Vin and the Dorky Duet - Review and Giveaway

Thought for the day:

“No artist is pleased.  There is no satisfaction whatever at any time.  There is only a queer divine dissatisfaction, a blessed unrest that keeps us marching and makes us more alive than the others.” ~ Martha Graham, in a letter to Agnes De Mille ~

A gift for my writer friends: 

 Here are some links I think you will find valuable. I have so many, it’s hard to choose only three!

Terrific, tongue-in-cheek list of rules for writing: http://annerallen.blogspot.com/2012/12/the-secret-writing-rule-bookand-why-to.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+AnneRAllensBlog+%28Anne+R.+Allen%27s+Blog%29&utm_content=Yahoo!+Mail

Wonderful links to tons of useful articles – a little something for every writer: http://kathytemean.wordpress.com/2012/12/23/2012-best-of-writing-and-illustrating/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+WritingAndIllustrating+%28Writing+and+Illustrating%29&utm_content=Yahoo!+Mail

Check out how well your title will do in the marketplace: http://www.lulu.com/titlescorer/index.php

I know this post comes a few days late, but there is a pretty darned good reason. I’ll tell you why at the end of the post.

For my fabulous giveaway, the winner is Kathy Temean! (Drum roll please!) Kathy, I will be sending you a copy of Illusionology. Kathy is also a children’s writer, but also illustrates and designs web sites. You can read her blog, Writing and Illustrating, by clicking HERE. Check it out. I get so much information from her blog and never miss a post. I have another giveaway for today, so stay tuned.

I was contacted a short time ago by an author with a couple of children’s books under her belt. She asked if I would be interested in reviewing one of her books on my blog. I said I would do that, but probably couldn’t get to it for a month or two. But I had some extra reading time thrown my way last weekend (read to the end and you’ll find out why), so I was able to read her middle-grade book, Vin and the Dorky Duet, this week. I like to write my reviews when things are fresh in my mind, so here we go.

Vin is faced with a plot hatched by his older sister and his mother to get him to play a duet for trumpet and piano that Meg has written in an up-coming concert. This is not Vin’s idea of a good time. But the plot has a sub-plot that Mom knows nothing about. Meg really wants Vin to arrange for a guy named Brad to play the duet with her. He will get out of playing and she is willing to pay big – a signed David Beckham jersey – if Vin can pull it off. He goes to school with Brad’s brother, but they are not friends, so this will be no easy task.

Maggie Lyons

Vin is clever and finds ways to get close to Brad’s brother, a dorky kid known as Eyeballs, who is a science nerd. They are assigned to work together on a report on whales, and Eyeballs is ecstatic to find that Vin’s uncle is a famous marine biologist. As time goes on, Vin and Eyeballs have several adventures together and actually become friends. But the concert is looming and Vin still hasn’t found a way to meet Brad or ask him about playing in the concert with Meg. Things aren’t looking too good, but the answer may just be found in something Vin’s grandmother has for him. It’s not an easy journey, but kids will find it a fun one. There are lots of twists and turns and obstacles to overcome, but young readers will keep turning the pages to find out what happens. It’s a short book, which for boy readers is a real plus, and this is much more of a boy book than for girls, although both will probably enjoy it.

You can learn more about Maggie Lyons and her books by visiting her website. Click HERE.  She sent me a signed copy of Vin and the Dorky Duet to give away, so you can qualify for a drawing for this gently-read book by leaving a comment. If you link to this post through some sort of social media, let me know and I’ll put your name in the hat twice.

Now for the reason I had so much extra reading time on my hands. This is a picture of my beloved Prius after a pretty terrifying accident last weekend. The good news is both my grandson and I are fine with the exception of some bruises. The other good news is I have good insurance. I did spend many hours in the emergency room the day after the accident getting some x-rays and a good evaluation, so had lots of time to read. Not my favorite way to find reading time. Anyway, the accident kind of took me out things for a couple of days, so that’s why I’m late with the post.

I hope all of you had a wonderful holiday, and I will wish you a happy and prosperous new year in case I decide to take next weekend off. But I may be back. It all depends on how my family time works out.

On the book giveaway, this is for U.S. only. Sorry, but it would be too expensive for me to send books out of the country. But please leave a comment. I’d love to hear from you. Remember, if you have trouble leaving a comment, click on the title of the post and it will give you just this post with a comments section on the bottom. Also, if you haven’t signed up by email, please do. Just look in the upper right-hand corner of this page, pop your email address in, and you will receive an email each time I put up a new post. Your information will not be shared with anyone.