TTBA Weekly News and Mailbox Monday

This feature was inspired by It's Monday! What are you reading? hosted by Sheila at Book Journey and by The Sunday Salon.

Not much going on around here right now.  Just reading and signing up for reading challenges.  Typical book addict stuff.  ;O)

What's going on in my reading world....

I posted an update of the newest reading challenges I signed up for HERE.

Bout of Books 4.0 is coming up next week! Another read-a-thon...can't wait! Sign-Up info HERE.

What I've been reading....
Currently reading:
Never Say Sorry by Rose Edmunds
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland/Through the Looking Glass by Lewis Carroll
Bleak House by Charles Dickens
A Clash of Kings by George R.R. Martin
The Sumerton Women by D.L. Blogdan (review coming  up this Friday)

Finished recently:
The King's Agent by Donna Russo Morin (review)
Ghost Story by Peter Straub (review)
The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger (review)

Mailbox Monday was created by Marcia and is currently on tour. This month's host is Martha at Reviews by Martha's Bookshelf.




FOR REVIEW:
Carnage Road by Gregory Lamberson...Pump Up Your Book Tour at Castle Macabre

WON:
from the Great Minds Think Aloud Community...signed and the author sent me a signed copy of the sequel as well:
The Zarder and The Speed of Wind by Sara Jo Easton

Also from Great Minds Think Aloud:
Oz at Night by Amanda J. Bradley...signed!
Abithica by Susan Goldsmith...signed!

GOODWILL:
Daughters of Rome by Kate Quinn
Hush by Mark Nykanen

LIBRARY SALE:
The Dead Secret by Wilkie Collins
Anne of Avonlea by L.M. Montgomery
Breathers by S.G. Browne
The Parasites by Daphne Du Maurier
Wildwood Dancing by Juliet Marillier

Pearl Girls Mother of Pearl--Priceless Treasure and {Give@way}

Welcome to Pearl Girls™ Mother of Pearl Mother's Day blog series - a week long celebration of moms and mothering. Each day will feature a new post by some of today's best writer's (Tricia Goyer, Sheila Walsh, Suzanne Woods Fisher, Bonnie St. John, and more). I hope you'll join us each day for another unique perspective on Mother's Day.

AND ... do enter the contest for a chance to win a beautiful hand crafted pearl necklace. To enter, just {CLICK THIS LINK} and fill out the short form. Contest runs 5/6-5/13 and the winner will on 5/14. Contest is only open to US and Canadian residents.

If you are unfamiliar with Pearl Girls™, please visit www.pearlgirls.info and see what we're all about. In short, we exist to support the work of charities that help women and children in the US and around the globe. Consider purchasing a copy of Pearl Girls: Encountering Grit, Experiencing Grace or one of the Pearl Girls™ products (all GREAT Mother's Day gifts!) to help support Pearl Girls.

And to all you MOMS out there, Happy Mother's Day!

Priceless Treasure by Cindy K. Stiverson
We've heard it said and often find it true:
You don't know the value of a treasure until you're without it. 

We take for granted the things in life that seem so readily available.
   A paperclip or rubber band, to hold things together.
   A tissue or napkin, to wipe our nose to clean our face, to absorb our tears.
   A Bible to speak words of wisdom and instruction and life and love.

And a Mother, who is all these things and more.
   She is readily available.
   She holds things together.
   She wipes our nose, cleans our face (and our fingers, and, well…everything else!)
   She absorbs our tears and calms our fears.
  "She speaks with wisdom, and faithful instruction is on her tongue." (Proverbs 31:26)
   She loves.

Within hours after my mother passed into the gates of our heavenly home, I was missing her. Her quick wit…humor…charm. Her warm smile and melodious laughter, which served her well to the very end, as did our Lord Jesus Christ, who so graciously allowed her to slip quietly and peacefully into His arms.

She simply stopped breathing.

As I stood at her bedside in those priceless moments after her passing, I wanted to touch her skin as much as possible while there was still warmth in her body; to nuzzle my nose against her head and breathe in the scent of her hair while she was still there. Priceless treasures I was guilty of taking for granted, clouded by unmet needs. I was so consumed with what she was not, that I never fully appreciated who she was. It’s like I was blind, but now I see!

I see her strength, her commitment. Her perseverance…sacrifice…her unspoken love. I see how much she meant to me, how much she did for me, how much she taught me, and how much of the good in me was modeled by her.

She was a virtuous woman, as described in Proverbs 31 of the Bible.
“Her children stand and bless her… a woman who fears the Lord will be greatly praised. Reward her for all she has done. Let her deeds publicly declare her praise (vs. 31).”

This last verse of the poem serves as an epitaph for the woman of virtue. It speaks of the legacy she leaves in her passing. It spurred me to write a personal epitaph for my mother, which I read at her funeral.

We publicly declare your praise today, 

and in the days to come,

for you deserve to be praised and blessed,

"We honor you, Mom, for all you have done!"

In my earliest of memories, 

You worked so hard, striving for the rest.

You persevered through great trials

and did your very best.

I know you are being rewarded

in ways far beyond our reach.

We honor you now by practicing what you've taught,

and even what you preached!

You've stood for us for all these years,

Today, we stand for you!

I pray that our applause on earth

will reach your heavenly ears.

With the reading of this poem, I asked everyone to stand. We clapped our hands in celebration and praise of the life of my mother, Margaret Alice Stiltner.

Imagine our surprise to discover that she had left a poetic epitaph for us! She had clipped it from an old magazine and framed it. I found it when I was cleaning her home, on a nightstand by her bed. My mother was never versed at expressing emotion. This was her sweet way of kissing us good-bye: a priceless treasure to remember her by.

Cynthia (Cindy) Stiverson is a speaker, writer, and artist.  In 1998, she founded Woven: Women of Virtue Network, a spiritual formation and friendship ministry. She pastors the women at Newark Church of the Nazarene in Ohio. She is currently working on her fourth Woven Workbook, and also a book for mothers and daughters on the subject of sexual abuse. Cindy considers raising her daughter, speaker/author Nicole Braddock Bromley, to be her greatest achievement. She loves the men in her life, hubby Mark, grandbabes Jude and Isaac, and son-in-law Matthew. You can find more of Cindy at www.WovenWomen.blogspot.com and www.CynthiaStiverson.com


Exciting News – the latest Pearl Girls book, Mother of Pearl: Luminous Legacies and Iridescent Faith will be released this month! Please visit the Pearl Girls Facebook Page (and LIKE us!) for more information! Thanks so much for your support!

And so the challenge addiction continues...

I'm signed up for a few more challenges this summer...some I couldn't bear to miss.  One of them actually started toward the end of March and it is...

Once Upon a Time VI hosted by Carl at Stainless Steel Droppings, which runs from March 21 through June 19--check out my reading list for this challenge at my challenge blog by clicking the button below.

Next we have the Semi-Charmed Summer 2012 Book Challenge hosted by Megan at Semi-Charmed Kind of Life, which runs from May 1 through September 1--check out my reading list/plans at my challenge blog by clicking the button below.

Are you kidding me?  I really absolutely could NOT miss this one! A Victorian Celebration is hosted by Allie at A Literary Odyssey and it runs in June and July this summer.  Again, check out my reading list at my challenge blog by clicking the button below.

This challenge is actually an ongoing challenge that I've decided to join to force me to read Agatha Christie books.  I've been wanting to read them, but I always put it off.  The Agatha Christie Book Club is hosted by Books, Biscuits and Tea and Kindle and Me.  We're reading the books in the order they were published.  The book for May is The Mysterious Affair at Styles.  At the end of each month, there will be an online "Tea Party", an online discussion of the book.  To get full challenge details, click the button below.

There really is no hope for me when it comes to things involving reading.  But there are worse addictions, I always say!

Book Tour: Review of The King's Agent by Donna Russo Morin

My thoughts:
How to sum up a book such as The King's Agent with mere words?  The book has all the elements of what I consider to be great fiction.  Adventure, mystery, love, and mysticism.  And to speak of my opinions without giving the story away will be quite a feat in itself, but I shall attempt to do it justice without revealing too much.

Set in the 16th cenury, in the twilight of the Renaissance, The King's Agent tells the story of a quest for an object of power that would be at the heart of the demise of mankind.  Battista, who is loyal to his benefactor, King Francois I of France, and also to his beloved home of Florence, embarks on this quest  with a clear idea of the outcome.  But he is soon to learn that there is no clear outcome and the circumstances surrounding the obtaining of this object are shrouded in danger and mystery.  As I was reading the sections where dangerous obstacles had to be overcome for Battista to reach his goal, my mind kept going to the Indiana Jones films.  That is the kind of adventure the reader experiences in The King's Agent.  Talk about a thrill!

To add to the mystery, we have the character of Aurelia who is an enigma, to be sure.  Everyone who encounters her can feel that there is something different about her, but her mystery is kept secret, thankfully, until the very end.  What is present in the character of Aurelia is a resolve to complete her destiny, a destiny not of her making.  She is a brave woman who accepts her fate and ultimately sacrifices her own happiness for the good of all.

Finally, I must touch on the historical aspects of this book.  Wonderful was the introduction of the stories of Dante and the presence of Michelangelo himself in the story.  The historical detail is so well researched and interesting.  I found myself on Google several times while reading, wanting right then and there to learn more about the people and places I was reading about.  I must say that Ms. Morin is a talent in the historical fiction genre.  I have To Serve a King is on my review pile and so I must get to reading it soon, as well as her other titles.  Her books will remain a sought after commodity for my home library.

In conclusion, I must not forget the love story between Battista and Aurelia.  Their love is inspiring and breathtaking.  The sacrifice they have to make and their reconciliation to the fact speaks of a very true love indeed.  So I leave you with a favorite passage from Dante which Battista whispers to Aurelia, " 'lady, you in whom my hope gains strength, you who, for my salvation, have allowed your footsteps to be left in Hell, in all the things that I have seen, I recognize the grace and benefit that I, depending upon your power and goodness, have received.' "

About the book:
To the casual observer, Battista della Paglia is an avid art collector, or perhaps a nimble thief. In reality, the cunning Italian is an agent for François, the King of France, for whom he procures the greatest masterpieces of the day by any means necessary. Embroiled in a power struggle with Charles V, the King of Spain, François resolves to rule Europe's burgeoning cultural world. When he sets his sights on a mysterious sculpture, Battista's search for the elusive objet d'art leads him to a captivating woman on a mission of her own. . .

Having spent her life under the controlling eye of her protector, the Marquess of Mantua, Aurelia longs for freedom. And she finds it in Battista. Together, they embark on a journey to find the clues that will lead him to the sculpture-- a venture so perilous it might have spilled from the pen of Dante himself. From the smoldering depths of Rome to a castle in the sky, the harrowing quest draws them inextricably together. But Aurelia guards a dark secret that could tear them apart--and change the course of history. . .

About the author:
Donna Russo Morin was born in Providence, Rhode Island in 1958. Her writing endeavors began at age six and covered such timely topics as The Pink Pussy Cat for President and The Numbers 2 and 4 are in Love.

Traveling through adolescence on the wings of the ‘60s gave Donna a lot of grist for her writing mill. Feminism, civil rights, the Vietnam War were all a disturbing yet highly motivating muse. Donna found her voice in fiction and with the appearance of a new horror writer on the book scene, a little known author named Stephen King, she turned her pen to the gruesome and the grotesque.

After graduating from the University of Rhode Island, Donna worked in marketing and advertising for large corporations and small non-profit arts organizations. When she had her children, she knew with a certainty that she needed to show them, by example, that if you believe in yourself, anything is possible.

In addition to writing and teaching writing, Donna has worked as a model and actor since the age of seventeen, when she did her first television commercial for Sears. Since then she has appeared in more than thirty television spots and print ads, everything from changing the oil in her car (that was acting) to modeling fur coats. She also appeared in three episodes of Showtime’s THE BROTHERHOOD, as well as in Martin Scorsese’s THE DEPARTED.

Donna lives peacefully, close to the beautiful shoreline of Rhode Island that she loves so much, with her two sons, Devon and Dylan, her greatest works in progress.

You can read my interview with Donna HERE

Check out the TOUR SCHEDULE

Links for author Donna Russo Morin: WEBSITE | FACEBOOK |
TWITTER
Twitter Event Hashtag:
#KingsAgentVirtualBookTour

Reading Challenges

Book Review: The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger.

My thoughts:
This is going to be a short review because, frankly, I don't quite know what to say.  Someone may call me out for saying this, but I can't help but wonder why this book is so touted.  I admit that Holden Caulfield is a unique and entertaining character.  I couldn't help but smile and chuckle every time he said "crumby" or "phoney" or "goddam" for the hundredth time.  But as I read, I started to notice that Holden seems very dissatisfied with everything and everyone around him.  Like his sister says, "You don't like anything that happens."  I started to form an impression that Holden is bipolar.  He certainly has some kind of mental disturbance going on with himself which I think stems from the loss of his younger brother to cancer.  Back then, there really wasn't so much openness toward mental illness.  And people didn't yet understand the effects of a death in the family on a young child and that said child might need counseling to help him/her deal with the loss.  Holden needed that kind of help and when he didn't get it, he blasted the world, so to speak.  But I think his 'dislike' of everything is really him reflecting his despair on the world.  There is also a part toward the end where sexual abuse is alluded to and that could also be at play in Holden's character and his behavior.

In all, I would have to say that the book is a great character study, but I was expecting it to be much better.

About the book:
Anyone who has read J.D. Salinger's New Yorker stories ? particularly A Perfect Day for Bananafish, Uncle Wiggily in Connecticut, The Laughing Man, and For Esme ? With Love and Squalor, will not be surprised by the fact that his first novel is fully of children. The hero-narrator of THE CATCHER IN THE RYE is an ancient child of sixteen, a native New Yorker named Holden Caulfield. Through circumstances that tend to preclude adult, secondhand description, he leaves his prep school in Pennsylvania and goes underground in New York City for three days. The boy himself is at once too simple and too complex for us to make any final comment about him or his story. Perhaps the safest thing we can say about Holden is that he was born in the world not just strongly attracted to beauty but, almost, hopelessly impaled on it. There are many voices in this novel: children's voices, adult voices, underground voices-but Holden's voice is the most eloquent of all. Transcending his own vernacular, yet remaining marvelously faithful to it, he issues a perfectly articulated cry of mixed pain and pleasure. However, like most lovers and clowns and poets of the higher orders, he keeps most of the pain to, and for, himself. The pleasure he gives away, or sets aside, with all his heart. It is there for the reader who can handle it to keep. (from Goodreads)

Reading Challenges

Cat Thursday

Welcome to the weekly meme that celebrates the wonders and sometime hilarity of cats! Join us by posting a favorite LOL cat pic you may have come across, famous cat art or even share with us pics of your own beloved cat(s). It's all for the love of cats! (share your post in the Mr. Linky below)


Two funnies and one awwww for you.  Enjoy!

Unconquered by J.D. Davis--Release Day and Kindle {Give@way)

About J.D. Davis

J.D. Davis was raised in Quitman, Texas, a quiet community in the northeast part of the state. Having grown up in a small town in the rural South—similar in many ways to the cousins’ hometown of Ferriday, Louisiana—with many similar influences as the cousins, he has meaningful insight into these three men.

Davis attended the University of Texas on a full academic scholarship, received a B.A. with highest honors in economics, and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa. He later received a master’s degree from SMU.

As a successful businessman, Davis achieved the highest credentials as an actuary and became a principal in a large firm while still in his twenties. He currently manages an employee benefits consulting practice that covers the southern region of the United States, with offices in four cities.

Davis remembers his father watching Jimmy Swaggart on television and being intrigued by the evangelist's magnificent piano talent. As a teenager, Davis became a huge fan of Jerry Lee Lewis. He first attended one of Lewis’s live performances as a college student and was awe-struck to see this man put on a breathtaking performance. Davis grew up listening to country music of the seventies and eighties, when Mickey Gilley was consistently producing number one country hits. He became fascinated by the ways these three very different cousins achieved and dealt with eventual success and has been a dedicated fan for years.

Davis has worked with a talented team of many. His editors included Elizabeth Kaye, an award winning journalist who has often written about southern music and southern preachers. As a contributing editor to Rolling Stone, she interviewed Sam Phillips and gathered firsthand experience of Jerry Lee Lewis when covering sessions at which he played with Johnny Cash, Carl Perkins, and Roy Orbison. As a contributing editor to John Kennedy’s George magazine, Kaye wrote extensively about Billy Graham and his son Franklin, traveled on several missionary trips with Franklin, and worked with ABC’s 20/20 to produce and write a major Billy Graham profile.

You can visit his website at http://www.unconqueredthebook.com.
Visit his Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/UnconqueredTheBook
Visit his Twitter page at https://twitter.com/Unconqueredbook
If you would like to view his book trailer, you can view it at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0CrVQv2lJJ8

About Unconquered
The Saga of Cousins Jerry Lee Lewis, Jimmy Swaggart, and Mickey Gilley.

In 1935 and early 1936, three cousins were born into tight-knit families in Ferriday, Louisiana. Rare piano talent, strong parental relationships, the Pentecostal church, family struggle, and a variety of musical influences worked together to produce men who changed twentieth-century music and culture. The individual stories of these three cousins illustrate their varied paths from small-town America to a world stage. Woven together, the collective story becomes even more compelling and amazing.

UNCONQUERED is a story so unlikely that it would not be believable if written as fiction. It tells of rock ‘n’ roll legend Jerry Lee Lewis, televangelist Jimmy Swaggart, and country music star Mickey Gilley. These very different men, raised in the same time and place, with similar talents, were fated for entirely different destinies even as their lives would always be profoundly intertwined. Born into poverty, each man, in his own way, would become an iconic figure blessed with the ability to thrill and inspire.

The story's touchstones of music, perseverance, and faith could wield such force only in the American South. There, in the Louisiana lowlands’ Concordia Parish, their story began in the midst of the Great Depression. 

 
Purchase your copy at http://www.amazon.com/Unconquered-Cousins-Swaggart-Mickey-Gilley/dp/1612540414/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1335293561&sr=8-1

~~~ WIN A FREE KINDLE! ~ ~ ~
J.D. Davis will be giving away a FREE KINDLE! Fill out the Rafflecopter form below to win! This giveaway is only open to U.S. and Canada citizens. Deadline is June 1 and announced on June 2. If you are the winner, contact Dorothy Thompson at thewriterslife (at) gmail.com or Tracee Gleichner at tgleichner (at) gmail.com. You have 48 hours to reply. If we do not hear from you in 48 hours, another winner will be selected. Thanks and good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway