Books, writers & writing

Saturday was an interesting day, and now I get to relive a little of it with you.

Just before noon my husband and I treated his mom to an early Mother’s Day dinner at a restaurant we all like. Sunday would be busy so this was pleasant for all of us.

In response to my invitation to the 2:00 book launch of Laura Best‘s newest middle grade novel, Cammie Takes Flight, we parted company with Mom after dinner and my husband and I set off on the hour-or-so drive to the community hall hosting the event. Laura has tremendous support in her community, so, of course, the hall filled up with people before 2:00. She was busy signing MANY copies of her book before and after she read a chapter from it. The representative from her publisher, Nimbus Publishing, was very impressed. He is fairly new with Nimbus and had been warned he had to be well stocked with her books. I know his load was much lighter when he left.

At the launch I was delighted to be able to talk with Syr Ruus whose books I have reviewed: here, here, and here, and Jan Coates whose books I reviewed here, here, here, here and here. There are more to appear on my blog from both of these authors. I reviewed Laura’s first two books here and here, and I later will be reviewing Cammie Takes Flight.

As an introvert, to go to these things took much effort at first, but it’s getting easier as I’m happy for these authors and delighted to go when I can.

My own writing is coming along. Although my revisions are less than what I should have so far – only 2 instead of 5 – I can fix that this month. The really good news is that my new drafts stand at 11! I have to “buckle down” and pick one to focus on and get it presentable for critique. It would be wonderful if I can get a few stories ready for submission.

Yesterday was Mother’s Day. For some reason, this year it was a difficult day for me as I am missing Mum so much lately. I hope you mothers out there had an especially wonderful day. ♥

Do you go to book launches? Do you support authors’ work in other ways?

Thanks for reading, and … Creative Musings! 🙂

We have a winner of Missing Nimama by Melanie Florence!

Thank you to all who visit my blog. I know many more visit than leave comments, but I want you to know I appreciate you all.

We have a winner of Missing Nimama by Melanie Florence!

I was away most of Saturday so it was later than planned when I remembered I was going to draw a name in the early evening. I used random name picker and

with this comment:

This has been an excellent interview. I loved reading about Melanie’s writer’s journey. Her enthusiasm for her work comes through loud and clear. Her advice to just write is sound!

the winner is …

DARLENE!

I will be in touch with you, Darlene, to confirm.

Thank you to Clockwise Press for sending out the book.

To everyone else – even if you didn’t win this time, I’m sure to have more giveaways. Please keep trying!

Thanks for reading, and … Creative Musings! 🙂

Book Review: My LOVE for You is the Sun – by Julie F. Hedlund


Book: My LOVE for You is the Sun
Author: Julie Hedlund
Illustrator: Susan Eaddy
Publisher: Little Bahalia Publishing
Date: September 9, 2014
Genre: children's picture book 
Pages: 24; hardcover
Price: $17.99
My rating: a sweet, sentimental story with remarkable 
illustrations

My LOVE for You is the Sun by Julie Hedlund is a joy to read. Every page is full of sweetness and eye candy. Julie Hedlund‘s words and Susan Eaddy‘s illustrations combine to make this a book to treasure. With Mother’s Day coming up in three days this seemed an appropriate book to review today.

The first thing you’ll notice is the size of the book. It’s produced with the pages wider, which gives the reader a more wide view to enjoy. Next is the cheerful face of the sun and then you see that the illustrations were made from clay.

My LOVE for You is the Sun is written in rhyme. Each beautiful two-page spread has three lines of verse, the first line makes a statement, the next two lines rhyme and expound upon the first. The exception is the last verse which has four lines with the second and fourth rhyming. Example: My love for you is the sun. Rising in your tender heart, It shines on you when we’re apart. From there with each page turn you discover more about what a parent’s (or guardian’s) love is: a tree, a river, the rain, the wind, the snow, the ocean, a star – each bringing comfort and reassurance to the child.

This is a smartly written story. With no extra words, no words missing, the nature setting makes very clear the love for the child.

I have to again mention the illustrations. The detail is amazing! Take a look at the video I’m including and see if this does not further entice you to buy or borrow a copy of My LOVE for You is the Sun.

You can find My LOVE for You is the Sun by Julie Hedlund on my BUY THE BOOK page. I also post my reviews on Amazon.com, Amazon.ca, Goodreads, and sometimes Chapters.Indigo.

Comments are very much appreciated on my book reviews. Is there anything you’d like to say to Julie or Susan about their work on this book? (just in case they stop by)

Thanks for reading, and … Creative Musings! 🙂

Book Review: Eagle of the Sea – by Kristin Bieber Domm


Book: Eagle of the Sea
Author: Kristin Bieber Domm
Illustrator: Jeffrey C. Domm
Publisher: Nimbus Publishing
Date: March 1, 2011
Genre: Children's picture book; age 4 - 8; Preschool - 3 
Pages: 32
Price: $9.95
My rating: An informative story about the bald eagle

On a weekend away with my husband last autumn I purchased this little book in a gift shop. Just look at the sharp eye of the eagle on the cover of Eagle of the Sea written by Kristin Bieber Domm. Her husband, Jeffrey C. Domm is an accomplished illustrator, and his illustrations in this book are fabulous.

Eagle of the Sea is written in first person so the reader is told the eagle’s story from its own experience. The eagle tells what it looks like and how those features are of benefit, where it lives, how it hunts and brings up its young with its mate. Included are many fascinating facts about eagles, such as why it’s called the bald eagle. Many people don’t realize that “bald” is the word for “marked with white.”

Where I live I can see at least one eagle almost every day, often more. In fact, while writing this post I stopped to take my little dog outside for a few minutes. Instead of letting her run loose behind our house as I occasionally do, I felt this time I should keep her on leash. I’m glad I did! While Meyya was snuffling around in the grass, an eagle soared overhead, coming in closer and closer. I’m sure she had an eye on all eight pounds of little Meyya. To the eagle she would be the equivalent of a good-sized rabbit!

In Eagle of the Sea there is information about eagle watches here in Nova Scotia where this amazing bird is protected so that we now have a thriving population of them. They are an awe-inspiring bird, and easily recognized by their call, size, flight habits, and more. Kristin Bieber Domm has included all a young reader will want to know about eagles, and the illustrations by Jeffrey C. Domm are amazingly life-like.

You can find Eagle of the Sea by Kristin Bieber Domm on my BUY THE BOOK page. I also post my reviews on Amazon.com, Amazon.ca, Goodreads, and sometimes Chapters.Indigo.

Please encourage an author – leave a comment.

Thanks for reading, and … Creative Musings! 🙂

A reminder; my writing, & an invitation

Today I’m writing to remind you to put your name into the draw for Melanie Florence’s book, Missing Nimâmâ. Even if you think it would not interest you because of … whatever reason … please enter the draw and in that way be supportive of authors. If you are the winner you have a book to donate to an elementary school library or your local public library. It really is a beautiful book.

Read my review of Missing Nimâmâ.

Read my interview with Melanie Florence and enter the draw.

On another note …

As you know, I joined the 12×12 challenge again this year. (I participated in its initial year – 2012 – and again in 2016.) The challenge is to write a new story draft each month, and do a revision of a draft each month. Amazingly, so far I have kept up with writing new drafts, and, although my revisions have been less than five to date, I should be able to remedy that this month. My problem is that when I sit down to work on a revision of a previously written story I come up with a totally new one! What’s up with that?

As you can see on my main page here, I am a member of Inscribe. This month I accepted the challenge of writing a 500-word story, everything included (title, any scripture used, and so on) using a prompt assigned to me. I have until midnight (actually, it’s 1:00 AM for me but I hope to be sleeping long before that!) of May 12 to send in my submission, and so far I have ideas written down which I have yet to work into a sensible story. This is not for picture books.

Another writing opportunity was offered me which I have been mulling over, but as yet I’m not settled on anything for it. Maybe the time isn’t right yet.

Last weekend I visited a local independent bookstore and met two local authors. It was an all-day event with several authors taking different times of the day to meet with people and chat up books they like. Following that I enjoyed an early lunch with another writer friend, after which we attended an information session put on by WFNS (Writers Federation of Nova Scotia, of which I’m a member). During it I learned that I have absorbed more knowledge than I’d been aware I knew! Most of the information given us I have learned over the past few years, much of it through 12×12 and its extensions. It’s encouraging to realize I’m actually taking it in when I often feel it’s zooming right past me.

On yet another note …

Author Laura Best has a third middle grade novel just released! Cammie Takes Flight. I was excited to recently receive an invitation to her May 13 book launch which I hope to be able to attend. I appreciate paper invitations – helps me remember better in my jumbled up life. 🙂 Of course, you know this means another book review coming up eventually. (I have several books in queue now to be read and reviewed.)

That’s it for this time. I’ll leave you with these words by Stephen King, “If you want to be a writer you must do two things above all others: read a lot and write a lot.”

What have you read lately? And/or what writing project are you working on?

Thanks for reading, and … Creative Musings! 🙂

Book Review: Normal Norman – by Tara Lazar

Book: Normal Norman
Author: Tara Lazar
Illustrator: S.britt
Publisher: Sterling Children's Books
Genre: children's picture book; age 4 & up; Preschool & up 
Date: March 1, 2016
Pages: 40
Price: $14.95
My rating: Funny with lots of encouragement to love 
your differences

Normal Norman by Tara Lazar is a book about defining the word normal, and in a very funny way.

The narrator of this story is a junior scientist who is narrating for the first time. She wants it to go well, so she introduces Norman. Norman is an orangutan, an average, ordinary, common creature – or so she thinks.

The junior scientist measures him and finds he is normal in size. Then she discovers Norman eating a snack, but he doesn’t eat bananas, he’s eating pizza. When she peels a banana for him he freaks out! He thinks it’s cruel! It gets more and more abnormal from there.

This is a funny story. Children will love that Norman is a purple orangutan who wears eyeglasses, which should have been the first clues to the narrator that Norman is far from being a normal orangutan. Norman also doesn’t want to sleep in a pile of leaves and branches like orangutans do, and he has a favourite stuffed toy.

The junior scientist narrator is distraught. Nothing is going as planned. Then Norman has an idea.

Children will love Tara Lazar‘s ending for Normal Norman. It’s funny and unexpected. The illustrations by S. Britt are fun and fabulous, making Norman a memorable character.

You can find Normal Norman by Tara Lazar on my BUY THE BOOK page. I also post my reviews on Amazon.com, Amazon.ca, Goodreads, and sometimes Chapters.Indigo.

Would you like to leave a comment for me, or for the author and/or illustrator?

Thanks for reading, and … Creative Musings! 🙂

Book Review: The King of Keji – by Jan L. Coates


Book: The King of Keji
Author: Jan L. Coates
Illustrator: Patsy MacKinnon
Publisher: Nimbus Publishing Ltd.
Date: September 1, 2015
Genre: children's picture book; age 5 - 8;  K - 3
Pages: 32
Price: $12.95
My rating: lovely story of discovering treasures hidden 
in plain sight

The King of Keji by Jan L. Coates is another book I purchased at the children’s book fair in 2016. Personal note: When Nova Scotia’s Kejimkujik National Park was in its early development stage my dad was one of the skilled workers on site making that happen. I was a young girl then and one weekend my mother, sister, and I went along and stayed overnight with Dad in one of the cabins a short but safe distance from the construction.

In The King of Keji we meet Jacob, a young boy who is tired of being second to his older brother. His brother is always king of the castle which makes Jacob the dirty rascal – a nursery rhyme game – so his grandfather teaches Jacob about being a king in nature. Gramps takes Jacob to Kejimkujik National Part for a weekend of camping, hiking, and searching for hidden treasure. Hidden treasure is different from buried treasure, so Jacob learns to look for the things hidden in plain sight, things he would otherwise easily overlook.

They discuss what treasures a king would have and thought of a sceptre, antiques, turquoise, diamonds, jade, emeralds, and several more. Jacob finds a long piece of driftwood that works well as a sceptre and they set out. While hiking, Gramps takes pictures of the things they find. Some of the treasures were the emerald-green leaves of an ancient hemlock tree, the diamond sparkle of the lake, the jade colour of frogs sitting on moss-covered rocks, and the gold and ruby colours of the sunset that night. Jacob feels like a king with all that treasure – even though they took nothing away with them except pictures – and learns how to be more observant and respectful of his surroundings.

The King of Keji is a story very well told, full of description and the allurement of a nature hike in one of Nova Scotia’s beautiful provincial parks. The illustrations by Patsy MacKinnon are full of nature’s colours. The reader gets to appreciate the variety found in Keji park from the huge trees along the hiking trails, to the animals that live there and in the salt marsh, to the glorious sky as the sun is setting.

The King of Keji by Jan L. Coates encourages readers to be more aware of what’s around them in nature, and to appreciate the treasures already provided for us.

You can find The King of Keji by Jan L. Coates on my BUY THE BOOK page. I also post my reviews on Amazon.com, Amazon.ca, Goodreads, and sometimes Chapters.Indigo.

Thank you for reading, and … Creative Musings! 🙂