social compact is wearing as thin as environmental stability. Adam One, the kindly leader of the God's Gardeners - a religion devoted to the melding of science and religion, as well as the preservation of all plant and animal life -- has long predicted a natural disaster that will alter Earth as we know it. Now it has occurred, obliterating most human life. Two women have survived: Ren, a young trapeze dancer locked inside the high-end sex club Scales and Tails, and Toby, a God's Gardener barricaded inside a luxurious spa where many of the treatments are edible.

Have others survived? Ren's bioartist friend, Amanda? Zeb, her eco-fighter stepfather? Her onetime lover, Jimmy? Or the murderous Painballers, survivors of the mutual-elimination Painball prison? Not to mention the shadowy, corrupt policing force of the ruling powers.

Meanwhile, gene-spliced life forms are proliferating: the lion/lamb blends, the Mo'hair sheep with human hair, the pigs with human brain tissue. As Adam One and his intrepid hemp-clad band make their way through this strange new world, Ren and Toby will have to decide on their next move. They can't stay locked away. . .

By turns dark, tender, violent, thoughtful, and uneasily hilarious, The Year of the Flood is Atwood at her most brilliant and inventive. (from the back cover)

About the author: When Margaret Atwood announced to her friends that she wanted to be a writer, she was only 16 years old. It was Canada. It was the 1950s. No one knew what to think. Nonetheless, Atwood began her writing career as a poet. Published In 1964 while she was still a student at Harvard, her second poetry anthology, The Circle Game, was awarded the Governor General's Award, one of Canada's most esteemed literary prizes. Since then, Atwood has gone on to publish many more volumes of poetry (as well as literary criticism, essays, and short stories), but it is her novels for which she is best known.

Atwood's first foray into fiction was 1966's The Edible Woman, an arresting story about a woman who stops eating because she feels her life is consuming her. Grabbing the attention of critics, who applauded its startlingly original premise, the novel explored feminist themes Atwood has revisited time and time again during her long, prolific literary career. She is famous for strong, compelling female protagonists -- from the breast cancer survivor in Bodily Harm to the rueful artist in Cat's Eye to the fatefully intertwined sisters in her Booker Prize-winning novel The Blind Assassin.

Perhaps Atwood's most legendary character is Offred, the tragic "breeder" in what is arguably her most famous book, 1985's The Handmaid's Tale. Part fable, part science fiction, and part dystopian nightmare, this novel presented a harrowing vision of women's lives in an oppressive futuristic society. The Washington Post compared it (favorably) to George Orwell's iconic 1984.

As if her status as a multi-award-winning, triple-threat writer (fiction, poetry, and essays) were not enough, Atwood has also produced several children's books, including Princess Prunella and the Purple Peanut (1995) and Rude Ramsay and the Roaring Radishes (2003) -- delicious alliterative delights that introduce a wealth of new vocabulary to young readers. (from Barnes and Nobel website)

The Year of the Flood
Publisher/Publication Date: Nan A. Talese, Sept 22, 2009
ISBN: 978-0-385-52877-1
448 pages

ARC Arrival: June Bug

June Bug by Chris Fabry

Publisher: Tyndale Fiction

I received this book for a First Wild Card Tour in August.

About the book: For as long as she can remember, June Bug and her father have traveled the back roads of the country in their beat-up RV, spending many nights parked at Walmart. One day, as she walks past the greeter at the front of the store, her eyes are drawn to the pictures of missing children, where she is shocked to see herself.

This discovery begins a quest for the truth about her father, the mother he rarely speaks of, and ultimately herself. But when her father's past catches up with them, forces beyond his control draw them back to Dogwood, West Virginia, down a winding path that will change their lives forever. (from the back cover)

About the author: Chris Fabry is a native of West Virginia who hosts the daily program Chris Fabry Live! on Moody Radio. He and his wife, Andrea, are the parents of nine children. Chris is the author of Dogwood and more than 50 novels for children and young adults.

June Bug
Publisher/Publication Date: Tyndale Fiction, July 9, 2009
ISBN: 978-1-4143-1956-8
336 pages

Tome Travelers - Garage Sale Day!

If you have been following me for any length of time, then you know that I love to go to garage sales - mainly for the books! I was able to pick up 5 books today.

Title: Bad Cat: Not-so-pretty kitties and cats gone bad
Author: Jim Edgar

It's the dark side that most cat owners never see. The side that wouldn't be caught dead purring. Here, captured in all their infamy, are hundreds of trouble-makers, delinquents, and dementos.

They're bad cats, with bad intentions, bad habits, and bad attitude. So the next time your sweet little ball of fur misses the litterbox, ask yourself -- was it really an accident?




Title: No Second Chance
Author: Harlan Coben

When the first bullet hit my chest, I thought of my daughter. . .

Shot twice by an unseen assailant, Dr. Marc Seidman lies in a hospital bed. His wife has been killed. His six-month-old daughter has vanished. But when the ransom note arrives, it gives Mark one chance to bring her home alive. Then something goes wrong, and Marc spirals into a world of shock and surprise, of hope and yearning, where nothing is as it seems. . .




Title: Third Degree
Author: Greg Iles

Sometimes the gravest dangers -- and the darkest souls -- live right beside us. . .

In the span of twenty-four hours, everything Laurel Shields believes about her life and her marriage to a prominent doctor will be shattered -- if she survives a terrifying ordeal. The day begins with the jarring discovery that, soon after ending an affair, Laurel is pregnant. But when she returns home to find her husband ashen, unkempt, and on the brink of violence, a nightmare quickly unfolds. In the heart of an idyllic Mississippi town, behind the walls of her perfect house, Laurel finds herself locked in a volatile standoff with a husband she barely recognizes. Confronted with evidence of her betrayal, she must tread a deadly path between truth and deception while a ring of armed police prepares a dangerous rescue. But Laurel's greatest fear -- and her only hope -- lies with her former lover, a brave man whom fate has granted the power to save both Laurel and her children -- if she can protect his identity long enough.


Title: Right as Rain
Author: George P. Pelecanos

Derek Strange is black and successful. Terry Quinn is white and barely holding on. Now Strange has been hired to investigate a police shooting in which Quinn played a major role. For Strange, a savvy and careful man, the investigation goes against his style and instinct. For Terry Quinn, Strange's questions are a chance to absolve his conscience and shake out a little truth. But in a city that lives in the shadow of a nation's dream, neither man can foresee the dirty little war that will break out around them . . . or how deadly being right can be.




Title: By the Light of the Moon
Author: Dean Koontz

Dylan O'Conner is a gifted young artist just trying to do the right thing in life. He's on his way to an arts festival in Santa Fe when he stops to get a room for himself and his twenty-year-old autistic brother, Shep. But in a nightmarish instant, Dylan is attacked by a mysterious "doctor," injected with a strange substance, and told that he is now a carrier of something that will either kill him. . .or transform his life in the most remarkable way. Then he is told that he must flee -- before the doctor's enemies hunt him down for the secret circulating through his body.

No one can help him, the doctor says, not even the police.

Stunned, disbelieving, Dylan is turned loose to run for his life. . . and straight into an adventure that will turn the next twenty-four hours into an odyssey of terror, mystery -- and wondrous discovery.

It is a journey that begins when Dylan and Shep's path intersects with that of Jillian Jackson. Before that evening Jilly was a beautiful comedian whose biggest worry was whether she would ever find a decent man. Now she too is a carrier. And even as Dylan tries to convince her that they'll be safer sticking together, cold-eyed men in a threatening pack of black Suburbans approach, only seconds before Jilly's classic Coupe DeVille explodes into thin air.

Now the three are on the run together, but with no idea whom they're running from -- or why. Meanwhile Shep has begun exhibiting increasingly disturbing behaviour. And whatever it is that's coursing through their bodies seems to have plunged them into one waking nightmare after another. Seized by sinister premonitions, they find themselves inexplicably drawn to crime scenes -- just minutes before the crimes take place.

What this unfathomable power is, how they can use it to stop the evil erupting all around them, and why they have been chosen are only parts of a puzzle that reaches back into the tragic past and the dark secrets they all share: secrets of madness, pain, and untimely death. Perhaps the answer lies in the eerie, enigmatic messages that Shep, with precious time running out, begins to repeat, about a man who does his work "by the light of the moon."

(all book descriptions were taken from back covers or book jackets)

Purchased Pages and a Giveaway!

A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to meet Brad Thor at an author visit to our local library. The following is a repost of that visit:

Then, on Saturday, I got to meet Brad Thor, also a New York Times bestselling author - this time of thrillers, or I would call them political thrillers. Even though he was up for the Thriller of the Year award last night at Thriller Fest in NYC - he opted to come to our little ole library to continue his tour for his latest book - The Apostle. (The award went to Jeffrey Deaver for The Bodies Left Behind).

He was a great speaker and we got to hear about what pushed/enabled him to write his first novel, The Lions of Lucerne. His wife had asked him one evening (as they were drinking wine in Italy no less) that if he were on his deathbed, would there be any one thing that he would regret. He said he would regret never writing and publishing a novel. She told him then, that when they returned home, he needed to take 2 hours of time - everyday - and get busy, and she would do whatever it took to enable him to do that. (Behind every good man is a good woman you know!) And that is how The Lions of Lucerne was born. Since then he has written seven more novels.

He also entertained us with stories about his research for his last novel, The Apostle. He actually spent time with a Black Ops group in Afghanistan to learn how they would go about "recovering" someone who might be kidnapped. After he left Afghanistan, NYTimes reporter David Rohde was kidnapped by the Taliban, and the Black OPS group that he traveled with were the ones sent in to try to find him. (Mr Rohde has since escaped the Taliban last month after 7 months in captivity and is apparently in good health.) Mr. Thor said that was probably his scariest research he has ever done for a book. He also has a fun website full of pictures and information about his books - www.bradthor.com. I forgot my camera for this one - but the photographer for the library was nice enough to take our picture and will be emailing it later this week - so I will share it at that time.

I picked up a copy of his last book - The Last Patriot - and had it signed to giveaway to one of my readers.

I want to take the opportunity now to giveaway this book that I purchased and to share with you some of his other books that I either purchased that afternoon, or picked up through paperback swap since then.

The giveaway is for 2008 release - The Last Patriot - and it is autographed.

About the book: June 632 A.D.: The prophet Mohammed shares a final and startling revelation. Within days, he is assassinated. September 1789: Thomas Jefferson uncovers a conspiracy that could change the face of Islam. Present day: Men still kill to keep the secret hidden. When a car bomb explodes outside a Parisian cafe, counterterrorism operative Scot Harvath is thrust back into the life he has tried desperately to leave behind. In a race to uncover an ancient secret with the power to stop militant Islam, Harvath will risk everything to reclaim Mohammed's final revelation and defeat one of the deadliest evils the world has ever known. (from the back cover)

Easy to enter giveaway - just leave me a comment as to why you would like to win this book with your email address. Giveaway will end Aug 14. Only open to U.S. (sorry guys - this is out of pocket for me)

Other books that I have purchased this month by Brad Thor:

Title: The Lions of Lucerne

I got this book from Paperback Swap.

About the book: On the snow-covered slopes of Utah, the unthinkable has happened: The President of the United States has been kidnapped and his Secret Service detail massacred. Only one agent has survived - ex-Navy SEAL Scot Harvath. He doesn't buy the official line that Middle Eastern terrorists are responsible, and begins his own campaign to find the truth - and exact revenge. But his search makes him a marked man by the sinister cabal behind the attack.

Framed for murder by the conspirators, Harvath goes on the run, taking the fight to the towering mountains of Switzerland. There, he finds an unlikely ally: the beautiful Claudia Mueller of the Swiss Federal Attorney's Office. Together they must brave the subzero temperatures and sheer heights of treacherous Mount Pilatus - and their only chance for survival is to enter the den of the most lethal team of professional killers the world has ever known. . .(from the back cover)

Title: Path of the Assassin

I bought this at the author visit and had it autographed to me!
About the book: After rescuing the President from the kidnappers, Navy SEAL-turned-Secret Service agent Scot Harvath's bloody and twisting mission of revenge leads to one man: Hashim Nidal. Having assembled an internationalleague of Islamic terrorist networks in an ingenious plot to topple both Israel and America, Nidal must be immobilized. But Harvath and his CIA-led team have no idea what the man looks like and must recruit a woman who survived a brutal hijacking, the only person who can positively identify their quarry. From the burning deserts of North Africa to the winding streets of Rome, Scot Harvath's hunt for a ruthless madman has the world's survival at stake. (from the back cover)





Title: The Apostle

This is his latest book - I also purchased this one at the visit and had it autographed, too.

About the book: Every politician has a secret. And when the daughter of a politically connected family is kidnapped abroad, America's new president will agree to anything - even a deadly and ill-advised rescue plan - in order to keep his secret hidden.

A new administration and a new approach to dealing with America's enemies have left covert counterterrorism operative Scot Harvath without a job. But when American doctor Julia Gallo is kidnapped in Afghanistan, the terms of her ransom leave the president with only one course of action.

In a dangerous assignment that the United States government will deny any knowledge of, Scot Harvath must secretly infiltrate Kabul's notorious Policharki Prison and free the man the kidnappers demand as ransom --al-Qaoda mastermind Mustafa Khan.

But when Harvath arrives, he quickly learns that there is more to the kidnapping than anyone dares to admit. And as the subterfuge is laid bare, Harvath must examine his own career of hunting down and killing terrorists, and ask himself if he has what it takes to help one of the world's worst go free.

Brimming with the kind of ripped-from-the-headlines authenticity Brad Thor's internationally bestselling novels are known for, The Apostle doubles down on the blockbuster uccess of The Last Patriot and reaffirms Thor's status as the master of the political thriller. (from the book jacket)

His other books include State of the Union, Blowback, Takedown and The First Commandment.

Any Minute audiobook winners!

Let's hear it for:

nfmgirl
neas nuttiness
janetfaye

They have each won an audio copy of Any Minute by Joyce Meyer and Deb Bedford. All winners have been emailed and responded. Congrats!

The Friday 56: Hollywood is Like Highschool with Money

Rules:
* Grab the book nearest you. Right now.
* Turn to page 56.
* Find the fifth sentence.
* Post that sentence (plus one or two others if you like) along with these instructions on your blog or (if you do not have your own blog) in the comments section of Storytime with Tonya and Friends.
*Post a link along with your post back to Storytime with Tonya and Friends.
* Don't dig for your favorite book, the coolest, the most intellectual. Use the CLOSEST.




Kylie. Her moment of sisterly advice in the kitchen replayed itself in y head with a flash. Trade info. Honesty is pretty much always the best policy. I winced involuntarily. (p56, Hollywood is Like High School with Money)











Hollywood is Like High School with Money
Publisher/Publication Date: Grand Central Publishing, July 23, 2009
ISBN: 978-0-446-69719-4
288 pages