Spotlight and Audiobook Giveaway: SAFE HAVEN by Nicholas Sparks

CLOSED.

Thanks to the generous folks at
Hachette Book Group,

I have been authorized to
 give away three (3) audiobook copies of

SAFE HAVEN
by Nicholas Sparks.

Rules for entering this giveaway
are at the bottom of this post.

SAFE HAVEN

by Nicholas Sparks
Read by Rebecca Lowman

Publisher: Hachette Audio

Category: Fiction

Format: Audio Book

Subformat: CD (Audio)

Edition: Unabridged

Publish Date: 9/14/2010

Price: $34.98/$39.98

ISBN: 9781607886198

Pages: 0

Description (from the author):
When a mysterious young woman named Katie appears in the small North Carolina town of Southport, her sudden arrival raises questions about her past. Beautiful yet self-effacing, Katie seems determined to avoid forming personal ties until a series of events draws her into two reluctant relationships: one with Alex, a widowed store owner with a kind heart and two young children; and another with her plainspoken single neighbor, Jo. Despite her reservations, Katie slowly begins to let down her guard, putting down roots in the close-knit community and becoming increasingly attached to Alex and his family.

But even as Katie begins to fall in love, she struggles with the dark secret that still haunts and terrifies her . . . a past that set her on a fearful, shattering journey across the country, to the sheltered oasis of Southport. With Jo's empathic and stubborn support, Katie eventually realizes that she must choose between a life of transient safety and one of riskier rewards . . . and that in the darkest hour, love is the only true safe haven.

Click here to listen to an excerpt.

Click here to access author articles.

Click here to visit the author's website.

About the author (from the publisher):
Nicholas Sparks is the author of 15 books. He lives in North Carolina with his wife and children. You can visit the author's web site at http://www.nicholassparks.com/. Click here to read a more in-depth author bio.

RULES FOR ENTERING THE GIVEAWAY:

• Leave an original comment on this post telling me you would like to win. Include an email address with your comment so that I can contact you if you do win. Use a spam-thwarting format such as geebee.reads AT gmail DOT com or geebee.reads [at] gmail [dot] com

• You must leave an email address in order to qualify. If I can't contact you, you can't win!

• You can earn an extra entry by being or becoming a Follower or Subscriber of this blog and telling me about it in a separate comment.

• Blog about this contest and provide me with the link to the post in a separate comment, and I'll give you yet another entry.

• Tweeting about this contest and providing me the link in a separate comment will get you one more entry. I've added a Retweet button at the bottom of every post.

• Stumble this blog, Digg it, or Technorati Fave it, whatever, and leave a separate comment for another entry.

• Winners must provide a U.S. or Canadian street address. Hachette is unable to deliver to P.O. Boxes.

• PLEASE NOTE: One win per household. If you win this title in another contest hosted at another blog, Hachette will only send one copy per household address.

• Deadline for entry is 11:59 p.m. EST on Friday, October 29, 2010.

• Winners will have 48 hours to respond to my email announcing that they have won; if I don't hear from a winner, I will draw another name.

• Winners are determined using the sequence generator at Random.org.

Thank you to Anna
at Hachette Book Group

for making this giveaway possible.

GOOD LUCK EVERYONE!
THIS CONTEST IS NOW CLOSED.

Who Won What . . .

Graphic courtesy of Cupcakes for Clara.

Click here to visit her Etsy shop.

!!  CONGRATULATIONS !!

THE POSTCARD KILLERS
(Audiobook)
by James Patterson & Liza Marklund

#24 Tore
#27 Ruthie
#37 Beverly

TESTIMONY
(Mass Market Paperback Edition)
by Anita Shreve

#4  JHS.
#30 Anonymous ("A")
#38 karenk
#47 Justpeachy36
#69 Anonymous ("B")

THE UNNAMED
by Joshua Ferris

#26 Alyce
#33 Ruthie
#70 Norma




- All winners have been contacted and confirmed.

- Thank you to everyone who stopped by and entered. If you weren't one of the lucky ones in this drawing, click here to hop on over to the contest page at Hachette Book Group for listings of other blogs hosting book giveaways.

 - Be sure and check my sidebar for other ongoing giveaways here and at other blogs.

A big thank you to
Anna, Valerie, and Hachette Book Group

 for making these giveaways possible.

Waiting on Wednesday: THE WINTER GHOSTS by Kate Mosse

"WAITING ON WEDNESDAY"

is hosted by Jill from

Breaking the Spine.

Join in and tell us . . .

What are you waiting for?

My pick for this week is . . .

THE WINTER GHOSTS

by Kate Mosse

Pub. Date: February 2011

Publisher: Penguin Group (USA) Incorporated

Format: Hardcover, 288pp

Sales Rank: 209,971

ISBN-13: 9780399157158

ISBN: 0399157158

Description (from the publisher):
In the winter of 1928, still seeking some kind of resolution to the horrors of World War I, Freddie is traveling through the beautiful but forbidding French Pyrenees. During a snowstorm, his car spins off the mountain road. Dazed, he stumbles through the woods, emerging in a tiny village, where he finds an inn to wait out the blizzard. There he meets Fabrissa, a lovely young woman also mourning a lost generation.

Over the course of one night, Fabrissa and Freddie share their stories. By the time dawn breaks, Freddie will have unearthed a tragic, centuries-old mystery, and discovered his own role in the
life of this remote town.

Click here to visit the author's website.

About the author (from the publisher):
Kate Mosse is the author of the New York Times–bestselling Labyrinth and Sepulchre and the cofounder and honorary director of the prestigious Orange Prize for Fiction. She lives in England
and France.

Spotlight and Audiobook Giveaway: ROOM: A Novel by Emma Donoghue

CLOSED.

Thanks to the generous folks at
Hachette Book Group,

I have been authorized to
 give away three (3) audiobook copies of

ROOM: A Novel
by Emma Donoghue.

Rules for entering this giveaway
are at the bottom of this post.

ROOM: A Novel

by Emma Donoghue

Read by Michael Friedman, Ellen Archer,
Robert Petkoff, and Suzanne Toren

Publisher: Hachette Audio

Category: Fiction

Format: Audio Book

Subformat: CD (Audio)

Edition: Unabridged

Publish Date: 9/13/2010

Price: $29.98/$0.00

ISBN: 9781607886273

Pages: 0

Description (from the author):
To five-year-old Jack, ROOM is the entire world. It is where he was born and grew up; it's where he lives with his Ma as they learn and read and eat and sleep and play. At night, his Ma shuts him safely in the wardrobe, where he is meant to be
asleep when Old Nick visits.

ROOM is home to Jack, but to Ma, it is the prison where Old Nick has held her captive for seven years. Through determination, ingenuity, and fierce motherly love, Ma has created a life for Jack. But she knows it's not enough…not for her or for him. She devises a bold escape plan, one that relies on her young son's bravery and a lot of luck. What she does not realize is just how unprepared she is for the plan to actually work.

Told entirely in the language of the energetic, pragmatic five-year-old Jack, ROOM is a celebration of resilience and the limitless bond between parent and child, a brilliantly executed novel about what it means to journey from one world to another.

Click here to listen to an excerpt.

Click here to access the Reading Group Guide.

Click here to visit the author's website.

About the author (from the publisher):
Born in Dublin in 1969, Emma Donoghue is a writer of contemporary and historical fiction whose novels include the bestselling Slammerkin, The Sealed Letter, Landing, Life Mask, Hood, and Stirfry. Her story collections are The Woman Who Gave Birth to Rabbits, Kissing the Witch, and Touchy Subjects. She also writes literary history, and plays for stage and radio. She lives in London, Ontario, with her partner and their two small children. For more information, go to http://www.emmadonoghue.com/.

RULES FOR ENTERING THE GIVEAWAY:

• Leave an original comment on this post telling me you would like to win. Include an email address with your comment so that I can contact you if you do win. Use a spam-thwarting format such as geebee.reads AT gmail DOT com or geebee.reads [at] gmail [dot] com

• You must leave an email address in order to qualify. If I can't contact you, you can't win!

• You can earn an extra entry by being or becoming a Follower or Subscriber of this blog and telling me about it in a separate comment.

• Blog about this contest and provide me with the link to the post in a separate comment, and I'll give you yet another entry.

• Tweeting about this contest and providing me the link in a separate comment will get you one more entry. I've added a Retweet button at the bottom of every post.

• Stumble this blog, Digg it, or Technorati Fave it, whatever, and leave a separate comment for another entry.

• Winners must provide a U.S. or Canadian street address. Hachette is unable to deliver to P.O. Boxes.

• PLEASE NOTE: One win per household. If you win this title in another contest hosted at another blog, Hachette will only send one copy per household address.

• Deadline for entry is 11:59 p.m. EST on Friday, October 29, 2010.

• Winners will have 48 hours to respond to my email announcing that they have won; if I don't hear from a winner, I will draw another name.

• Winners are determined using the sequence generator at Random.org.

Thank you to Anna
at Hachette Book Group

for making this giveaway possible.

GOOD LUCK EVERYONE!
THIS CONTEST IS NOW CLOSED.

Giveaway Scout

I'm signing up with Giveaway Scout to help promote my giveaways. If you like to host and/or enter giveaways, you should check out Giveaway Scout. This site lists all kinds of giveaways, contests, and sweepstakes - not just those for books. Giveaway Scout scans the blogs that have registered and updates its listings every hour. Then Giveaway Scout spreads the word to its subscribers through email, Facebook, and Twitter. There are thousands of giveaways posted, and you can browse them all or sign up for updates in individual categories. Hop on over to Giveaway Scout and check it out! But be forewarned - it's addictive!

Waiting on Wednesday: THE PEACH KEEPER by Sarah Addison Allen

"WAITING ON WEDNESDAY"

is hosted by Jill from

Breaking the Spine.

Join in and tell us . . .

What are you waiting for?

My pick for this week is . . .

THE PEACH KEEPER

by Sarah Addison Allen

Pub. Date: March 2011

Publisher: Random House Publishing Group

Format: Hardcover, 288pp

Sales Rank: 128,169

ISBN-13: 9780553807226

ISBN: 0553807226

I don't have any info yet on this title -
but with this author,
I know it will be worth the wait!

I can tell you that Sarah Addison Allen is offering a special contest open until November 1st.
Click here to enter at her website.

Book Giveaway and Review #52: GOD AND DOG by Wendy Francisco

CLOSED.

Thanks to the generous folks at
Hachette Book Group,

I have been authorized to
 give away two (2) copies of

GOD AND DOG
by Wendy Francisco.

Rules for entering this giveaway
are at the bottom of this post.

GOD AND DOG

by Wendy Francisco

Publisher: Center Street

Category: Pets

Format: Hardcover Book

Publish Date: 9/20/2010

Price: $10.99/$12.50

ISBN: 9781599953793

Pages: 48

Size: 6" x 6"

Description (from the publisher):
GOD AND DOG is a phenomenon. First appearing on YouTube, the video of Wendy Francisco's charming animated illustrations and moving song tells of the unconditional love of both God and Dog.

With over 2 million YouTube viewings to date, Francisco's story appeals to all ages, to animal enthusiasts, to people of religious persuasions, and especially to anyone who has been loved by a dog.

Now in book format, Wendy's touching narrative will be expanded on through additional lyrics, illustrations, photographs and some of the powerful mail that is continually being sent to Francisco.

My Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars

My Thoughts:  GOD AND DOG by Wendy Francisco is a sweet and inspirational little gift book. It would be perfect for any dog lover whose faith in God might be slipping or who's facing a challenge, large or small. The message is simple, clear but powerful: the love of God and the love of your dog are constant and unwavering. Can their spellings be mere coincidence?

Click here to visit the GoD and DoG website.

About the author (from the publisher):
Wendy Francisco has been a recording artist since the late 1970s and, alongside her husband singer/songwriter Don Francisco, has toured nationally and internationally. She has eight CDs of her own and is currently working on a new one.

Francisco has a degree in fine art from San Diego State University and owned a successful gallery in Colorado. An award-winning pastel artist, Wendy also enjoys painting, printmaking, pen and ink, photography, and a variety of other mediums.

RULES FOR ENTERING THE GIVEAWAY:

• Leave an original comment on this post telling me you would like to win. Include an email address with your comment so that I can contact you if you do win. Use a spam-thwarting format such as geebee.reads AT gmail DOT com or geebee.reads [at] gmail [dot] com

• You must leave an email address in order to qualify. If I can't contact you, you can't win!

• You can earn an extra entry by being or becoming a Follower or Subscriber of this blog and telling me about it in a separate comment.

• Blog about this contest and provide me with the link to the post in a separate comment, and I'll give you yet another entry.

• Tweeting about this contest and providing me the link in a separate comment will get you one more entry. I've added a Retweet button at the bottom of every post.

• Stumble this blog, Digg it, or Technorati Fave it, whatever, and leave a separate comment for another entry.

• Winners must provide a U.S. or Canadian street address. Hachette is unable to deliver to P.O. Boxes.

• PLEASE NOTE: One win per household. If you win this title in another contest hosted at another blog, Hachette will only send one (1) copy per household address.

• Deadline for entry is 11:59 p.m. EST on Friday, October 15, 2010.

• Winners will have 48 hours to respond to my email announcing that they have won; if I don't hear from a winner, I will draw another name.

• Winners are determined using the sequence generator at Random.org.

Thank you to Anna
at Hachette Book Group

for making this giveaway possible.

GOOD LUCK EVERYONE!
THIS CONTEST IS NOW CLOSED.

Waiting on Wednesday: THE LOVE GODDESS' COOKING SCHOOL by Melissa Senate

"WAITING ON WEDNESDAY"

is hosted by Jill from

Breaking the Spine.

Join in and tell us . . .

What are you waiting for?

My pick for this week is . . .

Last year I loved reading Melissa Senate's book THE SECRET OF JOY.  I shared it with my sister and she loved it, too. (Click here to read my review.)  Now I'm all a twitter with anticipation for her new novel, THE LOVE GODDESS' COOKING SCHOOL, which will be released in October. It sounds absolutely delicious!

THE LOVE GODDESS' COOKING SCHOOL

by Melissa Senate

Pub. Date: October 26, 2010

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Adult Publishing Group

Format: Paperback, 352pp

Sales Rank: 291,309

ISBN-13: 9781439107232

ISBN: 1439107238

Description (from the publisher):

Camilla's Cucinotta: Italian Cooking Classes. Fresh take-home pastas & sauces dailyBenvenuti! (Welcome!)

Holly Maguire's grandmother Camilla was the Love Goddess of Blue Crab Island, Maine—a Milanese fortune-teller who could predict the right man for you, and whose Italian cooking was rumored to save marriages. Holly has been waiting years for her unlikely fortune: her true love will like sa cordula, an unappetizing old-world delicacy. But Holly can't make a decent marinara sauce, let alone sa cordula. Maybe that's why the man she hopes to marry breaks her heart. So when Holly inherits Camilla's Cucinotta, she's determined to forget about fortunes and love and become an Italian cooking teacher worthy of her grandmother's legacy.

But Holly's four students are seeking much more than how to make Camilla's chicken alla Milanese. Simon, a single father, hopes to cook his way back into his daughter's heart. Juliet, Holly's childhood friend, hides a painful secret. Tamara, a serial dater, can't find the love she longs for. And twelve-year-old Mia thinks learning to cook will stop her dad, Liam, from marrying his phony lasagna-queen girlfriend. As the class gathers each week, adding Camilla's essential ingredients of wishes and memories in every pot and pan, unexpected friendships and romances are formed—and tested. Especially when Holly falls hard for Liam . . . and learns a thing or two about finding her own recipe for happiness.

Click here to visit the author's website.

About the author (from the publisher):

Melissa Senate is the author of eight novels, including the bestselling See Jane Date, which was made into an ABC Family TV movie and has sold over 200,000 copies worldwide. She's published short pieces in Everything I Needed to Know About Being a Girl I Learned from Judy Blume, It's a Wonderful Lie, Flirting with Pride and Prejudice, and American Girls About Town. A former romance and young adult editor from New York, she now lives on the southern coast of Maine with her son.

Wordless Wednesday: September 15, 2010

(Reminds me of an inner city lot I recently drove by

 - it was planted solid with glorious sunflowers!)

September Romance Classics Giveaway from Hachette Book Group

CLOSED.

Rules for entering this giveaway

are at the bottom of this post.

Thanks to the fun and flirty folks at

Hachette Book Group,

I have been authorized to give away 
 three (3) sets of three (3) books in the
 SEPTEMBER
FOREVER ROMANCE CLASSICS
GIVEAWAY.

Here's the scoop on the books
 you could scoop up!

* * *

THE RAVEN PRINCE

By Elizabeth Hoyt

Format: MASS MARKET

Price: US$6.99/CAN$8.99

ISBN: 9780446618472

Description (from the publisher):

There comes a time in a woman's life when she must do the unthinkable - and find employment. For the widowed Anna Wren, that means taking a job as female secretary for the Earl of Swartingham. Secretaries are always male - never female - as Anna well knows but the real downfall of her career is the realisation that she is falling in love with Edward de Raaf - the Earl. But when she realises that he is going to visit a brothel in London to take care of his 'manly' desires, Anna sees red - and decides to take advantage of the opportunity to also take care of her 'womanly' desires - with the Earl as her unknowing lover.

Click here to read an excerpt.

About the author (from the publisher):

Elizabeth Hoyt lives in central Illinois with three untrained dogs, two angelic, but bickering children, and one long-suffering husband.  

* * *

HOT WHEELS AND HIGH HEELS

By Jane Graves

Format: MASS MARKET

Price: US$6.99/CAN$9.99

ISBN: 9780446617864

Description (from the publisher):

Trophy wife Darcy McDaniel has just discovered that, thanks to her embezzling husband, her posh, upper-class life is gone for good. Now she's trading her suburban palace for a trailer park and her weekly salon appointments for a job. Darcy needs a new man--fast--one who'll keep her in the manner she darn well deserves. Problem is, the hottest prospect around is the my-way-or-the-highway hunk who's making off with her beloved Mercedes!

Ex-cop turned repo man John Stark is sure that hiring the furious blonde in his headlights is a colossal mistake. He knows Darcy's high-maintenance, designer-labels-only type--after all, he's used to taking their cars. But he never expected this hellion to have the smarts and the spunk to go from receptionist to repo agent in record time...or to drive him insane with desire. She's the last thing this tall, dark, and dangerous loner needs...and everything he never knew he wanted.

Click here to read an excerpt.

About the author (from the publisher):

Jane Graves began writing stories at the age of five, and she hasn't stopped since. She's a graduate of the University of Oklahoma, where she earned a B.A. in Journalism in the Professional Writing program. The author of fifteen novels, Jane is a six-time finalist for the Romance Writers of America's RITA Awards, the industry's highest honor, and is the recipient of two National Readers' Choice Awards, the Booksellers' Best Award, and the Golden Quill. She lives in Texas with her daughter and her husband of twenty-five years.

* * *

 

A HINT OF WICKED

By Jennifer Haymore

Format: MASS MARKET

Price: US$6.99/CAN$8.50

ISBN: 9780446540292

Description (from the publisher):

CAUGHT BETWEEN DUTY AND DESIRE . . .

Sophie, the Duchess of Calton, has finally moved on. After seven years mourning the loss of her husband, Garrett, at Waterloo, she has married his cousin and heir, Tristan. Sophie gives herself to him body and soul. . . until the day Garrett returns from the Continent, demanding his title, his lands-and his wife.

TORN BETWEEN TWO HUSBANDS . . .

Now Sophie must choose between her first love and her new love, knowing that no matter what, her choice will destroy one of the men she adores. Will it be Garrett, her childhood sweetheart, whose loss nearly destroyed her once already? Or will it be Tristan, beloved friend turned lover, who supported her through the last, dark years and introduced her to a passion she had never known? As her two husbands battle for her heart, Sophie finds herself immersed in a dangerous game-where the stakes are not only love . . . but life and death.

A HINT OF WICKED

Click here to read an excerpt.

About the author (from the publisher):

As a child, Jennifer Haymore traveled the South Pacific with her family on their homebuilt sailboat. The months spent on the sometimes-quiet, sometimes-raging seas sparked her love of adventure and grand romance. Since then, she's earned degrees in Computer Science and Education and held various jobs from bookselling to teaching inner-city children to acting, but she's never stopped writing.

You can find Jennifer in Southern California trying to talk her husband into yet another trip to England, helping her three children with homework while brainstorming a new five-minute dinner menu, or crouched in a corner of the local bookstore writing her next novel.

* * *

RULES FOR ENTERING THE GIVEAWAY:

• Leave an original comment on this post telling me you would like to win. Include an email address with your comment so that I can contact you if you do win. Use a spam-thwarting format such as geebee.reads AT gmail DOT com or geebee.reads [at] gmail [dot] com

• You must leave an email address in order to qualify. If I can't contact you, you can't win!

• You can earn an extra entry by being or becoming a Follower or Subscriber of this blog and telling me about it in a separate comment.

• Blog about this contest and provide me with the link to the post in a separate comment, and I'll give you yet another entry.

• Tweeting about this contest and providing me the link in a separate comment will get you one more entry. I've added a Retweet button at the bottom of every post.

• Stumble this blog, Digg it, or Technorati Fave it, whatever, and leave a separate comment for another entry.

• Winners must provide a U.S. or Canadian street address. Hachette is unable to deliver to P.O. Boxes.

• PLEASE NOTE: One win per household. If you win this title in another contest hosted at another blog, Hachette will only send one (1) set of books per household address.

• Deadline for entry is 11:59 p.m. EST on Friday, October 1, 2010.

• Winners will have 48 hours to respond to my email announcing that they have won; if I don't hear from a winner, I will draw another name.

• Winners are determined using the sequence generator at Random.org.

Thank you to Anna
at Hachette Book Group

for making this giveaway possible.

GOOD LUCK EVERYONE!
THIS CONTEST IS NOW CLOSED.

Who Won What . . .

Graphic courtesy of Cupcakes for Clara.

Click here to visit her Etsy shop.

!!  CONGRATULATIONS !!

THE LION
by Nelson DeMille

#2 Susan
#23 clenna
#41 misskallie2000




- All winners have been notified and confirmed.

- Thank you to everyone who stopped by and entered. If you weren't one of the lucky ones in this drawing, click here to hop on over to the contest page at Hachette Book Group for listings of other blogs hosting book giveaways.

- Be sure and check my sidebar for other ongoing giveaways here and at other blogs.

A big thank you to
Anna and Hachette Book Group

 for making this giveaways possible.

Mailbox Monday: September 13, 2010

Mailbox Monday, created by Marcia at The Printed Page, is being hosted this month by Kathy at Bermudaonion's Weblog. If you'd like to join in, stop by Shanyn's and leave a link - or just browse through the comments to see what new books have been showing up.

What's in your mailbox?

GOD AND SEX: What the Bible Really Says
By Michael Coogan

for review from Hachette Book Group

WHAT ALICE KNEW
by Paula Marantz Cohen

for review from Sourcebooks

THE ILLUMINATOR
by Brenda Rickman Vantrease

A win from BookHounds.

Thanks, Mary!!






NANNY McPHEE PRIZE PACK

A win from Bermudaonion's Weblog.

Thanks, Kathy!!  My niece loves it!!

Thank you to the authors, publishers, publicists

for sending me review copies

(and bloggers for hosting such great contests!)!

Mailbox Monday: September 6, 2010

Mailbox Monday, created by Marcia at The Printed Page, is being hosted this month by Kathy at Bermudaonion's Weblog. If you'd like to join in, stop by Shanyn's and leave a link - or just browse through the comments to see what new books have been showing up.

What's in your mailbox?

I know I'm a tad late with this post, but I decided to go ahead and post for 3 reasons:

1. I want to support Kathy at Bermudiaonion's Weblog in her hosting duties this month;

2. I didn't get a post up last week, so this is really two weeks' worth of books; and

3. I won a book from Free Book Friday! Actually, 2 books! I won Beautiful Maria of My Soul, and because it's the 20th anniversary, they threw in The Mambo Kings Play Songs of Love. I was so excited - I've entered Free Book Friday every week for over 2 years. It only takes a couple of seconds to enter - if you haven't already, go check it out!

THE MAMBO KINGS PLAY SONGS OF LOVE
by Oscar Hijuelos

BEAUTIFUL MARIA OF MY SOUL
by Oscar Hijuelos

REVOLUTION
by Jennifer Donnelly

THE DISAPPEARING SPOON
by Sam Kean

EATING ANIMALS
by Jonathan Safran Foer

SIMPLY IRRESISTABLE
by Jill Shalvis

MOTHERS & OTHER LIARS
by Amy Bourret

SAVIOR OF THE RAIN FOREST:
An Adventure of Zalvator the Black Panther
by Bruno Gonzalez





Thank you to the authors, publishers, and publicists for sending me review copies!

Waiting on Wednesday: UP FROM THE BLUE by Susan Henderson

"WAITING ON WEDNESDAY"

is hosted by Jill from

Breaking the Spine.

Join in and tell us . . .

What are you waiting for?

My pick for this week is . . .

UP FROM THE BLUE
by Susan Henderson

Pub. Date: September 21, 2010
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
Format: Paperback, 336pp
ISBN-13: 9780061984037
ISBN: 0061984035

“Elegant and engrossing….Henderson is a talent to watch.”
—Danielle Trussoni, author of Angelology

“This is not a book you’ll soon forget.”
—Sara Gruen, author of Water for Elephants

Description (from the publisher):

The gripping debut novel from Litpark.com founder and Pushcart Prize-nominee Susan Henderson, Up From the Blue is a dazzling tour de force that unfolds against the backdrop of 1970s America—a tumultuous era of desegregation, school busing, and the early rise of modern-day feminism. The story of an imaginative young girl struggling to make sense of her mother’s mysterious disappearance, Up From the Blue is enthralling fiction that delves into complex family relationships, in the vein of Jennifer McMahon, Katrina Kittle, and Laura Kasischke.

Tillie Harris's life is in disarray—her husband is away on business, the boxes in her new home aren't unpacked, and the telephone isn't even connected yet. Though she's not due for another month, sudden labor pains force Tillie to reach out to her estranged father for help, a choice that means facing the painful memories she's been running from since she was a little girl.

An extraordinary debut from a talented new voice, Up from the Blue untangles the year in Tillie's life that changed everything: 1975, the year her mother disappeared.

About the author (from the publisher):

Susan Henderson is a two-time Pushcart Prize nominee and the founder of the literary blog LitPark: Where Writers Come to Play (http://www.litpark.com/). Her work has appeared in Zoetrope: All-Story, the Pittsburgh Quarterly, North Atlantic Review, Opium, and many other publications. Henderson lives in New York, and Up from the Blue is her first novel.