True Stories Blog Tour: Tomboy by Liz Prince

Tomboy: a graphic memoir

by Liz Prince

Publication Date: September 2, 2014

Published by Zest Books

Pages: 256

Source: Publisher

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from Goodreads
Growing up, Liz Prince wasn't a girly girl, dressing in pink tutus or playing pretty princess like the other girls in her neighborhood. But she wasn't exactly one of the guys, either. She was somewhere in between. But with the forces of middle school, high school, parents, friendship, and romance pulling her this way and that, "the middle" wasn't exactly an easy place to be.

Tomboy follows award-winning author and artist Liz Prince through her early years and explores--with humor, honesty, and poignancy--what it means to "be a girl."

My Thoughts

I loved reading Tomboy. I decided to read it during a 24 hour readathon because I knew that I could read it in just a little over an hour - that is part of the appeal of reading a graphic novel (or memoir in this case). I rarely read graphic novels, but while reading Tomboy, I am convinced that I need to read more.

I loved how the corresponding images added to the story by helping express the emotions that Liz was experiencing through her childhood and teenage years. Through the text and through the images, Liz Prince shares her story letting everyone know she is who she is. She was confident in what she liked and didn't but reveals that it can be confusing when others don't understand or accept her. She shares how her friendships developed, changed, ended, and which ones she maintained over the years. We get to see how her friendships with girls and boys change as they begin to accept their societal roles.

This book is entertaining and eye-opening and makes you reconsider gender stereotypes. This is the first work that I've read by Liz Prince and I enjoyed it so much that I plan to seek out her works and read more. 

Disclaimer:  I received this promotional finished copy from Zest Books  in exchange for my honest review.  I was not compensated in any way other than the book provided. Thoughts and opinions are my own.

 

FOLLOW THE TRUE STORIES BLOG TOUR

hosted by Zest Books

 As part of the True Stories Blog Tour, I am giving away a copy of Tomboy by Liz Prince.

Giveaway Details

Prize donated by Zest Books
Must be 16 years or Older to enter
U.S. addresses only
To enter, fill out Rafflecopter below
Giveaway ends November 19, 2014 

 

If I cannot verify an entry, that entry will not count.

 

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Love My Indie Bookstore with Laura, @laurapy

Love My Indie is a feature where fellow bloggers, readers, and authors share 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.

Showing some Indie Love today is:

Laura, @laurapy

Joseph-Beth Booksellers in Lexington, Kentucky

(http://www.josephbeth.com/)

I love living in Blacksburg, Virginia. It is just an easy place to live. My kids are across the street from their school, my husband can walk to work. You can pretty much do as much or as little as you would like. The only thing missing, though, is a book store. Yes, there’s a Barnes and Noble the next town over, and a great library … but it isn’t the same. Blacksburg--you need a bookstore!

Anyway, whenever I visit my in-laws in Kentucky I try to make an excuse to get to Lexington so I can visit Joseph-Beth Booksellers. If I lived in Lexington, I’d be there. A lot.

The store is huge and filled with natural light. The entire ground level is dedicated to children’s books, and I always find something new for my kids (as well as several things to remember to get later.) The adult section is great too, with a wide variety of fiction and non-fiction, as well as a very good selection of books by local authors. They also always have neat gifts (especially Kentucky-made things), and a nice cafe overlooking a little pond.

I follow Joseph-Beth on social media and they have great events. They bring in range of big-name authors, which is always exciting, like Garrison Kellior, Harlan Coben, and Lee Smith. But they also offer all the kinds of events that create a community--a range of book clubs, stuff for kids like Lego workshops and American Girl tea parties, and host plenty of events to support local and Kentucky authors.

About three years ago Joseph-Beth was struggling and filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Through hard work and dedication, its owners and staff have been able to work through that and become an integral part of their community--and a destination for me.

Thanks Joseph-Beth! I look forward to seeing you soon. 

Thanks for sharing!

It's Release Day!! MELT by Selene Castrovilla

Happy Book Birthday to Selene Castrovilla's MELT!

MELT is a brutal love story set against the metaphorical backdrop of The Wizard of Oz (not a retelling). When sixteen year old Dorothy moves to the small town of Highland Park, she meets, and falls for Joey – a “bad boy” who tells no one about the catastrophic domestic violence he witnesses at home. Can these two lovers survive peer pressure, Joey’s reputation, and his alcoholism? Told in dual first person, Joey's words are scattered on the page - reflecting his broken state. Dorothy is the voice of reason - until something so shattering happens that she, too, may lose her grip. Can their love endure, or will it melt away? MELT is based on true events. It is both a chilling tale of abuse, and a timeless romance. It will hit you like a punch in the face, and also seep through the cracks in your soul.

Goodreads | Amazon

 

#MELTdown

For the past month leading up to the release of MELT, Selene Castrovilla has shared a fantastic MELTdown post every day on her blog! In these posts she's shared tidbits of "insider information” about MELT: its content, its inspiration and her writing process... including excerpts! The first post is HERE, and you use the post navigation at the bottom of the page to click through and read them. Enjoy!

Join us for MELT's Online Launch Party!

 

You’ve invited to celebrate the release of Selene Castrovilla’s MELT at her Facebook Launch Party on November 9, 2014. The party will be from 5:00 – 11:00 PM EST, so we hope you’ll stop by! There will be prizes, and very special guests: Beth Fehlbaum, Gae Polisner, Cassie Shine, and Kathy Cannon Weichman. We hope to see you there!

[RSVP Here]

 

About the Author

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Tumblr | Goodreads

Selene Castrovilla is an award-winning teen and children’s author who believes that through all trends, humanity remains at the core of literature. She is the author of Saved By the Music and The Girl Next Door, teen novels originally published by WestSide Books and now available digitally through ASD Publishing. Her third children’s book with Calkins Creek Books, Revolutionary Friends, was released in April 2013. She is also a contributing author to UncommonYA. Selene holds an MFA in creative writing from New School University and a BA in English from New York University. She lives on Long Island with her two sons. Visit her website www.SeleneCastrovilla.com for book excerpts and more information!

 

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True Stories Blog Tour: Alice + Freda Forever by Alexis Coe

Alice + Freda Forever: A Murder in Memphis

by Alexis Coe

Publication Date: October 7, 2014

Published by Pulp/Zest Books

Pages: 224

Source: Publisher

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from Goodreads

 In 1892, America was obsessed with a teenage murderess, but it wasn't her crime that shocked the nation—it was her motivation. Nineteen-year-old Alice Mitchell had planned to pass as a man in order to marry her seventeen-year-old fiancée Freda Ward, but when their love letters were discovered, they were forbidden from ever speaking again.

Freda adjusted to this fate with an ease that stunned a heartbroken Alice. Her desperation grew with each unanswered letter—and her father’s razor soon went missing. On January 25, Alice publicly slashed her ex-fiancée’s throat. Her same-sex love was deemed insane by her father that very night, and medical experts agreed: This was a dangerous and incurable perversion. As the courtroom was expanded to accommodate national interest, Alice spent months in jail—including the night that three of her fellow prisoners were lynched (an event which captured the attention of journalist and civil rights activist Ida B. Wells). After a jury of "the finest men in Memphis" declared Alice insane, she was remanded to an asylum, where she died under mysterious circumstances just a few years later.

Alice + Freda Forever recounts this tragic, real-life love story with over 100 illustrated love letters, maps, artifacts, historical documents, newspaper articles, courtroom proceedings, and intimate, domestic scenes—painting a vivid picture of a sadly familiar world.

My Thoughts 

Alice + Freda Forever is a fascinating and compelling read. Alexis Coe, through her research and presentation, captures the cultural climate of the time, as she shares the story of Alice Mitchell and Freda Ward.

I enjoyed how the story is presented through narrative, images, and letters. The Introduction was most helpful to explain Coe's motivation and intent for sharing their story. It is more than just a love story gone wrong. It takes a look at the aftermath of an unfathomable situation.

The media sensationalism of 1892 could be compared to the methods of reporting the news of today presenting whatever makes a good story regardless to the amount of truth that exists. She also reflects on the science of the time when not much clinical science is involved. I am amazed (although I shouldn't be) how much of "fact" was actually speculative opinion. 

What I was most surprised about their story was how much of it wasn't actually their story, but it is story about public perception, political and personal motivation. Even with all of the newspaper articles, letters, recounted stories, so much about Alice and Freda still remains a mystery. Readers interested in gender studies, history, true crime stories, and even folklore will want to read this book.

Disclaimer:  I received this promotional finished copy from Zest Books  in exchange for my honest review.  I was not compensated in any way other than the book provided. Thoughts and opinions are my own.

FOLLOW THE TRUE STORIES BLOG TOUR

hosted by Zest Books

 As part of the True Stories Blog Tour, I am giving away a copy of Alice + Freda Forever.

Giveaway Details

Prize donated by Zest Books
Must be 16 years or Older to enter
U.S. addresses only
To enter, fill out Rafflecopter below
Giveaway ends November 11, 2014 

If I cannot verify an entry, that entry will not count.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

EMBERS by Karen Ann Hopkins - Tour Stop and Giveaway

I'm really thrilled to be able to share Karen Ann Hopkins's newest book with you, EMBERS, the first book of The Wings of War series. Karen writes fantastic stories with complex characters and this one is sure to be a hit. I've started reading Embers and let me just say, the opening is filled with so much tension and suspense, that I can't read it fast enough. I'll have my review posted very soon.

EMBERS
(The Wings of War #1)

by Karen Ann Hopkins

Publication Date: October 21, 2014

Pages: 357

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Purchase: Amazon 

Synopsis

There are descendants of angels walking among us. Ember is one of them. And she may be the only hope mankind has as the rapture approaches and evils rises.

Embers is an epic paranormal adventure about a seventeen year old girl who discovers that she's immune to fire and any other injury when she’s in a horrific car crash that kills her parents. Following a violent episode with her aunt's boyfriend, Ember flees Ohio to live with an old relative in the Smoky Mountains of Tennessee. Ember's exuberance at escaping a bad home life soon turns to trepidation when she finds out that she's a Watcher, a descendant of angels. While Ember learns about her heritage, and the powers that go along with it, she strikes up friendships with two teenagers who live in a frightening walled compound in the forest. Inexplicitly drawn to one of the young men in particular, an impossible romance develops. But it is cut short when Ember discovers that her new friends are fighting on the opposite side of a war, one that’s been raging between two factions of Watchers for thousands of years. When the compound’s inhabitants threaten the townspeople, Ember takes action, sealing her fate in the ancient battle of good versus evil, and the grayness in between. Ember is up to the challenge, until she realizes that she isn’t only fighting for the lives of the locals and the souls of her new friends. She also might be one of the few champions who will make a stand for all of mankind as the rapture approaches and the end of days begin.

Embers is a dark and gritty YA novel that’s the first book in the series, The Wings of War.

 

About Karen Ann Hopkins:

Website | Blog | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads

A native of New York State, Karen Ann Hopkins now lives with her family on a farm in northern Kentucky, where her neighbors in all directions are members of a strict Amish community. Her unique perspective became the inspiration for the story of star-crossed lovers Rose and Noah. When she’s not homeschooling her kids, giving riding lessons or tending to a menagerie of horses, goats, peacocks, chickens, ducks, rabbits, dogs and cats, she is dreaming up her next romantic novel.

 Enter for a chance to win Karen's books!!

There are several giveaways accompanying this tour. One winner will receive a $100 gift card, another will receive a signed Temptation Series book set, including Temptation, Belonging & Forever, and ten lucky winners will receive an eCopy of EMBERS!

Please enter via the Rafflecopter form. Giveaway is open internationally for the gift card and eCopies and US/Canada for the book set! 

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Complete Tour
hosted by Kismet Book Touring

Make sure to stop by and find out what other readers are saying about EMBERS  

Monday, October 20th Unabridged Bookshelf & Book Briefs 

Tuesday, October 21st A Thousand Words A Million Books & Books and Things 

Wednesday, October 22nd Sweet Southern Home & Tween 2 Teen Book Reviews 

Thursday, October 23rd the unofficial addiction book fan club & Becoming Books 

Friday, October 24th A Dream Within A Dream & Becoming Books 

Monday, October 27th The Avid Reader & Lost in Ever After 

Tuesday, October 28th Lose Time Reading & So Bookalicious 

Wednesday, October 29th Such a Novel Idea & Reading Addict 

Thursday, October 30th Curling Up With A Good Book & Coming at YA 

Friday, October 31st Actin' Up with Books & To Each Their Own Reviews 

Monday, November 3rd GenGen's Book Blog & A Bookish Escape 

Tuesday, November 4th Sassy Book Lovers & Bittersweet Enchantment 

Wednesday, November 5th Nay's Pink Bookshelf & The Nocturnal Library 

Thursday, November 6th The Book Faery Reviews & Bumbles and Fairy-Tales 

Friday, November 7th Books in the Spotlight & Her Book Thoughts!

CAMP FORGET-ME-NOT by J.K. Rock: Excerpt and Giveaway

Camp Forget-Me-Not

(Camp Boyfriend #3)

by J.K. Rock

Young Adult Contemporary Romance

Released October 7, 2014

Published by Spencer Hill  Press

About the Book:

Playing it safe and fitting in may have rocketed Kayla West into the In crowd at Camp Juniper Point, but it's left her lonely. The only person she's ever been herself with was her former best friend, Nick, an outsider that pushed her to join the most popular girls cabin two years ago. Too bad being a Diva meant pressure to break up with Nick. Of course, Kayla had her reasons, but Nick can never know the real one. She always thought she'd forget him one day and move on. Until he returns to camp a super-hot Olympian snowboarder. Now, every girl wants him and Nick seems determined to show her what a mistake she made. Or at least, she thought that's what he wanted. But when Nick starts sending her private notes--just like he used to--she wonders what kind of game he's playing. Nick's attention is making it tougher to stay in the background and play in safe, forcing Kayla to make a decision--stay on the sidelines and get overlooked? Or take a chance on trusting Nick and, maybe... herself.

Amazon | Barnes and Noble

EXCERPT

“I’m so sorry, Nick. I never meant for you to—”

His lips captured mine, cutting off the rest of what I needed to say with a tender, breathless kiss that left me lightheaded. The world around me seemed to sway, and I clung to him, needing the reassurance of his firm arms to tell me that this was real. Happening. Not a dream I’d wake up from when the alarm buzzed. No. The hard muscles beneath my fingertips responded to my touch, tightening as I traced the curve of his biceps.

“You’re so beautiful,” he murmured when he pulled away and gazed into my eyes, his pupils large and rimmed by hazel.

“So are you,” I whispered and pushed aside the dark hair that had fallen across his brow.

He captured my hand in his own and pressed a fierce kiss against my palm, his gaze never leaving mine. “I’ve wanted to kiss you. Since that night in the kitchen.” He laughed and looked down self-consciously. “Since we came here three years ago.”

“Me too.”

With a groan, he pulled me across his lap and kissed me again, and I’d never been so lost so fast. Pleasure at making up with Nick combined with all the years I’d missed him. It felt like I couldn’t kiss or pull him close enough.

His lips parted mine, the increased pressure delicious and frenzied. Tremors skimmed across my nerves, my body awash with sensation after sensation, each more incredible than the last. I stroked the side of his lean jaw and kissed him back. Every emotion I’d held back poured out of me, and I twisted closer to him, restless for more of him. We’d waited so long and now, after all this time, here we were—our bodies, minds, and hearts in perfect sync. Joy flooded me. We’d found our way back to each other at last.

“Kayla! Nick!”

Nick stopped at the sudden noise, his eyes meeting mine.

“It’s Josh.” In one swift motion, Nick had me off his lap and back beside him on the log.

“What?” It was the best I could manage. How the hell was Nick suddenly so in control? Thinking straight? Had he been as affected by our kiss as I was?

“It’s Josh. He’s coming to make sure we’re all right.” Nick pulled down my T-shirt so that it no longer revealed my stomach.

I shook my head to clear it. “And are we? All right?” Suddenly I had my doubts, given the way he’d shoved me aside the minute someone else could see us. My heart pounded so loud I could hardly hear anything else, but then, a crashing noise sounded nearby and I caught a glimpse of Josh’s blue shirt as he approached.

“You two okay?” called Josh.

Nick helped me to my feet, his touch feeling too light. Casual. The quick side-to-side and up-and down movement he gave my ankle, too impersonal. When I didn’t wince, he called, “We’re all right.”

And with that, he bounded into the forest, intercepting Josh before we were caught together. Or so I hoped. But a second later, laughter boomed and I cringed, imagining Nick joking with Josh about me. Bragging even. Had I been the object of Nick’s competitive side today? A challenge to win? 

J. K. Rock is the pseudonym for YA writing partners - and sisters-in-law - Joanne & Karen Rock. Although they started out sharing an annual shopping trip, they ended up discussing their favorite films and books, joining the same book club and talking about writing... a lot. Their debut novel, Camp Boyfriend, is the first in a three-book series plotted during family pool parties. Their creative partnership is unique in that they enjoy passing a book back and forth, each adding a chapter and fine-tuning the chapter before. Years of friendship has yielded a shared voice and vision for their work that makes writing a pleasure.

Find J.K. Rock online:
Goodreads / Author Website / Series Website  

Karen's Twitter / Joanne's Twitter / Facebook  

Pinterest / Amazon / Barnes & Noble

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