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I used Random.org and the winners are...
Julie
Michele
Shawnee
Congrats!! You've all won a copy of UNDERCOVER by Beth Kephart. Once I get the addresses I'll be sending these out this week. Thanks again for participating and happy reading :-)
Bloggy Giveaways is hosting their quarterly giveaway carnival this week! There are already over 700 entries of fabulous prizes to win!
I'll be giving away FOUR (4) copies of the delightful young adult novel, UNDERCOVER, by National Book Award Nominee, Beth Kephart. To enter just leave me a comment by 5 PM (eastern) on Sunday April 27th (continental US residents only please). I'll draw the winners later that evening.
Here is the book's description:
Like a modern-day Cyrano de Bergerac, Elisa ghostwrites love notes for the boys in her school. But when Elisa falls for Theo Moses, things change fast. Theo asks for verses to court the lovely Lila—a girl known for her beauty, her popularity, and a cutting ability to remind Elisa that she has none of these. At home, Elisa's father, the one person she feels understands her, has left on an extended business trip. As the days grow shorter, Elisa worries that the increasingly urgent letters she sends her father won't bring him home. Like the undercover agent she feels she has become, Elisa retreats to a pond in the woods, where her talent for ice-skating gives her the confidence to come out from under cover and take center stage. But when Lila becomes jealous of Theo's friendship with Elisa, her revenge nearly destroys Elisa's ice-skating dreams and her plan to reunite her family.
I recently had the pleasure of reading UNDERCOVER. I'll admit that it had been quite a few years since I read a young adult novel, but I was instantly drawn into the characters through Elisa's eyes. I loved the way Elisa relates people (herself included) to nature. But even she realizes that human nature is more complex than that. The story is beautifully written and any adult or teen would certainly find it compelling. Mother-Daughter book clubs (both formal and informal) are growing in popularity and UNDERCOVER would be an excellent selection to experience together.
Beth Kephart was kind enough to answer a few interview questions regarding UNDERCOVER and her writing process:
What made you decide to try your hand at writing a young adult novel and how did this writing process differ from your previous work?
I find that every book has multiple beginnings. Having taught young writers for several years and having chaired the National Book Awards’ Young People’s Literature Award in 2001, I had a pretty good sense for what I felt worked in books for a certain segment of younger readers and for what seemed to be missing. But I’d been writing memoirs and was in the midst of writing a history/poetry book about a river when Laura Geringer of HarperCollins sent me a very beautiful letter asking if I’d consider writing a novel for young adults. I didn’t think I had what it took, but I loved Laura and her sensibility. Over the course of a year we’d talk by phone, and then one weekend she came to Philadelphia with her husband for a conference and took time out to meet me.
It was our conversation over breakfast that day that finally set UNDERCOVER in motion, for Laura asked a lot of questions about my own adolescence. I’d been an aspiring teen poet, I told her. I’d been a behind-the-scenes person. I had learned to skate on a pond and then took lessons and began to compete, particularly in interpretive free skating competitions. My dad was away a lot and I missed him. I often thought of myself as being invisible, unseen.
Something just happened. Something clicked. And on the train home that day I wrote the first ten pages of what became UNDERCOVER. Elisa has her antecedents in my own life, therefore. She sprung to life because of Laura’s questions. And she likely wouldn’t exist if I hadn’t written memoirs for adults that Laura had somehow found her way towards.
Elisa is such a beautiful character. I really enjoyed her ability to relate the people she encounters to nature; yet later she realizes they are even more complex than that. If you could picture her 15 years older, what would her life look like?
I’m so glad you liked Elisa, and I thank you for saying that you did. I wasn’t her—the beauty of fiction is that one transports the facts, idealizes them—but I understand her, I have lived, I often still live, within the range of her emotions. I know, therefore, who she grows up to be. At 30, she’s still in awe of nature. She’s still eager to find the right words to name feelings and things. She has built a life for herself, even a small reputation, but still there are times when she fights against a nagging sense of not being entirely seen. I’m not sure Elisa will ever entirely escape that feeling.
I found the “Book of Words” to be an intriguing concept and a great tool for writers of all ages and genres. Did you include this from personal experience?
I began my own book of words when I was in my twenties. I’d started a business at the age of 25—ghostwriting, copywriting, strategic and tactical marketing for architects and engineers—and I needed to expand my vocabulary. I needed to get porticos, cornices, all of that straight in my head. So the book of words began as a book of architectural terms and phrases, but it soon began to hold quotes and descriptions and adjectives from almost anything that I was reading. It’s still here. I still add to it. It’s gray and battered, with a light blue spine.
Can we expect more young adult novels from you in the future, or is your writing taking you in a different direction?
My second novel for young adults, HOUSE OF DANCE, is due out in May of this year. This is a story of a 15 year old named Rosie, who is taking care of a dying grandfather during a summer in which her single mother has, in many ways, disappeared. Rosie seeks to give her grandfather one final gift, and this gift involves color, light, dance—the elements that will, she begins to understand, evoke his sweetest memories. I’m a ballroom dancer myself, and I’m excited about this book. Very.
Next May there will be a third, called NOTHING BUT GHOSTS, which is a romance and a mystery that takes place on the site of a reclusive gardener’s estate. The following May there will be a fourth, THE HEART IS NOT A SIZE, which concerns a mission trip that teens take to a squatter’s village in Mexico.
I’ve written a picture book for children, which is in the works. At the moment, I’m at work on an historical novel. Most of the time, though, I run a business with my husband, which still involves the ghosting and communications work that I began years ago. My husband is a designer. I continue to do the strategic work, the research, and the writing.
Every baby needs to have a nice warm blanket to be wrapped in!
Unfortunately this isn't the case in poverty-stricken countries like Ethiopia. So Mary at Owlhaven is doing something about it! She is sponsoring a baby blanket fundraiser. You can check out the details here.
The blankets cost just $5 or less. Surely we can all donate at least $5 (give up one latte, pass on the Big Mac combo, etc.) so that a newborn baby can be wrapped in love and comfort. Right?!?
Here is my plan: I'll be donating to purchase one blanket on behalf of each of my children. And...since my kids are home due to the snow I decided this would be a good opportunity to teach them to be charitable. I've explained the fundraiser to my older kids and they've agreed to do extra chores today to earn money to make a blanket donation (ahhh...this warms my heart just as I know the blanket will warm the baby!). Check out Owlhaven throughout the day to get updates on the Great Blanket Party!
I have a lot of new plans for this blog all set and ready to go for 2008. The new content includes:
-book reviews
-organization tips
-parenting advice
-suggestions for making time for yourself and others
-ideas for being charitable
-ways to live a faith-filled life
-Featured Resource Friday
Stay tuned....the new blogging format starts today :-)
Shannon at Rocks In My Dryer is doing it again! Remember the Dog Days of Summer Giveaway with over 500 giveaways?!?! Well now it's time for the fall version!!! She's hosting this carnival on her bloggygiveaways.com blog.
As far as my giveaway...I'll picking three lucky winners to each receive a $5 Starbucks giftcard! The last time I gave away Starbucks giftcards because I had them but didn't think I'd want them since I didnn't drink coffee. But...since hundreds of you raved about Starbucks when you entered my giveaway I thought I better check it out. Now...I'm an official addict, making a Starbucks run at least a few times a week! (of course it is oh-so convenient when there's one in my grocery store :-)
So if you'd like to please your tastebuds with Starbucks just simply leave me a comment on this post this week (only enter once please). The comments close Friday, Nov 2nd at 10 PM. I'll randomly draw the winners and annouce them here Saturday morning. When leaving a comment make sure you have included your e-mail address or linked to your blog if you have once so I can contact you!
Check out the rest of the Fall, Y'all Bloggy Giveaways to enter to win what is sure to be hundreds of great giveaways!
ETA: and the winners are...Tabitha at 123Pizza's, Michelle at Heart of the Prairie, and Mom Chatter! Congrats to our winners! I'll be sending these out in a few days :-) Thanks to Shannon at BloggyGiveaways for hosting this fun carnival!
Well, it's official! I used random. org to randomly pick 20 numbers of the 274 comments/entries I received. Then I wrote those down, threw them in a hat and had my kids pick three (I think that's about as random as you can get)!.
The winners are:
Jean at Working Momma 247
Dawn at Snakes and Snails and Sugar and Spice
Crystal Broyles
Congrats to the winners! This was a lot of fun and I'll definitely be doing this again. Thanks to Shannon at Rocks in My Dryer for coming up with the idea and hosting the giveaway carnival!
Oh, and just a little update...since so many of you raved about Starbucks in your comments I thought maybe I should give it another try. I got a raspberry mocha something or another when I picked up the other two gift cards and it wasn't half bad ;-)
Shannon at Rocks in My Dryer came up with the grand idea of hosting a blog giveaway carnival!
So I'll be giving away a $5 Starbucks gift card to one lucky winner. Why do I have this gift card? Well someone gave it to me knowing that I'm a writer and you'd think I would have marched right over to the nearest starbucks to start sipping away on something hot and foamy. The thing is...I don't really drink coffee and therefore have only been to Starbucks once (I can hear you gasping "what!?!" through my computer)!
So if you want to enter my drawing for the $5 gift card simply leave a comment on this blog post. On Friday I will randomly draw the winner from all commenters on this post.
This Dog Days of Summer Bloggy Giveaway carnival will be going on all week. So be sure to check out Rocks in My Dryer for other chances to win fun free stuff (it looks like there will be well over 200 giveaways)!
******UPDATE-well with so many people in NEED of Starbucks coffe how could I give away just one $5 gift card? So on Friday I'll pick THREE winners of a $5 Starbucks gift card. The winners will be drawn Friday at 10:00 am est********
So here I am, hopping on the the blogging bandwagon. I have been blogging on a few other sites for about 10 months now, but this is my first personal blog. It's mine, all mine, and I love that! But does the blogsphere really need another parenting blog? Well, as a writer I've learned that you can never have too much helpful information. So that's why I'm blogging. Parenting, more specifically mothering, can be so daunting and just about the time you feel you've got things figured out then your kids pull something tricky like growing and starting a new phase. We can all benefit from sharing information to become better mothers.
Why the title "Managing the MotherLoad" and what does "helping moms manage the important aspects of life" mean? The moms this blog targets are those who have many "loads" to manage. We play a primary role in helping these little people entrusted to us reach their full potential and grow into beautiful adult human beings. We are responsible for most, if not all, of the domestic duties at home. We strive for a sense of balance in our lives and at times struggle with putting our needs (especially sleep) last. We are trying to stay connected to friends, family, our spouse, and even other aspects of our own identity. We are charitable women who give of our time and talents to help others. We are faith-filled women. We understand that everything we have is a gift from God and we are committed to making the most of these gifts and sharing this responsibility with our children. These are some of the aspects of motherhood I find most important and what "Managing the MotherLoad" is all about.
Now just a few words about my blogroll. The majority of the blogs listed are like-minded blogs, but not all. You will find a few listed where I don't have a lot in common with the blogger as far as parenting style or philosophy, but I admire their commitment. For the most part they don't do things the way I do them, but what they do, they do well. I can respect our differences and reading these blogs helps me grow as a mother.
So can the blogsphere really benefit from another parenting blog? I think so, and I know I'll benefit from having one. Thanks for reading!
