Contents of blog copyright Book Dragon's Lair 2009-2023
I've been gone a while. I started reading fanfiction to escape and I got sucked in an abyss.

I have no idea if someone else is hosting similar challenges. I just grabbed some of what I have hosted before.

Here's to a happy year of great reading
Jan2023: Not much has changed. Writing a fanfiction now O_o as well as reading but I bought 7 new books in December and hope to get those read soon. Crossing fingers about adding challenges (late!)

Saturday, October 31, 2009

Quote it Sat

Quote it Sat is a Weekly Event
hosted by Leslie at That Chick that Reads.



"Will someone explain to me," Qwilleran asked, "why KoKo always eats with with his rear end pointed north? No matter where he's being fed, he knows which way is north. And Yum Yum always approaches her food from the left. If something's in the way and she has to do otherwise, she throws up.

pg 41, The Cat Who Tailed a Thief by Lilian Jackson Braun

KoKo and Yum Yum are cats and while this is just part of a conversation about superstitions, I felt it was funny and appropriate for today.

Happy Halloween

funny pictures of cats with captions>


funny pictures of cats with captions


maybe because...

funny pictures of cats with captions




Hoping all is safe with you and yours....
funny pictures of cats with captions

see more Lolcats and funny pictures

Thursday, October 29, 2009

New Arrival - Thirsty


Thirsty

Author: Kristin Bair O'Keeffe
Publisher: Swallow Press
Release Date: October 1, 2009
format: Hardcover
pages: 207


from the publisher:
It is 1883, and all of Klara Bozic's girlish dreams have come crashing down as she arrives in Thirsty, a gritty steel town carved into the slopes above the Monongahela River just outside of Pittsburgh. She has made a heartbreaking discovery. Her new husband Drago is as abusive as the father she left behind in Croatia.

In Kristin Bair O'Keeffe's debut novel, Klara's life unfolds over forty years as she struggles to find her place in a new country where her survival depends on the friends who nurture her: gutsy, funny Katherine Zupanovic, who isn't afraid of Drago's fist; BenJo, the only black man in Thirsty to have his own shop; and strangely enough, Old Man Rupert, the town drunk.

Thirsty follows a chain of unlikely events that keep Klara's spirit aloft: a flock of angelic butterflies descends on Thirsty; Klara gives birth to her first child in Old Man Rupert's pumpkin patch; and BenJo gives her a talking bird. When Klara's daughter marries a man even more brutal than Drago, Klara is forced to act. If she doesn't finally break the cycle of violence in her family, her granddaughters will one day walk the same road, broken and bruised. As the threads that hold her family together fray and come undone, Klara has to decide if she has the courage to carve out a peaceful spot in the world for herself and her girls.


Special Thanks go to Shelby Sledge, Senior Publicist of Phenix & Phenix Literary Publicists for sending me a copy for review (I love the butterflies ) and a second copy to giveaway in January - my blogoversary.

New Review Book & a Giveaway


Title: The Manufactured Identity
Author: Heath Sommer
Publisher: Tate Publishing
Release Date: June 23, 2009
Pages: 305
Format: Trade Paperback
Genre: psychological thriller


from the back cover: Months after his mysterious disappearance from a routine fishing trip, no one realy expects over-the-hill Texas housewife Lory Latchley to find her missing husband-especially her husband. The Manufactured Identity is clinical sychologist Heath Sommer's ever-escalating immersion into the world of unlikely friends who each awaken to find their faithful companions missing without warning or reason. Desperate to find meaning in their pain, they are thrust by the auspices of fate into a common thread of mystery and human frailty. In the end, the fate of all may reside in the unstable hand of rookie pastor John Joe, but ultimately Lory and her newfound partners will uncover a truth so unnerving it makes even infidelity look palatable.


Special Thanks: Heath Sommer has sent me a copy for review and a second to giveaway!


Check out www.themanufacturedidentity If you'd like to read an excerpt.


Rules:
Leave a valid email address (you at email dot net or something like that is best) with your comment. This is the only way I have to contact you so type carefully No email, no entry. Please put all entries in one comment.


ends: November 25 at noon PDT


extra entries:
+1 if you answer the question: What is your favorite vacation spot?
+2 become/are a follower - and state "I AM A FOLLOWER"
+3 blog about the giveaway and leave a link (sidebar is fine)


Ship:
sorry, just the US this time


~Good Luck Everyone~

Review: Ghouls Don't Scoop Ice Cream


Ghouls Don't Scoop Ice Cream
The Adventures of The Bailey School Kids #31
Debie Dadey & Marcia Thornton Jones
Illustrator John Steven Gurney
Scholastic Inc.
Categories: Juvenile Fiction - Fantasy
Format: Trade Paperback
Pages: 66
Reading Level: 3
Grades: 3 - 5
still available from the publisher

from the publisher:
It´s just a normal day for the Bailey School kids. That´s until they head to their favorite ice cream shop and meet Scout, the new girl working the counter. Clad in dark clothing and with a hollow and forlorn look on her face, Scout tells the kids that she´s in town to find a house for the family she works for. When she adds that she´s interested in finding a home that´s made of stone and has no windows near the cemetery, the kids realize Scout must be a ghoul looking for a home for a family of vampires. Will the kids be able to stop Scout from bringing a new family of monsters to Bailey City?

My Thoughts:
Genies don't ride Bicycles, Unicorns don't pull sleighs, Frankenstein doesn't plant Petunias, Vampires don't wear Polka-dots. There is always some strange or unusual person/animal that the four friends notice and there always seems to be a good explanation.

The whole series is fun and quirky, I'm glad to see they're still writing them. If you have a excited reader, they'll breeze through this and be ready for the next one but it is short enough and exciting enough for reluctant readers.


My Rating:
I'm going with a 3 on this one. At one time it was a 5 but I'm not at the school library anymore, my children are grown and I got rid of the others. There isn't any reason to keep this one but I do love the series.

This one was sitting on the desk during Dewey's 24-hour Read-a-thon and I needed something quick to read while pages were loading.

Introducing....

Virginie Sommet in her own words: I am a Sculptor and I do Installations . My studio is in Chinatown. I love to be where I am not supposed to be. My work is about different urban communities objects and also about meditation. As a Scorpion, I try to be center and positive.

Thank you to Virginie Sommet for sending me a copy of Only in New York, Darling! to review.

Wednesday, October 28, 2009

A-Z Wednesday

A-Z Wednesday is a Weekly Event
hosted by Vicky at Reading at the Beach.


Welcome to A-Z Wednesday!!
To join, here's all you have to do:
Go to your stack of books and find one whose title starts with the letter of the week.
Post:
1~ a photo of the book
2~ title and synopsis
3~ link(amazon, barnes and noble etc.)
4~ Come back here and leave your link in the comments
If you've already reviewed this book you can link the review also.
Be sure to visit other participants to see what book they have posted and leave them a comment. (We all love comments, don't we?) Who knows? You may find your next "favorite" book.

This week's letter is "L"



Lady Knight
Protector of the Small, book 4
by Tamora Pierce

Keladry of Mindelan has finally achieved her life-long dream of being a knight. But it’s not turning out as she imagined at all. With the land of Tortall at war with the Scanrans, she has been assigned to oversee a refugee camp. But Kel has had a vision in the Chamber—a vision of the man behind the horrific battle machines that her fellow knights and friends are now fighting without her. She is torn between a duty she has sworn and a quest that she feels could turn the tide of the war. . .


This is the cover of my copy (hardcover) the new paperback release cover does't appeal to me but is still available....

I hope these work.....
Available from amazon is a variety of formats, including Kindle and Audio.

Also from the publisher



Dang, I'm so disappointed I missed last week. My book would have been...

This week's letter is "K"


Killed by Clutter
A Domestic Bliss Mystery
by Leslie Caine

This is book four - which explains why I felt like I had missed something. Start at the beginning, there is relationship to follow.

At first glance, decorator Erin Gilbert fell in love with the charming little bungalow on a quiet street in Crestview, Colorado. Until she stepped inside. There, eccentric widow Helen Walker has created a maze of bric-a-brac, papers, and just plain junk that she won’t throw out. Even worse: two bizarre deaths have convinced Helen she is being stalked by a serial killer–and that any one of her nosy friends and neighbors might be to blame.

Erin has been hired to bring the home back to life–and she’s not going to back down, even when her insufferable, irresistible competitor, Steve Sullivan, barges in. But it doesn’t take long for Erin to realize that there is a method to her client’s madness. A murderer does haunt this makeover. And somewhere in the clutter is at least one thing to die for.

Available from amazon
Also from the publisher

Waiting on Wednesday

Jill at Breaking the Spine hosts "Waiting On" Wednesday, a weekly event that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.


The Untamed Bride, book one of The Black Cobra Quartet was released yesterday and I hope to purchase it this week. I've already read to prologue online (at HarperCollins.com) and it is fabulous! Even better, each delicious man will have his own book AND the other three novels will all be released in 2010!







The Elusive Bride
The Black Cobra Quartet
Stephanie Laurens

publisher: Avon
release date January 26, 2010
format: mass market paperback
Pages: 464
ages: 18+

A second battle-hardened, completely unstoppable, all male hero, an ex-officer of the Crown, confronts the deadly enemy known only as the Black Cobra.

He's focused in his mission, then sees a lady he never dreamed he'd see again - with an assassin on her heels.

She's secretly followed him, unaware her path is deadly - or that she'll join him to battle a treacherous foe.

Through ever-present peril, through passion, desire and ecstasy, they race to reach England - and their destiny.




The Brazen Bride - Jul 2010
The Reckless Bride Late 2010

Tuesday, October 27, 2009

Tuesday Teaser

MizB at Should Be Reading hosts this cool weekly event.

Teaser Tuesdays asks you to:

--Grab your current read
--Let the book open to a random page.
Share with us two (2) “teaser” sentences from that page, somewhere between lines 7 and 12.
--You also need to share the title of the book that you’re getting your “teaser” from… that way people can have some great book recommendations if they like the teaser you’ve given!


I put on my robe and slippers and headed toward the guest bedroom, turning on every light as I went. Regardless of how many times I saw them. It was always easier to see dead people when the lights were on.

Page 125, The House on Tradd Street by Karen White

Monday, October 26, 2009

What are you Reading?


What are you reading on Monday? is a weekly meme hosted by J. Kaye at J. Kaye's Book blog where you post books completed last week and plans for upcoming books. Jump over to her blog and see who else is participating.


Monday, October 26
Finished this Week
The Midnight Twins
The Sweetgum Ladies Knit for Love
The Cat Who Lived High
The Cat Who Knew Shakespeare
The Cat Who Played Post Office
Magic or Madness
Magic Lessons

Thanksgiving at the Inn
Dragolin
Ghouls Don't Scoop Ice Cream
The Dragonling Vol. 2
(Dragons of Krad, Dragon Trouble, Dragons and Kings)

and 0 short stories
plus 1 review coming posted

Still Reading/Started
Falling into the Sun
Knitting Bones
Gone Too Far
Intertwined
The Sweetgum Ladies Knit for Love
Home for the Holidays
The Summer Kitchen - Lisa Wingate
The Strangely Beautiful Tale of Miss Percy Parker

Planning to Read/Start
Escape later
Heck where the bad kids go
The Woman in White -
had to return to the library
The Midnight Twins
The Neighbor
No Time to Wave Good-bye
Frostbite

Library Books Now Available
A Snowflake in my Hand
The Once and Future King

and Reviews needed to Complete
A Circle of Souls
The Right Side of the Tracks
True North
Bridge to Terabithia - returned to library
The Man Who Loved Books Too Much
The House on Tradd Street
- returned to library
plus any/all of the previous books read....

Mailbox Monday

Mailbox Monday is a Weekly Event hosted by
Marcia at The Printed Page
jump over to see what others have received this week.


Review books that have arrived this week:
Stepmonster
The Tallest of the smalls

Purchased:
what? I didn't purchase any books this week? This has to be wrong but I don't think it is.

and the winner is....
Thanksgiving at the Inn - Thank you Katrina at Bloody Bad
The Hunt for Altantis - LibraryThing's Member Giveaways
The Lost Child: A Mother's Story - GoodReads

Christmas Reading Challenge

Michelle at The True Book Addict is hosting
The Christmas Reading Challenge

"In honor of the release of The Christmas List by Richard Paul Evans today, I am announcing my first reading challenge ever...and it's a Christmas Reading Challenge! I know it may seem early (for people who are not Christmas fanatics, like me), but I want people to have plenty of time to decide what they want to read."


Dates:
Nov 26 to Dec 31 (Thanksgiving Day through New Year's Eve)

Number of books:
1 - 3 books...I know it seems a small amount, but it's a busy time of year and the challenge is only a little over a month.

Type of books:
These must be Christmas novels, books about Christmas lore or a book of Christmas short stories (sorry, no children's books, but YA novel is okay).

other rules:
1. Blog about the challenge then link your post with Mr. Linky. This is my first time using it so if it doesn't work, leave your link in the comments.

2. Please leave a comment after you post your link in Mr. Linky.

3. Be sure to check back, I will have a list of new Christmas books coming out and some old favorites to recommend.

Want to join in? Sign-up here.


There were a couple of Christmas books that I didn't get to this summer during my Christmas in July challenge AND I just purchased The Christmas List.

1. The Christmas List - finished Nov 26
2. A Highlander Christmas - finished Nov 28
3. That Holiday Feeling - finished Dec 6
4. A Magical Christmas Present - finished Dec 8
4. Santa Clawed - finished Dec 20

and maybe one or two more...
A Dog named Christmas
Santa's Secret
The Christmas Jar
Christmas Jar Reunion - gifted
A Highlander Christmas
The Christmas Secret
The Christmas Cookie Killer

not my final list to pick an extra from, just the ones I remember off the top of my head. books added.

Sunday, October 25, 2009

Good niiight laaaadiies, Goood niiighttt laaadies....


Can you even tell I'm singing?


It's 5:26 a.m. here. I've slept 6.5 hours in the last 42 hours and while I'm going to sleep through church, I have to be awake/showered/dressed to go out by 2 p.m for lunch with my parents. I'm sure if I lay down, I'll crash but I really wanted to finish Magic Lessons.

I hope to visit everyone who commented during the next couple of weeks and get back to my regularly scheduled life on Monday.

I'm pretty sure the math is correct. Woke up at 11 a.m. on Friday, it's 5:26 a.m. on Sunday. I'm too tired.....

Update


Update 6 - Hour 24
Wrap Up


I think I did fairly well considering it was my first read-a-thon, I'm usually headed to be at 6 a.m. but this started at 5 a.m. for me and I had already been awake for 18 when it started! I learned some stuff I can use for the next one. I didn't read as many books as I'd hoped to but I did nap for 6.5 hours. Plus, non of my title were picture books! Early reader maybe ;-)

Reading:
Magic Lessons (221 out of 275) It was the grocery store trip!

Title of book(s) read since last update:
Ghouls Don't Scoop Ice Cream
Magic or Madness

Number of books read since you started: 5
Dragonling, vol 2
Dragolin
Thanksgiving at the Inn
Ghouls Don't Scoop Ice Cream
Magic or Madness

Pages read since last update:
342

Running total of pages read since you started: 1,056

Amount of time spent reading since last update: 183 min

Running total of time spent reading since you started: (keep track of this one to be eligible for a prize!) 453 min (7 hrs 33 min)

Mini-challenges completed: 6

Other participants you’ve visited:
Alternative Reads
The Betty & Book Chronicles
Books and Needlepoint
Bloody Bad
At Home with Books
Zen Leaf
The Shepards
Karen
Just One More Thing
True Harbor
Good Books & Wine
Aphazia
Libri Touches
Book Blather
Bloody Bad
The stacks my destination
It's all about Books
Bibliophile by the Sea
Reading in Appalachia
Mari Reads
At Home with Books
Books & Needlepoint
Reading Distractions
S. Krishna's Books
Another Book Blog-Whore
I'm Booking It

Prize you’ve won: 0

End of Event


Questions


1. Which hour was most daunting for you?
since I'd been up for so long already, I crashed soon after hour 7

2. Could you list a few high-interest books that you think could keep a Reader engaged for next year?
I started Justine Larbalestier's Magic or Madness trilogy - too late to finish during the read-a-thon but I'll finish book 2 before going to sleep. I'm thinking this is personal so you should stock up on books you've been waiting to read or new releases from favorite authors. Maybe a couple of old favorite.

3. Do you have any suggestions for how to improve the Read-a-thon next year?
My only complaint, that isn't really, is that not everyone turned off word verification. I just wanted a quick post but my computer is old enough that it seemed to take forever. I don't think that's something admin could do anything about.

4. What do you think worked really well in this year’s Read-a-thon?
I loved it all. Sometimes I had trouble deciphering all the posts but it may have been because I was tired.

5. How many books did you read? 5+

6. What were the names of the books you read?
Dragonling, vol 2 (3 titles in one binding)
Dragolin
Thanksgiving at the Inn
Magic or Madness
Ghouls Don't Scoop Ice Cream
part of Magic Lessons

7. Which book did you enjoy most?
it's a toss between Thanksgiving at the Inn and the Magic or Madness books

8. Which did you enjoy least?
Ghouls Don't Scoop Ice Cream. I only read it because it was sitting on the desk and I was waiting for something to load. I felt I had to finish it but it wasn't any fun. It was a re-read.

9. If you were a Cheerleader, do you have any advice for next year’s Cheerleaders?
not a cheerleader but I may be next time, depends on when in April

10. How likely are you to participate in the Read-a-thon again? What role would you be likely to take next time?
I'd like to help with prizes (I could make bookmarks). I want to cheer for at least an hour and read. I don't think I'm ready to host a mini-challenge yet.


Update


Update 5 - Hour 21


Dang, I finished a book but while I have the total pages, I don't know where I left off! So I'll be figuring that out, done - taking a shower, maybe going shopping. I have TWO 30% coupons for a bookstore. Sigh, except I don't know what to get so maybe I won't go. I also made a "nest" on my daughter's bed for later.

um, maybe I should tell you that I'm not kicking her out of bed, she got married this summer.

no bookstore although I did run to the grocery & gas station. Don't think I'll be back until wrap-up. Stay awake everyone & happy reading!

Reading:
Ghouls Don't Scoop Ice Cream
Magic or Madness

Title of book(s) read since last update:
Thanksgiving at the Inn

Number of books read since you started:
3
Dragonling, vol 2
Dragolin
Thanksgiving at the Inn

Pages read since last update:
273

Running total of pages read since you started: 714

Amount of time spent reading since last update: 155 min

Running total of time spent reading since you started: (keep track of this one to be eligible for a prize!) 270 min

Mini-challenges completed: 6

Other participants you’ve visited:
Alternative Reads
The Betty & Book Chronicles
Books and Needlepoint
Bloody Bad
At Home with Books
Zen Leaf
The Shepards
Karen
Just One More Thing
True Harbor
Good Books & Wine
Aphazia
Libri Touches
Book Blather
Bloody Bad
The stacks my destination
It's all about Books
Bibliophile by the Sea
Reading in Appalachia
Mari Reads
At Home with Books
Books & Needlepoint

added:
Reading Distractions
S. Krishna's Books
Another Book Blog-Whore
I'm Booking It

Prize you’ve won: 0

Saturday, October 24, 2009

Mini Challenge



Hour 17


Go to your blog and post a list of five favorite children's books. They don't have to be THE five end-all-be-all of your favorites, because then you'll just agonize over which ones to pick, and we want this to be easy. Just list five off the top of your head that you enjoyed as a child, or that your children enjoy.

Go Dog Go

I Want to be Somebody New by Robert Lopshire

The Three-Legged Cat by Margaret Mahy

almost anything with the Berenstain Bears
(for a while my youngest called his older sister "sister")

any of the Franklin books by Paulette Bourgeois & Brenda Clark

June 29, 1999 by David Wiesner

Mini Challenge



Hour 16


Your challenge is to think up and suggest your favorite books that feature an older protagonist! AND / OR let’s also think up any of your favorite AUTHORS who are still writing incredible books when most people are… not?

I can't think of favorite books in regards to age of protagonists but Lilian Jackson Braun is still writing as is Anne McCaffrey. I think that Dick Francis qualifies for this as well. I'm sure there are others but these three are favorites and I will miss them greatly when the stop writing! I'm just glad I like to re-read and that they've written so many titles for me. :-) It is also fortunate that DF and AM have children who write and are willing to carry on.

Update


Update 4 - Hour 14


half-way through hour 14, I added some blogs visited and had a great nap so I'm ready for some power reading after a bit of breakfast. I've learned some things for next time. 0_0 what?! yes, I ready to do this again!

Reading:
Ghouls Don't Scoop Ice Cream
Thanksgiving at the Inn

Title of book(s) read since last update:



Number of books read since you started:
2

Pages read since last update:
0

Running total of pages read since you started: 441

Amount of time spent reading since last update: 1 hr 14 min

Running total of time spent reading since you started: (keep track of this one to be eligible for a prize!)2 hr 35 min

Mini-challenges completed: 3 (hr 7 looks fun but I'm too tired)

Prize you’ve won:

Other participants you’ve visited:
Alternative Reads
The Betty & Book Chronicles
Books and Needlepoint
Bloody Bad
At Home with Books
Zen Leaf
The Shepards
Karen
Just One More Thing
True Harbor
Good Books & Wine
Aphazia
Libri Touches
Book Blather
Bloody Bad

added:
The stacks my destination
It's all about Books
Bibliophile by the Sea
Reading in Appalachia
Mari Reads

Prize you’ve won:

Update


Update 3 - Hour 7


7? already?
Reading:
Ghouls Don't Scoop Ice Cream
Thanksgiving at the Inn

Title of book(s) read since last update:

Dragolin

Number of books read since you started:
2

Pages read since last update:
164

Running total of pages read since you started: 441

Amount of time spent reading since last update: 1 hr 14 min

Running total of time spent reading since you started: (keep track of this one to be eligible for a prize!)2 hr 35 min

Mini-challenges completed: 3 (hr 7 looks fun but I'm too tired)

Prize you’ve won:

Other participants you’ve visited:
Alternative Reads
The Betty & Book Chronicles
Books and Needlepoint
Bloody Bad
At Home with Books
Zen Leaf
The Shepards
Karen
Just One More Thing
True Harbor
Good Books & Wine
Aphazia
Libri Touches
Book Blather
Bloody Bad

Prize you’ve won:

Mini Challenge



Hour 4


Let’s keep up the energy with the next mini-challenge. Our host is Bart from Bart’s Bookshelf, and he’s asking you to grab 3-4 books and make a sentence out of the title. You’ll take a picture of the spines, and the best sentence will win! This mini-challenge will stay open for three hours.

Sigh, found great titles out of my read-a-thon stack. Found the camera. Doesn't work. sigh.

Princess Nevermore had Thanksgiving at the Inn with the white Giraffe.

now if only the camera was working.... I've got a bit of time, guess I'll fiddle with it next break.


Woo Hoo, fixed the camera! Top book: Princess Nevermore, center book is Thanksgiving at the Inn and the bottom book is The White Giraffe. Cool, only needed to add two words!

Update


Update 2 - Hour 4


Title of book(s) read since last update:

The Dragonling, vol 2 (three titles, one binding)

Number of books read since you started:
1

Pages read since last update:
267

Running total of pages read since you started: 277

Amount of time spent reading since last update: 1 hr 11 min

Running total of time spent reading since you started: (keep track of this one to be eligible for a prize!)1 hr 21 min

Mini-challenges completed: 2

Prize you’ve won:

Other participants you’ve visited:
Alternative Reads
The Betty & Book Chronicles
Books and Needlepoint
Bloody Bad
At Home with Books
Zen Leaf
The Shepards
Karen
Just One More Thing
True Harbor
Good Books & Wine
Aphazia

Prize you’ve won:

Mini Challenge



Hour 1


Where are you reading from today?
Living room couch. Should have thought to make a snug spot on my daughter's bed for later - that way I can stay upstairs where the computer is. Oh well, maybe walking up and down the stairs will help keep me away.


3 facts about me
1. I hate these things because I can never decide how personal to get!
2. I'm a "nite-owl" who loves the sunrise. I'm just usually seeing it before going to bed.
3. one of my emails is addicted2reading because really, it is an addiction.


How many books do you have in your TBR pile for the next 24 hours?
I have 30 print books on my shelf. No audio. Didn't gather all the picture books. Am thinking of purchasing a couple of ebooks.


Do you have any goals for the read-a-thon (i.e. number of books, number of pages, number of hours, or number of comments on blogs)?
1. I hope to read at least 7, non-picture book, books.

2. I thought just waking up to my alarm at 5 a.m. would be a great goal but I wasn't able to fall asleep so I've been awake since 10 a.m. yesterday. Just making it to noon would be a miracle.


If you’re a veteran read-a-thoner, Any advice for people doing this for the first time?
First timer but my advice would be to go to bed early or take a nap before the time starts.



update: two chapters of The Strangely Beautiful Tale of Miss Percy Parker, mini challenge, chores, breakfast. Will be starting The Dragonling vol. 2 and crossing my fingers I didn't miss a story between this and the ones I read earlier.

Dewey's 24-Hour Reading Challenge...



And they're off!

Actually, this is a scheduled post. It's 5 a.m. here and my plan is to start reading on my iTouch as soon as the alarm goes off but I'll edit this later with accurate info. (added - it's midnight now - wish me luck with the alarm!)

edited: Thanks Alyce. I did make it to bed but wasn't able to get to sleep so I'm still up. Did some posts, visited some blogs, ate, did the dishes. Started reading - The Strangely Beautiful Tale of Miss Percy Parker.

be back later

On pins & needles

I have no idea where the saying came from but Jason of CSN stores and I have been communicating, off & on, since before BBAW. He wanted to know if I wanted to review a chair. A chair? Wait, you're going to send me a free office chair? COOL. I was given a choice of four and a link then spent several hours looking at their sites - that's right, sites. I found a desk, art work and a treadmill ;-) and yes, I did choose one of the four chairs. But only after Jason checked the weight limit. I'm not huge huge but I'm not a skinny little girl either and one of the chairs didn't have the "capacity". Head over to Herman Miller and see if there's a chair for you. Here's the one I choose.
From the Manufacture
Task seating within the office has always been in the need of adjustment and this particular chair offers just that. With a thick padded seat and back with built-in lumbar support and a waterfall seat to get rid of the stress on your legs, this task chair has more than just style. A pneumatic seat height adjustment system and 5 star nylon base, allows smooth movement and height modification of your desire.
In the meantime, I await delivery. I'll let you know when it gets here & will post a review.

Boss Office Products - Adjustable Deluxe Fabric Posture Chair

Reading for a Cause?


Melissa over at The Betty and Boo Chronicles posted that Betty will be reading with her! They will also be reading for two charities/causes (post is here) and it got me thinking. Didn't I see something about reading for a charity on the challenge home page? Why didn't I think to set it up? No idea - I know I've missed some other posts so it's possible I was going to.....

Okay, I went to DonorsChoose.org and picked Mrs. L's classroom. She's in a high poverty area in South Carolina, US and would like 30 copies of "The Soul Catcher". I didn't check out the book but if she can get half way there, The Hootie and the Blowfish Foundation will match the donation! If you'd like to help out Mrs. L, click here, the 24th (today) is the last day for donation. - I think it said 13 hours.

Will you be reading for a charity? Who and why?

New Review Book Arrived this week


The Tallest of smalls

Author: Max Lucado
Illustrated by Maria Monescillo
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Release Date: November 3, 2009
format: Hardcover
reading level: Ages 4-8
pages: 32



from the publisher:
A delightful rhyming story about the Too-Smalls who live in the Stiltsville. Every evening a six, the Too-Smalls meet in the square where they hope they’ll be picked to receive stilts to strut about above the stilt-less masses below. They come to see if they matter—if they’re awesome, if they’re pretty, if they’re clever, or funny. Ollie, the smallest of too-smalls, pleas to be picked. He wants to be like the high-ups of Stiltsville who are proud of their stilts, the ultimate status. But once he gets stilts, oh how it hurts when he stumbles and tumbles and loses his stilts. That is . . . until he meets Jesus who chose low over high telling him, "Keep your feet on the ground. You matter already.”
from me:
The smalls and Stiltsville is introduced in Fearless.

Amazon.com Sales Rank, as of 10-24: #15,255 in Books
Popular in these categories:
#19 in Books > Children's Books > Religions > Christianity > Ages 4-8
#32 in Books > Children's Books > People & Places > Social Situations > Self-Esteem & Self-Respect > Fiction
#38 in Books > Children's Books > People & Places > Social Situations > Values > Fiction

New Review Book Arrived


Stepmonster:
A New Look at Why Real Stepmothers Think, Feel, and Act the Way We Do

Author: Wednesday Martin, Ph.D
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Release Date: May 4, 2009
format: Hardcover
pages: 336
Subject(s):
FAMILY & RELATIONSHIPS: Parenting - Stepparenting
PSYCHOLOGY: Psych - Interpersonal Relations

from the publisher:
A groundbreaking and truly stepmother-centered way of understanding the tensions that seem to define relations between women and their stepchildren

Half of all women in the United States will live with or marry a man with children. And what woman with stepchildren has not—in order to defuse the often overwhelming challenges of the role—referred to herself as a "stepmonster"?

As Hope Edelman does in her book for motherless daughters, Wednesday Martin’s empowering and original Stepmonster unlocks the emotional mysteries of why stepmothers think and feel and act the way they do. Martin draws upon her own experience as a stepmother, interviews with other stepmothers and stepchildren, and fascinating insights from literature, anthropology, psychology, and evolutionary biology to reveal the little-understood realities of this most demanding role.

Stepmonster illuminates the harrowing process of becoming a stepmother, considers the myths and realities of being married to a man with children, counteracts the cultural notion that stepmothers are solely responsible for the challenges they encounter, identifies the "Five Step-Dilemmas That Create Conflict," and considers the emotional and social challenges men with children face when they remarry.

Finally, in an unexpected twist, Martin shows why the myth of the Wicked Stepmother is our single best tool for understanding who real stepmothers are and how they feel.

Amazon.com Sales Rank, as of 10-23: #15,774 in Books
Popular in these categories:
#5 in Books > Parenting & Families > Family Relationships > Stepparenting & Blended Families
#30 in Books > Health, Mind & Body > Psychology & Counseling > Counseling > Couples & Family Therapy

Thursday, October 22, 2009

Introducing....

Max Lucado loves words – written, spoken – it does not matter. He loves to craft sentences that are memorable, inspiring and hopefully life-changing. In almost 25 years of writing, more than 65 million books filled with his words have been sold.

He is the Minister of Writing and Preaching at the Oak Hills Church in San Antonio, where he has served since 1988. He has been married to Denalyn Lucado since 1981, and they have three grown daughters—Jenna, Andrea and Sara—and one son-in-law, Brett. On a good week he reads a good book, has a few dinners with his wife, and breaks 90 on the golf course. He usually settles for the first two.


I am a participant in Thomas Nelson's Blog Reviewers and received a copy of Fearless to review.

Tuesday, October 20, 2009

Teaser Tuesday

MizB at Should Be Reading hosts this cool weekly event.

Teaser Tuesdays asks you to:

--Grab your current read
--Let the book open to a random page.
Share with us two (2) “teaser” sentences from that page, somewhere between lines 7 and 12.
--You also need to share the title of the book that you’re getting your “teaser” from… that way people can have some great book recommendations if they like the teaser you’ve given!

Do you ever wonder why things happen the way they do? All of the seemingly random decisions we make throughout our lives that turn out to be not so random after all. Maybe if I had closed the shop twenty minutes earlier that night or gone for a quick walk around Snow Lake, she might still be alive today.

pg 1, Casting Spells by Barbara Bretton

Monday, October 19, 2009

Mailbox Monday

Mailbox Monday is a Weekly Event hosted by
Marcia at The Printed Page
jump over to see what others have received this week.


Review books that have arrived this week:
The Recipe Club
Solace: Finding Your way through Grief and Learning to Live Again

Purchased:
The Christmas List
blue moon
Wuthering Heights

from the author:


and the winner is....
Primitive from Bell Bridge Books (BBAW)

dang, I keep forgetting my Kindle books:

What are you Reading?


What are you reading on Monday? is a weekly meme hosted by J. Kaye at J. Kaye's Book blog where you post books completed last week and plans for upcoming books. Jump over to her blog and see who else is participating.


Monday, October 19
Finished this Week
Hard to Handle
Two In, Two Out
Tiger and Devils
The Noticer
Saving Noah
Right Next Door
and 1 short stories
plus 3 review posted



Still Reading/Started
Falling into the Sun
Knitting Bones
Gone Too Far
Intertwined
The Sweetgum Ladies Knit for Love
Home for the Holidays
The Summer Kitchen - Lisa Wingate
The Strangely Beautiful Tale of Miss Percy Parker
Right Next Door


Planning to Read/Start

Escape later
Heck where the bad kids go
The Woman in White
The Midnight Twins
The Neighbor
No Time to Wave Good-bye
Frostbite
....Actually, these are all on my reading list for Dewey's 24-Hour Reading Challenge on the 24th!



Library Books Now Available
Magic or Madness
Magic's Child
Magic Lessons
The Dragonling
Vol. 2
(Dragons of Krad, Dragon Trouble, Dragons and Kings)


and Reviews needed to Complete
A Circle of Souls
The Right Side of the Tracks
True North
Bridge to Terabithia
The Man Who Loved Books Too Much
The House on Tradd Street
plus any/all of the previous books read....

Bound Galley?

I started blogging in January and "won" my first review copy from LibraryThing's Early Reviewer program - January batch. (Beginner's luck, haven't won any since). My first "official" review request came in June and it's been pretty regular since (THANK YOU) although I do not have enough books to "open a used bookstore". My very first book (LT) was an ARC. I'm familiar with them - actually received one years ago, signed with a personalized note, from a favorite author. The other books received could have been/probably were final copies they were bound so nice.

I tell you this because just this week I received my very first "Review Galley Only" book. It's larger than a hardcover and only 186 pages. The final book will be Trade-sized paperback with 384 pages. How do I know this? Because it's printed right on the cover! Oh my gosh - the press release I've been getting folded up in my books is bound into this book with a bunch of info printed right there on the cover! Yes, the cover graphic of the actual book is there but it doesn't cover the whole thing, in fact, is a small part of the total cover. I wish my scanner was working so I could show you.

I''m just a little excited, and it isn't even a review book - I won it in a contest (from the publisher).

What book? What contest?

A BBAW contest from Bell Bridge Books. I received....Primitive by Mark Nykanen.

"Kidnapped by neo-primitive survivalists with a radical environmental agenda, an aging model finds herself fighting for her life in the rugged Pacific Northwest mountains."

See an excerpt at Bell Bridge Books, just scroll down. It is also available to purchase at this link.

edit: I just read the excerpt. My stomach is all clenched tight. Luckily for me I can go sit some place and read instead of waiting for the mail!

Sunday, October 18, 2009

Review: DragonSpell plus four more

The problem will telling you about a series is ruining plot points on previous books. This is the Dragon Keepers Chronicles and I'll let the publisher and the cover blurbs "take the blame" for ruining anything. ;-)

DragonSpell
Dragon Keepers Chronicles, Book 1
Donita K. Paul

WaterBrook Press
Categories: Juvenile Fiction - Religious - Christian - Fantasy
Format: Trade Paperback
On Sale: Jun 22, 2004

from the publisher/back cover:
One Dragon Egg Holds the Key to the Future.

Once a slave, Kale is given the unexpected opportunity to become a servant to Paladin. Yet this young girl has much to learn about the difference between slavery and service.

A Desperate Search Begins…

A small band of Paladin’s servants rescue Kale from danger but turn her from her destination: The Hall, where she was to be trained. Feeling afraid and unprepared, Kale embarks on a perilous quest to find the meech dragon egg stolen by the foul Wizard Risto. First, she and her comrades must find Wizard Fenworth. But their journey is threatened when a key member of the party is captured, leaving the remaining companions to find Fenworth, attempt an impossible rescue, and recover the egg whose true value they have not begun to suspect…



DragonQuest
Dragon Keepers Chronicles, Book 2
Donita K. Paul

WaterBrook Press
Categories: Juvenile Fiction - Religious - Christian - Fantasy
Format: Trade Paperback
On Sale: Jun 7, 2005


from the publisher/back cover:
A New Quest Begins

A dragonkeeper of Paladin, Kale is summoned from the Hall to The Bogs by the Wizard Fenworth to serve as his apprentice and tend his newly hatched meech dragon, Regidor. But Kale isn’t going alone. The Hall is sending a student to monitor her performance and report back to the scholars. Worst of all, it’s Bardon–an older boy Kale finds irritating, but who at least can hold his own in a sword fight.

New Friendships Are Forged

Meanwhile, the Wizard Risto has seized another meech dragon, bringing him dangerously close to gaining the power he seeks. So with only a motley band of companions, Kale sets out on a desperate quest to rescue the second meech, to free those dragons already enslaved, and to thwart Risto’s devious plans. It’s up to Kale to lead the search and to embrace the role that’s rightfully hers. But will her efforts be enough to save the land of Amara from the dark future that awaits at Risto’s hands?



DragonKnight
Dragon Keepers Chronicles, Book 3
Donita K. Paul

WaterBrook Press
Categories: Juvenile Fiction - Religious - Christian - Fantasy
Format: Trade Paperback
On Sale: Jun 20, 2006

from the publisher/back cover:
Trapped in an evil spell… can the knights of Paladin be rescued?

Before vowing his allegiance to Wulder as a knight, Bardon heads to the mountains for solitude. His life is suddenly complicated by a woman and her granddaughter, N’Rae, on a mission to rescue the woman’s son trapped in a chamber of sleep. Bardon learns that more of Paladin’s knights are imprisoned–and suspects one of them is Dragon Keeper Kale’s missing father.

The secret is in their hands–and hearts.

The band travels north, uncertain of their destination and encountering numerous perils. When they unlock the chamber, they discover a dozen knights–who cannot be awakened. The journal holding the secret to rousing them is in an unknown language. How can they find the help they need, and overcome even graver obstacles, to rescue the knights?



DragonFire
Dragon Keepers Chronicles, Book 4
Donita K. Paul

WaterBrook Press
Categories: Juvenile Fiction - Religious - Christian - Fantasy
Format: Trade Paperback
On Sale: Jul 17, 2007


from the publisher/back cover:
Three years of strife have passed since Kale and Bardon freed Paladin’s knights. Now, fiery dragons scorch their beautiful countryside as an evil husband-and-wife wizard duo battle one another for supremacy. The people of Amara just want to be left alone, hoping the conflict with disappear. But Paladin is dying, and Bardon and Kale–now married–must accept fateful assignments if their land is to survive. Will their efforts turn the tide against their adversaries?

They face a deadly threat–and a challenging choice.

Kale’s responsibility is to find, hatch, and train an army of dragons, and she tackles the daunting task–until she is shocked by a betrayal. As the Amaran countrymen seek escape, she must search for her husband, family, and friends while organizing an underground movement to weaken the enemy. But when the end draws near, Kale must choose between two dismal destinies.



DragonLight
Dragon Keepers Chronicles, Book 5
Donita K. Paul

WaterBrook Press
Categories: Juvenile Fiction - Religious - Christian - Fantasy
Format: Trade Paperback
On Sale: Jun 17, 2008


from the publisher/back cover:
The fantastic land of Amara is recovering from years of war inflicted on its citizens by outside forces–as well as from the spiritual apathy corroding the Amarans’ hearts. With Kale and her father serving as dragon keepers for Paladin, the dragon populace has exploded. It’s a peaceful, exciting time of rebuilding. And yet, an insidious, unseen evil lurks just beneath the surface of the idyllic countryside.

Truth has never been more important, nor so difficult to discern.

As Kale and her father are busy hatching, bonding, and releasing the younger generation of dragons as helpers throughout the kingdom, the light wizard has little time to develop her skills. Her husband, Sir Bardon–despite physical limitations resulting from his bout with the stakes disease–has become a leader, serving on the governing board under Paladin. When Kale and Bardon set aside their daily responsibilities to join meech dragons Regidor and Gilda on a quest to find a hidden meech colony, they encounter sinister forces. Their world is under attack by a secret enemy… can they overcome the ominous peril they can’t even see?

Prepare to experience breathtaking adventure and mind-blowing fantasy as never before in this dazzling, beautifully-crafted conclusion to Donita K. Paul’s popular DragonKeeper Chronicles fantasy series.

My Thoughts:
This is a good vs. evil series written from an obvious Christian perspective. Yes, it is fantasy but there are eternal truths within that, sometimes, we all need to be reminded of. Things like finishing the job you said you would. Always looking for the good inside. Not judging by appearances. Search for truth, even in unlikely places. This is in now way a preachy book, it is just a way of life for the characters that can cross over to ours.

I became engrossed in the stories and truly saddened at the end of DragonLight because I did not want the series to end. I have them on my wish list because I know I'll want to re-read these again. And again.

My Rating:
And already I can tell my rating system needs work. The first 4 were library books so I'm going with 5. The 5th book should also be a 5 but I bought it because the library system didn't have it and I've only read it the once so it's a 4.

Saturday, October 17, 2009

Friday Firsts

...a day late

Allison at Well-Read Reviews hosts this cool weekly event.

Friday Firsts asks you to:

The first line can make or break a reader’s interest. Just how well did the author pull you in to the story with their first sentence? To participate in this weekly book meme is extremely easy.

- Grab the book you are currently reading and open to the first page.
- Write down the first sentence in the first paragraph.
- Create a blog post with this information. (Make sure to include the title & author of the book you are using. Even an ISBN helps!)
- Did this first sentence help draw you into the story? Why or why not?
- Come back to this blog post, hosted on WellReadReviews.com and add your direct link to Mr. Linky!


"I can't believe I'm doing this," Robin Masterson muttered as she crawled into the makeshift tent, which was pitched over the clothesline in the backyard of her new home.


Why would anyone sleep in the backyard of a new home? Did something go horribly wrong?

Right Next Door/Father's Day by Debbie Macomber
RND includes two stories, Father's Day and The Courtship of Carol Sommars
ISBN-13: 978-0-7783-2700-4

Quote it Sat

Quote it Sat is a Weekly Event
hosted by Leslie at That Chick that Reads.



Before he left that night, Jones opened his suitcase, holding it carefully away from my curious gaze, and removed three small, orange hardcover books. "Do you read?" he asked. As I nodded, he added, "I'm not asking if you can read; I'm asking if you do."


pg 9, The Noticer by Andy Andrews

While this is a pivotal point in the story, it is also a very important distinction. For it does not matter if you can read, if you do not.

Friday, October 16, 2009

Friday Finds

A Weekly Event hosted by mizb at Should be Reading
The idea is to share, every Friday, about books that you’ve recently discovered (never heard of before) that sound really good!

Every Friday, those who have blogs will write a post at their own blog, and then come back and leave others a link to follow on that week’s “Friday Finds” post here at Should Be Reading. For those who don’t blog, you can just tell us about your “Friday Finds” in a comment on that week’s post. )

Let’s try to keep this clean… that’s all I ask, okay?
I found a whole bunch of books going through a catalog and then didn't have time to post them all but I really wanted to tell you about a new reading light I saw. Haven't tried it yet but I'm going to, maybe for Dewey's 24-hour Challenge?


Handy and hands-free, our over-the-ear booklight is compact and practical, shining light in whatever direction you turn your head. Bright LED lasts over 100,000 hours with long-lasting batteries included. Inscribed with Scripture quote from Psalm 119:105 Your word is a lamp unto my feet. 3.5" long.


available here at ChristianBook.com.

New Review Book Arrived


The Recipe Club
A Tale of Food and Friendship

Author: Andrea Isreal & Nancy Garfinkel
Publisher: Polhemus Press
Release Date: October 2009
format: Hardcover
pages: 363


from the publisher:
Lilly and Val are lifelong friends, united as much by their differences as by their similarities. Lilly, dramatic and confident, lives in the shadow of her beautiful, wayward mother and craves the attention of her distant, disapproving father. Val, shy and idealistic -- and surprisingly ambitious -- struggles with her desire to break free from her demanding housebound mother and a father whose dreams never seem to come true.

In childhood, "LillyPad" and "Valpal" vow to form an exclusive two-person club. Throughout the decades they write intimate letters in which they share hopes, fears, deepest secrets -- and recipes, from Lilly's "Lovelorn Lasagna" to Valerie's "Forgiveness Tapenade." Readers can cook along as the girls travel through time, facing the challenges of independence; the joys and heartbreaks of first love; and the emotional complexities of family relationships, identity, mortality, and goals deferred.

But no matter what different paths they take or what misunderstandings threaten to break them apart, Lilly and Val always find their way back together through their Recipe Club . . . until the fateful day when an act of kindness becomes an unforgivable betrayal.

Now, decades later, while trying to recapture the trust they've lost, Lilly and Val reunite once more -- only to uncover a shocking secret. Will it destroy their friendship, or bring them ever closer?

http://www.therecipeclubbook.com/


Amazon.com Sales Rank, as of 10-14: #17,481 in Books
Popular in this category:
#26 in Books > Cooking, Food & Wine > Gastronomy > Essays
Disclaimer

In accordance to the FTC guidelines, I must state that I make no monetary gains from my reviews or endorsements here on Book Dragon's Lair. All books I review are either borrowed, purchased by me, given as a gift, won in some kind of contest, or received in exchange for an honest review.