Cody and the Fountain of Happiness -- Review and Giveaway

Thought for the Day:

“So the writer who breeds

more words than he needs

is making a chore

for the reader who reads.”

~ Dr. Seuss ~

Gifts for My Writer Friends:

Kristen Lamb has a terrific post HERE about the importance of well-rounded villains.

Writer’s Village has an interesting post HERE with tips for sneaking in information and avoiding the information dump. There are some good tips in the comments as well.

If picture books are your bailiwick, you won’t want to miss the post HERE by Mary Blount Christian. 

Last week I offered one of you a hardback copy of Finding the Worm by Mark Goldblatt.  This week's winner in Jess@Fairday's Blog. Congratulations, Jess! If you aren't familiar with Jessica Haight, she is one of the authors of The Secret Files of Fairday Morrow and she is one of the authors blogging HERE. Jess, I will get the book out to you this week.

By the way, if you click on Mark Goldblatt's name in the paragraph above, you can read an amazing story on Mark's home page. 

This week I am featuring a sweet middle-grade book by Tricia Springstubb. I reviewed Moonpenny Island by Tricia back in February. If you missed that review, you can find it HERE. I sent Tricia a note directing her to the blog post, and she contacted me and asked if I would like a copy of her newest book, Cody and the Fountain of Happiness. I had loved Moonpenny Island, so was happy to get her new book. This one is very different, but very cute and sweet. It is for the younger middle-graders and is charmingly illustrated by Eliza Wheeler.

It is the beginning of summer vacation and Cody is pretty excited to find out that the day camp she was supposed to attend was closed. It hadn't been the best experience for her the year before. For the time being, Cody would have to stay with her older brother Wyatt. Mom was working hard toward a promotion at the shoe store where she worked. Dad was a long distance trucker and was gone a lot. But Wyatt would be going to a science camp soon, so they would need to find someone to watch Cody. In the meantime, Cody meets a boy in the neighborhood, Spencer, who has lost his cat, MewMew. Spencer is staying with his grandmother in the neighborhood. When Mom announces she has found someone to take care of Cody, it is Peyton Underwood, Wyatt's secret crush. It's looking like a pretty interesting summer after all.

The story is fun with lots of interesting characters, amusing situations, and

Tricia Springstubb

terrific writing. The people in the book are ordinary people in ordinary jobs and lives -- people young readers can easily relate to, people they will like and sympathize with. I wouldn't be surprised if this is the beginning of a series. It reminded me in some ways of the Clementine books, which I also think are pretty adorable. 

I have a gently-read ARC of Cody and the Fountain of Happiness for one of you. To win, all you need do is have a US address, be a subscriber or follower and tell me that in a comment you leave on this post. If you are reading this in your email, click HERE to go to the blog so you can leave a comment. If you would like extra chances, please spread the word by posting the link on a Tweet, blog post, Facebook, or any other way you like. Let me know what you have done in your comment, and I will put in extra chances for you for each that you do.

Don't forget to check out Shannon Messenger's wonderful blog HERE for many more Marvelous Middle-Grade Monday reviews and giveaways.

Finding the Worm -- Review and Giveaway

Thought for the Day:

''I know nothing in the world that has as much power as a word.

Sometimes I write one, and I look at it, until it begins to shine.''

~ Emily Dickinson ~

Gifts for My Writer Friends:

HERE is an interesting listing of Top Editing and Proofreading Tools for Creative Writers.

Kathy Temean through her Writing and Illustrating blog led me to a really good article HERE on the Story Question.

The ladies at Writers Helping Writers have a great post HERE on Showing Emotion: Moving Beyond the Face. Don’t miss this one. 

With all the books I commit to reading for review, I don't often pick up other books. I read a lot of blogs and hear about a lot of books, and sometimes I find time for something beyond my review books. I do write a little poetry and read some poetry blogs regularly. I never miss Today's Little Ditty by Michelle H. Barnes. It's fun and she features a lot of poets there. She wrote recently about a novel in poems called Crossover by Kwame Alexander. Now I have to tell you, I love sports but have little interest in basketball, and this is a book about basketball. However, I was intrigued by Michelle's review of the book. I thought I'd pick it up and read a few of his poems. I got it from the library and read the first few pages and found I could not put it down. This is worth your time, whether or not you enjoy poetry, you will enjoy this book. Keep some tissues handy. It's very moving. Oh, and by the way, Michelle has featured poems by me a couple times on her blog. You can see my Clerihew HERE and my Tanka HERE.

Last week I offered an ARC of Watch the Sky by Kirsten Hubbard to one of you. With that gorgeous cover, it got a lot of interest. This week's winner is Greg Pattridge. Congratulations, Greg! Thanks for being such a loyal reader and commenter. If you don't know Greg, check out his blog Always in the Middle by clicking on the title. He is a writer and teacher and has great insight on middle grade fiction. Greg, I will get the book out to you this week. 

This week I'm featuring Finding the Worm by Mark Goldblatt. A couple years ago I read Mark's first book, Twerp, and fell in love with his main character, Julian Twerski, and his story. What a treat it was for me to find the next chapter in Julian's life in Mark's new book! I reviewed that book HERE and followed up with an interview with Mark HERE. If you haven't read Twerp yet, find a copy and read it. It is absolutely terrific. If you have read this blog for awhile, you know I am a huge fan of Gary D. Schmidt's books. Mark's books remind me of Schmidt's work and I think they are simply terrific. Here is the review I wrote for the San Francisco Book Review.

Julian Twerski, a.k.a. the Twerp, is back and he’s in trouble again. He’s in a new school (he’s in 7th grade now), but trouble seems to find him. He is unjustly accused of damaging a painting, a painting he really loves, and the principal assigns him a 200-word essay on citizenship. This is the beginning of a year-long duel between the two. But that isn’t all that is going on. Quentin, one of Julian’s gang (not a bad gang) is really sick. Devlin, a 9^th-grader, seems to have it in for Julian. Beverly is acting funny and challenges Julian to races all the time. Julian is getting ready for his Bar Mitzvah, and the Rabbi is giving him trouble.

“It’s like when you’re watching a baseball game on TV and your guy strikes out, and then the replay comes up and you kind of hope he’ll foul off the pitch—even though you just saw him strike out.”

There is never a dull moment in this wonderful book. Mark Goldblatt has created

Mark Goldblatt

a cast of characters in this sequel to //Twerp// that take the reader directly to the Queens, New York of the 1960s and make this touching, funny story to life. Readers will walk with Julian through his 7^th-grade year as he suffers great loss and becomes a man, as he discovers many kinds of love and as he meets a life-long idol. Don’t miss this amazing book.

I have a gently read hardcover copy of this terrific book for one of you. To win, all you need do is have a US address, be a subscriber or follower and tell me that in a comment you leave on this post. If you are reading this in your email, click HERE to go to the blog so you can leave a comment. If you would like extra chances, please spread the word by posting the link on a Tweet, blog post, Facebook, or any other way you like. Let me know what you have done in your comment, and I will put in extra chances for you for each that you do.

Don't forget to check out Shannon Messenger's wonderful blog HERE for many more Marvelous Middle-Grade Monday reviews and giveaways.