Giveaway: CLEOPATRA'S DAUGHTER by Michelle Moran

I am thrilled to be hosting a giveaway for one (1) hardcover copy of Michelle Moran's CLEOPATRA'S DAUGHTER as well as an ancient Roman coin complete with certificate of authenticity.

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

CLEOPATRA'S DAUGHTER
by Michelle Moran

Release date: September 15, 2009

Random House, Crown Publishers
ISBN-10: 0307409120
ISBN-13: 978-0307409126
Hardcover
430 pages

Synopsis (from the publisher):
The marriage of Marc Antony and Cleopatra is one of the greatest love stories of all time, a tale of unbridled passion with earth-shaking political consequences. Feared and hunted by the powers in Rome, the lovers choose to die by their own hands as the triumphant armies of Antony’s revengeful rival, Octavian, sweep into Egypt. Their three orphaned children are taken in chains to Rome; only two– the ten-year-old twins Selene and Alexander–survive the journey. Delivered to the household of Octavian’s sister, the siblings cling to each other and to the hope that they will return one day to their rightful place on the throne of Egypt. As they come of age, they are buffeted by the personal ambitions of Octavian’s family and court, by the ever-present threat of slave rebellion, and by the longings and desires deep within their own hearts.

The fateful tale of Selene and Alexander is brought brilliantly to life in Cleopatra’s Daughter. Recounted in Selene’s youthful and engaging voice, it introduces a compelling cast of historical characters: Octavia, the emperor Octavian’s kind and compassionate sister, abandoned by Marc Antony for Cleopatra; Livia, Octavian's bitter and jealous wife; Marcellus, Octavian’s handsome, flirtatious nephew and heir apparent; Tiberius, Livia’s sardonic son and Marcellus’s great rival for power; and Juba, Octavian’s watchful aide, whose honored position at court has far-reaching effects on the lives of the young Egyptian royals.

Selene’s narrative is animated by the concerns of a young girl in any time and place–the possibility of finding love, the pullof friendship and family, and the pursuit of her unique interests and talents. While coping with the loss of both her family and her ancestral kingdom, Selene must find a path around the dangers of a foreign land. Her accounts of life in Rome are filled with historical details that vividly capture both the glories and horrors of the times. She dines with the empire’s most illustrious poets and politicians, witnesses the creation of the Pantheon, and navigates the colorful, crowded marketplaces of the city where Roman-style justice is meted out with merciless authority.

Based on meticulous research, Cleopatra’s Daughter is a fascinating portrait of imperial Rome and of the people and events of this glorious and most tumultuous period in human history. Emerging from the shadows of the past, Selene, a young woman of irresistible charm and preternatural intelligence, will capture your heart.

Biography
MICHELLE MORAN is the author of the bestselling Nefertiti and The Heretic Queen. Her experiences at archaeological sites around the world motivated her to write historical fiction and continue to provide inspiration for her novels. For more information, visit the author's blog at michellemoran.blogspot.com

Visit CleopatrasDaughter.com for more historical background, maps, and lots of other information.

Michelle is running several more contests directly from her website. Visit her contest page to enter.

RULES FOR ENTERING THE GIVEAWAY:

• Leave a 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.

• This contest is open to U.S. residents only.

• Deadline for entry is 11:59 p.m. EST on Sunday, September 13, 2009.

• The winner will have 24 hours to respond to my email announcing that they have won; if I don't hear from the winner, I will draw another name.

Thank you to Michelle Moran
for making this giveaway possible.

GOOD LUCK EVERYONE!

Giveaway: THE SMART ONE AND THE PRETTY ONE by Claire LaZebnik

Thanks to the generosity of the great folks
at Hachette Book Group,
A Sea of Books is hosting a giveaway for five (5!) copies of THE SMART ONE AND THE PRETTY ONE
by Claire LaZebnik.

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

THE SMART ONE and THE PRETTY ONE
by Claire LaZebnik

Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Pub. Date: September 2008
ISBN-13: 9780446582063
Sales Rank: 140,490
294pp

Description (from the publisher):
"This sparkling novel about two sisters is both witty and stylish. Even if you don't have a sister of your own, you won't be able to resist LaZebnik's charming take on modern relationships. Read it!" - Holly Peterson, bestselling author of The Manny
When Ava Nickerson was a child, her mother jokingly betrothed her to a friend's son, and the contract the parents made has stayed safely buried for years. Now that still-single Ava is closing in on thirty, no one even remembers she was once "engaged" to the Markowitz boy. But when their mother is diagnosed with cancer, Ava's prodigal little sister Lauren comes home to Los Angeles where she stumbles across the decades-old document.
Frustrated and embarrassed by Ava's constant lectures about financial responsibility (all because she's in a little debt. Okay, a lot of debt), Lauren decides to do some sisterly interfering of her own and tracks down her sister's childhood fiancé. When she finds him, the highly inappropriate, twice-divorced, but incredibly charming Russell Markowitz is all too happy to re-enter the Nickerson sisters' lives, and always-accountable Ava is forced to consider just how binding a contract really is...
Click here to READ AN EXCERPT.
Click here to peek at the READING GROUP GUIDE.
Click here to read an ARTICLE ON WRITING BY THE AUTHOR.
Click here to VISIT THE AUTHOR'S WEBSITE.

RULES FOR ENTERING THE GIVEAWAY:

• Leave a 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.
• Deadline for entry is 11:59 p.m. EST on Friday, September 25, 2009.
• 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.

Thank you to Miriam
at Hachette Book Group
for making this giveaway possible.

GOOD LUCK EVERYONE!

Book Review #18: TOO TOO MANY TUTUS by Suzanne Davis Marion; illustrated by Marj Hales

TOO TOO MANY TUTUS
by Suzanne Davis Marion
Illustrated by Marj Hales

BookSurge Publishing (Feb 2009)
978-1439218471
Picture Book
32 Pages

Synopsis (from Amazon):
Christina has a problem. Her ballet class is coming up, and she must decide which one of her many tutus to wear. She lays them all carefully on her bed to help her decide. The decision is difficult, because the colors are each so vibrant and lovely. She imagines herself inspired to dance in a unique and special way in each tutu, with each color evoking its own particular imagery. In her blue tutu she could dance by the sea, with the birds and fishes joining in. In her green tutu she could do a forest dance among the trees, and in the meadows. Her orange tutu creates images of a joyous dance in the firelight at sunset. There are other colors too, each suggesting its own special mood. At last she receives some wise counsel in solving her dilemma, and helping her to make the correct choice.

My Rating: 4.5/5 Stars

My Thoughts:

Everyone knows it can be difficult for a small child to make a choice from too, too many options. With the time for ballet class fast approaching, little Christina must select just the right tutu from the colorful plethora hanging in her closet. TOO TOO MANY TUTUS is the sweet and charming story of how she makes her choice.

Christina asks both her mother and father for advice, but it is her older brother, Max, who suggests that she lay each tutu out on her bed so she can see and consider all of the colors. This is the core of the story. One by one, Christina imagines herself dancing in celebration of each color:

"If I wore my pink tutu I could dance among the roses. Maybe someone would see me dancing and think I was one of the roses, blowing in the breeze. That would be too too much fun."

Eventually, a quick lesson in color theory leads Christina to make the most perfect choice.

My young niece really enjoys this story, and we've read it many times. The watercolor illustrations beautifully express a child's imagination. Like most children, Christina sometimes sees herself as an older girl, and I thought that was a nice touch. Watercolor is the perfect medium for this story because the colors are vibrant yet dreamy at the same time. It was also particularly nice that the joy of each color is expressed through elements of the natural world - trees and flowers, sunshine and water. There are no gumdrops or frosted cupcakes associated with Christina's sweet tutus. I also liked that it was her big brother, Max, who offered Christina the advice of how to compare all the various tutus.

The one place I stumbled in my enjoyment of this book was in the depiction of the orange tutu. Christina imagines herself dancing around a big blazing fire, and that imagery made me uncomfortable. No one else I asked seemed concerned about it, though, and I checked with several parents. The page didn't stand out with my own niece. I suppose in the spirit of full disclosure, I should mention that I was burned while playing near a trash fire when I was Christina's age. The page may not impact most children or adults, but I believe that a little more thought could have linked the color orange to desert sunsets, butterflies, exotic birds, tiger lillies, goldfish, even pumpkins.

Overall, TOO TOO MANY TUTUS is a sweet and lovely book that most parents and tiny dancers will love.

"If I wore the blue tutu I could whirl and twirl under the bright blue sky. I could dance on the beach beside the blue sea, and all the fish and sea birds could watch me dance."

About the Author (from Amazon):
Author Suzanne Davis Marion grew up in Tucson, Arizona, and has lived in Houston, Texas for many years. She is a singer, pianist, and composer. Several years ago she established Lullabies by Suzanne (www.lullabiesbysuzanne.com), offering personalized lullabies and play songs for babies and children. She enjoys performing with other musicians on a regular basis. She and her husband Stuart enjoy visits with their three sons and daughters-in-law, and their seven grandchildren. The latter provide endless inspiration for stories.

Houston artist Marj Hales is originally from North Dakota. She received a Master of Fine Arts degree in painting from the University of Oklahoma. Happy watercolors of bright florals and whimsical animals are among her favorite subjects, reflecting an inner joy that she hopes to communicate to others.

Thank you to the author for supplying me with my review copy.

Middle Grade Reading Challenge

I've joined the MIDDLE GRADE BOOK CHALLENGE hosted by Linda Ellen at Bambi Reads. I haven't been very successful completing challenges, but I am ever hopeful. This one just might be "The One." My intention is to read 25 Middle Grade books and post reviews over the next year. (O.K. I have a little less than a year since the challenge ends August 31, 2010.) We hit the library this morning, and I picked up my first book, CATMAGIC by Holly Webb.
There's two things I'd like to accomplish with this challenge. First, of course, I want to scope out books for my niece who is 6 and my nephew who is 9. "E" isn't ready for middle grade books yet, but sometimes she likes them read to her at night. After a really strong start, "J" is becoming a reluctant reader, so finding books that will capture and hold his attention is an ongoing challenge itself! Secondly, I've read quite a few books this year that have been heavy, dark, and depressing, and I'd like to provide myself with a string of counterpoints.

Guidelines for the Middle Grade Book Challenge

1. Anyone can join.

2. Read 12 middle grade novels (Challenge 1) or read 25 MG books (Challenge 2). You can read comics too, or listen to audio books. These can be in any language. You don't have to make a reading list now; you may select them as you go and you're free to make changes to your list.

3. The challenge begins September 1st, 2009 through August 31st, 2010.

4. You can join anytime between now and August 31st, 2010.
For more information and to join in, hop on over to Bambi Reads.

Books Read:

1. Kidnap at the Catfish Cafe by Patricia Reilly Giff
2. The Moon Lady by Amy Tan
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ABC Meme

I have been tagged by Cathy at One eyed stuffed bunny . It's a fun one!

Here are the rules:

1. Link to the person who tagged you.
2. Share your ABC’s.
3. Tag three people at the end by linking to their blogs.
4. Let the three tagged people know they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their website.
5. Do not tag the same person repeatedly but try to tag different people, so there is a big network of bloggers doing this tag.

Available or single? Single and unavailable

Best Friend? My sister

Cake or Pie? Pie, to everyone's surprise

Drink of choice? Diet Coke

Essential item for every day use? Diet Coke

Favorite color? Robin's egg blue

Google? Gurgle. I mean, yes.

Hometown? Cumberland, Rhode Island

Indulgences? Craft magazines, chocolate chip muffins

January or February? February - the sky is bluer and brighter

Kids and their names? As yet to be determined, but I call my niece and nephews "Hey you" and "Little brats" and when my niece is a dog, we call her "Fetcho"

Life is incomplete without…? Diet Coke

Marriage date? In the paranormal future

Number of siblings? 5 - 4 sisters, 1 brother

Oranges or apples? Apples, Royal Gala, Organic

Phobias and fears? That today is my last day

Quote for the day?

"Sometimes the light's all shining on me
Other times I can barely see . . ."
Truckin' by the Grateful Dead

Reason to smile? Diet Coke

Season? I love them all!

Tag 3 people?

Tina @ Tutu's Two Cents
Shawn @ Maymay's Memos
Liviania @ In Bed with Books

And anyone else who would like to play!

Unknown fact about me? I thought I wasn't "smart enough" to become a librarian

Vegetable you hate? Eggplant

Worst habit? Diet Coke

X-rays you’ve had? Chest, Dental, Feet

Your fave food? Currently, Carmella's Pizza (with Diet Coke)

Zodiac sign? Gemini

Friday Finds: Author Adeline Yen Mah

FRIDAY FINDS is hosted by Miz B at Should Be Reading.

What great books did you hear about / discover this past week? Share with us your FRIDAY FINDS!

I found this first title at MarjoleinBookBlog. I was so intrigued, I had to find out more about Adeline Yen Mah. She has a very interesting website you can visit by clicking here. I like that some of these books are geared toward young adults, so parent and child can explore this author's work together.

Also, if you are participating in the recently launched China Challenge hosted by Jennie at Biblio File, you might want to consider one or two of these titles.

FALLING LEAVES: The True Story of an Unwanted Chinese Daughterby Adeline Yen Mah

Publisher: Bantam Books
Pub. Date: April 1999
ISBN-13: 9780767903578
Sales Rank: 17,093
304pp
Synopsis (from Barnes & Noble): Born in 1937 in a port city a thousand miles north of Shanghai, Adeline Yen Mah was the youngest child of an affluent Chinese family who enjoyed rare privileges during a time of political and cultural upheaval. But wealth and position could not shield Adeline from a childhood of appalling emotional abuse at the hands of a cruel and manipulative Eurasian stepmother. Determined to survive through her enduring faith in family unity, Adeline struggled for independence as she moved from Hong Kong to England and eventually to the United States to become a physician and writer. A compelling, painful, and ultimately triumphant story of a girl's journey into adulthood, Adeline's story is a testament to the most basic of human needs: acceptance, love, and understanding. With a powerful voice that speaks of the harsh realities of growing up female in a family and society that kept girls in emotional chains, Falling Leaves is a work of heartfelt intimacy and a rare authentic portrait of twentieth-century China.

CHINESE CINDERELLA
by Adeline Yen Mah

Publisher: Random House Children's Books
Pub. Date: March 2001
ISBN-13: 9780440228653
Sales Rank: 4,533
Age Range: Young Adult
224pp

Synopsis (from Barnes & Noble): A riveting memoir of a girl's painful coming-of-age in a wealthy Chinese family during the 1940s. A Chinese proverb says, "Falling leaves return to their roots." In Chinese Cinderella, Adeline Yen Mah returns to her roots to tell the story of her painful childhood and her ultimate triumph and courage in the face of despair. Adeline's affluent, powerful family considers her bad luck after her mother dies giving birth to her. Life does not get any easier when her father remarries. She and her siblings are subjected to the disdain of her stepmother, while her stepbrother and stepsister are spoiled. Although Adeline wins prizes at school, they are not enough to compensate for what she really yearns for — the love and understanding of her family. Following the success of the critically acclaimed adult bestseller Falling Leaves, this memoir is a moving telling of the classic Cinderella story, with Adeline Yen Mah providing her own courageous voice.
CHINESE CINDERELLA and THE SECRET DRAGON SOCIETYby Adeline Yen Mah

Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
Pub. Date: November 2006
ISBN-13: 9780060567361
Sales Rank: 74,633
Age Range: 12 and up256pp
Synopsis (from Barnes & Noble):" The future belongs to you. Should anyone insult you, tell yourself this: I am a child of destiny who will unite East and West and change the world."

After enduring abuse at the hands of her cruel stepmother, Chinese Cinderella (CC) seeks refuge at a martial-arts school and joins a secret dragon society.

Under the guidance of Grandma Wu, CC is introduced to the exciting world of espionage as a part of the Chinese Resistance movement. And when CC and her new comrades take on a daring mission to rescue a crew of WWII American airmen, they prove that true bravery knows no age barrier

.
CHINA: Land of Dragons and Emporers
by Adeline Yen Mah

Publisher: Random House Children's Books
Pub. Date: June 2009
ISBN-13: 9780385737487

Sales Rank: 54,368
Age Range: Young Adult256pp

Synopsis (from Barnes & Noble): A fascinating book about the history and culture of China. The history of China spans thousands of years. Journey through China in this fascinating and absorbing book: discover the land of dragons and emperors, and learn about the significance of its ancient dynasties. Countless tools and materials that people have used every day for centuries—paper, gunpowder, cast iron, matches, and silk, to name just a few—were first made in China. Chinese society has progressed through major changes, but lucky numbers, festivals, beliefs about colors, the practic of footbinding, the building of the Great Wall, and the larger-than-life people of China are all integral parts of this ancient civilization and still have an impact on life today. Bestselling author Adeline Yen Mah explores an extraordinary view of the great story of China over the last two millennia in this nonfiction work, which also includes black-and-white photographs.
A THOUSAND PIECES OF GOLD
by Adeline Yen Mah

Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
Pub. Date: August 2003
ISBN-13: 9780060006419
Sales Rank: 296,190
272pp

Synopsis (from Barnes & Noble): In this poignant memoir the New York Times bestselling author of Falling Leaves, Adeline Yen Mah, provides a fascinating window into the history and cultural soul of China. Combining personal reflections, rich historical insights, and proverbs handed down to her by her grandfather, Yen Mah shares the wealth of Chinese civilization with Western readers. Exploring the history behind the proverbs, she delves into the lives of the first and second emperors and the two rebel warriors who changed the course of Chinese life, adding stories from her own life to beautifully illustrate their relevance and influence today.

Guest Post: Shobhan Bantwal, author of THE SARI SHOP WIDOW

Today it is an honor and privilege to welcome Shobhan Bantwal, author of THE SARI SHOP WIDOW to A Sea of Books. This book was one of my most favorite and enjoyable reads of 2009 and is destined for my all-time favorites Hall of Fame. You can read a synopsis of the story and my review here. There's also an book excerpt at the bottom of this post.

THE SARI SHOP WIDOW

By Shobhan Bantwal

Set on the streets of Edison, New Jersey’s Little India, this is the story of a young businesswoman who rediscovers the magic of love, family, and her Hindu traditions as she fights to save her failing sari boutique. This is “Bollywood in a Book.”

Why did I make the backdrop for The Sari Shop Widow an upscale fashion boutique? I have always been fascinated by the intricacies of owning an ethnic fashion business in the heart of America. Living in New Jersey, I am a frequent visitor and shopper at Little India, a quaint enclave of clothing and jewelry shops, posh restaurants as well as fast food eateries, video and music stores, and grocery markets. Stepping into a community like that is like experiencing a delicious slice of India.

It made a lot of sense for me to make my protagonist, Anjali Kapadia, a strong-willed and talented fashion designer of ethnic clothing struggling to succeed in the growing and highly competitive world of fashion design and merchandising.

How does a storeowner like Anjali make her boutique stand out in sea of similar businesses? First she gives it a distinctive name like Silk & Sapphires. Then she dresses it up to fit the name, a classy storehouse of delightfully lush silk saris, slinky outfits, beaded, sequined, embroidered, and trimmed with gold and silver thread, rare jewelry studded with gems from India, and an atmosphere of cool elegance fit for a Maharani, an empress.

When Anjali realizes her beloved boutique is in financial trouble, she is naturally upset and desperate to save it. But how far is she willing to go to salvage what she considers her most precious asset next to her family? The Sari Shop Widow is how Anjali goes about the business of saving Silk & Sapphires. Little does she know what her karma has in store as she fights a valiant battle to keep what is hers.

For a preview, see the book trailer at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q9uRlbkxxes

Enter a drawing for a chance to win a costume jewelry set or one of five autographed copies of THE SARI SHOP WIDOW between Sept 1 and Sept 30, 2009 by signing up on the “Contests” page of my website: http://www.shobhanbantwal.com/

BOOK EXCERPT:

THE SARI SHOP WIDOW

By Shobhan Bantwal

Chapter 1

For the second time in ten years her life was beginning to come apart. Anjali Kapadia stood still for a minute, trying to absorb the news. Could it possibly be a mistake? But it wasn’t; she’d heard it clearly. Despite her best efforts to curb it, the initial shock wave refused to ebb. The seemingly harmless bit of information was all it had taken to shatter the image of a satisfying lifestyle and career.

Her mind in overdrive, she started to pace the length of the tasteful and elegant boutique. Her boutique—her baby—her artistic and inventive skills put to optimum use in creating a fairytale store worthy of movie stars, models, and beauty queens.

Technically the business belonged to her and her parents as equal partners, but it was Anjali’s creativity and vision that had turned it into a classy and successful enterprise—at least until recently. It stood apart like a maharani, a queen amongst the ordinary, plain-vanilla sari and clothing shops of New Jersey’s “Little India.”

The area known as Little India, located in Edison, was crammed with sari shops, jewelry stores, restaurants, grocery markets and souvenir shops. It was a small slice of India buried in central New Jersey, a quaint neighborhood that smelled of pungent curry, fried onions, ripe mangoes, incense, and masala chai. Strong tea laced with spices and oodles of thick, creamy milk.

Even the store’s name was Anjali’s brainstorm. Overrun with ho-hum and even dumpy names and ugly storefronts, Little India was badly in need of some class. So she’d called her store Silk & Sapphires. It had a nice ring to it, and according to Hindu astrology, a sapphire supposedly dispelled the destructive influence of the fiery planet Shanee. Saturn. The store’s window displayed the most elegant mannequins and rare jewelry to give it a boutique flavor rather than just a sari-cum-bauble shop.

The interior was done in soft cream and shimmering blue to fit the name. Tear-drop crystal chandeliers hung from a vaulted ceiling. Strategically placed recessed lights highlighted the displays, mirrored walls created the illusion of space and light, and dense cream carpeting covered the sales floor and fitting rooms. Only soft instrumental music by both Indian and other masters was piped in through the sound system.

Shopping at Silk & Sapphires was meant to be a unique and indulgent experience.

Nearly every piece of clothing the store sold was designed by Anjali, each outfit envisioned, then meticulously planned, cut, sewn, and embellished to her demanding specifications. Every design was exclusive.

She glanced at them and exhaled a long sigh. The colorful silks, the clingy chiffons, and the gossamer tissue-crepes were draped in an exquisite array on their pretty satin hangers—row upon row of lush, costly clothes. The pearls, the rainbow of beads, and the jewel-tone sequins sparkled and winked at her as she strode up and down the aisles, again and again.

What had gone wrong? How? When?

Order Your Copy at Amazon - http://www.amazon.com/Sari-Shop-Widow-Shobhan-Bantwal/dp/0758232020

For more information on Shobhan Bantwal's new and other books and to enter a drawing to win a number of prizes, please go to her website's “Contests” page and sign up between Sept 1 and Sept 30, 2009 at http://www.shobhanbantwal.com/

Full September Virtual Tour Details - http://virtualblogtour.blogspot.com/2009/07/sari-shop-widow-by-shobhan-bantwal.html

Thank you to Nikki Leigh and Promo 101 Virtual Blog Tours
for organizing this tour
and for providing me with my review copy of THE SARI SHOP WIDOW.

Blog Tour and Book Review #17: SARI SHOP WIDOW by Shobhan Bantwal

THE SARI SHOP WIDOW

by Shobhan Bantwal

Publisher: Kensington Publishing Corporation
Pub. Date: September 2009
ISBN-13: 9780758232021
Sales Rank: 97,288
352pp

About The Sari Shop WidowPungent curry, sweet fried onions, incense, colorful beads, and lush fabrics - THE SARI SHOP WIDOW is a novel set on the streets of Edison, New Jersey's Little India, where a young businesswoman rediscovers the magic of love and family. When Anjali Kapadia's posh sari boutique in New Jersey is on the verge of financial ruin, her wealthy uncle from India comes to her rescue.But the wily, dictatorial uncle arrives with some unpleasant surprises--a young Indo-British partner named Rishi Shah for one--and a startling secret that disturbs Anjali.

Falling in love with the mysterious Shah only adds to Anjali's burgeoning list of complications. Torn between her loyalty to her family and her business on the one hand and her growing attraction for a man who could never fit into her life on the other, Anjali turns to her family and cultural roots to make a life-altering decision.
My Rating: 4/5 Stars

My Thoughts:
Let's not beat around the bush: I absolutely love this book! The main character, Anjali, is a beautiful, smart yet vulnerable businesswoman. As a 37-year-old widow, she lives in New Jersey with her parents who immigrated from India years ago. Anjali has one foot in her family's traditional Hindu world and the other in modern American society. She deftly manages to juggle fulfilling her parents' expectations of a dutiful daughter with her own needs and desires as an independent adult woman.
True, I first fell in love with the gorgeous cover of THE SARI SHOP WIDOW. I printed out a copy of the picture and taped it near my computer, glancing at it frequently and eagerly anticipating getting my hands on the actual book. When I was offered the opportunity to participate in this blog tour and receive a copy of the book in pdf, I jumped at the chance. I loaded up my printer with some scrap copy paper and started printing away. I clipped the pages together in groups of about 5 chapters each, and every night for a week, I climbed into bed with my bundle of pages.
Though THE SARI SHOP WIDOW is a quick and easy read, I really enjoyed rationing the chapters throughout the week. I could have read it all in one afternoon, but this approach allowed me to linger with the completely engaging characters. Every day I looked forward to the next installment. During the workday, a glance at the book cover pinned up by my desk brought to mind the exotic scents of the Indian meals Anjali and her mother prepared for her conservative uncle during his extended visit with the family. I could hear the click-clack of Anjali's high heels as she walked through her upscale sari shop, Silk & Sapphires, arranging displays and assisting customers. I envisioned the vibrant colors and felt the luxurous silks of the saris and imagined them fluttering in the slight breeze as Anjali briskly took care of business. During my breaks, I would take a peak at Shobhan Bantwal's website and soak up information and images of Indian culture. And finally, at the end of each day, nestled in bed with that evening's alloted chapters, I moved into Anjali's world where she slowly learned how to blend the traditional and the modern aspects of her life and found the courage to risk falling in love and embarking on a new way of living.
As much as I loved this book, it's not without a couple of flaws. There are passages where the writing is a bit awkward, and sometimes I grew impatient with Anjali's continuing reluctance to embrace her second chance at love and happiness. While I feel obligated to mention these little bits that I didn't like, I so enjoyed THE SARI SHOP WIDOW and my whole reading experience, that I scoff at my own criticism of the book! Who cares if it's not perfect? I fell in love, and I'm betting you will, too!
Come back tomorrow to read an excerpt of THE SARI SHOP WIDOW as well as a guest post by Shobhan Banwal.
About Shobhan Banwal

Shobhan Bantwal calls her writing “Bollywood in a Book,” romantic, colorful, action-packed tales, rich with elements of her own Indian culture -- stories that entertain and educate. She is an award-winning women's fiction author of three published novels and has contributed to an anthology of short stories. Shobhan writes for a variety of publications including The Writer magazine, India Abroad, Little India, U.S. 1, Desi Journal, India Currents, Overseas Indian, and New Woman India. Her short stories have won honors/awards in contests sponsored by Writer's Digest, New York Stories and New Woman magazines

For a preview of the book, visit - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q9uRlbkxxes

Order Your Copy at Amazon - http://www.amazon.com/Sari-Shop-Widow-Shobhan-Bantwal/dp/0758232020

For more information on Shobhan Bantwal's new and other books and to enter a drawing to win a number of prizes, please go to her website's “Contests” page and sign up between Sept 1 and Sept 30, 2009 at http://www.shobhanbantwal.com/

Full September Virtual Tour Details - http://virtualblogtour.blogspot.com/2009/07/sari-shop-widow-by-shobhan-bantwal.html

Thank you to Nikki Leigh and Promo 101 Virtual Blog Tours
for organizing this tour
and for providing me with my review copy of THE SARI SHOP WIDOW.

THANK YOU! BBAW Nominations

Well, thank you! A Sea of Books has been nominated for 2 Book Blogger Appreciation Week Awards! The categories are Best Blog Name and Best General Review Blog.

However, it looks as though I've disqualified myself from the Best General Review Blog category because I've been AWOL and did not submit the requisite 5 posts to the awards panel before the deadline last Friday. I apologize for that both to whomever nominated me as well as to the panel. I've been spread thin with several family obligations, extra work responsibilities, and car trouble! In fact, it will probably be a couple more days before I can publish a book post again.

I'm really tickled to have been nominated -- it was totally unexpected. The nomination for Best General Review Blog has really helped to focus my thoughts on what I want my blog to be and how to achieve that. I'll be spending the next year putting those thoughts into practice, so you can look forward to many improvements over the next few months.

And it's so nice and validating to be nominated in the Best Blog Name category. I've only been blogging since April, and I went through a long list of possible names before choosing A Sea of Books. I even briefly considered changing it a couple of months ago. Looks like I made the right choice!

I'd also like to congratulate all the other nominees and wish you all good luck!

Thank you, again, and please check back in a couple of days for my post onTHE GUERNSEY POTATO PEEL PIE AND LITERARY SOCIETY by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows.

My Favorite Reads #7: CRY OF THE KALAHARI by Mark and Delia Owens

Alyce of At Home with Books hosts My Favorite Reads, a weekly feature spotlighting favorite reads from pre-blogging days. Because it's been a while since the books were read, these posts are not reviews per se, but rather impressionistic remembrances of a positive reading experience. I think of this feature as an opportunity to more deeply explore the range of my reading interests and those of other book bloggers and readers of book blogs outside of the current crop of new releases.

Do you have an old favorite that you'd like to share?

CRY OF THE KALAHARI

by Mark and Delia Owens

Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Originally Published: 1984
ISBN-13: 9780395647806
Sales Rank: 69,875
384pp

Description:

Carrying little more than a change of clothes and a pair of binoculars, two young Americans, Mark and Delia Owens, caught a plane to Africa, bought a third-hand Land Rover, and drove deep into the Kalahari Desert. There they lived for seven years, in an unexplored area with no roads, no people, and no source of water for thousands of square miles. In this vast wilderness they met animals that had never seen humans before. They would wake in the morning to find lions sleeping beside them; leopards, giraffes, and brown hyenas were regular visitors to the camp. But the Kalahari isn't Eden, and Mark and Delia Owens were continually confronted with danger from drought, fire, violent storms, and even from the animals they loved.

Why I Chose This Book:

Recently, Alyce of At Home with Books reviewed WHATEVER YOU DO, DON'T RUN by Peter Allison. That memoir of a safari leader in Africa reminded me how much I enjoyed CRY OF THE KALAHARI. I read it when it first came out in the mid-eighties and was immediately swept up in the daring adventure of their undertaking. Fresh out of grad school in 1974, Mark and Delia Owens sold everything they owned and bought one-way tickets to Botswana to begin their careers as research zoologists. They didn't want to lose the time it would take to secure sponsorship approval and funding, so they did this completely on their own. After spending 7 years living in the bush, the couple had amassed voluminous amounts of cutting-edge research on the surrounding wilderness and particularly the lions and hyenas of the area. They returned to the United States long enough to publish their findings in their book as well as in several academic and scientific journals, and then returned to Africa not only to pursue their research but also to develop wilderness conservation plans.
If you like true-life adventure, I recommend CRY OF THE KALAHARI. I found the story of Mark and Delia Owens to be completely enthralling. They were so brave and determined. Mark and Delia each write separate chapters, and the reader benefits from this alternating perspective. It's a terrific read for the armchair adventurer, but if you want to get more involved, click the link below to learn more.
Click here to visit the Owens Foundation for Wildlife Conservation.

Just for fun, here are the covers of a couple of other editions. The one with giraffes was published in the UK. The one with the lions is the cover from my copy published in the U.S. in 1984.

A Wish Magically Fulfilled: A Surprise ARC Arrival

GODMOTHER:
The Secret Cinderella Story
by Carolyn Turgeon

Publisher: Crown Publishing Group
Pub. Date: March 2009
ISBN-13: 9780307407993
Sales Rank: 51,484
288pp

O.K. This is a little odd, but I'm not complaining -- I'm absolutely THRILLED!

Several times over the last few weeks I've thought about reading GODMOTHER by Carolyn Turgeon. It sounds like a fun, uplifting story that would be perfect for me right now. I don't have a copy, so I was debating whether to buy it or borrow it. I've even had it in my hands at the bookstore more than once only to put it aside to buy books for the kids. I told myself that I have plenty to read and to concentrate on what I have. Well, the Fates had other plans for me because, lo and behold, an ARC of GODMOTHER showed up in my mailbox the other day. I think it's funny to not only receive an ARC from a publisher 6 months after the book has been released but also right at the time I was wishing I could read it . . . and, the book is about a fairy godmother!

So, I'm thanking my lucky stars, my mysterious fairy godmother, and most especially Random House's Read It Forward Program for this perfectly timed delivery of my heart's desire!

Click here to visit the author's enchanting website.

Click here to visit the author's astonishing blog.

Waiting on Wednesday: YOU WERE ALWAYS MOM'S FAVORITE by Deborah Tannen

"WAITING ON WEDNESDAY"
is hosted by Jill from
Breaking the Spine.
Join in and tell us . . .

What are you waiting for?

I've really enjoyed this author's previous books -- and now she tackles sisters! I've got four of them, so this is a must read for me!

YOU WERE ALWAYS MOM'S FAVORITE!
Sisters in Conversation Throughout Their Lives
by Deborah Tannen

Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
Pub. Date: September 08, 2009
ISBN-13: 9781400066322
Sales Rank: 103,698
256pp

Synopsis

“I love her to death. I can’t imagine life without her,” a woman says about her sister. Another remarks, “I don’t want anyone to kill my sister because I want to have that privilege myself.” With these two comments, begins this eye-opening and entertaining new book.

New York Times bestselling author Deborah Tannen is renowned for illuminating the way we communicate–and revolutionizing relationships in the process. What she did for women and men in You Just Don’t Understand, and mothers and daughters in You’re Wearing THAT?, she now does for sisters in a groundbreaking book that explores one of the most powerful and perplexing relationships in our lives.

Conversations between sisters reveal a deep and constant tug between two dynamics–an impulse towards closeness and an impulse towards competition, as sisters are continually compared to each other. When you’re with her, you laugh your head off, and can giggle and be silly like when you were kids. But she also might be the one person who can send you into a tailspin with just one wrong word. For many women, a sister is both.

With a witty and wise voice, Tannen shares insights and anecdotes from well over a hundred women she interviewed, along with moving and funny recollections of her own two sisters. You’ll come away with a profound new understanding, as well as effective techniques to improve and accessible solutions for problems in this unique and precious relationship.

About the Author (from Barnes & Noble):

Ever since she published her breakthrough book, You Just Don't Understand: Women and Men in Conversation, Deborah Tannen has established herself as a foremost expert on the art of communication throughout the world. With the publication of You’re Wearing That?, Tannen takes on one of the most complex relationships in the family structure.

Click here to read the Barnes & Noble Feature Interview with Deborah Tannen.

Click here to visit the author's official website at Georgetown University.

Lookalikes: Last seen . . .

Heeeyyy. Does this little girl look familiar?

I've been unpacking some boxes of "the good stuff" which I had stored at my Mom's because I've moved so often the last couple of years. These are boxes of books that I absolutely didn't want to lose track of no matter what.

Anyway, if you think you recognize this barefoot miss, you're probably right. Not sure? Click here and check out this previous post of mine.

BTW: It's a great collection of stories - highly recommended!

DOWNHOME: An Anthology of Southern Women Writers

Edited by Susie Mee

Publisher: Harcourt Books, Inc
Pub. Date: October 1995
ISBN-13: 9780156001212
Sales Rank: 742,048
512pp
Edition Number: 1

Show Me 5 Saturday: SHOOT THE MOON by Billie Letts

Alison of That's A Novel Idea has just launched a fun new Saturday meme: Show Me 5 Saturday. (No wonder she's a multiple recipient of the Kreative Blogger Award!)

Here is Alison's description of Show Me 5 Saturday:
This meme will give each blogger an opportunity to give a brief description of a book they have read or reviewed during the week.

It will work like this:

Each Saturday you will post the answer to these questions. The number indicates the number of answers you will provide.

1 Book you read and/or reviewed this week
2 Words that describe the book
3 Settings where it took place or characters you met
4 Things you liked and/or disliked about it
5 Stars or less for your rating?

Here's my first installment:

1 Book read: SHOOT THE MOON by Billie Letts

2 Words to describe it: Inoffensive, Unprovocative

3 Setting or characters: DeClare, Oklahoma / Dr. Mark Albright a/k/a Nicky Jack Harjo, O Boy Daniels

4 Things I like or disliked: I liked the bit of mystery to the story and several characters were interesting and likable, but it took too long too for the story to get off the ground and overall it was pretty predictable.

5 Stars or less: I would rate this book 3 Stars

Description (from the publisher):

In 1972, the tiny windswept town of DeClare, Oklahoma, was consumed by the terrifying disappearance of Nicky Jack Harjo. When he was no more than a baby, his pajama bottoms were found on the banks of Willow Creek. Nearly 30 years later, Nicky mysteriously returns in this intriguing and delightfully hypnotic tale, full of the authentic heartland characters that Billie Letts writes about so beautifully.

Wonderful Win: THE WHITE QUEEN by Philippa Gregory

THE WHITE QUEEN
by Philippa Gregory

I'm so excited! I just found out I won a copy of THE WHITE QUEEN by Philippa Gregory from the giveaway hosted at A Girl Walks Into a Bookstore. Thanks, Katherine, for hosting this wonderful giveaway!

If this is a book you're salivating for, check out my sidebar for a list of other blogs which are hosting giveaways for THE WHITE QUEEN. Good luck!

Friday Finds - August 14, 2009

Friday Finds is hosted by MizB at Should Be Reading.

This week's find is a new-to-me author, Rosy Thornton. I think her books sound delightfully fun. I've got to squeeze them into my reading schedule!
(Book descriptions are from the publisher.)

While it's not easy being a woman in a man's world, James Rycarte has decided that the reverse is also true. Taking on the job of principal at an all-female college at Cambridge has quickly become the biggest challenge of his career. He is breaking with tradition and the faculty is unhappy with the results. But amid the hostility of his fellows and the endless bureaucracy of university life, he finds an unexpected hand of friendship from Senior Tutor Dr. Martha Pearce.


This is the story of Peter, a Cambridge geography don who crashes his car into a tree stump when swerving to avoid a cat, and Mina, the girl at the Sheffield call centre who deals with his insurance claim. It tracks their parallel lives, as well those of their families - because both Peter and Mina are single parents.
An old-fashioned fairy tale of love across the class divide, it is also a book about the small joys and tribulations of parenthood; about one-ness and two-ness; about symmetry and coincidence; about the things which separate us and the things which bring us together. It is a story, in fact, of the accidents of geography



When Richard Slater receives a letter of complaint from one of his constituents, a Margaret Hayton, he merely responds with his standard letter of empty promises. Clearly, this woman is insane and must be avoided at all costs. But she will not be dismissed so easily, and when Richard finally sets eyes on the "twenty-something vision in stone-washed denim," he risks losing his heart, his head, and quite possibly his political career.

2nd Annual BBAW Nominations for Blog Awards

Now is the time to nominate your favorite blogs

for the 2nd Annual Book Bloggers Appreciation Week.

Click here

and nominate your favorite book blogs today.

Nominations close August 15, 2009.

2nd Annual Book Blogger Appreciation Week (BBAW) and A MEME!

If you haven't already heard, Book Blogger Appreciation Week is coming up! The dates of BBAW are: September 14-18, 2009. This is the 2nd Annual BBAW, which is organized by Amy of My Friend Amy.

A separate blog has been set up which contains all the information to keep you up-to-date. Here's the basic info as it appears on that site:

WHO: Anyone who blogs about books is invited to participate. In fact, we want everyone who blogs about books and reading to be a part of this week!

WHAT: A week where we come together, celebrate the contribution and hard work of book bloggers in promoting a culture of literacy, connecting readers to books and authors, and recogonizing the best among us with the Second Annual BBAW Awards. There will be special guest posts, daily blogging themes, and giveaways.

WHEN: September 14-18, 2009

WHERE: Here at the new Book Blogger Appreciation Week Blog! (Please note that this year there are three separate blogs and feeds—one for the main event, one for giveaways, and one for awards.)

WHY: Because books matter. In a world full of options, the people talking about books pour hard work, time, energy, and money into creating a community around the written word.

Hop on over to the official site to get more details and to register, vote, and participate. Just click here: Book Blogger Appreciation Week.

I was not a blogger last year, but I connected with tons of bloggers for the first time that week, and had a lot of fun. I hope to be a more active participant this year. I'll begin right now by answering the questions in this BBAW Meme - the abbreviated version for us newbies! You can find the complete meme here: A Book Blogger Appreciation Week Meme.

" . . . We don’t want those of you who didn’t participate to feel left out, so if you didn’t participate last year, how about these questions?"

1) What has been one of the highlights of blogging for you?

One?! One highlight?! I have to pick just one?! Hmmmm. People or books? People or books? People or books? Aha! Definitely THE highlight has been connecting with people who love books as much as I do!

2) What blogger has helped you out with your blog by answering questions, linking to you, or inspiring you?

Oh, there have been so many! Everyone is extremely helpful and supportive. I'm afraid to name names because I'm sure I won't remember them all! I know I have specifically asked questions of the following bloggers, and there are probably others:

Alyce from At Home with Books

Kathy from Bermudaonion

Dar from Peeking Between the Pages

Shelly from Write for a Reader

Toni from A Circle of Books

Anna from Diary of an Eccentric

And a special mention of Jen from Devourer of Books who has been especially helpful to me and a bunch of 0thers on Library Thing.

3) What one question do you have about BBAW that someone who participated last year could answer?

JEEZ. That would have to be, how do you do it? Do you take the week off from work? Do you drink too much caffiene? That's all I want to know. Just how do you do it?

Blog Tour and Book Review #16: PATRON SAINT OF USED CARS AND SECOND CHANCES

THE PATRON SAINT OF USED CARS
and SECOND CHANCES
by Mark Millhone

Hardcover: 208 pages
Publisher: Rodale Books (July 7, 2009)
ISBN-10: 1594868239
ISBN-13: 978-1594868238

Synopsis (from the publisher):

A man reconnects with his dad and finds his way back from a year filled with tragedy and loss in this touching memoir that puts a humorous cast on some of life’s darkest moments.

In the course of one nine-month period, filmmaker Mark Millhone’s youngest son nearly died from birth complications, his father was diagnosed with prostate cancer, his mother had a heart attack and passed away, a freak illness claimed the life of one of his friends, and his career imploded. As a result of his membership in what he calls the “tragedy of the month club,” his marriage also began to fray.

Millhone responded to the chaos as many men might: Late one night, he logged on to eBay and bid on a vintage BMW-his fantasy car, but not exactly what the doctor ordered when it came to his family’s finances. As if sharing the news that he’d won the auction with his already-peeved wife weren’t bad enough, it turned out that he had to travel from New York to Texas to collect the car. His estranged dad joined him, and together they embarked upon a dysfunctional road trip-a comedy of errors that would lend Millhone the perspective he needed to save his marriage and to understand what was really important in his life: his family.

Acerbic and hilarious but with heart, this memoir will appeal to readers of Chuck Klosterman, David Sedaris, and Nick Hornby, as well as readers of Millhone’s “Guy Wisdom” column in Men’s Health. His male perspective on a troubled marriage, raising children, coping with loss, and rejuvenating a relationship with a parent will appeal equally to both sexes.

MY RATING: 4/5 stars

MY THOUGHTS:

PATRON SAINTS OF USED CARS AND SECOND CHANCES came to me at just the right time. I've read quite a few heavy, intense books lately, and I wanted something different. I found it in Mark Millhone's new memoir.

While Millhone certainly experiences more than his share of trials and tribulations, his wry and ironic sense of humor about the absurd workings of the world keep his story from being just another run-of-the-mill tearjerker with a happy ending. Mark Millhone is FUNNY! He likens his troubles to holding a membership in the "tragedy-of-the-month club." When you consider that he has coped with a critically ill newborn son, the death of his mother, his father's cancer diagnosis, and the disintegration of his marriage, all in a short span of time, humor might seem like an inappropriate or even immature response. But Millhone doesn't use humor to avoid dealing with the demands and complexities of these issues; rather it allows him to cope with them, eventually leading him through and setting him on the path of healing himself, repairing and strenghtening his marriage, and forging a new kind of relationship with his father.

What I particularly liked about PATRON SAINTS OF USED CARS AND SECOND CHANCES is Millhone's "guyitude." (I think I've made that word up.) Men and women don't always use the same coping mechanisms, and this book isn't written for women, though some women might enjoy it. It's written for men. Guys. Unfortunately, I didn't have one handy to test it out on, but I think Millhone's background as a writer for Men's Health Magazine gives him "street cred."

While it would be interesting to compare the perspective of Millhone's wife, Rose, that would be another story, another book. This one is Mark Millhone's. I enjoyed it and I'd recommend this book to anyone who is a guy -- or knows one!

About the Author (from the publisher):
Mark Millhone is an award-winning writer, filmmaker, columnist and teacher.

After graduating from Columbia University with an MFA in Film Direction and winning the Academy Award for Best Student Film, Mark spent more than five years wandering the vast desert of Hollywood development hell before resurfacing as a screenwriting professor at NYU Film School and the Dysfunctional-Male-in-Residence at Men’s Health Magazine. His humorous columns for that magazine (and his need to deal with a very un-humorous year from hell for his family) are what begat his memoir, The Patron Saint of Used Cars & Second Chances (coming out in hardcover on July 7th).

But, of course, like every other moron who went to film school, what Mark really wants to do is direct and has several projects in development: The Other Jennifer (a romantic-comedy based on one of his magazine columns) and Serenity Falls (his Sisyphusian attempt to re-make Chinatown set in present-day Dallas, Texas). Cameras roll on his feature film directorial debut Minuteman, this summer.

Mark lives in New York and has two lovely children and two rather strange-looking dogs.

Click here to visit the author's website for links to his articles and videos of him reading from his book.

Thank you to Lisa of TLC Book Tours for organizing this tour
and to the publisher for supplying me with a review copy of the book.