In My Mailbox (28)

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme run by The Story Siren which explores the books that have been delivered to our mailbox or doorstep or directly into our hot little hands.

Gifted:

Random Act of Kindness from Betty at Reflections with Coffee

Anthropology of an American Girl by Hilary Thayer Hamann

Thanks Betty!

I'm so happy to get this book after signing up for the Random Acts of Kindness hosted by Book Soulmates. I've spent a bit of time at the bookstore reading some pages of it here and there. Now, thanks to Betty, I have a copy of my own!

PUSH Spotlight - Author Eireann Corrigan and giveaways

I completely missed the boat on last week's Top Ten Author's That Deserve More Recognition hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.  If I had been more on top of things and planned to write my post, I would have definitely put Eireann Corrigan at the top of the list. I have been a huge fan of hers for her long time. Her memoir, You Remind Me of You, written in a series of poems, is one of my favorite books. I'm pretty sure this is the first book form the imprint PUSH that I had ever read. If you're not familiar with PUSH books, I recommend that you check them out at thisispush.com

Eireann is also the author of Splintering, a verse novel, Ordinary Ghosts, and Accomplice.

Because I want more people to know about her, I have purchased some of her books to giveaway. There will be 3 prizes:

Prize 1

 

 

a copy of You Remind Me of You

and Splintering

Prize 2

a copy of You Remind Me of You

Prize 3

a copy of Splintering

You Remind Me of You (from Goodreads) A startling autobiographical account of a young woman's battle with eating disorders that put her in and out of hospitals over a span of four years and led to her own parents fighting for the right to commit her. When her last source of support, her boyfriend, attempts suicide and ends up in a coma, she is forced to find strength from within. A courageous story about the strange paths we take to recovery.

Splintering (from Goodreads) It's about the aftermath. It's about what happens after a stranger breaks into a house and attacks a family. It's about the sisters who must barricade themselves with their mother behind a splintering door while tethered on the phone to 911. It's about the father who nearly dies. It's about the son who hides in the basement. It's about the days, the weeks, the months. After. Told in alternating brother-sister perspectives, this is a powerful, moving story about a family that has its façade shattered by a random act of violence and must deal with everything that is revealed underneath.

For a chance to win these books, fill out the form below. Winners will be selected on April 28th, 2011 using Random.org. The first person selected will receive Prize 1, the second person selected will win Prize 2, and the third person selected will win Prize 3. This contest is open to US Residents only. Good Luck!

 

Double Featured

This week I was featured on two awesome blogs.



I showed off my bookshelves for the Show Me Your Shelves feature at Red House Books. You can see my bookshelves here. I want to thank Emily at Red House Books for hosting this feature because it encouraged me to organize my shelves, get rid of some books, and realize just how many (too many books) I have.

and  I am this week's The Blogger Behind the Book at GReads!

I talked about some of my favorite authors, Maroon 5, and delicious cupcakes. Mmm cupcakes. If you want to see some cheesy pictures and learn a little bit more about me, check it out!

Waiting on Wednesday: Every You, Every Me

Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

This week's pre-publication "can't-wait-to-read" selection is:





Every You, Every Me
by David Levithan
Published by Knopf Books for Young Readers
September 13, 2011











In this high school-set psychological tale, a tormented teen named Evan starts to discover a series of unnerving photographs—some of which feature him. Someone is stalking him . . . messing with him . . . threatening him. Worse, ever since his best friend Ariel has been gone, he's been unable to sleep, spending night after night torturing himself for his role in her absence. And as crazy as it sounds, Evan's starting to believe it's Ariel that's behind all of this, punishing him. But the more Evan starts to unravel the mystery, the more his paranoia and insomnia amplify, and the more he starts to unravel himself. Creatively told with black-and-white photos interspersed between the text so the reader can see the photos that are so unnerving to Evan, Every You, Every Me is a one-of-a-kind departure from a one-of-a-kind author. (from Goodreads)

I love David Levithan! His books are fabulous. And two new books in one year, how sweet is that? 

Love My Indie with Author Ellen F. Brown

Love My Indie is a new feature at Actin' Up with Books where fellow bloggers, readers, and writers tell me about their favorite independent bookstores. I love the feeling I get when I go into an independent bookstore - like it is filled with hidden treasures just waiting for me to find them. But there aren't any independent bookstores where I live. This is why any time I visit a new town or city, I always search out the local indie scene. Since I don't have a lot of time to travel, I'm inviting my readers to tell me about their favorite independent bookstore. Showing some Indie Love today is:

Author Ellen F. Brown

Indie Bookstores: Use ‘Em, Or Lose ‘Em

When I read on Joli’s blog that she doesn’t have an indie bookstore in her town, I felt so sorry for her. I grew up in the big-box suburbs of Northern Virginia and didn’t discover the joys of indie stores until my adult years, but now can’t imagine life without them. Whenever I travel, I always look in the phonebook for the nearest indie bookstore and try to squeeze in a visit. I’m blessed that my husband and sons share my love of a good bookstore – especially ones in musty old buildings with creaky hardwood floors.

Living in Richmond, we are fortunate to have a several excellent indies, including BBGB, a children’s bookstore. It’s our go-to place for birthday presents for my kids’ friends. When we stop by on the way to a party, we walk out minutes later with the perfect book, gift-wrapped. It’s not unusual for the staff to know the child whose birthday it is and to be able to rule out books he has already read or received as a present from somebody else. Crazy great, right?

I also have a special place in my heart for Fountain Books in downtown Richmond. It’s in a beautiful old building and is the kind of place that makes me feel lucky to live in this city. As a writer, I especially appreciate all that Fountain’s owner, Kelly Justice, does to support the literary arts in our community. She hosts tons of in-store author events and goes the extra mile to support events at local libraries and other venues. At monthly meetings of the James River Writers, our local writing group, Fountain is at the back of the room offering a host of interesting titles about writing and books by local authors. And, when my first book was released a few months ago, Kelly was my biggest cheerleader. In addition to supporting the book in her store, she has given me terrific advice on how the publishing world works. 

I also admire Kelly's fighting spirit. Despite all the doom and gloom news about the bookselling business, Fountain is working to keep ahead of the curve. Kelly recently hosted an open forum asking customers to tell her what she can do to keep them coming back. It’s no surprise to me that she is currently president of the Southern Independent Booksellers Alliance.

In these crazy economic times, it’s essential that we show our support for indie businesses. If you are lucky to have an indie bookstore in your town, take advantage of it. As the old saying goes, if you don’t use it, you lose it.

Ellen F. Brown is co-author of Margaret Mitchell's Gone With the Wind: A Bestseller's Odyssey from Atlanta to Hollywood.  You can follow her on Twitter @ellenfbrown.

I love Fountainhead Bookstore. I've been there a few times when visiting family and they always have great recommendations. I haven't had a chance to go to BBGB, but I'll be sure to check it out the next time I'm in Richmond.

Thanks Ellen for sharing your favorite independent bookstores.

If you're interested in participating in this feature, please send me an email at actinupwb@gmail.com - I'd love to hear from you and discover your favorite indie bookstore!

And the Winner Is . . .

The Winner Is . . . 

Carol

She has won a signed copy of Memento Nora by Angie Smibert. I have already notified the winner and will be getting her copy at the Memento Nora Book Launch tonight! 

There were 60 entries and using random.org, number 50 was selected. Congratulations Carol! Thanks to everyone who stopped by my blog and entered.

Random Acts of Kindness - April sign- up

Book Soulmates is once again hosting the Random Acts of Kindness. I had so much fun with this last month that I decided to do it again. I did go a little overboard - my husband made several complaints about his many trips to the post office. I may not be sending out as many this month, but I will try my best to grant as many as I can because it makes me feel good. Simple as that.

My wishlist can be found HERE

If you want to participate, here is what you do (from Books Soulmates):

Rules:
• Sign up each month you'd like to participate in.

• Show off your participation! Grab one of the buttons available :)

• Create a wish list and post it in the Google Doc located in each R.A.K post for the month.
{Post on your blog, Amazon, where ever as long as there's a link to it.}

• If you choose to do a R.A.K for someone, check out their wish list and contact that blogger for their address.

• At the end of the month, SHOW US YOUR R.A.K!
Make a post saying 'Thank You' to whoever granted one of your wishes and share it with us :)

OPEN TO EVERYONE!
Let's keep our International bloggers in mind and in our hearts.
Remember, there's always the Book Depository and they offer FREE shipping!

Easy peasy!

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Vanessa at
Twerd413 [at] gmail DOT com
or through twitter: @booksoulmates