I am participating in a LOVELY Spring Blog Hop hosted by My Book Self. Win a book here! Check out the details of what I am giving away and how you can enter here! (It’s pretty exciting!!!!) *This is a sticky post and will remain at the top of Book Journey through April 12th when a winner is chosen.
Category: Book Giveaways
The Longest Ride Movie and SWEET Giveaway Package
About the Film
Based on the bestselling novel by master storyteller Nicholas Sparks, THE LONGEST RIDE centers on the star-crossed love affair between Luke, a former champion bull rider looking to make a comeback, and Sophia, a college student who is about to embark upon her dream job in New York City’s art world. As conflicting paths and ideals test their relationship, Sophia and Luke make an unexpected connection with Ira, whose memories of his own decades-long romance with his beloved wife deeply inspire the young couple. Spanning generations and two intertwining love stories, THE LONGEST RIDE explores the challenges and infinite rewards of enduring love.
Starring: Britt Robertson, Scott Eastwood, Jack Huston, Oona Chaplin, and Alan Alda
Directed by: George Tillman, Jr.
Anyone else getting excited about this movie? I sure am! I have always enjoyed movies that originate from books! Here is the trailer:
Thanks to Twentieth Century Fox I am able to give away one sweet package:
One (1) winner receives:
- $25 Visa gift card to see the film in theaters
- Tote Bag
- Copy of the book (movie tie-in book cover)
(I am LOVING that cool tote bag!)
You can enter this giveaway by:
1 entry: Leave a comment letting me know what your favorite Nicholas Sparks book (or movie!) is and why.
2nd entry: Tweet about this giveaway by copying and pasting the following into Twitter:
Enter to Win The Longest Ride movie gift card and gift package! http://wp.me/pdoWq-8C9 @bookjourney #LongestRide
Winner will be chosen using random.org and announced here on Friday April 3rd.
Official Websites
Like The Longest Ride on Facebook
Follow on Twitter, Google+, Instagram
Subscribe on YouTube
Visit the Official Website
#LongestRide
Morning Meanderings…. The Best Of Me Film Release (Giveaway)
Good morning. *sips coffee*
How you doing?
It is a hazy day here in central Minnesota. I am sitting at my kitchen table, sipping coffee, and contemplating life. I know I know… thems loaded words 😉
Anyhoo…
The Book The Best Of My by Nicholas Sparks has been made into a movie! I love that! Here is the trailer:
The Best of Me – In Theaters October 17
Watch the Trailer | Facebook | Instagram | Tumblr | Twitter | #TheBestOfMe
Based on the bestselling novel by acclaimed author Nicholas Sparks, The Best of Me tells the story of Dawson and Amanda, two former high school sweethearts who find themselves reunited after 20 years apart, when they return to their small town for the funeral of a beloved friend. Their bittersweet reunion reignites the love they’ve never forgotten, but soon they discover the forces that drove them apart twenty years ago live on, posing even more serious threats today. Spanning decades, this epic love story captures the enduring power of our first true love, and the wrenching choices we face when confronted with elusive second chances.
Also…
Want Nicholas Sparks to join your Book Club?
Calling all book clubs! You and your club could win a visit from a professional moderator & special guest appearance from Nicholas Sparks via Skype. All you have to do is tweet a question you’d like answered using #BestOfMeBookSweeps!
Two commenters on this post will win a copy of the movie tie in edition of the book!
Tell me… have you read Nicholas Sparks? Have you read this book? Do you have a favorite of his books? If you have not read him, would you like to?
Courtesy of Relativity Media
Open to US mailing addresses only
Morning Meanderings… SQQQQUUEEEE Package In The Mail!
Mmmmmmmm coffee.
It was a long stormy night here. By the time I went to bed the wind was picking up and a lot of thunder and lightning. With temps in the 90’s and the high humidity as well it had been said that we could get winds up to 70 miles per hour in this storm which yes… is a bit concerning. I sat up in bed and watched out the window for a while worried about my trees, deck furniture, the wild rabbits….
alas, sleep won over.
This morning, things look good.
There are a few branches around but all is well. I walked out and checked my crazy apple tree too; the one I have propped up with stakes to help its heavy branches and it is fine.
*whew*
In other news…. don’t you love receiving packages in the mail? I love it! Books thrill me…. every time. It never gets old! And the occasional package shipped from a friend or a fellow book lover is another level of exciting! These are a little more personal because they are planning something just for the receiver.
I had signed up for The Book Monsters Christmas In July for just this reason. I was given my swap partner which was Tula at Primary School Library Diva, we exchanged a wish list and a little bit about ourselves. SO FUN!
My package arrived yesterday…
Fun right? YAY!!! The Rowell book is one from my wish list! SUPER exciting stuff! A fun magazine, Skittles, and a cute little card. Thank you Tula! LOVE it!!! I hope you love yours too 🙂
Finally this morning, I hope you seen my post I put up yesterday afternoon about the Page Girls Birthday Week and Giveaway. It is pretty sweet and a fun site to check out. (And to be clear the pic is of my blowing a party horn…. lol… there has been some confusion about what is in my mouth or in front of my face. ) 😀
Have a super Tuesday!
Page Girl’s Birthday Week Celebration and Giveaway!!!!
Life has been hard here lately, I am not going to lie. So when Cecily from The Page Girls asked if I wanted to be part of their launch celebration I jumped at the chance to be part of the fun.
I like fun.
The Page Girls is a lit magazine with themed weekly issues with short stories, book reviews, essays, videos, cocktail recipes, and more. (Which one of these topics catches your attention? 😉 )
This week – as their official kick off they are having daily giveaways, fun discussions, and more!
As part of this weeks celebration they allowed me to join in on the giveaways! I will be giving away an E-Book copy of Here For The Cake and a set of these super cute coasters 🙂
SQQQQUUUEEEE right? and the coasters match the book cover so how sweet is that?
To enter this giveaway please pop over to The Page Girls and look at their site. Come back here and leave a comment on something you seen or liked on their page. 🙂 That is it. I will draw a winner on Saturday morning and send that winner the link to the E Book and the coasters.
Little Mercies by Heather Gudenkauf (Summer Reading and Book Club Worthy!)
Social Worker Ellen Moore is used to seeing the worst side of the human race. It has been her job to protect the children of her community and it is a job she does well while also managing her busy family life with a husband and children of her own.
One blistering hot day while trying to help a family in need, one moment of distraction, one slip while trying to do too much at the sale time, Ellen’s world comes tumbling down around her putting her on the other side of her world in the craziest of ways. Suddenly life is speeding by as a blur as events unfold and her careless actions could cause the life of one of her own.
In another story line, ten year old Jenny Briard lives moment to moment. Since her mother disappeared one day she has lived with her abusive father and lives moment to moment wondering where she will be sleeping that night and if there will be food. When Jenny takes to the streets in search of where she believes her mother may have gone, her life becomes entangled with Ellen’s.
Ellen can not explain the appearance of this wayward child who has wormed her way into her life but she does not have time to deal with that in the midst of her own turmoil. Jenny certainly does not want a social worker looking to closely at her and fears being sent back to the man she is trying to escape. What neither Ellen or Jenny knows is that the timing of their encounter is right on time.
I simply adore Heather Gudenkauf’s writing. She writes true feeling life stories that could be anything you would see in your local newspapers. Tragedy. Justice. Truth.
When this book was offered for me to read I was super excited to have a chance to dig into another of these amazing stories. I had no idea that once I opened the book, I was not going to put it down until I closed the last satisfying page. (*note that during this reading there is some awkward making of lunch with one hand while my other held the book open) 😉
Interesting, fast paced, heart pumping action, what unfolds in this story line is truly something you can imagine really happening. Heather Gudenkauf’s Little Mercies grabbed me and made for gush worthy summer reading.
- Print Length: 320 pages
- Publisher: Harlequin MIRA (June 24, 2014)
Book clubs – this book would make for an amazing discussion. Download the Book Club Kit (PDF)
I have a giveaway going for a package of Heather Gudenkauf’s books. Please comment on that post for an entry and receive a bonus entry for commenting on this one as well. I will announce the winner of the package on Friday July 18th.
Post 3000!!! Giveaway and Book Discussion – Does An Online Book Presence Replace Face to Face Book Discussions?
Well holy smokes! This is my 3,000 post. Is that not just crazy? Certainly a monumental post like this can not go by without some sort of hoopla…. you know how I like to celebrate! 🙂
This post actually falls into a spot I was planning to chat about on-line book relationships vs. face to face (ie. Book Clubs. reading groups, book studies…) and I am going to go ahead with it as I think it is a very worthy discussion for our friend, “Post 3000”.
Credit for the idea behind this post goes to Rita of My Home Of Books. She recently wrote a post about book clubs and within her post she asked the question
If you have a solid on line presence with a large network surrounding your book related topics, do you find it necessary to also be in a book club?
This is the question that started me thinking, as I love my online discussions about books but I also love love my face to face book club and I personally would not want to give either up. Them’s fightin’ words.
But… that’s me.
What started me thinking was if an online presence around books can replace that face to face feeling. I personally would hope that it would not need to, but as I have heard from many of you through the years, finding a face to face book group is not always easy to do.
If you are reading book blogs and reading books suggested, or have already read a book that is being discussed, do you then join in the discussion?
I think if you are participating in active commenting on bookish topics you are simulating a “book discussion” and if that is all that is available to you for numerous reasons –
- no book clubs available
- inability to join a group do to work, kids, family, commitments
- existing book club/group never seems to discuss the book
Then certainly – get your book on that way and YAY that you do! There are a smorgasbord of book sites out there for everyone’s tastes and many times you can find your favorite publishing houses on Twitter and FACEBOOK (by all means Friend them – they have great conversations and many times they have giveaways too!)
However…. (and this is where the discussion could get interesting 😉 ) I personally feel that face to face book relationships can stimulate a deeper connection to people and to books. Let me explain:
While it can certainly be AWESOME to discuss a book on-line either gush worthy or “hated it!” It is hard to get the real emotion that went into the read to come out in an online discussion. Sure, I can say a book made me cry – but how does that replace sitting in a room together and hearing my voice crack when I say ” __________________’s break up with __________________ made my sob as though it was happening to me.”
Also, on-line it is hard to keep the conversation flowing at a rate that is satisfying to either party. Sure I (or anyone) can write a review and you can comment. Then at some point later I many read your comment and respond, and sometime later yet you may (or maybe you don’t) come back, see my response and then you comment again. It’s a bumpy conversation.
Obviously I love on-line book conversations or this post 3,000 (echo when you say it – its cool….. 3,000, 3,000, 3,000…) would not be happening. And I love visiting other blogger book sites and chatting books with them too. I also love face to face book encounters and would like to give suggestions of how you can make that happen or find a fit that works for you:
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The one I love the most is join a book club. If you do not know of any, check your local library. They may either know book clubs in the area, or they may be offering them at the library (ours offers children, middle grade, family and adult book clubs). *In the event that you can not find a book club and your library does not know of any groups… start one.
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Look for local author events (check book stores, library, newspaper, look on-line). Listening to an author can be a wonderful experience. I love to get to know the person behind the book. Grab a friend… go go go!!!
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If there is a great read out and you and a couple of people you know have read it, invite them over to discuss it over drinks on the deck, or meet up at a coffee shop or restaurant. It does not have to be a “book club”, but even taking time to talk with others about a book you enjoyed is stimulating conversation.
Please – I would love to hear your thoughts on this subject.
Do you think that on-line book relationships can replace face to face ones?
Do you feel some can effectively do it all – discuss on-line books topics well and face to face encounters too? Should they?
Do you have other suggestions for finding face to face book discussions for people looking?
Is this just a crazy discussion and post #3,000 is a weak attempt to engage people in book chats? 😉
Please share your thoughts – I did mention a giveaway – Leave a relevant comment here on this post between now and Thursday June 26th and I will enter you into a giveaway for a $10 Barnes and Noble or Amazon gift card – winners choice. One entry per comment. If you “Tweet” about this giveaway and post and put the tweet link in a comment space I will give you two additional entries.
(just click the “Tweet” button at the bottom of the post.)
Blogiversary YEAR 5!!! Biggest Giveaway Of The Year!
Holy smokes??? 5 Years! I never thought that when I started this “on-line book journal” (that’s what I thought I was doing in the beginning), that it would take me on this AMAZING adventure ride! This year I would like to list a few things that have changed in my life in the past 5 years mainly due to this little project website I call Book Journey:
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I was asked to write for a local magazine after an editor seen my reviews here
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I learned about the Book Expo in New York by reading other blogs and have just returned from my 5th year attending, representing this blog site.
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I have met the most incredible people through blogs and then in many cases, in person which blows my mind, and they have become great book friends – you all know who you are 😉
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3 years ago I did not have a library card :shock:, but reading other blogs helped me realize that this is an important part of our community and I have since carded up, became President of our local Friends Group and was put on our City Library Board.
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I have participated in World Book Night the past three years
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I have been asked to speak on panels around Minnesota and beyond (most recently at the book expo!) on blogging, writing, and reaching readers
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My advocacy for books has risen times a zillion…. I will talk books any day… any time 😀
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I have learned A LOT about social networking, blog “curb appeal”, and advanced my knowledge of the internet.
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I have written a book and have connected it to publishing houses. *fingers crossed*
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I have made wonderful relationships with the Publishing world and have learned much.
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Don’t even get me started on the wonderful authors I have had the privilege to meet and talk with.
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Myself and a team created the Wine and Words event in Brainerd Minnesota, a literacy fundraiser and I invited authors I knew from the expo to come and talk books…. and they did. (My heart overflows with gratitude!) The event was such a success last year, that we are doing it again this fall and 5 authors are coming again. ♥♥♥
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Just yesterday I was called by MALF (Minnesota Association Of Library Friends) and asked to be nominated to be on their board.
Non of this would have happened without Book Journey. Sure, pre-Book Journey I was a reader, but nowhere near to this extent or involvement. I think those of you who have book blogged for a while can relate to what I mean. 🙂 For this… all of the above… I am so grateful.
Enough about me. This blogiversary is really my celebration of YOU! The readers! Because seriously… as much as I enjoy talking books… I LOVE LOVE LOVE talking about them with you. I love your comments, your questions, your occasional emails, and honestly… I love it when I see Book Journey on your sidebars (if you blog) – to this day it gives me a little “SQQQUUEEEE” inside that you enjoy reading my crazy ramblings here enough to add me so others may come visit too. You are what makes Book Journey a well…. Book Journey. You are why I get up in the morning with COFFEE CUP and turn on my laptop and share with you the inner workings of my day, life, work, wins and fails, and the books I am reading.
Thank you.
For today only, as in past years… I offer up a set of giveaways. A few of these books are duplicates from the expo, many are from my personal stash. I will add what is in each group shortly here – right now I just want to get this post up (I meant to write this last night but instead went with a friend to the movie Fault In Our Stars, then out for appetizers and to chat and got home after midnight. *oops* 😉 Winners will be announced tomorrow morning – Sunday June 8th.
As per tradition,
For those of you who have come to my party the last few years, the basics are pretty much the same… to be entered for the great giveaways (pictured above), simply leave me a comment here telling me how you traveled to the party, and what virtual gift or food item you brought with you: For example, you may have come by freight train to the party and brought with you Twinkies … (really be as crazy as you want… I love the fun imaginative comments!) For a little bonus if you would like to share how long we have known each other (blog or otherwise) and if you are brand new to the house of Book Journey – feel free to share that too! I love new friends!
Guilty Pleasure Reading …. What’s Yours? You know you have one! (W/giveaway)
You know the books… the ones you are drawn to but even you are not always exactly sure why. It may be a long-term addiction… or it could be fairly new… but either a genre, a topic, or certain type of book draws you to it time and again.
We may not even care to admit that we like to read them. In fact… we may overreact if caught reading them or if someone speaks against them…
Relax. Sheila says relax. 😉 I have them too. Mine fall under the category of books that may be defined as dorky…. but I really have found that I like reading about companies…. corporations… and the people behind them. I mean I loved the move Social Network (about Facebook). And I loved reading about Steve Jobs, The Makers of the game Doom, Straight Flush (about the college kids who brought the online poker industry to an all time high, and most recently Creativity Inc about the success of Pixar.
I think I am drawn to the creative thinking process. I am so amazed at the brilliant people who come up with things like the IPOD, creating video games, developing winning strategies. I guess what they all have in common is success. And if I am honest… I am drawn to it.
On the darker side… I also like to read the occasional true crime.
What does that say about me? I am not sure I want to know….
What is your guilty pleasure read? Craft books, how to books, vampires, dystopian, harlequin romances, books about animals….. Oh my! Share 🙂
For fun…. (I like fun!) leave a comment with your answer and I will enter you into a giveaway for a $15 Amazon gift card to purchase one of your guilty pleasure books of your choice. I will email the winner the gift card on Friday of this week.
I can not wait to hear what your guilty pleasure reads are 🙂
Morning Meanderings… A LONG Fun Day
Good morning! Happy Sunday! Hazah! (I don’t know why I said that). I made it to hour 17 yesterday of the Dewey Read-A-Thon (HAZAH!). Not bad for someone who decided to participate at the last-minute. 😀
I listened to two audio books and started a third. I finished one book. The reason so much audio is because I could participate in the mini challenges while listening, and cook and do other things while listening. It actually worked out wonderfully. You will see those reviews up this week.
As for what came in this week, I am in audio heaven. I finally have a few great audio contacts that keep me moving forward in my listening. Thank you audio peeps!!! I can not even tell you how excited that makes me.
The Art Of Secrets by James Klise – audio
The Summer Of Letting Go by Gae Polisner – audio
One Safe Place by Tania Unsworth – audio
Chestnut Street by Maeve Binchy – audio
City Of Stairs by Robert Jackson Bennett
Save The Date by Mark May Andrews
Along with the Read-A-Thon yesterday I mentioned I was reading for charity and listed MS as that is what I am raising money for now for the bike ride I will be completing in June. I was contributing by page count and minute count and I invited you all to feel free to sponsor my reading as well.
I wound up between my reading and those of you who sponsored me (Thank you!) with a total of $107.80 for MS! HAZAH! (There’s that word again!)
The winner from the people who sponsored me is: Christina who will get to choose from one of the books I offered yesterday.
YAY!!!
And now I must get ready. I am helping with a benefit dinner today for Camp Benedict that starts at noon. I am heading now to help with the set up and will be back late afternoon.
Have a super Sunday! Readathoners rest up today, or as I see today is overcast and rainy here… maybe I will come home to read my book. 🙂
Book Journey 