Book Journey

Morning Meanderings… Author Event With Wendy Webb!

Published on January 23, 2014 by Sheila (Book Journey)10 Comments

Good morning! Happy ~~Wednesday~~ Thursday! This post was supposed to go up yesterday morning but I just could not get it done and get to work on time so you know… I need my job, so yeah.

Tuesday night was a late one but a fun one! Myself and two of the girls from my book club, Brenda and Kathy, drove to the Cities to see Wendy Webb chat up her just released book, The Vanishing.

We initially had met Wendy when she was one of the authors for Wine and Words. Wendy at that time had two books out, The Tale Of Halcyon Crane and The Fate Of Mercy Alban.

She was fun to listen to last night. She read a bit out of her new book and answered some fun questions about writing.

Some of what I took away was:

When writing, it is important to describe the action, like a director. DO not say she was angry, instead say she stomped across the room….

Read like you just walked into the story

She described The Vanishing like a complex puzzle. Wendy mentioned one of the books that she had read that really stuck with her was the Lace Reader. She said that book, reading that to her was like reading about a complex puzzle. At the end she knew she wanted to write like that.

Wendy considers her writing to be “Northern Gothic” – a term I found to be fun! She had an article in yesterdays USA Today.

I left the book store not only purchasing her book…. but Brenda and I both bought The Lace Reader as well.

Our travel was… interesting. Everyone kept saying they could not believe we had braved the weather from Brainerd to the cities. I kept thinking.. what weather? The roads were good… there was a light snow…. but on the way home I got it. We ran into some serious snow and wind for a while. Still… worth it. 😀

Today I need to get it in gear. I have work and Navy Son (now Back In Brainerd Son) 😉 over for dinner and tomorrow morning I leave for the cabin. It will be the first time to the cabin this year and should be a good time. 😀

Big Girl Panties by Stephanie Evanovich

Published on January 21, 2014January 21, 2014 by Sheila (Book Journey)13 Comments

32 year old Holly Brennan was never what you would call a small girl. When her husband at a young age suddenly became ill, Holly comforted herself with food. When he passed away, the food addiction did not go away.

Then Holly meets Logan Montgomery on a plane. Logan is fit, self-assured, confident, and good-looking. Everything Holly feels she is not. When Logan shares with Holly that he is a personal trainer and would like to work with her at a discounted rate to get her moving in the right direction, Holly figures why not, after all… she is not moving in any direction currently.

Turns out, Holly has some natural-born skills when it comes to working out. She is hard-working, determined, has great strength and is flexible. Before long Holly is shaping up and more than one guy is noticing, including Logan. But is it really in the cards for Holly and Logan to be together?

Big Girl Panties for me, was a fun read with a great protagonist. I really enjoyed Holly, who is funny, quick-witted, and doesn’t pull any punches when it comes to her weight issues. She was an easy girl to cheer on as she reaches her goals. I even enjoyed Logan who is not perfect by far, and has a few strange habits but deep inside, despite this, I liked him.

Big Girl Panties was one of those books that I picked up planning to read a few pages and then just kept reading to the point I carried it around the house with me while I made dinner, let the dogs out, and propped it up on the bathroom sink while I styled my hair. It was quick and it was fun.

One word of advice, Big Girl Panties is a book that can easily be taken offense too. It deals with weight issues and eating disorders and not always kindly. There is talk of using liposuction to improve Holly’s body. There is also some odd interactions regarding sexual activities that mainly comes from the direction of Logan’s friend Chase, but in some cases, Logan too.

Over all, I liked the book. It’s not perfect, but I would probably be bored if it was. I do not have to like all the characters in a book – and in this book I didn’t. Holly is what keeps this book moving forward. She was someone I wanted to root for, I wanted things to go well for her and you will too. 🙂

TLC Book Tours — **Thank you to TLC book tours. It was a pleasure meeting Holly!**

Morning Meanderings…. We Are Off To See The Author!

Published on January 21, 2014 by Sheila (Book Journey)10 Comments

Good morning! WOOT! 2 cups of COFFEE in and I am a pretty happy girl! Last night I hung out with friends and learned how to play two collaborative games! Collaborative games are games that the players work together against the board. Forbidden Island was one of them. You play against the board to seek out treasures and work as a team to get the treasures and get to the helicopter before the island sinks… good dorky fun! 😀 Gamers, I think you would enjoy this.

And today, besides my review going up for Stephanie Evanovich’s Big Girl Panties, that releases today in paperback (*WOOT to Stephanie!*), it is also the release day for Wendy Web’s the Vanishing! Wendy is a Minnesota author and one of our Wine and Words authors from last year. Myself and three other girls from the Bookies are driving to the cities tonight for her talk at Mager’s and Quinn bookstore tonight. We are excited to cheer her on.

That’s my day – working this morning… playing tonight. Hopefully tomorrow I will have some pics and recap of the event for my morning readers. 😀

Have a super start to your day!

The Wrong Girl by Hank Philippi Ryan

Published on January 20, 2014 by Sheila (Book Journey)5 Comments

What if you were adopted and after years of hoping and searching you have a chance to be reunited with your birth mother? And what if this joyful moment is dimmed by a strong feeling that this is not your mother at all… that the agency has made a mistake. It is a mistake… right?

When Investigative Reporter Jane Rand is asked to check into her former co-worker, Tucker’s concerns about her supposed birth mother… things get interesting.

The Wong Girl is a sequel to The Other Women; this I did not know going into this read but it did not seem necessary to have the pre-knowledge of the first read. I enjoyed Jane’s strong lead woman role, as well as her partner, Jack. I liked the idea of the story line centered around an adoption agency.

My only reason for not gushing on this one is that on audio it felt drug out and I admit I became tired waiting for the story to move forward. While well written, and kudos to Ilyana Kudushin’s narration (she also narrated the Twilight audio series), I just became tired. 11 CDS.

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading?

Published on January 19, 2014 by Sheila (Book Journey)82 Comments

Hey there! Welcome to It’s Monday, What Are You Reading!

I love being a part of this and I hope you do too! As part of this weekly meme I love to encourage you all to go and visit the others participating in this meme. Fair warning… this meme tends to add to your reading list!

Well another week into the New Year. How ya’ all doin’? I have been reading right along. I had a pretty low key weekend (YAY!) so put in some reading time and finished an audiobook. Here is what I posted this past week:

Playing St. Barbara by Marian Szczepanski

Labor Day Book Party with Movie Anticipation

Then Again by Diane Keaton

Bookies Review Of Reconstructing Amelia

Recap Of The PINK Concert I went to Last Weekend w/ pics

Weekend Cooking – My First Attempt AT Hibachi

What Makes A Good Book – Book Club Worthy?

The Broken Path by Cami Chechetts (a light audiobook on the possibilities of moving on)

A pretty fair week, here is what is on tap this week:

For my ears:

Twelve Years a Slave by Solomon Northup is a memoir of a black man who was born free in New York state but kidnapped, sold into slavery and kept in bondage for 12 years in Louisiana before the American Civil War. He provided details of slave markets in Washington, DC, as well as describing at length cotton cultivation on major plantations in Louisiana.

David Sedaris plays in the snow with his sisters. He goes on vacation with his family. He gets a job selling drinks. He attends his brother’s wedding. He mops his sister’s floor. He gives directions to a lost traveler. He eats a hamburger. He has his blood sugar tested. It all sounds so normal, doesn’t it? In his newest collection of essays, David Sedaris lifts the corner of ordinary life, revealing the absurdity teeming below its surface. His world is alive with obscure desires and hidden motives — a world where forgiveness is automatic and an argument can be the highest form of love. Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim is another unforgettable collection from one of the wittiest and most original writers at work today.

For My Eyes:

When Eve Petworth writes to Jackson Cooper to praise a scene in one of his books, they discover a mutual love of cookery and food. Their friendship blossoms against the backdrop of Jackson’s colorful, but ultimately unsatisfying, love life and Eve’s tense relationship with her soon-to-be married daughter. As each of them offers, from behind the veils of semi-anonymity and distance, wise and increasingly affectionate counsel to the other, they both begin to confront their problems and plan a celebratory meeting in Paris–a meeting that Eve fears can never happen.

Holly Brennan used food to comfort herself through her husband’s illness and death. Now she’s alone at age thirty-two. And she weighs more than she ever has. When fate throws her in the path of Logan Montgomery, personal trainer to pro athletes, and he offers to train her, Holly concludes it must be a sign. Much as she dreads the thought of working out, Holly knows she needs to put on her big girl panties and see if she can sweat out some of her grief.

Soon, the easy intimacy and playful banter of their training sessions lead Logan and Holly to most intense and steamy workouts. But can Holly and Logan go the distance as a couple now that she’s met her goals—and other men are noticing?

It should be a good week! I am excited about the books i have going. How about you? What have you read this past week? Whats coming up this week? Please add your link to your Monday What Are You Reading post below so we can see what everyone is reading 😀

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For those of you that read mainly middle grade and children’s books, be sure to also link to the younger version of It’s Monday by using the link below!

The Broken Path by Cami Checketts

Published on January 19, 2014January 19, 2014 by Sheila (Book Journey)6 Comments

Ethan Searle is a good looking guy by all accounts. With his legs injured in an accident as a child, he feels that when women do look at him it is with pity. Love has been something that has never really worked out for him.

Then one day while leaving church, Ethan catches the eye of two year old Britton and he thinks this beautiful little girl may have just stole his heart away. Unfortunately, one look from Britton’s mother Autumn as she at first cautiously looks Ethan over, and then with pity when she sees his legs, and Ethan knows all to well that familiar rejection.

Autumn, carries her own ghosts. After escaping an abusive marriage that left her miscarrying her first child and then escaping while pregnant with Brit, Autumn has no room in her heart for anyone but her own mother and Brit.

But does anyone know the magic that a two year old blue eyed baby girl holds in the palm of her hand? As Autumn starts to warm up to Ethan and dare herself to possibly dream of a future together, she is unaware of the danger that is approaching. Trent, her ex husband is recently out of jail and he has one thing on his mind, reclaiming what is his…. and what is his in his mind… is Autumn.

I have enjoyed Cami Checkett’s writing in the past. I was first introduced to her writing in Sister Pact that I really enjoyed, and then again in Dead Running. The Broken Road is the first of Cami’s books that I have listened to on audio.

The Broken Road is a sweet listen. It reminded me a little of some of Nicholas Spark earlier works, perhaps a bit predictable, but good all the same. I found Britton to be perhaps me favorite character, sweet and innocent she brought not only glue to Ethan and Autumn, but to the book itself.

Narrator Christy Crevier brought a sweet smooth rhythm to the audio. My only complaint was that the voice of Autumn came across as so young sounding that I found myself considering her age rather than listening, her voice sounded to be around 18 instead of a girl who had been married in her 20’s.

Autumn also comes across as a bit babyish at times, not only in narration, but in actions and words. While not a deal breaker, it was annoying at times.

The story as a whole is a good one. Checkett once again writes three dimensional characters that make for a pleasant reading experience. As I mentioned earlier, fans of Sparks and clean light romance reads will enjoy this one.

What Makes a Good Book – Book Discussion Worthy?

Published on January 19, 2014January 19, 2014 by Sheila (Book Journey)39 Comments

Books. There are great books out there. As readers, we are quite familiar with these books. Perhaps they are beautifully written and each word creates a full picture in your mind of the scene, the scents, the heat (or lack there of) in a room. They can create great emotions – from joy to pain; laughter to anger. (Come on, admit it – haven’t you ever thrown a book down on a table or across a room because of the emotion it evoked? No? Just me? Well… this is awkward…. 😛 )

My question I present today is what types of books lead to great book discussions? Not all great reads make for great discussion. I know personally from my own book club experiences, some are really hard to group review other than just opening the room up to discussion. No hot topic questions come to mind… no great emotion. The book may be perfectly fine, there’s just really not much to say. 😯

I love books that stretch us. That make us think differently. They cause a difference in opinions within the group – love or hate the protagonist; lets talk about it. Hot topics of today and/or in the past… lets discuss.

SO I toss this question out to you. Many of us are in book clubs or book discussion groups.

When choosing a book that you think would be great to bring to the group to read, what do you look for within that book?

Do you look for something in the synopsis that you think will work great for a group discussion, or is that not a part of it?

When you select a book for a reading discussion have you already read it?

I am excited to hear what your group does. 🙂

Morning Meanderings… There Are Always Books

Published on January 19, 2014 by Sheila (Book Journey)12 Comments

Good morning! I am sitting here this morning of course with COFFEE CUP, kind of staring out the window into the whiteness of our corner of the world. I can hear Hubby out there with the back hoe plowing a path from the back yard to our shop. Soon he will plow the driveway. I am tired of the snow already and I know there is more to come. I need a second cup of coffee.

*gets second cup and returns to laptop and comfy chair*

This time of year there are so many reasons I don’t want to go outside – its cold, it’s slippery, it’s hard to walk, let alone run. Instead – there are the books that take me away to places that are warm (like In Labor Day by Joyce Maynard), and places where the fruit seems ripe and juicy ( That Part Was True by Deborah McKinlay). It’s also a good time of year to read through tasty cook books (like the Runners Cook Book I am reading now) and take in recipes that taste like the seasons I love – Spring, and summer, and Fall.

Here are the books that came in this week (I think there are a couple more packages down in our shop but I have not went done there yet today to see what they are):

Creating Room To Read by John Wood

The Junction Of Sunshine by Holly Schindler

Black Crow White Lie by Candi Sary

Today after church is a day I need to get a few things done. This is a busy week coming up with a game night on Monday, an author event on Tuesday, students on Wednesday, son over on Thursday, and Friday leaving for the cabin for the weekend – Sunday evening is our work retreat where we will be until Tuesday afternoon and hopefully another author event a week from Tuesday as well. Yup…. busy next 9 days. 😀

Weekend Cooking – Hibachi Time!

Published on January 18, 2014January 18, 2014 by Sheila (Book Journey)22 Comments

This past week for book club I was in charge of one of the main dishes for our group. We love to theme the food to the book. In Reconstructing Amelia, there is a part in the book where her mother was going to take Amelia out to her favorite Hibachi restaurant. This was a chance for Amelia to share with her mom what was going on in her life, but then the doorbell rang and the neighbor was reminding Amelia that she had agreed to babysit that night. This would have been the last meal that Amelia and her mom shared together. (Want to know more? Read the book! 😉 )

SO Hibachi. My first attempt but it wasn’t that difficult and it sure was delicious!

Here is my modified recipe that I made for book club and now share here for Beth Fish Read’s, Weekend Cooking:

Chicken Hibachi

4-6 skinless chicken breasts

1 large onion sliced

3 -4 Zucchini Squash

2 yellow squash

3 cups mushrooms (I bought the pre sliced from the produce area of the grocery store)

2 cans drained bean sprouts ( or 3 cups fresh)

2 colored peppers (I used red and yellow – these are optional)

soy sauce

butter

salt and pepper

lemon juice

sesame seeds

olive oil

Slice chicken into bite size pieces and set aside.

Take the mushrooms and slice into bite size pieces and set aside.

Slice the onion, squash, and peppers into strips of bite size pieces, keep separate from the mushrooms.

Place a tablespoon of olive oil in two separate large fry pans. Over medium high heat heat the oil in both pans. In one pan place the chicken, in the other pan place the vegie mix of onion, squash and peppers. Place 1 tablespoon of soy sauce and 1 tablespoon of butter over the chicken. Add salt and pepper. Place two tablespoons of soy sauce and a tablespoon of butter over the vegies. Saute the vegie pan while occasionally stirring the cooking chicken pan.

When chicken is done (about 8-10 minutes), vegies should be done as well. Take the vegies off the hot burner and set aside. Take the chicken and slide it to one side of the pan sprinkling it with a little lemon juice and then sprinkle on sesame seeds over the chicken. In the other half of the pan place a tablespoon of butter and as it melts stir in the mushrooms. Put a little soy sauce over the mushrooms. When mushrooms are cooked, mix it with the chicken and add the rest of the vegies from the other pan. gently toss the mixture over medium heat for a couple of minutes.

Place chicken vegie mix into a large serving pan.

In the pan you just used for the chicken and vegie mix, place a tsp of olive oil and toss in the bean sprouts until they are hot. place the bean sprouts on top of the chicken mix in the serving pan.

Serve hot with the Hibachi Sauce.

Hibachi Sauce

15 oz jar of mayo

1 Tbls sugar

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp garlic powder

2 tsp Katsup

3/4 tsp Tabasco sauce

1 1/2 tsp ground mustard

1 1/2 tsp Paprika

1 tsp ground pepper

1/8 cup water

Place the mayo into a bowl. Stir in all the other ingredients. Pour into a resealable container. I used a canning jar as this makes quite a bit of sauce. Chill until time to serve.

Thank you to the book Reconstructing Amelia which caused me to look up how to make Hibachi style food. It is an easy recipe to change to the vegies you prefer as well as adjusting quantities to serve larger groups. It was fun to try and my book club enjoyed it, as did my hubby the next night. Delicious with the sauce.

Morning Meanderings… Last Weeks CONCERT!

Published on January 18, 2014January 18, 2014 by Sheila (Book Journey)24 Comments

Good morning! Happy Saturday! I think it snowed here again last night. Poo. I am sooooo over it. 😛

Last weekend I had the fun opportunity of going to Fargo with three of my friends and going to a PINK concert. We have a little history with PINK that I posted about last week so we were a little nervous. But – imagine our surprise when no unforeseen catastrophe cancelled the concert, we did not come down with some strange illness that prevented us from attending, our car made it to Fargo with no break downs AND by golly…. our tickets were good. 😀

For Saturday Snapshot this morning I thought I would show you some of the amazing concert:

Upper left – yes that is her in the air. A regular Tinker Bell! The rest are different stage sets

She seems like an amazing person inside and out. She was funny and great with the audience. She stopped to sign posters ans shirts. She thanks ed the audience over and over.

**At the end of the night we had our picture taken with the opening band, KIN from Australia.**

and you have to see this short clip I took of her flying over the audience.

Basically, I am ruined from all future concerts. If someone is on stage just singing I am going to be like, “What, you don’t fly?” 😆

If you EVER have the opportunity to see her in concert, do it. It is much more than a concert. It is a show.

Today, this morning yet, I am out for a run in honor of Meg, a fellow runner who was killed by a drunk driver while out for her run on the morning of January 13th. I did not know her, but there is a Facebook event up called Meg’s Miles, encouraging people from all over the world to run today in honor of her. As of a few moments ago, when I looked, over 80,000 people were signed up to run for her today. Wow right? If you run… or even if you go out for a walk today either outside or at a gym, please add your miles to Meg’s Miles.