Sunday, November 3, 2024

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? - Nov 4



It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is a place to meet up and share what you have been, are and about to be reading over the week. It's a great post to organize yourself. It's an opportunity to visit and comment, and er... add to that ever growing TBR pile! So welcome in everyone. This meme started with J Kaye's Blog and then was taken up by Sheila from Book Journey. Sheila then passed it on to Kathryn at the Book Date.    

Welcome to November! Did everyone remember to turn their clocks back this weekend? I sure was happy with the extra hour of sleep. Had another busy work week, but managed some fun, too. My sister and I took in dinner and local theater on Saturday.


Nothing like waking up to these two goofballs. Giggles loves hanging out by the window. Travis appears to be studying her. 


Found these antlers while walking Theo in the woods behind the house.


Speaking of houses, this is the view from one of the properties I saw this weekend. 



NaNoWriMo has started. My writing is slow going because I was not as prepared going into it this year. Work hasn't left a lot of free time either. I'm okay with not finishing the book, but it is a good distraction while waiting to hear back from the agent about my first novel. 

As for my reading world, I am working on this one. 


Need to write the review for this cute one. 


Finished this book. Loved it!


These are the books I'm planning to read through the end of the year:  










Upcoming events:
  • A Celtic Yuletide Carol by Jennifer Ivy Walker - November 20 (Review)
  • Princess Sophie and the Christmas Elixir by Mike Martin - December 2 (Review - TC&TBC)
  • Jingles by D.F. Jones - December 11 (Review)



You can read the latest Christmas news at the Christmas Year Round blog. This week, we are talking about the Magic Kingdom Christmas tree, Freeform's '25 Days of Christmas' schedule, and Netflix streaming Hallmark Channel movies. Check it out here!

That's it for me this week. Looking forward to checking out your blogs!

Friday, November 1, 2024

NaNoWriMo Begins & The Book Connection Review Requests

 


Hope you're having a great week. I'm going to tackle NaNoWriMo again. I'm not as prepared as I was last year, but many of the pieces are already together. I simply didn't have time to create scene by scene details. Wishing all my fellow NaNoWriMo writers good luck!

My review schedule for the rest of the year is full, so please note I will not be taking any more book review requests in 2024. Thanks for your interest. 









Sunday, October 27, 2024

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? - Oct 28



It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is a place to meet up and share what you have been, are and about to be reading over the week. It's a great post to organize yourself. It's an opportunity to visit and comment, and er... add to that ever growing TBR pile! So welcome in everyone. This meme started with J Kaye's Blog and then was taken up by Sheila from Book Journey. Sheila then passed it on to Kathryn at the Book Date.    

Welcome to the last Monday of October, the last Monday before Halloween. How many trick or treaters are you expecting? We have fewer every year, but I am hoping that with some house sales in our neighborhood that might change. 

Last week was a blur. Made it through two closings, but they weren't easy ones because of last minute things that came up. Then I drove around clients for two days. Love my job; it just made for a crazy week, considering I also met with a writing friend and attended a class.  We drove to the Berkshires on Sunday to photograph the fall foliage. 


Top of the hairpin turn



Wigwam Western Summit


Drought conditions in our area


Mohawk State Forest Trail treasure

Looks like I won't be ready for NaNoWriMo this year. I haven't finished plotting Sheltered Hearts yet. I might try my hand at tackling it anyway to see how far I get. I am almost finished an editing project and have another one waiting, so not sure how much time I will have to write.

As for reading, it was a slow one. Started this one for a November review. 


Read this one on our drive to the Berkshires. Very cute! 


Have about 20 minutes of this one left. Definitely one of my favorites from this year in personal development titles.


I downloaded this one for a December review. The author is doing an amazing job of social media marketing. I see ads all over the place. 



Upcoming events:
  • A Celtic Yuletide Carol by Jennifer Ivy Walker - November 20 (Review)
  • Princess Sophie and the Christmas Elixir by Mike Martin - December 2 (Review - TC&TBC)
  • Jingles by D.F. Jones - December 11 (Review)


I am looking to review Christmas picture books, chapter books, and clean romance novellas this year. You can check out what other products I'm looking for here. I've also been reviewing Hallmark Channel Countdown to Christmas movie premieres. I missed all of them from this week, but since I signed up for Frndly TV, I will catch them later. 

You can read the latest Christmas news at the Christmas Year Round blog. This week Neiman Marcus, Dollar Tree, and a crafting YouTuber from the North of England made the news. You can check it all out here!

I will be late in checking in at your blogs this week, but I will visit. Enjoy your day!



Tuesday, October 22, 2024

Book Spotlight & Excerpt: A Wolff in the Family by Francine Falk-Allen



Award-winning author Francine Falk-Allen’s two acclaimed memoirs have been featured by Buzzfeed and PopSugar, and have received a Kirkus star. A fan of genealogy research, Francine enjoyed uncovering her family’s history, and traced both her maternal and paternal ancestors back to the 1600s. She never imagined that one day she’d discover a jaw-dropping family secret.

Based on a true story, Falk-Allen’s, A Wolff in the Family (She Writes Press, Oct. 1, 2024), is a riveting saga of prejudice, passion, and revenge, perfect for fans of Kristin Hannah’s The Four Winds. What mysterious scandals led a father to abandon his five youngest children—and the elder siblings to keep their shame a secret for eighty years?

More about the book: Railroad engineer Frank Wolff and Kansas farmgirl Naomi Sims were happily married in 1908. Naomi was excited to take up her role as wife and mother and make a life with Frank in thriving Ogden, Utah. Despite Frank’s almost-constant absence due to his job riding the rails, their romantic relationship resulted in fourteen children. The young mother’s life was consumed with caring for her brood, who became helpers as soon as they could fold a diaper. Affection and conflict endured side by side in the humble house, but the marriage ultimately faced insurmountable challenges—just before the Depression took hold of the nation.

EXCERPT

A Wolff in the Family  

Chapter 21                   

 

Naomi was sick to death of arguing with Frank. It seemed like every time he came back from Evanston, they had an argument. She couldn’t imagine why that town seemed to set him on edge.

            When he had come in from his last run, she’d rushed to hug him and had detected perfume. It was that new one, “My Sin.” Ha! Pretty funny. She recognized it because Frances liked it and had bought a tiny bottle of it. And she wasn’t going to ignore it.

            “What’s that perfume I smell?” she asked as she pulled away from him.

            “Perfume? Ha! You’re imagining things. It’s probably yours from the last time I left.”

            “It’s definitely not mine,” Naomi responded, a chill in her voice. Hers was cheap, besides.

            “Well, I have no idea how it got there, if it’s even there at all. Maybe one of the maids at one of the boardinghouses had a lot on and moved my jacket or something.”

            Naomi decided to let sleeping dogs lie—for now, in any case. She couldn’t prove it, but she was suspicious and decided to be on her guard the next time he came home.

The thing was, men did this kind of thing. He may have gone to a dance with a woman or something. But he wouldn’t have worn his denim jacket to a dance, she reasoned. And he doesn’t even like to dance!

She had heard women at church gossiping about how railroad men had a floozy in every town where they stayed overnight. Would Frank sleep with another woman, though? Naomi just didn’t have the time or energy to worry about that. She didn’t like it, though.

            “Well, if you’re out there doing things you ought not to, I will never know for sure,” she said flippantly. “But that isn’t my perfume. Frances wears that—but you haven’t seen her today, have you?”

            “Matter of fact, I was by Mrs. Birch’s on my way here and Frances and I had a hug. It was on my way home, so I stopped in to say hello.”

            Naomi bit a fingernail and looked at the floor, then back at Frank. “Well, you’re gettin’ off easy this time, Mister,” she said, and forced a smile. She didn’t want to spend the few days he was home in a snit.

 Purchase from Amazon or visit Goodreads for more buying options!

FRANCINE FALK-ALLEN: was born in Los Angeles and has lived nearly all of her life in northern California. She had polio in 1951, and has lived her life as a disabled person making an effort to be a “normie.” 

Falk-Allen was originally an art major and later completed her BA in Managerial Accounting, running her own business for over thirty years. She has always sought creative outlets, such as painting, singing, and writing. She began doing extensive family genealogy research in 1999, and has traced both her maternal and paternal ancestors back to the 1600s.

Her first book, “Not a Poster Child: Living Well with a Disability,” won gold and silver awards and was on several best books lists in 2018 and 2019, including Kirkus Reviews’ Best Books of 2018, PopSugar and BuzzFeed, and was nominated to 25 Women Making a Difference in 2019 by Conversations Magazine.

Her second book, “No Spring Chicken: Stories and Advice from a Wild Handicapper,” received a Kirkus star, given to “books of exceptional merit” by Kirkus Reviews, and was named to Kirkus Reviews’ Best Books of August 2021. “No Spring Chicken” was also a finalist in Foreword Reviews’ Indie Awards in 2021.

Her third book, “A Wolff in the Family” is a riveting early twentieth century saga set in the western United States and based on scandalous family history.

Francine spends a significant amount of time managing the effects of post-polio. She facilitates a polio survivors’ group as well as a writing group, and volunteers on her town’s Americans with Disabilities Act Accessibility Committee. She loves the outdoors, swimming, gardening, movies, well-written literature, being with friends and sharing British tea and a little champagne now and then. She resides in San Rafael, California, with her husband. Learn more at: https://francinefalk-allen.com 

Sunday, October 20, 2024

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? - Oct 21



It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is a place to meet up and share what you have been, are and about to be reading over the week. It's a great post to organize yourself. It's an opportunity to visit and comment, and er... add to that ever growing TBR pile! So welcome in everyone. This meme started with J Kaye's Blog and then was taken up by Sheila from Book Journey. Sheila then passed it on to Kathryn at the Book Date.    

My, oh my. We are back at Monday again. Time sure passes quickly. Lots going on. Preparing for three closing over the next seven days. Here are a few photos from my week.


Tyno spent a few days with us, so Theo had a pal


Interesting wallpaper in houses I saw this week



Photo along the Mohawk Trail

In reading, I am caught up on review books. I will have one coming in November and another in December. 

My review of this one appeared here.


This is another great book by Sheila Roberts. My review can be found here.


My review of this fabulous book by Jill Kemerer appeared here


I finished this one. My review can be found here.


This one is for a November review. 


This short one is for a December review.


I added the following new arrivals to my list. 


NetGalley


Audible: probably won't finish this one. I feel like I have been listening to it forever, and there is still more than six hours left. 


Audible


Mail carrier


Kindle

Upcoming events:
  • A Celtic Yuletide Carol by Jennifer Ivy Walker - November 20 (Review)
  • Jingles by D.F. Jones - December 11 (Review)


I am looking to review Christmas picture books, chapter books, and clean romance novellas this year. You can check out what other products I'm looking for here.

You can read the latest Christmas news at the Christmas Year Round blog. Another week with lots of great news, like the planned reopening of Biltmore Estate for the holidays after Hurricane Helene ravaged Asheville. You can read the latest news here.

I also reviewed the first movie premiere for Hallmark Channel's Countdown to Christmas. You can click here to read my review of 'Twas the Date Before Christmas. 

I'll be poking around blogs later this afternoon. Can't wait to see what you have been reading!

Friday, October 18, 2024

Interview with Joanne Howard, Author of Sleeping in the Sun

 


Joanne Howard is an Asian American writer from California. She holds an MFA in writing from Pacific University. Her poetry received an honorable mention from Stanford University’s 2019 Paul Kalanithi Writing Award. Her fiction has been published in The Catalyst by UC Santa Barbara, The Metaworker Literary Magazine and the Marin Independent Journal and her nonfiction has been published in Another New Calligraphy and The Santa Barbara Independent. She lives in Santa Rosa, CA. 

Visit Joanne online at joannehowardwrites.com or Instagram @joannesbooks

Where did you grow up?

I am from Santa Rosa, California, which is about an hour north of San Francisco. The Bay Area is a beautiful, multicultural community, and I felt that it really inspired the cross-cultural relationships that you see in my book. 

When did you begin writing?

I began writing this book as my thesis as I was earning my MFA in Creative Writing at Pacific University, Oregon. This was in 2016, which means it took me quite a while to write this book! But I’ve been writing ever since I can remember, and it has been my longest dream to write a novel. 

What is this book about?

Sleeping in the Sun is about a young American boy named Gene coming of age in India at the end of the British Raj. He and his family occupy an unusual place in society, as they have all the privileges of white folks but aren’t part of the British aristocracy there, and they live a humble and rural existence on the edge of town as missionaries who work with local Indian people. Their quiet life is upended when a high-ranking British judge arrives to stay with them, and it seems that Gene and the family’s Indian servant, Arthur, are the only ones who find it suspicious. What they discover about the judge has implications on whether or not Gene and his family can still call India home. 



What inspired you to write it?

This was inspired by my own grandfather’s upbringing in India. My family has a remarkable talent for keeping every scrap of history, so I had a lot of first-hand accounts to draw on. I felt that I had never seen a book about Americans in British India, so I wanted to write it myself. 

What is one piece of advice you would like to share with aspiring authors everywhere?

Trust the story to take you where it wants to go. I thought that was nonsense when I first heard it, because of course I’m in control of the story as the writer. But in reality, there were a handful of moments where the narrative would just completely take a different turn as I was writing it, and I just followed my intuition to see what new connections or perspectives it would produce. So keep an open mind as you write, and don’t be too tied to your original plan. 

What is up next for you?

I am exploring a more contemporary idea for my next novel. Even though I loved immersing myself into this world that was so different from my own, I am feeling more drawn this time to a novel set close to home, which for me is the Northern California coast. 

Pre-order this book from Amazon or visit Goodreads for more buying options!