Midwinter's Eve Giveaway Hop

Another great giveaway hop for our faithful readers.....coordinated by Kathy over at I'm a Reader Not a Writer!

If you followed the last hop you know the rules..if not here they are!

Please follow the blog

Leave a comment with favorite Christmas Ornament

Don't forget Email!

Ends on Wednesday Evening at midnight so hop fast!

NOW FOR THE PRIZE!!!!

The Snow Globe

by

Sheila Roberts

OR

Love Finds You in Snowball Arkansas

by

Sandra Bricker

Yes! Two winners! First picked gets choice! So...please let your friends know and then join in on the blog hop below!

Apology!

Sorry there haven't been any reviews or giveaway's lately.... Christmas and finals....not a good mix! My children have taken over the computers and between them and shopping and work...I have had no computer time! But...never fear...will be back this week with a bunch of great reviews about books I think you should read! As well as a few more Christmas book giveaways!

Hope your days are cheery and bright!

Kylie Jean Hoop Queen

Title: Kylie Jean Hoop Queen
Author: Marci Peschke
Publisher: Capstone
Imprint: Picture Window Books
Pub Date: 01/01/2011
ISBN: 9781404859623


This another of Kylie Jean's adventures on her way to becoming a Beauty Queen. This time basketball is her passion and she must learn what hard work and practice can do for you, but sometimes even then you lose. From getting pledges to finding uniforms for her team, Kylie is always on the go and learning something new around every corner.

I really like these little chapter books especially made for girls. This one is another cute chapter in the life of this little eight year old. The illustrations seem to jump off the page and you can't help but smile. I really liked the fact that it was simple enough for the 6-9 year old reader, but still had a little challenge to them. My daughter who is actually 10 but is a struggling reader has had so much fun with these books. Finally a chapter book that isn't way over her head with the amount of pages that gets her overwhelmed, but enough pages that it doesn't seem like a 'baby' book. Wonderfully written and excellently illustrated the launch on 1/1/2011 is going to be a good day with four books of this series coming out!

Marci Peschke is an elementary school librarian in Texas. She is married and has a cat at home named Phoebe. Two kids have graduated from her house and now live on their own. She sounds like a fun librarian with contests and reading events, she really wants children to learn to love to read! According to her profile, she is already looking for more adventures for Kylie Jean.

Another 7 out of 7!

This book was given to me from Capstone via NetGalley for the purpose of a honest review. No other compensation was made and all thoughts in this review are mine.

Splitting Harriet

Title: Splitting Harriet
Author: Tamara Leigh
Format: Trade Paperback
ISBN: 9781590529287
Release: 11.20.2007 (Available)
Source: Library

Fiction/Contemporary

When a former PK (preacher's kid) learns that the church her father suffered over is about to get a face lift, all those insecurities as an outcast child come back to haunt Harriet Bisset. Add in a couple of gorgeous men and a bag of Jelly Bellies and things just go from bad to worse. Will she resume her previous bad girl ways or can she stay strong in her faith and keep her church available for all members?

This book was an absolute joy to read! Not only did I like the book just as a fun read, but I actually connected with the book on various issues. Like Harriet's church, our family church is having growing pains and I'm in the same place as Harriet. I don't want too much change because we need our older members but without change the younger members won't stay either. I enjoyed seeing how Harriet made sense of everything. The added mystery of love added an extra spark to the book! The story kept me on the edge of my seat as Harriet found herself in one decision after another and wondering if she made the right choice. A very well written drama on the turmoil of growing churches as well as the turmoil of what being forgiven really means.

My recommendation? Read it..it's an older book but it can still be ordered or in libraries. If looking for a good book for a church library, pick this one up!

6 out of 7 thumbs up...

Read from the library...no compensation given for the review...just love of books!

Tom Thumb

Title: Tom Thumb
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Imprint: Clarion Books
Pub Date: 02/28/2011
ISBN: 9780547182032
Author: George Sullivan
Source: HMH via NetGalley

Charles S. Stratton was dubbed Tom Thumb by P.T. Barnum at the age of five and that name stuck with him the rest of his life. This is a biography of Charles Stratton and to some extent that of P.T. Barnum as well. Their two lives became entertwined as Charles became more famous than anyone of the time could have realized. Many people believe he was exploited because of his diminutive size and others say that P.T. Barnum gave him something that he wouldn't have had otherwise, and Mr. Sullivan showed both sides of the story as well as the amazing adventures of Tom Thumb and Company.

I thoroughly enjoyed this biography of a little person growing up in the entertainment business in the 19th century. Mr. Sullivan did an excellent job of sifting through countless documents and pictures and histories and coming up with this chronological book of events that shaped Charles Stratton and those around him. This biography read more like a book of fiction but with all of the accompanying documents and pictures a reader can come away with a clearer picture of the life of Charles S. Stratton. There is quite of bit of the history of P.T. Barnum and his struggles as an entrepreneur of the time and how he 'fooled' most people most of the time. Although this is classified for the middle school grades, I think those younger than 10 should be able to read this without much help and the topic of the book makes it suitable for adults as well. I'd suggest it for anyone who wants another view of the late 19th century or anyone who is curious about Tom Thumb and his life on stage and on display to the entire world.

George Sullivan has written more than 100 nonfiction books and has probably been quoted in more book reports that wikipedia.

I'll have to give this a 7 thumbs up out of 7. A great addition to your family library!

I was given an e-copy of this book from HMH via NetGalley for review. No other compensation was given and I was not required to give a positive review.

FiremanSaysGottaGo Giveaway Winner 1

Well...sorry it's a day late, but I forgot what date it was! The winner that was drawn using Mrs. Glosser's Random Number Generator is....

#11 kalea_kane Email sent and she has 48 hours to respond with address! Remember Contest number 2 is up on the board and 3 will probably go up tomorrow!

Thanks for reading!

The Vespertine

Title: The Vespertine
Author: Saundra Mitchell
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Pub Date: 03/07/2011
ISBN: 9780547482477


Source: HMH via NetGalley


Amelia van den Broek is on a mission in Baltimore in 1889 to find a husband at the bequest of her brother. What she finds is a best friend, a hidden romance and a power she isn't sure how it works. When people start to see her as the doer of all bad prophecy instead of a seer, things begin to spin wildly out of a control.
I had heard all kinds of great hype about this book and wasn't sure what to expect. It took me a little bit to get into the book because it is written as if it could have been written in the late 1800's and not current times. Unless you are used to reading this kind of historical fiction, it takes some getting used to, but I actually enjoyed reading it after the initial shock. While the prologue threw me at first, after starting over, I got it(watch the dates)! I really liked the way that Amelia and her friend grew in the book, the other characters weren't as built up as well, and we were left not knowing a whole lot about Amelia's love interest (maybe intentional?). This book will probably one of the most talked about books in 2011, people will either love it or hate it. I actually liked it, very nicely written even if I didn't have my early American dictionary. Definitely will be watching for the sequel in 2012.
I think this would be great for those middle school kids (11-14). Not alot of violence and very mild romance (they kissed). If you are a fan of historical literature you will really enjoy this book. Especially if you like America history stories! There is paranormal activity but in this book those activities do have consequences.
I give it a 6 thumbs up out of 7 (I'd probably suggest a library to-read)

HMC via NetGalley gave me a galley of this book to read for review. No other compensation was made and all comments are solely mine.

In My Mailbox

From Paperbackswap (games or swaps)
Love Finds You in Treasure Island, Florida
The Tea Rose
So Long, Status Quo
The Great Christmas Bowl

For Review:
House Divided (from publisher)
Two Tickets to the Christmas Ball
My review of Two Tickets
The Price of Trust
Does Chocolate Milk Come from Cows?

From NetGalley:
The Hole in the Wall
My Review
A couple of other ones...but my e-reader is missing at this moment!

E-books
The Flag Keeper (from Author)
My review

I think that's it! What did you get?

The Hole in the Wall

Title: The Hole in the Wall
Author: Lisa Rowe Fraustino

Publisher: Milkweed Editions

Age Group: Middle School

Available: Now

Source: NetGalley

Pages: 280

Imagine being an eleven year old boy and the world around you has slowly changed for the worse in the last few years. He can remember when times were better, but that was before the strip miners started taking away all the land around them. Not only that, but weird things were starting to happen to him that was more than just growing pains. A secret facility, a lost brother and parents that need parenting classes....what more could an eleven year old brother ask for but to start his own investigating!

This is a great book for this age group. This book is written in Sebastian's voice and uniquely comes across as an eleven year old. Sometimes things get jumbled up in their heads! The mystery held my attention and didn't give anything away too early. From one suspense (the chickens are missing) to another (there's rumbling cookie dough in my belly) to another (why did he pay so much for our eggs?) there is questions to be answered with each turn of the page. The minor characters are not as well drawn out as the main characters (usually a great thing) but I would have loved to see more about this dysfunctional family. I also loved the way the author brought together the brother and sister team. There is a lot going on but I would highly recommend this book for the middle age kids (8-12) and especially the boys!

Giving this book a 7 out of 7... Great Christmas Present for that age group.

I was given this book through NetGalley for free to preview. No other compensation was given just a honest review was all that was requested!

New Giveaway

Here's another chance to win a book from the FiremanChadSayBooksMustGoGiveaway. This week, the book is Two Tickets to the Christmas Ball (review here)!

Comment to win!

Include email!

Only US!

Comment per entry!

You don't have to be a follower to win...but I will be having more of these awesome giveaway's and as a follower you'll find out quicker!

Ways to Enter..

First Comment - Favorite Christmas Book

Extra Entry - What book should I read during the older book challenge

Extra Entry - Facebook or tweet (with link plz)

Come and Play and Invite your Friends..

The Flag Keeper

Title: The Flag Keeper
Author: Stacy Juba
Illustrator: Larry Drumtra
Publisher: Thunder Horse Press
ISBN: 978-1-453-75305-7

Ages: Children

Source: ebook from author

Elizabeth is a flag keeper for her dad. Every day they take on the responsibility to raise and lower the flag. One day her day goes on a trip for three days and the flag was supposed to take a break. Elizabeth really wants to see her flag flying and after a few mishaps she finally manages it. She longs to learn more about flag etiquette and goes to the library.

What a cute story! It's a bear family so very suitable for younger kids to get into the story but enough content that older readers will have their curiosity stimulated and want to read the whole story. The point as I see it is to teach proper flag etiquette to the young and this book delivers. A very easy to read format, a few long words that are very well explained will not only entertain but teach kids of all ages. I really enjoyed reading it with the girls and they asked a lot of questions. I was very happy that the Flag Facts were included in the back of the book along with the discussion questions to make sure your child understood the story.

I'd have to say go out and get this book if you have children (you can get it from amazon). I think it's very important to teach these concepts and I give this book a TEN (if you've been following my blog I only do 7 out of 7 thumbs up so a ten is very good indeed).

I was given a copy of this book for review by the author. No other compensation was given in return for a good review.

Into the Old World Reading Challenge

Well, I said I wasn't going to do it. No challenges for me this year. But then...I stumbled upon this one! To read books older than 2009 and review them. What a great way to bring back books that may have been missed on the way to get all those great sequels that just came and are coming out. So....in the spirit of the game, here's the beginning of my proposed list of books I want to read in the year 2011! I know there are a ton more out there that I have in my TBR pile...just need to go through them! Good thing I have access to a GREAT library!


The Chronicles of Narnia - C.S Lewis
The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams
The Girl With The Pearl Earring - Tracy Chevalier
The Handmaid's Tale-Margaret Atwood
Harry Potter Series (1st to 7th part)
Lord of the Rings Trilogy by JRR Tolkien

About the challenge:
Hosts : Splash of Our Worlds and My Love Affair With Books
Starts: 1st January 2011
Ends: 31st December 2011
Eligible Books: Any books published BEFORE 2009 . All Genres included

Go Here to find out how to start the challenge for yourself? Did I mention there will be prizes?

Two Tickets to the Christmas Ball

Title: Two Tickets to the Christmas Ball

Author: Donita K. Paul

Publisher: Waterbrook Press

ISBN: 9780307458995

Source: Publisher

Available: Now

Cora and Simon had worked together for five years, yet it takes a bit of magic to bring them together. They both have tickets to attend the Christmas Ball, but families and trust always seem to stand in the way. Can Christmas be saved for both of them and their families?

This author usually writes in the Christian Fantasy genre but had previously written romance novels until she learned the dark side had cookies. This book is a combination of romance and a bit of fantasy, but loaded with a whole lot of Christian value. A very quick read, it's is marketed as a novella, but packs a big punch. I really enjoyed this quirky little book. It made me smile and laugh out loud in places. While not believable in all spots, I was okay with that because it made for a very quaint story. Being a shorter novel, it didn't have great character buildup but enough to see the growth in certain characters. The ending was not so neatly wrapped up....left me with a few cliffhangers that I really would have liked to see answered. I know...use my imagination or hope for a sequel next year?

An adult book but a teen would probably like it. I wouldn't recommend as a family Christmas read unless your children can determine the difference between fantasy, fiction and real life.

Ms. Paul is more well known for her Dragon Keeper Chronicles series. She likes to fellowship with fellow writers and has won numerous awards. You can find her at her website.

I give it a 5 out of 7 thumbs up....maybe not rush out and buy it right now, but if you are looking for something a little out of the normal CF genre....pick it up from the library for a nice holiday smile!

I was given a copy of this book from Blogging for Books program. All thoughts contained here are mine and I was in no other way compensated for a positive review!