Brave Red, Smart Frog -- Review and Giveaway

Thought for the Day:

"When your story is ready for rewrite, cut it to the bone. Get rid of every ounce of excess fat.

This is going to hurt; revising a story down to the bare essentials is always a little like

murdering children, but it must be done." 

~ Stephen King ~

Gifts for My Writer Friends:

We are lucky Janice Hardy did a guest post at Middle Grade Mafia HERE about how to be sure your protagonist is just a little too lucky. 

You can get some good ideas about getting ideas HERE at the Mixed Up Files of … Middle Grade Authors. 

Come to your senses! Alex Limbaugh at Ride the Pen has a good post HERE about getting the five senses into your writing. 

I hope you all had a nice Labor Day weekend. I know I did. Some family time and some grilling and a whole lot of relaxation . . . and no blog post. C'est la vie.

When we last met here, I promised a copy of My Weird School Fast Facts: Explorers, Presidents, and Toilets by Dan Gutman to one of you. Extra chances by spreading the word might be the key to why Nancy won the book this week. Thanks for sharing my link, Nancy, and congratulations! I will get the book out to you soon. For the rest of you, I have another fun giveaway this week, so please keep reading.

I was contacted by a publicist not too long ago with an offer of a few books in exchange for some reviews. That's always a good deal as far as I'm concerned. So I requested some. I loved the title Brave Red, Smart Frog, and I do love a good fairy tale, so that was my first choice. This little tome has seven retold fairy tales in it -- some very familiar and some not so familiar. It includes Hansel and Gretel, Red Riding Hood, Snow White, and the Frog Prince as well as three not so well-known tales -- Toads and Pearls, The Three Great Noodles, and Three Wishes. All are written splendidly with fresh language and a bit of a fresh take on the stories. The book also has a lovely illustration with an absolutely classic fairy tale look at the beginning of each story by Rohan Daniel Eason as well as a cover that will tempt young readers to open the book. Author Emily Jenkins has clearly done her homework in finding texts that tell the stories well and giving her a good platform to write her own take. If you like fairy tales, you

Emily Jenkins

will definitely want a copy of this book.

I have a gently-read ARC of this book to share with 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.

My Weird School Fast Facts Explorers, Presidents, and Toilets -- Review & Giveaway

Thought for the Day:

“Somebody asked me: 'What do you do? How do you write, create?' You don't, I told them. You don't try. That's very important: 'not' to try, either for Cadillacs, creation or immortality. You wait, and if nothing happens, you wait some more. It's like a bug high on the wall. You wait for it to come to you. When it gets close enough you reach out, slap out and kill it. Or if you like its looks

you make a pet out of it.” 

~ Charles Bukowski ~

Gifts for My Writer Friends:

As writers we are always looking for ways to make our characters distinctive. Language patterns certainly can help. The post HERE on Grammar Girl is about language forensics, and I found it fascinating. I thought you might also enjoy it, and it might give you some ideas for your own characters. 

Writers get stuck on a lot of things. When you are stuck on plot, the post by Janice Hardy HERE will help you out. 

Anne R. Allen’s blog always has something worth reading. The post HERE on writer’s mistakes she made so you don’t have to is another good one. 

I know the quote this week isn't the kind of inspirational quote I usually post, but I am a big fan of Charles Bukowski and this one just kind of spoke to me. I hope you like it.

Last week I offered a copy of Mrs. Master is a Disaster by Dan Gutman to one of you. This week's winner is Kristi V. Kristi shared the link a couple of places for extra chances and it worked! Congratulations, Kristi V., and thanks for spreading the word. For the rest of you, I not only have another book to give away, but I have another Dan Gutman book to give away, so stay tuned.

I ws lucky enough to snag two Dan Gutman books for the review. Here is what I wrote about My Weird School Fast Facts Explorers, Presidents, and Toilets.

A.J. and his nemesis, Andrea, are together again to bring plenty of fascinating fast facts to their reading audience much as they did in earlier books about geography and sports. How many facts can these two kids know? Well, it turns out it’s quite a few. Most of them are actual facts, although it’s a good idea to think hard about some that A.J. offers up. This book takes a fresh look at American history. They start by talking about the explorers who discovered our great land and those who thought they discovered it. Then on to the history of the Colonies and the beginning of our country all the way to a chapter called Everything that Happened After WWII and ending with a chapter on the history of toilets. It seems toilets always have a place in A.J.’s life.

Dan Gutman

Author Dan Gutman has a wicked sense of humor, and it shows on every page in this super fun overview of our country’s history. Most middle grade readers will just read right through without realizing how much learning they are doing. Illustrator Jim Paillot helps the fun along but adds photos for a touch of reality.  

I have a gently-read paperback of this book to share with 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.

Mrs. Master is a Disaster -- Review and Giveaway

Thought for the Day:

“There is progress whether ye are going forward or backward! The thing is to move.” 

~ Edgar Cayce ~

Gifts for My Writer Friends:

Have you ever heard of the First Person Plural point of view? I never had until I read the essay HERE from Aerogramme Writer’s Studio. Fascinating. I suspect we will be seeing this perspective more often. 

HERE are some great tips about writing from writers. My personal favorites are 3, 15, and 17. There may be an ad when you open this, but it’s worth waiting for. 

Have you received a Revise and Resubmit request from an agent? I sure hope it happens to me one of these days. Anyway, HERE is a good post from Guide to Literary Agents on that topic. 

On the Writing News from Rosi front, I have a couple of things to report. I had an email from High Five Magazine recently. They bought a little story from me back in 2011. They are going to (finally!) publish it in the March 2018 issue, and they have a wonderful artist lined up to illustrate it. I don't think I'm allowed to mention who, but I'm excited! The other news is that I have been accepted to the SCBWI Nevada mentorship program for this year! WooHoo! It's a great program and am so honored to be part of it. I really think this will be a huge step for me in my writing.

Last week, I offered a copy of Greek Myths: Three Heroic Tales by Hugh Lupton and Daniel Morden, and illustrated by Carole Henaff. Our winner this week is Danielle Hammelef. Congratulations, Danielle! She always shares my link lots of places for extra chances. I appreciate that and it's fun for me when her name pops out as winner. Danielle, I will get the book out to you soon. For the rest of you, I have a really fun book to give away this week.

I was looking for some really light middle-grade books to keep my review list from being too overwhelming. I saw a couple Dan Gutman books on the list and grabbled them. His books are pretty funny stuff. I love his footnotes. Here is the review I wrote for Mrs. Master is a Disaster.

It is Grandparent's Day in A.J.’s classroom. The old fogies (A.J.’s grandfather's word) come trooping in and tell their stories. Some are pretty funny and some are pretty interesting. But the most interesting of all is Alexia's grandmother, Mrs. Master. She is an inventor. She has invented some amazing things such as self-tying shoes and eyeglasses with little windshield wipers on them. Needless to say, the kids are very intrigued. They decide if they can invent something, they can all become bazillionaires! Mrs. Master agrees to mentor them. First they must come up with an idea for a product that everyone would want or need. After kicking around a few ideas, they decide that everyone needs a toilet seat — but one that glows in the dark, smells nice, can carry on a

Dan Gutman

conversation, and is heated. What could go wrong?

Dan Gutman is a very, very funny guy who writes very, very funny books. This is no exception. And his partner in crime … um, I mean funny books … is illustrator Jim Paillot who makes Gutman’s funny books just that much funnier. Early middle-grade readers will race through this latest offering.

I have a gently-read paperback of this book to share with 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.

Two Reviews and a Giveaway: Ted & Me and Guy Langman, Crime Scene Procrastinator

Thought for the day:  “Don't romanticize your "vocation". You can either write good sentences or you can't. There is no "writer's lifestyle". All that matters is what you leave on the page. And work on a computer that is disconnected from the internet.”  ~Zadie Smith

 A gift for my writer friends. Creating characters seemed to be on more than one mind than just mine when I wrote my last post. Others were writing about character creation.  The following two links are very good and continue the discussion. Enjoy!

http://childrenspublishing.blogspot.com/2012/06/crafting-multi-layered-characters.html

http://thebookshelfmuse.blogspot.com/2011/05/introducingthe-character-traits.html

I am reviewing two books this week, one middle-grade and one young adult. I really liked them both so would like to get the word out about them. I’ll be giving one away, so stay tuned for that.

The first book I want to talk about is Ted & Me by Dan Gutman. This is a middle grade novel that is eleventh book in a series called the Baseball Adventures. I can’t believe I didn’t discover this series sooner. I LOVE this book! If the others are even close to this good, I will be reading them all.

Joe Stoshack, Stosh to his friends, is a thirteen-year-old, baseball playing All-American kid. But there is another piece to him. He can time-travel and his vehicle is baseball cards. If he holds a Honus Wagner card, for instance, from the year 1910, he will travel to wherever Honus Wagner is at that time. Pretty cool, huh? Only a few people – his mother, father, uncle, and coach – know about his ability, and yet, one day an agent from the FBI shows up on their doorstep and knows about Stosh’s time traveling. We never find out how the FBI knows, but that is just about the only glitch in this book. The agency wants Stosh to go back in time to warn FDR about the bombing of Pearl Harbor. The agent claims it will save millions of lives. He leaves a signed Ted Williams card for Stosh and asks him to think it over. Stosh’s mother says it’s his decision. Interestingly enough, Stosh’s coach is against it. He feels if the bombing of Pearl Harbor never happens, the U.S. won’t get into the war, Hitler will win, millions more will be killed, etc., etc. But Stosh’s uncle tells him a story of a missed opportunity, and Stosh decides he should go for it.

Dan Gutman

Stosh holds onto the Ted Williams card and finds himself in an airplane that is taking fire. He finds out he is an a plane being piloted by Ted Williams during the Korean War. They crash-land and, before things can go up in flames, Stosh grabs a modern baseball card from his pocket (he always carries some just in case) and travels back to the present. It turns out the FBI agent didn’t bother to check the year on the Ted Williams card and had given Stosh a 1953 card. He brings a 1941 card, and Stosh starts his journey anew. Can he complete this important mission? Is it the right thing to do? You’ll have to read it to find out. I’m not telling. But I will leave you with this. Ted & Me is so well researched and well written, you will enjoy every word. Even if you are a big baseball fan, as I am, you will learn a lot about the game from this book. Oh, and I bet you will learn something you never would have guessed about someone seen as a great American hero – Charles Lindberg – that might just change the way you think of him.

However, I’m not giving this book away. My grandson, whose given name is Gehrig and who is a terrific baseball player, will be getting my copy. I think he will love it.

The YA book I’m reviewing is Guy Langman, Crime Scene Procrastinator. The book opens at the funeral of Guy’s father. Guy and his father were very, very close and this is a terribly sad time for Guy. So how is it, you might ask, that one would be laughing out loud before the short chapter is over? I don’t know, but the author, Josh Berk, is flat funny. You know, one of those people who know how to put the fun back in funeral.

Guy, who happens to be Jewish, is talked into joining the after school forensics club by his best friend, Anoop, who is of East Indian descent (and breaks any stereotypes people might have about that) so Guy can meet the girl of his dreams. I love quirky side-kick characters, and Anoop is the best I’ve read in a long time. (The best side-kick character is from another hysterically funny YA – the character of Victoria in Robin Benway’s laugh-out-loud Audrey, Wait! If you haven’t read that, do!) Anyway, back to Guy Langman. Guy is left with very little from his father – some advice and three gold coins. Guy tries to work through his grief by writing a book about his father and his witty advice. He and Anoop also keep busy with the forensics club and girls. When the three gold coins are stolen from Guy’s house, the club decides to solve the crime. The club also gets involved in a forensics competition and finds a dead body, another crime they think they can solve. Now things really get interesting.

Josh Berk

This book is convoluted and complex and, did I mention, FUNNY? I not only highly recommend it, but I am going to offer my gently-read copy to one of my lucky readers. Just leave a comment at the end of this post. If you tweet the link to this post or post it on Facebook or put the link in your blog, let me know, and I will give you an extra entry.

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.