I am a little late on drawing these winners and I apologize… unexpected life happenings this week put me a bit behind.
I am thrilled to announce winners to two great book giveaways!!!! Stand the Storm and The Moon Looked Down.
I loved the comments about what freedom means and the responses to who the person was in your life who really made a difference was wonderful as well.
I recently had a comment that has left me in thought…. a commenter said something to the effect that they did not have book friends in the “real world”.
Real world.
This is not about the comment, as the comment is great and I am in full agreement that there is a separation of sorts. It just got me thinking about the “real world.” If my home where I sit and tap tap tap away on my keyboard is the real world… then who are you that I tap tap tap to?
I have mentioned in recent postings that I am fairly new to all of this and I know I have a long ways to go and I actually love that I am still in the learning phase… and maybe I always will be.
Yet, I think – or maybe I hope – I have made genuine friendships in the blogging community. In the past two months that I have seriously book blogged, I have talked books with great bloggers who I know by name. Who in many cases I know by face. If I had a chance to meet them in person, I believe I could pick them out of a line up. And maybe that’s just the way I am wired…. I enjoy meeting people and I enjoy talking books…. face to face and computer to computer.
I have emailed back and forth with bloggers who have answered my questions, and in turn, thanks to those who have helped me…. I have been able to help others. Maybe I am not sitting in a cafe with a delicious mocha latte (uhh…no whip) in one hand and discussing the latest and greatest read with you across the table with the scent of coffee beans in the air…. but sometimes I feel that I am.
I am rambling. 🙂
The question I want to put out there is – what do you think? Are the book blogging relationships, relationships at all? Are they real to you? How would you describe this world?
I am excited to start a new feature this week! Each Wednesday I will review a Book Club. This week I welcome Mari from Bookworm with a View
Please everyone welcome Mari!
What is the name of your Book Club: My answers will focus on the Omaha Bookworm’s but I also manage the Manic Mommies Book Club (an online book club).
How long have you been meeting? We are celebrating seven years in October.
How often do you meet? Monthly
Do you have someone who leads the discussion? I tend to get them started
Where do you meet? Over the years we have met at restaurants and in homes, attending author events and in July we attended a play production written by one of the Omaha Bookworm’s. Several of us have small children and to avoid disrupting their routine we tend to rotate between 4-5 homes.
How many members do you have? We and have about 15 members with 8-10 attending most months. When we have an author interview… watch out! A few months ago members brought friends – we have three author interviews schedule for the rest of 2009.
What age group(s) is represented in your book club? 25+. Our book club began as a sub group of a women’s social club in Omaha. We did not know each other when our group began so you can imagine how eclectic our group is, this is one of our best assets. I’m close friends with a few women whose paths would not have crossed if not for our common interest in books. We are no longer affiliated with the social organization, one of the restrictions was that no one had to RSVP (which can cause a challenge for the hostess).
What genres of books do you read? We read one memoir, classic and historical fiction/non-fiction a year. All other books are based on reader recommendation. We tend to enjoy learning while reading so we do read quite a few historical/event/cultural fiction books each year.
How do you choose what you will read? We have a few criteria: try to keep the book under 500 pages and someone must pre-read the book to make sure its ‘discussion worthy’. Several years ago we were meeting at a local coffee shop to discuss a book (a really good, top selling novel) and I was the only one who attended and the only one to read the book. This ‘experience’ redefined our book group. It was a low moment for us…
What was one of the best discussions and/or a favorite book that you read as a group? The Birth House by Amy McKay is one of our recent favorites (women love to talk about childbirth). Eating Heaven by Jennie Shortridge is also a ‘discussion worthy’ book. I have a list of Book Club Must Reads listed on the website (if you are looking for some ideas).
How do you keep things fun? We are FUN! J
Does your group meet for anything else other than your book meetings? (IE. author meetings, movies that were books you read…) Several of us meet for lunch, golf, movies etc outside of book club but we do not all tend to get together (outside our monthly book discussions)
Do you have a funny or “book club meeting gone bad” story to share? Well, in addition to the “no one showed up” mention a few years ago… earlier this year my 40 pound dog ate an entire cake and some other food on the coffee table while we were refreshing our wine before an author interview.
What advice would you give to other book clubs? Change it up! We try not to stick to a strict format, selecting an author interview every other month so we can relax and read a lighter book on the ‘off’ month. We have had themed evenings too, when we red The Diplomat’s Wife the hostess served Italian recipes cited from the book.
Later this month we are hosting our first “Skype to Skype” call. In addition to discussing the book with the author we have 5 women (and a book club in Colorado) across the country calling in to discuss with us. I’m very excited to see how this works. If successful, I will open this up to all for future author discussions.
Ok… LOVE LOVE LOVE the “dog ate the cake” story! That is a fun memory (probably not at the time…) I also am interested in the Skype to Skype call. I have never done that and not sure how it works but it sounds wonderful.
Thank you Mari for a great interview. Your book club sounds amazing and lots of fun! I am going to check out the books you recommended as well as your Book Club Must Reads.
Readers please take time to stop over and visit the wonderful Mari at Bookworm with a View.
Do you want your book club featured here like Mari’s? Link here to find out how
This morning I was over at Vicki’s this morning reading her blog Reading At The Beach (a soothing blog that sometimes I just like to leave her page open so I can pretend I am at the beach – LOL). She is starting a new meme today that really makes you take a look at your bookshelf and well, I will let Vicki explain it:
I’ve decided to start a book meme called A-Z Wednesday
I hope you will join me and share what’s on your bookshelf.
Here’s how it will work:
Each Wednesday I’ll post the meme with that weeks letter (A-Z).
Grab the A-Z Wednesday button on my sidebar to add to your post, to link back here.
Go to your stack of books and find one whose title starts with that weeks letter.
Post
1~ a photo of the book
2~ title and synopsis
3~ link(amazon, barnes and noble etc.)
4~ Come back here and post your link in the comments
Be sure to visit other participants to see what book they have posted and leave them a comment.
(We all love comments, don’t we?)
Who knows? You may find your next “favorite” book.
So this morning I was going to go to my bookshelves and choose a book when I realized the book sitting right beside me works!
Erin and her twin brother, Bain, never expected to find that the cabin in the woods near their home is actually a secret entrance to a magical world. Surrounded by pegasi, dragons, and fairies, they discover new powers within themselves and a secret they have unknowingly been preparing for: they are training to become elves. Now they are faced with the decision to stay in this dream world or return home to the life they knew. A spellbinding tale of fantasy and fairy tale, Älvor draws you into an enchanting world of all things magical.
I have not read this yet but it is so close to the top and I am so excited! This gives off a mystical vibe that I am so looking forward to seeing what is underneath this delicious cover!
Pop on over to Reading At The Beach and check out her new meme A to Z. For those of you looking for a fun way to add a little something to your blog, this is a fairly easy one and as Vicki says, you may just find your next favorite book.” ; )
On a much lighter note… please notice my new sidebar link (upper left) on praying for Benny. I dont want to go into details here however if you want to know more click on the picture of Benny.
I got home from a great book club tonight. 14 of the Bookies made it to The St Mathias Bar and Grill for wonderful food (home apparently of the $2.50 Tuesday burger!). We had a couple newbies tonight – Sharon and Gabriele and that is always fun.
The review was on The Wednesday Sisters by Meg Waite Clayton, a book that I had read a couple months ago and loved. The discussion? Fantastic – everyone was so talkative and we discussed how these female characters of the 60’s were so different from the women of today. Newbie Gabriele shared that in 1967 she was a stewardess and at that time you actually could not gain weight over 5 pounds or you were not allowed to work. She also said once you turned the ripe old age of 32, you no longer could work for the airlines! WOW!
Overall the book rated an average read almost across the board. Most everyone thought while the book was good, it was much like other books on womens friendships they had read. A couple in the group found it did not grab them and rated it low. I came in as the high vote, having loved it when I read it and foudn the characters fascinating as well as the time period.
The Bookies read for September is Pope Joan by Donna Woolfolk Cross (YAY!!!) I am very excited to see what the girls think of this one. In September we are meeting at Laura’s home and we are having a bonfire potluck. Anyone have a great recipe to share with a historical fiction theme to it?
I was over at dreadlock girl this morning looking at great pics of their last book club meeting. I mention this because this is where the following idea came from.
Are you in a book club? I would like to interview you about your book club! Simply email me your interest in participating at journeythroughbooks@gmail.com and I will email you back the questions about your book club. Put in the subject box : “Book Club Reviews”
I will ask questions about your groups name, how long you have met, etc…. then I will feature a book club once a week here. First one to respond with their questions all complete will be my first week, etc, etc… and yes, if you have a couple pics of your group – that would be welcome as well.
I can’t wait to see the wonderful book clubs!
Two days in a row…. looks like we have sunshine! YEAH!!! Today I have office work in the morning until mid afternoon, payroll, mow the lawn hopefully and the Bookies meet tonight for book club.
I did a little traveling this morning with Coffee Cup. My find today brought me to a new and great blogger, Ryan at Wordsmithonia. Ryan has a book reviewed called Under This Broken Sky by Shandi Mitchell. The book sounds wonderful! I would love to tell you all about it, but instead I am going to encourage you to stop over and welcome Ryan and read this incredible review for yourself.
How is the BBAW voting coming along? I am still working on mine! 😉
Over this past weekend Al and I were traveling to a nearby town and on the side of the road an Amish woman was selling items with her horse cart parked behind her. It was such a beautiful site and I wished I could stop and take a picture. It reminded me of the warm feeling I got when I read The Hope of Refuge. ~ Sheila
Raised in foster care and now the widowed mother of a little girl, Cara Moore struggles against poverty, fear, and a
relentless stalker. When a trail of memories leads Cara and Lori out of New York City toward an Amish community, she follows every lead, eager for answers and a fresh start. She discovers that long-held secrets about her family history ripple beneath the surface of Dry Lake, Pennsylvania, and it’s no place for an outsider. But one Amish man, Ephraim Mast, dares to fulfill the command he believes that he received from God–“Be me to her”– despite how it threatens his way of life.
Completely opposite of the hard, untrusting Cara, Ephraim’s sister Deborah also finds her dreams crumbling when the man she has pledged to build a life with begins withdrawing from Deborah and his community, including his mother, Ada Stoltzfus. Can the run-down house that Ada envisions transforming unite them toward a common purpose–or push Mahlon away forever? While Ephraim is trying to do what he believes is right, will he be shunned and lose everything–including the guarded single mother who simply longs for a better life?
I really enjoy reading about other cultures. In The Hope of Refuge, I get a chance to walk among the Amish and the way they do life. This book is really about two women – Cara, trying hard to find a safe life for herself and her daughter, and then Deborah who has waited a long time to be with the love of her life, finds he is changing and it is out of her power to bring him back…
An enjoyable read. I love the flow of the words and the writing around the Amish community. I felt from this book I had a good sense of what that community life was like for them. Wonderfully developed characters and I found myself really thinking about the message Ephram had believed he had received from God about Cara, “Be Me, to her.”
Cindy Woodsmall is the author of When the Heart Cries, When the Morning Comes, and The New York Times Best-Seller When the Soul Mends. Her ability to authentically capture the heart of her characters comes from her real-life connections with Amish Mennonite and Old Order Amish families. A mother of three sons and two daughters-in-law, Cindy lives in Georgia with her husband of thirty-one years.
I have not read Cindy Woodsmall before this book but I do look forward to reading her again.
USA only please and no po box numbers. be sure I have a way to connect with you if you are the winner. This giveaway will end September 1
You can still follow Cindy’s adventures on Youtube, Facebook, and Twitter. See you there!
I received this book and a giveaway copy from Liz Johnson of Random House
This book is rated PG
An incredible summer read that I would recommend anyone going to the beach to bring this one along. I can still almost smell the ocean… ~ Sheila
Thirty-six-year-old Stevie Pollack has earned fame and praise for her landscape architecture projects, though critics complain she’s too formal, too rigid. When her lover abruptly drops her, and her Chicago lakefront development project is panned, Stevie seeks
solace in her r oots, among the calming waters, the vibrant flowers, and the comforting traditions of the islands. Still, in the back of her mind, Hawai`i holds troubling memories of a childhood with an emotionally distant father, Hank, and a reserved British mother.
The trip home promises Stevie a welcome departure from mainland trials, despite her irascible father’s presence. But the shocking news that Hank is dying forces the pair’s reunion into high gear. As father and daughter look to rekindle their bond, Stevie discovers sides of Hank she never knew, including family secrets that shaped their lives. And what started as a holiday escape for the beleaguered artist becomes a chance for transformation. Along the way in this shared journey of contention and transcendence, Stevie’s heart opens not only to her father, but to a man who challenges all her constricted notions of love and life’s possibilities.
My thoughts… This book is set much in beautiful Hawaii, and as I read this book on my deck with a tall glass of ice tea I found Author Randy Sue, really put me there. As I walked along with Stevie, the main character, I really found I enjoyed who she was. From the loss of a boyfriend (yet another relationship gone South) to finding herself taking a break (in this case, in a car heading home to Hawaii). As the book continues into working on repairing the relationship with her father, I found I liked her even more. Throughout this book as Stevie grows more comfortable in her own skin… I feel myself cheering her on.
Really a delightful read…. this is a book about rediscovery, a book that starts out in one direction and winds up in another… much more powerful, much more captivating.
Randy Sue Coburn began her career as a journalist whose essays and articles appeared in numerous national magazines 
and major newspapers. Her screenplays include Mrs. Parker and the Vicious Circle, the 1994 film about Dorothy Parker that premiered at the Cannes Film Festival and won Jennifer Jason Leigh the National Society of Film Critics Award for best actress. Film work and teaching at The University of Washington subsidized the writing of Remembering Jody, (1999, Carroll & Graf), and Randy Sue’s second novel, Owl Island, was published in June, 2006 by Ballantine, a division of Random House Publishing Group. A Better View of Paradise, also from Random House/Ballantine, is being published in July, 2009. Born in Chicago and raised in South Carolina, Randy Sue is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of The University of Georgia. She lives along the waterfront in downtown Seattle and relishes morning strolls through the Pike Place Market with Binx, a floppy-eared terrier known by name to many more vendors in the Pike Place Market than his mistress.
This book came from Dorothy Thompson from Pump Up Your Book Promotion
This book is rated PG
It looks like we may have a sunny day here in Minnesota! I almost hate to type that for fear of the big “jinx, jinx, double jinx” (or maybe that’s just a grade school flashback). According to the computer it is suppose to be stormy. *SIGH*
ANYWAY…. I certainly do not want to talk about the weather. I was of course, cruising through the blogesphere this morning with Coffee Cup. Not at warp speed or anything as after all – it is Monday, but at a fair pace. I stopped in at The Book Lady’s Blog and found a book review on a book called How To Buy A Love of Reading by Tanya Egan Gibson. The review is WONDERFUL – the books sounds INCREDIBLE. I just love books about books.
Don’t take my word for it, go over and visit The Book Lady’s Blog and see it for yourself.
Book Journey 