Saturday, June 29, 2013

Library Books Read-a-Thon: Reading Plans, Updates and Wrap-Up

Wrap-Up is below



The Library Books Read-a-Thon starts today, hosted by Rachael Turns Pages. I'm planning on working on at least one library book, Infinite Jest...since I'm SO behind on the read-a-long. Rachael had stated that reading our own books is okay too so I will also be trying to finish Watership Down. I have to read Seduction by M.J. Rose for the book tour on Monday. Also, need to read more of Under the Dome for the read-a-long and I have to finish The Poisonwood Bible by the end of the month. I have a short non-fiction to read for a tour on Friday, Abundance Triggers and another library book I'll try to read is World War Z, if I have time.

Whew! Happy Reading All!

Wrap-Up

Once again, work was too hectic this week so by the time I got done working, I didn't feel like blogging and so I did not update once. I did manage to get some reading done, although I don't know how (see below)! Sadly, I did not get to pick up my library book this week. =O(

Total # of Books Read:  2.5
# of Pages Read for week: 723
Books read: 
Watership Down--200 pages to end
Seduction by M.J. Rose
Abundance Triggers by Kanta Bosniak 

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Friday, June 28, 2013

#TuesBookTalk July Selection: The White Queen by Philippa Gregory


TuesBookTalk Read-a-Longs on Twitter (@tuesbooktalk  #tuesbooktalk) and on Goodreads will be reading, The White Queen by Philippa Gregory, in July. Our first discussion will be on Tuesday, July 2.  Our chats take place on Twitter at 9:30pm ET/8:30pm CT on Tuesday nights (see hashtag above).  If you can't join us on Twitter, feel free to share your thoughts in the Goodreads group.  Get the full reading schedule HERE.  Hope you will join us!

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Abundance Triggers by Kanta Bosniak--Interview and Review


How have you been able to use social media (Twitter, Facebook, Goodreads, etc.) to help market your book?

I have an author page on Goodreads and I’m planning a giveaway with the release of “Twin Flames,” the next book in my “love poems” series. I tweet when I have a new release, review, or blog post. I recently joined Google + and post there too. I love Facebook because I’m an artist as well as writer and it’s so visual. Also, I love the vibrant, supportive, and spiritual community there. So many amazing people who make me laugh and touch my heart. I feel engaged and have a sense of dialog as I post. It’s a party, a coffee klatch, and a spiritual salon all rolled into one. I have an author page, a coaching page, a weddings page, and pages for a couple specific publications. They interact. The love poems series is very wedding-y. The author page relates to coaching. I share from one page to the other and from all pages to my personal page. 

Do you have any advice for new authors looking to promote themselves on these sites?

Yes. Don’t make it all about work and selling a product. Put your heart into it. Have fun and invite others to have fun with you. In so doing, you will find more pleasure and the pleasure will be contagious. We’re here to serve, and when we serve, our energy investment naturally returns to us multiplied. We’re also here to be happy, and I think happiness is one of the ways we do serve! There’s a definite goofiness factor in much of what I post on Facebook and in the conversations I most enjoy.

Here’s an example of what I’m talking about when I say to put the fun first. I have a page for my weight loss book, “Lose Weight in Alpha State” and my audiobook guided imagery “Lose Weight in Theta State.” I found it boring and dry to go there and just directly promote, so I neglected the page. Then one day, I decided that since weight loss for most women is so connected to self- concept and self-presentation, and since I love clothes, accessories and all the girly stuff, I’d change the page name to “Kanta Bosniak Beauty & Style.” Now, it’s a lot more fun for me and my page guests because the publication posts are like occasional sponsor messages and all the other posts are empowering and entertaining eye candy.

What type of writing routine do you have? Any tips you can share about it?

If you want to be a writer, write. Write every day, or most days. Think of yourself as a professional and schedule it into your day. I leave time in the early morning for jotting down new ideas. Then, I flesh it out later. Editing is a separate task. I let the inspiration flow and then tighten it up later.

How has it been trying to balance your writing with your day job and/or family life? Is there anything you would change?

I prefer to write in the morning, which works really well with my other activities, as I do most of my other business later in the day. In my longtime marriage to the father of my now grown son, I never had a problem pursuing creative activities. It has always been part of my life. I’m now dating and still, no problem. If anything, the opposite; I have amazing support from my friends and loved ones. I think it’s important to surround yourself with people to accept you for who you are, recognize that you need quiet time and solitude to work, and support you in doing what you do by respecting your boundaries.

Setting is an extremely important aspect in grabbing your readers’ attention. What made you choose to set your book in the setting you chose?

I realize that this interview form is framed for fiction authors. For them this is a great and relevant question, because for readers of this blog who are writers, it’s one that is very helpful to consider. I’m not a fiction writer, but I’ll answer it anyway. 

I’m a writer and illustrator of mind/body/spirit books, thematic coloring books, books of sacred love poems, and script books for hypnotherapists and spiritual practitioners. I also write, perform and produce guided imagery audiobooks. Setting doesn’t come into play in any of these genres, except, in a sense, the guided imageries. These are really personalized mythic journeys that occur after a longish and purposefully boring relaxation process. The goal is to help the conscious mind rest with soothing language and stylized cadence, so it isn’t paying attention. It’s a weird form, which I happen to love. And it’s the opposite of fiction, screenwriting or public speaking, where you want to grab their attention from the get-go.

What types of books do you read? How do you think they have influenced your writing.

I read the poetry of Rumi, Hafiz, the English Romantics, the Transcendentalists, Neruda, T.S. Eliot, Mary Oliver. I read books about Peruvian and Hawaiian shamanism, New Thought books, and books in the detective/mystery genre. My current favorites are Michael Connelly’s Harry Bosch and Janet Evanovitch’s Stephanie Plum series. I like a balance of lyrical and crisp and humor is a plus. As a kid, I read every myth, fable, fairy and folk tale I could get a hold of. Probably the most influential book was “The Little Engine That Could.” I loved the art, the story and the message. “I think I can,” said the Little Train as he focused his thoughts and climbed the mountain to take the toys and good things to eat to the children on the other side. I wanted to grow up to be a writer and artist who could inspire people like that book inspired me. Affirmative Prayers R Us!

My thoughts:
Abundance Triggers is an excellent book for guiding us into the right state of mind. It's especially helpful to those who have been experiencing difficulties in life. Bosniak encourages the use of a journal to explore the ideas in her book and even gives questions we can answer in our journals. She also encourages drawing and including other forms of art in our journals. In fact, she even included drawings and quotes in the book drawn and written in her own hand. The last chapter focuses on Prayer and Meditation with various techniques to assist in the practice. I've been wanting to initiate meditation in my life so this will be an excellent resource for my doing so. 

Bosniak has written a wonderful spiritual guide here. In telling her own experiences, she shows her connection to the practices she teaches. I plan on keeping this book close by my side, especially on those days when I need a spiritual lift.

About the book:
Most people get that "happy" is the launch pad for personal and professional success. But, where's the "happy button?" Author, minister and coach Kanta Bosniak has made a lifetime study of state-shifting and offers readers a whole toolbox of happy buttons she calls abundance triggers."

"Abundance Triggers is a practical how-to for shifting negative thoughts and the emotions they produce to those good feelings which boost energy and support well-being. Bosniak begins with simple yet efficient physical awareness techniques and guides readers through a process of how to build their own more advanced and personalized triggers for relaxation, increased energy and sense of purpose.

Once the toolbox is built, she then delves deeper into disengaging those limiting beliefs and the habitual negative emotions they generate and replacing the old sad "stories" with more resourceful ones. Bosniak also shares entertaining anecdotes and personal stories. Her writing voice is warm, conversational and engaging and the book is filled with refreshingly lighthearted and whimsical doodle art as well as creative journaling exercises to help the reader anchor and habituate a feel-good new "normal."

About the author:
Kanta Bosniak is an artist, writer and minister with over 40 years experience an educator in spiritual growth. She is a frequent speaker at churches, universities and conferences throughout the US. Venues have included Yale, Columbia, SUNY, Virginia Tech, UNCW, Camp LeJeune Midway Center for US Marines, The Association for Research and Enlightenment, Unity Churches, and many more. Kanta is the author of 12 books and 5 audio recordings and was twice Artist-in-Residence at Omega Institute. Collectors of Kanta's art include a Nobel Prize Winner, an Emmy-winning producer, a popular television actress, several authors, a U.S. National champion athlete and people of all walks of life. She is listed in Who's Who in American Women.

Book Website:
http://www.KantaBosniak.com

This book tour was organized by Pump Up Your Book.

A copy of this book was sent to me in exchange for an honest review. I was not monetarily compensated for providing it.

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Thursday, June 27, 2013

HFVBT: Review--Seduction by M.J. Rose


My thoughts:
M.J. Rose continues to feed my fascination with reincarnation and history in this the fifth book in the Reincarnationist series. Combining the two once again into a novel that I think might be her best yet, Rose takes us this time into the world of seances.

Victor Hugo, famed novelist of Les Miserables, among others, is a prominent character in Seduction. When he loses his daughter to drowning, ten years later he still finds that he has not moved past her loss. He begins participating in seances in the hope that he will speak to his daughter again and ends up communicating with a myriad of famous personas, including the Devil. In the book, he transcribes these communications nightly and his lost transcriptions are at the heart of the story. The quest to discover these communique with the dead is what leads protagonist Jac L'Etoile into a suspenseful situation.

The shift from the present to the past and vice versa is an element that I have thoroughly enjoyed in books. However, not many write it as skillfully as Rose. The Reincarnationist series, and this book, are not only about the phenomenon of reincarnation. They are a thoughtful examination of how we human beings cope with loss and what we choose to believe about the after life. I think reincarnation is something that should be explored more extensively as a definite possibility. In writing these books, Rose is bringing reincarnation to the fore of people's minds, even if they do not believe, and I thank her for raising that awareness.

About the book:
Publication Date: May 7, 2013
Atria Books
Hardcover; 384p
ISBN-10: 1451621507

From the author of The Book of Lost Fragrances comes a haunting novel about a grieving woman who discovers the lost journal of novelist Victor Hugo, awakening a mystery that spans centuries.

In 1843, novelist Victor Hugo’s beloved nineteen-year-old daughter drowned. Ten years later, Hugo began participating in hundreds of séances to reestablish contact with her. In the process, he claimed to have communed with the likes of Plato, Galileo, Shakespeare, Dante, Jesus—and even the Devil himself. Hugo’s transcriptions of these conversations have all been published. Or so it was believed.

Recovering from her own losses, mythologist Jac L’Etoile arrives on the Isle of Jersey—where Hugo conducted the séances—hoping to uncover a secret about the island’s Celtic roots. But the man who’s invited her there, a troubled soul named Theo Gaspard, has hopes she’ll help him discover something quite different—Hugo’s lost conversations with someone called the Shadow of the Sepulcher.

What follows is an intricately plotted and atmospheric tale of suspense with a spellbinding ghost story at its heart, by one of America’s most gifted and imaginative novelists.


About the author:
M.J. Rose is the international best selling author of eleven novels and two non-fiction books on marketing. Her fiction and non-fiction has appeared in many magazines and reviews including Oprah Magazine. She has been featured in the New York Times, Newsweek, Time, USA Today and on the Today Show, and NPR radio.

Rose graduated from Syracuse University, spent the '80s in advertising, has a commercial in the Museum of Modern Art in NYC and since 2005 has run the first marketing company for authors - Authorbuzz.com. The television series PAST LIFE, was based on Rose's novels in the Renincarnationist series. She is one of the founding board members of International Thriller Writers and runs the blog- Buzz, Balls & Hype. She is also the co-founder of Peroozal.com and BookTrib.com.

Rose lives in CT with her husband the musician and composer, Doug Scofield, and their very spoiled and often photographed dog, Winka.

For more information on M.J. Rose and her novels, please visit her WEBSITE. You can also find her on Facebook and Twitter.


Visit other blogs on the tour--Tour Schedule
Twitter Hashtag: #SeductionVirtualTour

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Cat Thursday--Overwhelmed and Stressed


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! Enjoy! (share your post in the Mr. Linky below)

So, when a person goes for years without working outside the home and then gets a job and over time, that job really starts picking up, said person is not used to it. Oh me! These last two weeks have been...whew, is all I can say!

This one generally demonstrates my overall feeling lately...


And this one...



And especially this one...



And this is me EVERY Monday...




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Monday, June 24, 2013

HFVBT: Seduction by M.J. Rose--Guest Post




“He fell to the seat, she by his side. There no more words. The stars were beginning to shine. How was it that their lips met? How is it that the birds sing, the snow melts, that the rose opens, that May blooms, that the dawn whitens behind the black trees on the shivering summit of the hills?”
Victor Hugo, Les Misérables

Excerpt from SEDUCTION - From Chapter 14 Jac and Theo at Blixer Rath

It was her first kiss and her whole body shivered, but not because she was frightened. Not now. It was as if a hundred perfume bottles all spilled out at the same time. As if the fragrance notes were meeting in the air and mixing and mingling and turning into music. She was suddenly attuned to scents and tones and sounds and tastes and touch in a brand-new way. With sensors that had been sleeping until this very moment.


About the book:
Publication Date: May 7, 2013
Atria Books
Hardcover; 384p
ISBN-10: 1451621507

From the author of The Book of Lost Fragrances comes a haunting novel about a grieving woman who discovers the lost journal of novelist Victor Hugo, awakening a mystery that spans centuries.

In 1843, novelist Victor Hugo’s beloved nineteen-year-old daughter drowned. Ten years later, Hugo began participating in hundreds of séances to reestablish contact with her. In the process, he claimed to have communed with the likes of Plato, Galileo, Shakespeare, Dante, Jesus—and even the Devil himself. Hugo’s transcriptions of these conversations have all been published. Or so it was believed.

Recovering from her own losses, mythologist Jac L’Etoile arrives on the Isle of Jersey—where Hugo conducted the séances—hoping to uncover a secret about the island’s Celtic roots. But the man who’s invited her there, a troubled soul named Theo Gaspard, has hopes she’ll help him discover something quite different—Hugo’s lost conversations with someone called the Shadow of the Sepulcher.

What follows is an intricately plotted and atmospheric tale of suspense with a spellbinding ghost story at its heart, by one of America’s most gifted and imaginative novelists.


About the author:
M.J. Rose is the international best selling author of eleven novels and two non-fiction books on marketing. Her fiction and non-fiction has appeared in many magazines and reviews including Oprah Magazine. She has been featured in the New York Times, Newsweek, Time, USA Today and on the Today Show, and NPR radio.

Rose graduated from Syracuse University, spent the '80s in advertising, has a commercial in the Museum of Modern Art in NYC and since 2005 has run the first marketing company for authors - Authorbuzz.com. The television series PAST LIFE, was based on Rose's novels in the Renincarnationist series. She is one of the founding board members of International Thriller Writers and runs the blog- Buzz, Balls & Hype. She is also the co-founder of Peroozal.com and BookTrib.com.

Rose lives in CT with her husband the musician and composer, Doug Scofield, and their very spoiled and often photographed dog, Winka.

For more information on M.J. Rose and her novels, please visit her WEBSITE. You can also find her on Facebook and Twitter.



Visit other blogs on the tour--Tour Schedule
Twitter Hashtag: #SeductionVirtualTour

Watch for my review of Seduction...coming tomorrow!

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Saturday, June 22, 2013

Summer Solstice Read-a-Thon

STICKY POST--PLEASE SCROLL DOWN FOR OTHER/NEWER BLOG CONTENT

Mission to Read

Wrap-Up:

Well, that didn't go so hot. I had a horrific day of work yesterday! I managed to read about 50 pages of Watership Down, all told. Oh, well. On with the Library Books Read-a-Thon!

Not sure how much reading I'll get done in 24 hours, but hoping to at least finish Wicked  Watership Down (decided to finish it for Once Upon A Time as my one fantasy read...I'll have to pick up Wicked later) and get started on World War Z. We'll see! Tomorrow starts the Library Books Read-a-Thon, but I won't be reading all library books. I'll post about that one tomorrow night after this sticky post is gone.

Details from the blog:
Summer Solstice Read-a-thon is a 24 hr event taking place on the longest day of the year...June 21, 2013.

It was created by Rie @ Mission To Read and is cohosted by Melissa of Harley Bear Book Blog, Lindsay of The Novel Life, Kathrin of StackedNPainted, and Melina of The Pretty Nifty YA Reader.

The goal of this read-a-thon is to take advantage of all the extra daylight and read as much as you can! Mini challenges and a giveaway will be happening this day so make sure to check out any of the host's blog's the day of for more information.

Don't forget to chat with us at the twitter party 12pm CST #SSReadathon.

Click the button above to sign up!

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Thursday, June 20, 2013

Cat Thursday--Rabbit Cat, or Cats and Rabbits


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! Enjoy! (share your post in the Mr. Linky below)

This weeks Cat Thursday is a tribute to my reading of Watership Down, which I'm really enjoying. Have you read it?




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Tuesday, June 18, 2013

A Reading Life


I've been doing a lot of thinking about blogging lately. Seems like there's a lot of that going on right now, especially among those of us who are approaching the four year mark. I'm not really going to be changing too much, but I am going to stop participating in Mailbox Monday. I like posting these A Reading Life posts because, though my life does revolve around reading, I also have other real life things going on that I like to share with you. And posting about the books I receive/buy/etc. is so time consuming...with how busy I am these days (even more than before) there just isn't time. I may include an occasional photo of my book hauls. We'll see. So, onward...

Listening To:  Not listening to any audio books right now because I'm not doing much driving and my car CD player is giving me fits. I did listen to the "Phantom of the Opera" movie soundtrack while driving yesterday. I love it!

Book finished (since 5/27): 

Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro (REVIEW)
Of Fathers and Sons by Evan Ostryzniuk (REVIEW)
Murder as a Fine Art by David Morrell (REVIEW)
The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane by Katherine Howe (not reviewed yet)
The Hound of the Baskervilles by Arthur Conan Doyle (no review)

Reading: 

Watership Down
by Richard Adams (TuesBookTalk)
Wicked by Gregory Maguire
Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace (read-a-long)
Under the Dome by Stephen King (read-a-long)
The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver
World War Z by Max Brooks

Coming Up:  

Seduction by M.J. Rose
The Diabolist by Layton Green
Abundance Triggers by Kanta Bosniak
The Queen's Rivals by Brandy Purdy
The White Queen by Philippa Gregory (TuesBookTalk July read)
...I'm sure there will be more

Watching:  All the new shows on TV right now. Oh my! The Voice is at an end and I hope my girl Michelle Chemuel takes it all down. She certainly deserves it with her monster talent and great personality....she is the total package. True Blood had quite an interesting debut last night. I was so excited! The Killing continues to impress me. Looking forward to Under the Dome next week. On the movie front, I saw The Purge on Saturday. Quite a disturbing concept, but a great movie. Saw the previews for Insidious 2 (the first one is a favorite of mine) and The Conjuring. I love horror movies and am a firm believer that one should be released every week. I'm talking intelligent horror films like Insidious and Sinister (to name a couple faves). Of course, can't wait for World War Z this weekend!

Making:  I found a go-to Enchilada casserole recipe in Six Sisters' Stuff. It is delicious! This week I'm making Meatball subs with fried hashbrown pancakes, and in the slow cooker...chicken and dumplings, chicken and cheese tater tot bake, and Asian beef lettuce wraps, plus the Enchilada casserole again. Yum! Also, I discovered that I make the best homemade peanut butter cookies. The boys love them!

Grateful for: ...this past weekend. I had a much needed break. The boys had a sleepover on Friday and then were with their dad until today so I got a lot of alone time in, which I need from time to time to keep my sanity.

Looking forward to:  revamping my fantasy reading challenge. I have BIG plans! Those of you who follow me who also participate in the 101 Fantasy challenge, stay tuned to the dedicated blog for the news.

Picture: er...video. Do you suffer from Bitchy Resting Face? Saw this on Facebook yesterday.


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Saturday, June 15, 2013

Wicked Wildfire Read-a-thon--Wrap-Up


WW Read-a-Thon

Read-a-Thon Wrap-Up

I was a very bad read-a-thon participant. I didn't post one update. I had a crazy week at work (and it's going to be worse this coming week) so didn't have much time for reading. I did manage to finish one book. Here's what I read:

Cats, Daffodils and Dragonflies by Laura Stamps (247 pages)
Watership Down (I read about 50 or so pages)

I also participated in the chat on Friday night and completed the Title Scramble challenge.

Thanks to April and Papkins for hosting again. Hopefully, I'll do better on the next one.

The Wicked Wildfire Read-a-Thon started for me about 40 minutes ago. You can still sign up (in fact, until Tuesday at midnight EST). Do that HERE or click the button above.

My reading plans:
Books I plan to read some of/do not plan to finish (read-a-long books, etc.):
Under the Dome by Stephen King
Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace
Watership Down by Richard Adams
The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver

Books I want to complete:
The Diabolist by Layton Green
Wicked by Gregory Maguire

You never know...I might decide to pick something else up too!



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Thursday, June 13, 2013

Cat Thursday--Authors and their Cats (22) Cats, Daffodils and Dragonflies



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! Enjoy! (share your post in the Mr. Linky below)

The second Cat Thursday of each month is Authors and their Cats Thursday.  Today I have an extra special Each time I will feature an author and their cat(s).

Today I have a very special Cat Thursday featuring author Laura Stamps and her delightful book of poetry, Cats, Daffodils and Dragonflies.



The poems in Laura's book are so peaceful and relaxing. It was almost like meditating as I was reading. And the addition of Laura's cats in almost every poem was sheer delight. This is a book I will cherish and go back to again and again. I especially liked how there were poems for every season. I'm going to share some favorites below. Be sure to keep reading to learn more about Laura and to see pics of her cats.

SPRING FEVER

Even as I recover from the
snap, crackle, pop of flame-
tipped tulips in early spring,
millions of nubbly fingers
yellow with pollen grip the
pines, while daffodils,
camellias, and snapdragons
preach the liturgy of color
to winter-weary pansies and
chrysanthemums. My
youngest cat rides the lamp
like a sinking ship, slowly
falling toward my husband
sleeping in his reclining chair,
golf geening the television,
as I peek over the edge of
my book just in time to see.

O that my eye might remain
single, fixed forever on the
timelessness of the eternal:
my truth and my life. Mean-
while, red clover stains the
meadow with its purple smile,
as a Carolina chickadee
slides through the short grass
and crisp air. Look, the
luminous light of the eternal:
here, and here, and there.

EPIPHANY OF JOY

Early evening, the first week
of June, ninety-two degrees,
and I should be working on
my papers, but the cat is
tossing his little mouse in
the air by its tail, then leaping
after it, jumping and tumbling
and entertaining himself
as perfectly as if he were
a squirrel skittering through
the leaf-swirl of the pine-
woods, while I drift along
in the mossy cup of this
moment, captivated by a cat
and his happiness. Sages
say the joy of life exists in
the ever-present eternal, the
only place to tap the sweet
rhythm of the divine. Such
a wondrous way to live, to
lock your mind in the glistening
capsule of the moment,
where the gardenia shudders
in a June breeze, flooding the
evening with the warm music.

CAT DAZE

The clouds today are swift
chalk strokes skipping
across the faux marble of
a cerulean sky, and I am
typing, when the cat that's
always in trouble wobbles
past me, wearing a square
tissue box over her head,
weaving in a world that is
suddenly as murky as the
ebony gloss of a crow. I
twist the box from her neck,
and she gallops across the
hall, her ears swimming with
the slick voice of mischief.
Later, interrupted again, I
turn toward an odd thumping
behind my chair, where my
youngest cat slumps in the
corner, the tissue box planted
on his head, while he bangs
against the wall, a prisoner
in a cardboard cage as
opaque as the petals of a
black pansy. I remove the
box, and he rolls on the floor,
a pilgrim happy to be free,
as relieved as any of us
when we emerge from our
wanderings in the sunless
valley to embrace the
joyous leaf-shine of the light.

CAT PAUSE

A lone bubble escapes
a soapy pond in the sink,
captivating my youngest
cat, as if it were some
alien insect sailing above
the plateau of his nose,
and I know at any moment
I could choose to look
away from dirty dishes
and this cat to the world's
sadness, to the sorrowful
way humans abuse one
another, the grim realities
of depression, anger, fear.
There are critics who wish
I would, condemning the
buoyant water-tumble
of my words, this affinity
for joy, the sweetness.
But then three wrens gather
at the window to discuss
the cornflower jacket
of the sky, the cat bites
the bubble, and I laugh,
thinking it's not so terrible
to choose happiness,
to chase after that which
blesses, whether it's the
wild tangerine of a spotted
lily or blue jays cackling
on the porch. Did Roethke,
Whitman, or Thoreau
every regret the cartwheels
of bird-whistle etching the
hours? For some the quest
for simplicity is enough,
a golden chance to harvest
the tasseled fields of the
moment. To simply notice
the sky sketching cloud-
castles today, to breathe
the gardenia's intoxicating
smile, to marvel at soap
bubbles whirling in the
kitchen with the cat, to
dance, to dance, to dance.

I'LL NEVER FORGET

that balmy day in August,
only an hour after sunrise,
when I opened the curtains
in the kitchen to watch a cat
rolling the black raft of her
body in wild grass, and
suddenly the skitter of four
tiny paws dashed out from
beneath the porch, and
then four more, both kittens
tumbling over their mother
like tawny leaves surfing
an autumn breeze, each a
calico tabby, mirror images
of a feral male lingering in
the neighborhood since last
winter, and it was there, while
standing beside the stove,
the sun painting the pinewoods
with a dandelion glaze, that
I realized I'd been adopted
by a new family of strays.


About the author:
Laura Stamps is a Wiccan Witch, Seelie Fey, and a Fey sorceress twirling joyfully on pink wings. Weeeeee! Bestselling author of Pagan paranormal novels (most are erotic, two are not). 55 books published in 25 years (sexy romantic vampires, witches, Fey). Her short stories and poetry have appeared in over 1000 literary journals and anthologies worldwide. Her work has received numerous awards, including a “Pulitzer Prize” nomination and seven “Pushcart” award nominations. All Laura’s novels are very positive and contain real Pagan spells, chants, or rituals. She lives in South Carolina with her two husbands and seven cats and has been involved in feral cat rescue for 30+ years. “Cats, Daffodils & Dragonflies” features 18 years of published literary poetry chronicling her gardening and cat adventures!

Laura's kitties! Such cuties...and black kitties...my favorite!

Miss Cherry in bandana

Laura's cat herd

Gardenia

Visit Laura:

WEBSITE | AUTHOR PAGE | LINKED IN | TUMBLR

Get your copy of Cats, Daffodils & Dragonflies for Kindle at AMAZON

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A e-copy of this book was provided to me in exchange for an honest review. I was not monetarily compensated for providing it.
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