Category: Uncategorized

A Book is a Many Splendored Thing

This month’s YAOTL task was to write about the first book, character, or author we fell in love with. I was all set to write about my two favorite authors–Norma Klein and Norma Fox Mazer–but then I thought of the first time I read books by them. I found books by both in my seventh grade English class. If it weren’t for my 7th grade teacher, Margaret Schmeh, I would have never had a chance to fall in love with the Normas or with reading. So I meandered a little and wrote about Miss Schmeh. Check out my post here.

Cover Reveal for Holly Schindler’s FERAL

Hi All!

Today I’m supporting a fellow YA author by participating in a cover reveal for her new novel, FERAL!!

Feral HC

How awesome does that look? I love the creepy tone.

It will be published by HarperCollins on August 26, 2014. Long wait, I know!! BUT, here is a summary from Holly’s website to hold you over until then. Really, though? It makes me want to read it RIGHT NOW.

 It’s too late for you. You’re dead.

Those words float through Claire Cain’s head as she lies broken and barely alive after a brutal beating. And the words continue to haunt her months later, in the relentless, terrifying nightmares that plague her sleep. So when her father is offered a teaching sabbatical in another state, Claire is hopeful that getting out of Chicago, away from the things that remind her of what she went through, will offer a way to start anew.

But when she arrives in Peculiar, Missouri, Claire quickly realizes something is wrong—the town is brimming with hidden dangers and overrun by feral cats. And her fears are confirmed when a popular high school girl, Serena Sims, is suddenly found dead in the icy woods behind the school. While everyone is quick to say Serena died in an accident, Claire knows there’s more to it—for she was the one who found Serena, battered and most certainly dead, surrounded by the town’s feral cats.

Now Claire vows to learn the truth about what happened, but the closer she gets to uncovering the mystery, the closer she also gets to discovering a frightening reality about herself and the damage she truly sustained in that Chicago alley. . . .

With an eerie setting and heart-stopping twists and turns, Holly Schindler weaves a gripping story that will make you question everything you think you know.
 

To pre-order, go here: http://www.amazon.com/Feral-Holly-Schindler/dp/0062220209/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1391182020&sr=1-1&keywords=Holly+Schindler+Feral

Want to add it to your Goodreads shelves? Go here: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15782742-feral
 
And to keep up with all things Holly Schindler, go here: http://www.hollyschindler.com/

 

 

Writing Tips

So, I have become a contributor on Nancy Viau’s writing blog–WIT (Writing Info and Tips)!! Each week, a different writer will post a writing tip. My postings appear once a month. My first one was about the “quote sandwich.” It’s a must-see post for students doing standardized tests. Check it out here!

Shield Those Innocent Teens

PIECES OF US will be out tomorrow (March 8) and there has been a lot of talk questioning its appropriateness for teens. There is also a movie, Bully, coming out March 30. It, too, has been questioned for its material. This documentary has been given an R-Rating due to its “too real” content. Therefore, the very teens who need to see it, will not. It’s disturbing that the we’re trying to shield teens from the very horrors many experience daily is by limiting access to vehicles that could make them feel less alone. To see more of my thoughts on this topic, read my guest post on Shaun Hutchinson’s blog here.