The Bloggiesta – That’s A Wrap!

Published on by Sheila (Book Journey)44 Comments

*Whew*  I made it.  Bloggiesta this weekend was a lot of fun and while I had big commitments I was able to put in time around them and actually make a bigger dent than I thought I would in blog upkeep, repairs, maintenance…

Here’s the drive through version:

  • I worked on and completed all mini challenges (except the picture one – which would have been fun, but I just didnt get there…..  “Doh!”)

  • I painted – (err…. changed) my blog background color.  (If you were with me through the many hours I spent working on that – thank you for your input and support!)

  • I wrote the 10 reviews I had pending and have them drafted and ready to go… a day at a time

  • I wrote two Rainy Day posts – that are really fun (I think) and can’t wait for it to rain!  😀

  • I sent out two author chats and wanted to do more, and will!

  • I gave my side bars some love – and they need a little more yet….

  • I spent several hours making a new header, deleting it, making a new header, deleting it… until finally at about 1:30 am on Sunday morning I managed to create this one and like it.  *Small victory dance!

  • I went visiting new blogs – which I always enjoy and made my way to 33 new blogs to me, and 72 Bloggiesta participant blog visits over all

  • Blogging Buddy was actually a Fall 09 Bloggiesta challenge but I saw that Lydia at The Lost Entwife was looking for one so we completed the secret blogger handshake.

SO… overall I put in 28 hours in the Bloggiesta which is amazing considering I worked 10 hours on Friday and had dinner plans, had a set up commitment on Saturday and more dinner plans, and Sunday set up beds for 16 people in our homeless program, purchased the food needed for the week,  and helped make dinner for the guests as well.

Oh and winner of the Pinanta hitting challenge (using random.org) is:

Samantha (Runner Sami)

Samantha’s comment was:  Great post! I would have to use a lightsaber if I could. If we’re being realistic then I’d use a poker. :)

Samantha – email me your shipping info and I will get the book and chocolates  out to you this week!

CrAzY wEeKeNd – but so much fun.  😀

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading?

Published on by Sheila (Book Journey)95 Comments

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading, is where we gather to share what we have read this past week and what we plan to read this week.  It is a great way to network with other bloggers, see some wonderful blogs, and put new titles on your reading list.

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.  I offer a weekly contest for those who visit 10 or more of the Monday Meme participants and leave a comment.  You receive one entry for every 10 comments, just come back here and tell me how many in the comment area.

Last weeks winner (using Random.Org) was:

The1stDaughter

Congratulations!  Please choose an item out of the PRIZE BOX and email me your choice with your mailing address as well!   journeythroughbooks@gmail.com

**Note:  With all the wonders that was BEA, I am still catching up and am mailing the last two weeks of winners today.

Things have been pretty wild around here this past week.  On Wednesday it was my one year blogiversary and it was wild around here.  If you were not at this party, take a moment and check out the comments of the attenders.  They cracked me up and we had so much fun.

Then my weekend plans fell through for the 150 MS bike ride I was doing.  I just had too much on my plate and had to step out of this event.  I worked 10 hours on Friday, and participated as I could in the weekend Bloggiesta (see wrap up post here tonight).  The changes you are seeing on this blog:  the frsh coat of paint, new header…. all positive outcomes of the Boggiesta.


As for books completed:

Annie Freeman’s Fabulous Traveling Funeral by Kris Radish (w/ Bookies Book Club thoughts and comments)

Harry Potter and the Prizoner of Azkaban (audio)  *I highly recommend this whole series in audio.  Fantastic!

Dreaming Of Dior by Charlotte Smith (review will be posted this week)

Guest House by Barbara Richardson (review will be posted this week)

Clementine – Friend Of The Week by Marla Frazee (review will be posted this week)

Boneman’s Daughter by Ted Dekker (review will be posted this week)

At Witt’s End by Beth Solheim (review will be posted this week)

Returning Injury by Becky Due (review will be posted this week)

Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver ***Almost done!

Abandoned:

Abraham Lincoln, Vampire Hunter by Seth Graham Smith AUDIO (I tried – I really did but I just couldn’t get into it.)

I know that’s crazy right?  All those books, but I used Bloggiesta time to catch up on writing reviews on books I had finished but have not written reviews for.  Now I have and these will be posted in a timely manner.

What’s Brewing This Week?

Not Without Hope by Nick Schuyler

On February 28, 2009, Nick Schuyler, a twenty-four-year-old personal trainer, left for a deep-sea fishing trip with three friends: NFL players Marquis Cooper and Corey Smith, and Will Bleakley, his best friend, who once played football for the University of South Florida.

It was supposed to be a day of fun and relaxation aboard Cooper’s twenty-one-foot boat, which anchored seventy miles west of Tampa, Florida, in the Gulf of Mexico. The friends were out to catch some amberjack and grouper and maybe a few sharks. They planned to drink a few beers, have some laughs, and get home before an approaching cold front hit.

As the seas began to swell and the winds picked up in the late afternoon, they packed their gear and decided to head to shore. One problem. The anchor was stuck.

Inexperienced boaters, they made what would become a fatal mistake, tying the anchor rope to the stern of the boat and hitting the throttle. The anchor did not yank free. Instead, the stern sank and filled with water, and the boat capsized.

And so the nightmare began. The men had to forage for life jackets beneath the boat. They had no emergency beacon to alert authorities, and their cell phones didn’t work so far out in the Gulf. With no food or water, the men clung to the overturned hull through the night as the seas roughened and the cloudy sky became inky black. They were continuously tossed from the boat by brutal waves, and sometimes found each other only by swimming toward their friends’ voices.

During the rare lull, they would pray and talk about the ones they loved, what they would’ve done differently with their lives, and what they would do once they returned home. As the hours passed, the four friends, who had grown up as athletes, worked as a team in their desperate bid to survive. They battled hypothermia, hallucinations, hunger, dehydration, and huge waves.

A witness to incredible heroism and unspeakable tragedy, Nick remained at sea for more than forty hours, holding on, hoping against hope and clinging to the thought that he couldn’t bear to have his mother attend his funeral.

The Duff by Kody Keplinger

Seventeen-year-old Bianca Piper is cynical and loyal, and she doesn’t think she’s the prettiest of her friends by a long shot. She’s also way too smart to fall for the charms of man-slut and slimy school hottie Wesley Rush. In fact, Bianca hates him. And when he nicknames her “Duffy,” she throws her Coke in his face.

But things aren’t so great at home right now. Desperate for a distraction, Bianca ends up kissing Wesley. And likes it. Eager for escape, she throws herself into a closeted enemies-with-benefits relationship with Wesley.

Until it all goes horribly awry. It turns out that Wesley isn’t such a bad listener, and his life is pretty screwed up, too. Suddenly Bianca realizes with absolute horror that she’s falling for the guy she thought she hated more than anyone.

The Cradle by Patrick Somerville

An elusive heirloom cradle symbolizes childhood’s pains and possibilities in Somerville’s spare, elegant first novel (after a story collection, Trouble). Marissa, pregnant with her first child, becomes obsessed with tracking down the antique cradle her mother took when she abandoned the family a decade earlier. Marissa’s husband, Matt, is sure he’s been dispatched on a fool’s errand, but his journey soon connects him to Marissa’s family and his own history of abandonment, neglect and abuse amid a string of foster homes and orphanages. Matt’s quest through four states is interwoven with another drama that takes place 11 years later, in 2008, in which poet and children’s author Renee Owen is haunted by memories of war and a lost love as she prepares to send her son off to fight in Iraq. Again, long-buried secrets come to the surface, one of which poignantly links the two story lines.

Suite Scarlet by Maureen Johnson

According to tradition, when the Martin children turn 15, they inherit a suite in the family’s small Manhattan hotel and a job: to take care of the rooms and their occupant. On Scarlett’s 15th birthday, Amy Amberson sweeps into the suite that Scarlett has just inherited. The woman is demanding and brash, but she does have her charms (and large amounts of cash). In the beginning, Scarlett is overwhelmed, but then her role becomes that of Mrs. Amberson’s assistant for her projects, which change on a whim. When Amy decides to help the theater troupe that Scarlett’s brother is involved in put on Hamlet, the teen begins a romance with one of the actors. Then everything starts to go awry, and when things get tough, Amy abandons ship, and plucky Scarlett is left to step in and save what needs saving, something that she does with flair. Scarlett’s brand of humor is particularly dry and well articulated.

That’s the plan.  How about you?  What are you reading!  Please be sure to click on the LINKY below and put your own What Are You Reading post link there so others (including me!) can stop by and see what great books you have!  😀


Powered by Linky Tools

Click here to enter your link and view the entire list of entered links…

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (Audio)

Published on by Sheila (Book Journey)37 Comments


Let me refresh your memory.  In this third installment of the world of Harry Potter compliments of J K Rowling, Harry finds himself back with his aunt and uncle – The Dursley’s.  When Aunt Marge comes to visit and starts putting down Harry parents in front of him calling his father a no good drunk and his mother – well, let’s just say Harry decided enough was enough and there is ummm…. an incident.

Harry leaves the safety (if you call that safety…) of the Dursley’s home and sets out on his own.  He is picked up by the “night bus” and makes his way back to Hogwarts… but this time, something is watching him, and as the pieces come together Harry learns about Serius Black and his escape from Azkaban, and the rumor on the street (or at least at Hogwarts) is that Serius is coming after Harry…


If you have not had the pleasure of sinking your eyes or ears into this book, I highly recommend you do.  having read through the entire series twice, and this time trying the audio…. I can’t stress enough how brilliant these stories still are to me.  The more I think of all the details – all the pieces that come together to make these books work together – I am still amazed.

And this one carries within some amazing things –

  • The Marauder’s Map (such a smart idea for this book and plays so well into the plot)
  • The Time Turner is another item that makes this book come together

Finally, let me just say if you are thinking that you read the books and you have no need to listen to them on audio, I have to tell you that you are missing out.  Jim Dale reads with such a flare that I am amazed how clearly I fall into the rhythm of the story.  I am anxiously awaiting to continue my audio journey with book 4….


Book Journey’s map is updated to include Prisoner of Azkaban

Cover Story:  I am sure this is an older cover and I do not like it.  I feel this cover does not do justice for what you are about to experience.  A picture of the Marauder’s Map would have been much more drawing.

I received my copy of this audio on loan from our local library

Have you heard of PPD (Post Potter Depression)?  Apparently it is out there – and this article tells you more about it.  (I am pretty sure I have symptoms….LOL

Morning Meanderings…

Published on by Sheila (Book Journey)23 Comments


Good morning.  🙂

Last night I was staying up later than I should and was watching a movie that I own called The Brave One with Jodie Foster.  Have you seen this?  If you like a suspense thriller, this is a great movie.

When we were in New York recently for BEA Reagan (Miss Remmers Reviews) and I, were walking in Central Park when I was sure that the bridge in the park was the same one as in the movie, The Brave One.   I told Reagan  about the movie as she had never seen it and ran under the bridge pointing out key spots, “This is where the dog was captured, this is where the fight started…”  Reagan refused to walk under the bridge.

I wasn’t 100% sure that it was the same bridge but tonight I finally Googled the movie and yes, the scene is shot in Central Park and that is the bridge.  If you haven’t see this movie, I recommend it.  Jodie Foster plays an incredible role.

Here is the movie trailer – it is a bit violent in this scene:


Funny memory so thought I would share…    this morning I am setting up for our week of serving with the homeless through IHN. That will keep me busy most of the morning and a bit into the afternoon too.  After that I will be back for a bit to work on Bloggiesta and put up a review.  Yesterday if you were one of the wonderful people who helped me through comments here and on Twitter as I made a color decision for this blog – thank you.  That took way longer than I had planned and your assistance was appreciated.

In the mean time, if you did not have the chance to whack the pinata yesterday, there is still time to do so.  🙂

Pinata Time (Bloggiesta Style!) Giveaway

Published on by Sheila (Book Journey)62 Comments

What’s a celebration without a pinata?  In keeping up with the weekend theme – I am putting up this giveaway that will go through the rest of the weekend and I will announce the winner on Monday evening during my Bloggiesta wrap up post.

So – wonder what is inside?

I have a beautiful new copy of Labor Day by Joyce Manor and – a box of chocolates from Lindt.


How to enter?  Leave me a comment here letting me know what you used to hit the pinata with!  That’s it!  I will use Random.org when I choose a winner.  Please USA and Canada only.

Morning Meanderings…

Published on by Sheila (Book Journey)54 Comments


Good morning!  It dawned on me  that when I talk about Coffee Cup…. you really don’t know who Coffee Cup is.  Prior to this post, Coffee Cup has not shown up in any pictures.  Today – that changes.

Coffee Cup in most households would probably be one of a beautiful matched set and I do own a set of nice coffee cups… but I prefer not to use them.  Coffee Cup to me is actually 4 different favorite coffee cups.  Each has a special meaning to me and the one I drink out of in the morning truly depends on my mood.

So meet the four coffee cups:

This cup I use when I am in a funny mood but I also use it if I wake up in a cranky mood – then it is just a sarcastic reminder “that someday – this may be funny!”

This one I was given as a gift for my 40th and it still holds true.  I plan to stay young and carefree and refuse to grow up.  😀

This one is used a lot.  I received this one at Spicer Castle in Spicer Minnesota when my friends took part in a murder mystery.  I like it because it says “Guilty” and I usually am about something.

This one – this one is my favorite cup and probably gets the most use.  My mom gave me this set years ago with matching canisters.  Through the years the canisters have broke, all the cups have too – except this one.

This one, when I use it, reminds me of my mom.  When I want to feel close to her, or just take a few minutes in the morning to remember what an amazing woman she was, this is the cup I use.

I am often asked how much coffee I really drink and although I talk about coffee every morning and drink it every morning – I do not drink it all day.  I usually stop around 10 or 11 am and switch to water.  At night, I go back to coffee, a cup or two while I relax, and sometimes I drink tea instead.  😀

You are probably noticing some changes around here.  For one, I painted last night.  Not sure if this color  is the final choice but I will wait and see.  I am participating as I can in the Bloggiesta and hope to find some time today to work on future posts and pending reviews.

I am also – in typical Book Journey fashion…. planning a little something “Bloggiesta”themed for this afternoon so please, stop back in if you are in the neighborhood.

Today’s coffee cup?  The 4th one.

Have an awesome day!!!  If you are doing anything fun this weekend let me know 😀

Bloggiesta hours so far:  7

Bloggiesta June 11-13 (Sticky Post – all new posts are below)

Published on by Sheila (Book Journey)68 Comments

Bloggiesta has come and gone.  My wrap up post will be up later on Monday

It is that time of year again and I am ready!  Up until a few days ago I was not planning on participating as I had a weekend bike ride commitment.  Well, life happens and my schedule changed where I needed to work today and could not find enough help to cover my Sunday commitment so I had to take a pass on the bike ride.

What is Bloggiesta? (In Natasha, Maw Books words)

In short, it’s a blogging marathon.  An opportunity to cross those nagging items off of your to-do list and improve your blog while in the good company of other awesome bloggers doing the same thing.  Break out the nachos, enchiladas, drinks, mariachi music and whack a pinata or two!


In my words?  It is Blog Housekeeping and I am ready!  Below is my list of plans to do this weekend and I will cross them off as I accomplish them.  I will post my updates on Twitter (bookjourney) #Bloggiesta .  On Monday evening I will post my wrap up.

1.  Write reviews and catch up 100% (Reviews completed  1 2 3 4  5 6  7  8  9  10)

2.  Write back up/ rainy day posts (those ideas I have had for a while but have yet to put in print)

3. Prep my Michael Sullivan weekend post idea

4. Contact the authors who have agreed to Author Chats and submit my questions

5.  Prep Author Posts

6. Update my side bar books

7. Update the challenges

8.  Update my giveaways link

9.  If I am brave I am going to change my back ground color of my blog because for me that is Bloggiesta tradition.

10.  Play around with my header a bit (ooh I am loving my new header!)

11.  Visit at least 20 new blogs (40 visited so far)

12.  Bloggiesta – Blog Buddy Time (Hi Lydia – thanks!)

13.  Do all of the mini challenges


Morning Meanderings…. (and Blogiversary Winners!)

Published on by Sheila (Book Journey)12 Comments


Good morning Bookish people!  😀  I totally mean to announce my Bloggiesta winners Thursday evening but after word press was missing in action for a while I moved on to other things and then it was just too late.  So I will do it now.

First of all I have to thank each and every one of you who stopped by and wished me a happy Blogiversary.  I had a wonderful time and your comments made me smile all day long.  It really had a party atmosphere to the post and I felt like I was mingling and passing the avocado dip.

So thank you everyone for participating.  I used random.org to choose the winners and here they are:

Jo Jo!  From Jo Jo Loves To Read!

Raelena – Through The Haze!!!


Patty From Books and Thoughts and Adventures – Oh My!

Bonnie from Bonnie’s Books!!!

Congratulations winners!!!  You have been notified by email!


Yesterday I mentioned I was going biking with a girl I graduated with who I had not seen for over 20 years.  We biked 18 miles and had the best time catching up.  I am not a big user of Facebook, but that is where she found me and we reconnected.

Today – I am working a shift and this weekend I am prepping for our week of housing the homeless.  A group of us do this once a quarter and our week starts on Sunday.  In between these commitments I am planning to spend some time participating in the Bloggiesta.  It’s not too late to sign up!  🙂


Annie Freeman’s Fabulous Traveling Funeral by Kris Radish

Published on by Sheila (Book Journey)37 Comments


It starts with a package from UPS that arrives at Katherine Givens door.  The timing is impeccable, Katherine’s favorite bra has finally after much use, developed a hole that is unrepairable. That’s just great.  What else could go wrong?  And why does a bra seem to bug Katherine so much???

Katherine opens the box and sees the unmistakable, always recognizable, red high tops of her friend Annie.

Annie.

Annie, Katherine’s oldest and dearest friend who touched the lives of so many. But Annie had died, and inside the shoes are Annie’s ashes and a note – that’s about to change everything – because in typical Annie style, Annie has one final request….

and she needs her best friends to be the “pallbearers.”

♥

I was drawn to this book as I always am to books on strong friendships.  And a book on a friendship so strong that it even breaks down the barriers of death?  Count me in on that read.

Katherine’s task (beyond purchasing a new bra), is to call the women that Annie has requested to gather in her name and take her ashes to the places she has mapped out for them.  Everything is paid for, all the flights, hotels, food…. all they have to do is show up.

I loved the idea of this book.  What a fun way to celebrate a life, and Annie did have a life as these women, who have never met before embark on this journey.  It is a book about friendships – new and old, it is a book about healing, and a book about remembering.  As the women travel to the places Annie has mapped out, not only do they learn a little bit more about who Annie was, but also about themselves.

The book…. had great potential.  I imagined it would take me on a journey of friendships, the joyful parts, and the bitter-sweet.   In parts, it did just that, but in other ways it missed the mark.  Parts of the book were just too over the top for me.  At times I just had to stop and think that the author had went too far and made some of the trip to unbelievable.  I found this unfortunate because the idea behind the book is wonderful.



BOOKIES Review:

This book was also our book club read for June.  For the most part, the girls agreed with what I mentioned above.  For different reasons, most of us found something in the book that just went a bit too far.

There is a character in the book that is introduced mid way through the book and many of us felt that was an odd choice for the author, but on the other hand, maybe what was trying to be represented was an openness and grace that Annie would herself had extended had she been there.

On a scale of 1 – 5 (5 being the greatest), the Bookies as a whole rated this book a 2.5.


This book has been added to my Book Journey map (later today)

Amazon rating (coming soon)

Cover Story:  The cover is truly eye-catching and draws you in wanting to know more.

I purchased this book from Amazon

Morning Meanderings…

Published on by Sheila (Book Journey)28 Comments


Good morning!  I have to say thank you to everyone that stopped by yesterday to send well wishes on my first official blogiversary.   I was overwhelmed with the response and laughed a lot at your fun comments.  A+ for creativity!  People arrived by row boats to cruise ships,palanquins,trains, parachutes, limos, on the Black Pearl, bikes, dog sled,  roller blades,  water bomber,  horses, rainbows and more.  Seriously – if you have some time  just read some of the comments…. I laughed all day long.  And I haven’t even mentioned the yummy food!  I also did what I always try to do and that is respond to your comments, after all – it was a party and I had to mingle with the guests.  😀

Personally I would have taken the flu powder way…. but that’s just me 😉

And maybe next year it will be interesting to see who traveled the farthest to get here.  Petty Witter came from England, and Book Whisperer from UK, or is it CCQDesigns who came from the Galapagos Islands?

Today I am thankful to be past this milestone and moving a toe into year 2.  This afternoon I am really excited to meet up with a friend I have not spent time with for 20+ years.   I graduated with Ann and we connected on Facebook.  She is meeting me today to go biking on the bike trail after I get off work.  It will be so fun to hang out and catch up on the years.

And tonight…. I may do nothing.  I need a nothing night.  I look forward to a nothing night.  The nothing night will be mine… My Precious….

Ok… hopefully I don’t look this bad in the mornings.  Maybe this is my hint to exit stage left and go get ready for work.  Have a super day – review up later along with book club discussion!