Book Blog Tour Stop - Friendship Bread by Darien Gee

I'm thrilled to be hosting a book blog tour stop today for the fabulous new book, "Friendship Bread" by Darien Gee.

About Friendship Bread:

It’s more than just a recipe—it’s a way of life.

For fans of Kristin Hannah and Kate Jacobs, Darien Gee’s deeply felt and utterly charming novel follows two estranged sisters, three newfound friends, and—ultimately—a whole town brought together by a simple loaf of Amish Friendship Bread.

In Avalon, Illinois, a woman and her young daughter return home to find a plate of Amish Friendship Bread along with a bag of starter on their doorstep. There’s no note, just a yellow sticky with the words, “I hope you enjoy it.” The instructions tell them to feed the starter over a ten-day period, then bake two loaves and share the remaining starter with three other people.

At the insistence of her five-year old daughter, Julia Evarts reluctantly follows the instructions. Soon, the bread and its starter are making their way through the town of Avalon, touching the lives of its residents in ways both comical and unexpected. Julia befriends Madeline Davis, 74, owner and proprietor of Madeline’s Tea Salon and Antiques who harbors a secret of her own, and Hannah de Brisay, 28, a concert cellist who relocates to Avalon after the premature end of her career and marriage.

Julia’s sister, Livvy, is struggling with her own loneliness as she and her husband, Tom, try for a child of their own. Julia’s husband, Mark, is tired of the sadness that seems to have taken over their lives for the past five years. As the town of Avalon becomes overrun with the Amish Friendship Bread starter, a kernel of a story presents itself and activist and reporter Edie is quick to jump on it, even if it means pointing a finger at Julia as the instigator and dividing the small community that they live in.

When a neighboring town is devastated by high floods, Julia and her friends supply loaves of the bread to the residents and volunteers. As word spreads, so does help. Soon the entire town of Avalon is doing their part to aid their neighbors in need as they put their differences aside. Friendship Bread is a captivating, engaging novel about life and loss, friendship and community, and what endures even when the unthinkable happens.

From the adorable cover to the charming story inside, I thoroughly enjoyed "Friendship Bread."  Although I have never personally baked a loaf of this legendary bread, I've heard about it for years, and through this lively, fast-paced story, I almost - almost! - want to try making a batch or two.

Darien Gee has created a wonderful cast of characters (and there are quite a few) to populate this story, and she creatively includes a bit of romance, a bit of mystery (where did that first starter come from?) and a lesson or two about the value of frienship in her tale that will delight  readers and is sure to have them clamoring for more!

Perfect for Mother's Day, birthdays, or "just because I love you friend" days!

About Darien Gee:

Darien Gee lives with her husband and three children

in Hawaii. She is the bestselling author of three previous novels (Good Things, Sweet Life and Table Manners) written under the name Mia King. You can visit Darien Gee’s website at http://www.friendshipbreadkitchen.com/. And check out the Friendship Bread Kitchen Facebook fan page.

My thanks to Cheryl C. Malandrinos with Pump Up Your Book Promotion for incuding me on this tour and for providing a review copy of the book. I was not compensated for my opinion.

Book Blog Tour Stop - Diana Gabaldon, author of "Outlander"

Today I'm pleased to host a book blog tour stop for legendary author, Diana Gabaldon, creator of the beloved "Outlander" series.

About The Book:

Claire Randall is leading a double life. She has a husband in one century, and a lover in another.

In 1945, Claire Randall, a former combat nurse, is back from the war and reunited with her husband on a second honeymoon–when she innocently touches a boulder in one of the ancient stone circles that dot the British Isles. Suddenly she is a Sassenach—an “outlander”—in a Scotland torn by war and raiding border clans in the year of our Lord…1743. Hurled back in time by forces she cannot understand, Claire’s destiny in soon inextricably intertwined with Clan MacKenzie and the forbidden Castle Leoch.

She is catapulted without warning into the intrigues of lairds and spies that may threaten her life …and shatter her heart. For here, James Fraser, a gallant young Scots warrior, shows her a passion so fierce and a love so absolute that Claire becomes a woman torn between fidelity and desire…and between two vastly different men in two irreconcilable lives.

My Thoughts:

I remember reading "Outlander" when it was first released in 1991 and being amazed at how thrilling the story was. And a revisit to this classic story reveals that it is still one of the most incredible novels I've read in my lifetime of reading.

Gabaldon combines romance, adventure, para-normal, fantasy and history together for a tale that has proven to be timeless in it's appeal to readers.

Congratulations to Diana on the 20th anniversary of the release of "Outlander."  May you continue to have success with your fabulous books for another 20 years or more!


About The Author:

:

Diana Gabaldon is the author of the award-winning, #1 NYT-bestselling OUTLANDER novels, described by Salon magazine as “the smartest historical sci-fi adventure-romance story ever written by a science Ph.D. with a background in scripting “Scrooge McDuck” comics.”

The adventure began in 1991 with the classic OUTLANDER (“historical fiction with a Moebius twist”), has continued through six more New York Times-bestselling novels–DRAGONFLY IN AMBER, VOYAGER, DRUMS OF AUTUMN, THE FIERY CROSS, A BREATH OF SNOW AND ASHES, and AN ECHO IN THE BONE, with nineteen million copies in print worldwide

The series is published in 26 countries and 23 languages, and includes a nonfiction (well, relatively) companion volume, THE OUTLANDISH COMPANION, which provides details on the settings, background, characters, research, and writing of the novels.   Gabaldon (it’s pronounced “GAA-bull-dohn”—rhymes with “stone”) has also written several books in a sub-series featuring Lord John Grey (a major minor character from the main series): LORD JOHN AND THE PRIVATE MATTER,  LORD JOHN AND THE BROTHERHOOD OF THE BLADE,  and LORD JOHN AND THE HAND OF DEVILS.   Another Lord John book, LORD JOHN AND THE SCOTTISH PRISONER, will probably be published in 2011).

Returning to her comic-book roots, she has also written a graphic novel titled THE EXILE (set within the OUTLANDER universe and featuring the main characters from OUTLANDER), but told from the viewpoint of Jamie Fraser and his godfather, Murtagh.   The graphic novel is illustrated by Hoang Nguyen, published by Del-Rey.

Gabaldon is presently working on the third Lord John novel (LORD JOHN AND THE SCOTTISH PRISONER), and  the eighth book in the OUTLANDER series.  In addition, she is working on a contemporary mystery series, set in Phoenix, and has written Highly Scholarly Introductions (with masses of footnotes) to recent Modern Library editions of Sir Walter Scott’s IVANHOE and Thomas Paine’s COMMON SENSE.

Dr. Gabaldon holds three degrees in science: Zoology, Marine Biology, and Quantitative Behavioral Ecology, (plus an honorary degree as Doctor of Humane Letters, which entitles her to be “Diana Gabaldon, Ph.D., D.H.L.”  She supposes this is better than “Diana Gabaldon, Phd.X,”) and spent a dozen years as a university professor with an expertise in scientific computation before beginning to write fiction.  She has written scientific articles and textbooks, worked as a contributing editor on the MacMillan ENCYCLOPEDIA OF COMPUTERS, founded the scientific-computation journal SCIENCE SOFTWARE QUARTERLY, and has written numerous comic-book scripts for Walt Disney.  None of this has anything whatever to do with her novels, but there it is.

She and her husband, Douglas Watkins, have three adult children and live mostly in Scottsdale, Arizona.

You can visit Diana online at http://www.dianagabaldon.com/

My thanks to Pump Up Your Book Promotion for including me on this book blog tour. I received a copy of "Outlander" for review and was not compensated for my opinion.

Book Blog Tour Stop - The Secret Life of Emily Dickinson by Jerome Charyn

Today I'm honored to be hosting a book blog tour stop for the book, "The Secret Life of Emily Dickinson" by Jerome Charyn.

About The Book:
(From Goodreads.com)

An astonishing novel that removes Emily Dickinson’s own mysterious mask and reveals the passions and heartbreak of America’s greatest poet.

What if the old maid of Amherst wasn’t an old maid at all? Her older brother, Austin, spoke of Emily as his “wild sister.”

Jerome Charyn, continuing his exploration of American history through fiction, has written a startling novel about Emily Dickinson in her own voice, with all its characteristic modulations that he learned from her letters and poems. The poet dons a hundred veils, alternately playing wounded lover, penitent, and female devil.

We meet the significant characters of her life, including her tempestuous sister-in-law, Susan Gilbert; her brooding father, Edward; and the Reverend Charles Wadsworth, who may have inspired some of her greatest letters and poems.

Charyn has also invented characters, including an impoverished fellow student at Mount Holyoke Female Seminary, who will betray her; and a handyman named Tom, who will obsess Emily throughout her life.

Charyn has written an extraordinary adventure that will disturb and delight.

My Thoughts:

I was pleasantly surprised at how intriguing "The Secret Life of Emily Dickinson" turned out to be!  Author Jermone Charyn presents his views of Emily through a series of what I considered to be short, but entralling short stories, with each chapter allowing the reader to peer into a small portion of what Emily's life might have been like, with each chapter blending into the next with seamless precision.

Charyn's Emily is no shrinking violet!  I enjoyed how he has portrayed her as a fiesty, independent woman who seem to struggle with her sexuality, her fasciantion with men, and her deep-down desire to be loved and cherished. The reader can feel the heartache Emily must have experienced as she became resolved to how her life was to be confined due to her father's reluctance to let her blossom. But Emily found her release in using her imagination and creativity to take her where she longed to go, and thank goodness for that, or the world would not have the beautiful, haunting poetry that she left as her legacy.

My father adored poetry, and I grew up listening to him recite from some of his favorites which include, in our home, the two "Edgars" - Edgar Guest and Edgar Allan Poe (a distant relative).  I had my own favorite poets - Lord Byran, Elizabeth Barrett Browning, all the "romantics" - and have even dabbled in writing a bit of poetry myself through the years.

But I'm sad to admit I had never really read much of Emily Dickinson's body of work until I was asked to participate in this blog tour.  I will be making up for this sad absence of knowledge after reading this fascinating novelization of Dickinson's life. "The Secret Life of Emily Dickinson" is a mature, entralling novel. I highly recommend it.

About the Author:

JEROME CHARYN is an award-winning American author. With nearly 50 published works, Charyn has earned a long-standing reputation as an inventive and prolific chronicler of real and imagined American life. Michael Chabon calls him “one of the most important writers in American literature.”

Charyn has been a finalist for the PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction. He received the Rosenthal Award from the American Academy of Arts and Letters and has been named Commander of Arts and Letters by the French Minister of Culture.

Check out his website at http://www.jeromecharyn.com/ for more information on his books and upcoming projects.

My thanks to Tribute Books for including me on this blog tour, and for supplying the review copy of this book.  I was not compensated for my opinions.
 

CHALLENGE FULFILLMENT: 100+ Books Where Are You Reading?

Book Blog Tour- Making Light of Being Heavy by Kandy Siahaya

Today, I am hosting a book blog tour stop for Kandy Siahaya, author of "Making Light Of Being Heavy."

This is a fascinating book about one woman's perspective of being overweight and how she has personally decided to face the challenges of this condition. A quick and entertaining read, anyone who has struggled with weight issues will find Kandy's book to be light-hearted as well as informative.

About Making Light of Being Heavy:

These days everyone has a society-driven mindset and totally forget to laugh, especially at themselves. This may be cliche but the author truly believes that laughter is the best medicine and thinks everybody should laugh every day. Period.

Over the years as a person blessed with the fat gene, Kandy Siahaya has been in many situations where if she could not find humor she probably would end up on the couch in the psychiatrist s office. This book is about as politically incorrect as it gets for such a subject but it is also based on reality. This is a reality that many women have just like Kandy but do not think they can (or should) at times just laugh about it.

Her intention when she started writing this book was to hopefully give insight to many who could never relate but at the same time perhaps provide a different perspective to women just like her. It is a point of view that has given her the strength to live her life happily and project these feelings onto everyone she comes in contact with. She has a great sense of humor and a quick wit and guarantees you will be laughing (and thinking) with each chapter of "Making Light of Being Heavy."

Book Excerpt:

How about that Cabbage Soup diet? Yuck. That is the kind of diet you try to get all the people in your office to try at the same time so the residual side effects (make sure your desk is near the restroom) can never be blamed on one specific person.

I personally liked the Richard Simmons diet because it seemed pretty easy and you could eat whatever but you had to account for everything you ate with these demonstrative food cards. I would start out the day with a certain amount of cards allowed for the day that represented fats, dairy, starch, protein, etc. and would just move them from one side of my Deal-a-Meal folder to the other side as they were used up in the course of the day. This was like a built in food diary and was quite handy. Unfortunately, I usually didn’t make it past 11:00 a.m. on most days without all the cards being used up which meant technically I couldn’t eat any more for the rest of the day. I wasn’t expecting a McDonald’s Sausage Biscuit with Egg and Cheese and large coffee with extra cream and sugar to use up so many cards…

About the Author:

Kandy Siahaya was raised in a small town in Maine where she graduated from high school in 1984.  She worked her way up from her first job as CSW to Manager of Kentucky Fried Chicken and ended up in Brunswick, Maine.

When she decided to leave the fried chicken business at age 22, she packed up her little Chevy Chevette and moved to Florida, where she worked as a waitress and had a great time as a single girl in her 20’s.  Reality hit when she was 25 years old and she went back to Maine and received her Associate’s Degree at Beal College and promptly moved back to Florida and started a career in medical transcription.

In 1995 at age 29, she moved to Miami, Florida, and continued with transcription starting her own business.  In 2002, Kandy left Florida and moved back to Maine with her 5-year-old son and continued medical transcription but had an unexpected decline in work which left her with a lot of time on her hands.  This is when she decided to write the book, something she had been thinking about for a few years but never had the time because she was always so busy with her business.  It was meant to be a quick and funny read, something to brighten the outlook of many that really do not see the light through their own tunnel vision.  It was also intended to be insightful for those that could never possibly relate to this specific subject.  Kandy has succeeded in doing just that with "Making Light of Being Heavy."

For more information on Kandy and her book visit http://www.makinglightofbeingheavy.com

My thanks to Pump Up Your Book Promotions for the review copy of this book. I was not compensated for my opinion.