The Forgetting Tree Winner!!

The Forgetting Tree Winner!

TLC Tours and St. Martin's Press have teamed up to give away one copy of The Forgetting Tree to a Booksnob follower.
I am thrilled to announce that the winner is:

Melissa from Georgia

Congratulations Melissa, I hope you enjoy your new book!!

If you didn't win please consider purchasing a copy off the Amazon link provided.  I earn a little commission that I put toward other giveaways I have on the Booksnob.  Thanks!

So much of The Forgetting Tree is immersed in the senses.  Soli captures the sense of place with mesmerizing detail.  The orchard fruit of oranges, lemons, and avocados is a enticing backdrop with food being the staple of our lives. 

The Forgetting Tree is a family saga that questions the meaning of home and finding one's place of belonging in the world. It would make a great choice for book clubs.

Scribbling Women

Scribbling Women.  True Tales from Astonishing Lives by Marthe Jocelyn

Have you ever wondered about the people who have gone before you and have paved the way to make your life easier?

 Many women in the world are not taught to read and write and throughout time this remains true. Women and girls are undervalued.  Throughout history women who wrote were told they had nothing important to say and were encouraged to stop scribbling.  So Marthe Jocelyn was curious about scribbling women and started looking into resources to find the women who journaled, wrote letters and therefore described their experiences.  Jocelyn narrowed this list from thousands of women to the eleven she presents in her book, Scribbling Women.

The women Jocelyn included in her book are not well known and are not famous.  In fact I had only heard of three of the women, Nellie Bly, Dang Thuy Tram and Doris Pilkington Garimara.  I couldn't remember much of anything about Nellie but I knew Dang Thuy Tram well because I read a copy of her journals that were in her book "Last Night I Dreamed of Peace".  I read this book aloud to my 4th hour class last year so I was happy to see her represented in the book.  Doris Pilkington Garimara wrote Rabbit Proof Fence and I also read this book aloud to one of my classes (years ago) and then we watched the film.  Each of short biography of these Scribbling Women includes a photo and their personal quotes.  

Learning about these amazing women, who maybe didn't feel so special during the time they lived, was wonderful.  These are the women who have paved the way because they didn't follow the norms of the day, they pushed the limits and chose to live the way they wanted.  

Thank goodness they all recorded their experiences.  Reading Scribbling Women makes me consider writing my own personal journal.  I used to journal all the time and have 4 full volumes, maybe it is time to for me to get back to scribbling.

The Queen of Water

 The Queen of Water by Laura Rasau and Maria Virginia Farinango

Meet Virginia.  She is an Indigenous child in Ecuador who at the age of seven is given to a Mestizo family to care for their child.  Virginia's childhood is over quickly as she is forced to cook, clean and babysit while locked in the apartment all day.  She expects to be paid for her services and to be able to visit her family on weekends but what happens is quite different.  She is beaten on a regular basis, treated with racial insults, and never paid or allowed to see her family.  As Virginia grows older she realizes she has forgotten her language and the faces of her family.  She is caught in the web of domestic slavery and held in fear.

Eventually the people begin to trust Virginia and that is when she teaches herself to read and write.  When she is locked in the house all day she studies and makes plans to leave or call her sister.  Virginia is strong and sprited and in some ways is comfortable where she is, with a TV, food, a bed of her own and other luxuries.  But she has dreams, big dreams of becoming a singer or actress, dreams of freedom and love, dreams of becoming an educated women.  It's these dreams that force Virginia to hatch a plan of escape.

The Queen of Water is a great story of a resilient teen who is able to achieve her dreams.  It is based on a true story so it makes the reader aware of the plight of young children who are forced into slavery.  People my not realize that there are more people in slavery today than when it was legal 200 years ago.  Children are a big part of the slave trade today. Many parents are tricked and think they are sending their children to a better way of life when in reality they are suffering everyday, caught in the web of slavery and just want to come home.  Except they don't know where home is or how to speak the language and they are culturally changed and feel lost.  Some parents actually sell their children to slave traders.  It is a sad situation in our world and thankfully authors like Resau are bringing world wide issues like domestic slavery to the forefront.

The Queen of Water is about courage and the drive to make your life better no matter the circumstances.  Resau collaborated with Laura Virginia Farinango after learning her story and has written an important book that will appeal to readers of all ages and cultures.  

Girl of Nightmares Winner!

Girl of Nightmares Winner!

Kendare Blake and Booksnob have teamed up to giveaway one fabulous copy of Girl of Nightmares to a international follower.
I am excited to announce that the winner is:

Diayll from North Carolina!

Congrats.  I hope you enjoy the book as much as I did.

If you didn't win, don't fret you can order the book from Amazon.

Blake has written a creative conclusion to Anna Dressed in Blood. Girl of Nightmares will keep you up late at night and have Anna entering your dreams at night. Girl of Nightmares is a nail biting, page turner, which will have you on the edge of your seat rooting for Cas and Anna. 

Giveaway: With or Without You

Giveaway:  With or Without You by Brian Farrey

Brian Farrey is the September Author in the Spotlight here on Booksnob and he has graciously offered to give away two copies of his book, With or Without You to Booksnob followers.  You must live in the U.S. or Canada and the contest ends on September 30th at midnight.  Good Luck!

Here is the synopsis from Goodreads:

Eighteen year-old Evan and his best friend, Davis, get beaten up for being loners. For being gay. For just being themselves. But as rough as things often seem, at least Evan can take comfort in his sweet, sexy boyfriend Erik--whom he’s kept secret from everyone for almost a year. 

Then Evan and Davis are recruited to join the Chasers, a fringe crowd that promises them protection and status. Davis is swept up in the excitement, but Evan is caught between his loyalty to Davis and his love for Erik. Evan’s lied to keep his two worlds separate. Now his lies are about to implode…and destroy the very relationships he’s been trying to protect.



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Dear Bully edited by Hall and Jones

Dear Bully.  70 Authors Tell Their Stories edited by Megan Kelley Hall and Carrie Jones

"Dear Bully,
I'm not sure if you remember me.  But I definitely remember you." Pg.9
If you have ever been bullied, it is an experience you will never forget.  It changes who you are and how you go about your daily existence. Some victims commit suicide as we frequently see in the news or lash out at their tormentors by bringing guns to school or getting in fights. Bullying is a no win situation and must be stopped, not tolerated.

Dear Bully is a compilation of 70 teen authors who share their thoughts and experiences on bullying.  Bullying affects a whopping 75% of our kids today and thousands of kids miss school everyday because they fear they will be bullied if they attend.  Popular teen authors like Ellen Hopkins, Mo Willems, Alyson Noel and R.L.Stine tell what is was like to be on the sidelines, to be the victim or the perpetrator.

One would think that a book about bullying would be sad and depressing and some of the stories are really sad but mainly Dear Bully is empowering.  These stories offer the reader hope and guidance on a deeply personal level.  There are actual relevant resources in the back of the book for young adults and their parents who are in need of help.

Initially I resisted reading Dear Bully but I ended up really liking it because it was so empowering.  I read it slowly, over a month, a few stories at a time.  I loved the variety of stories, writing styles, poems, authors and multiple points of view.  As an educator and a parent who has seen kids suffer under the effects of bullying, Dear Bully reaffirmed my belief that we are a village and we need to stand up for kids everywhere and prevent bullying.

Take a stand to prevent bullying!

Anna Dressed in Blood Winner!!

Anna Dressed in Blood Winner!

Kendare Blake and Booksnob have teamed up to giveaway one fabulous copy of Anna Dressed in Blood to a international follower.
I am excited to announce that the winner is:

Daniela from Mexico!!

Congrats.  I hope you enjoy the book as much as I did.

If you didn't win, don't fret you can order the book from Amazon.

Blake has created a fast paced paranormal romance that is a unique and entertaining page turner.   When Cas meets Anna for the first time he is in awe of her presence and beauty when Anna gives him a break and decides not to kill him.  I love that Anna is a powerful, ass kicking, murderous ghost who is just trying to understand her existence and remember why she can't leave her house. 

Giveaway: The Forgetting Tree by Tatjana Soli

Giveaway: The Forgetting Tree by Tatjana Soli

The publishers of The Forgetting Tree, St. Martin's Press, in conjunction with TLC book tours are giving away one copy of this great book to Booksnob followers who live in the U.S. or Canada.  This is a thought provoking read and I highly recommend it.

Click here to read my book review:  The Forgetting Tree

Here is the synopsis from Goodreads:

From The New York Times bestselling author of The Lotus Eaters, a novel of a California ranching family, its complicated matriarch and an enigmatic caretaker who may destroy them 
When Claire Nagy marries Forster Baumsarg, the only son of prominent California citrus ranchers, she knows she's consenting to a life of hard work, long days, and worry-fraught nights. But her love for Forster is so strong, she turns away from her literary education and embraces the life of the ranch, succumbing to its intoxicating rhythms and bounty until her love of the land becomes a part of her. Not even the tragic, senseless death of her son Joshua at kidnappers' hands, her alienation from her two daughters, or the dissolution of her once-devoted marriage can pull her from the ranch she's devoted her life to preserving.
But despite having survived the most terrible of tragedies, Claire is about to face her greatest struggle: An illness that threatens not only to rip her from her land but take her very life. And she's chosen a caregiver, the enigmatic Caribbean-born Minna, who may just be the darkest force of all. 
Haunting, tough, triumphant, and profound, The Forgetting Treeexplores the intimate ties we have to one another, the deepest fears we keep to ourselves, and the calling of the land that ties every one of us together.

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The Forgetting Tree by Tatjana Soli

The Forgetting Tree by Tatjana Soli

Claire is the matriarch of a citrus ranch in southern California.  She is the daughter of Hungarian immigrants who fled Hungary during the second World War.  Claire married into the German Baumsarg family, who owned the ranch for 3 generations, and bore three children with her husband Forster.  The orchard becomes all encompassing for Claire as she takes it upon herself to make it succeed.  Just as she is about to pay off all of their debt, something unforeseen happens to rock the foundation of their lives.  Their beloved son dies.

Claire is torn between her extreme grief and the struggle to keep her family and orchard intact.  Her marriage fails and everyone escapes the ranch but Claire.  Now as she fights the battle of her life against breast cancer, her family is trying to get her to sell.

In her illness, Claire refuses to the leave the ranch and hires a personal assistant named Minna.  Minna is the great granddaughter of Jean Rhys (author of Wide Sargasso Sea)  Claire and Minna are drawn to one another but are polar opposites, dark and light, young and old, healthy and sick.  The majority of The Forgetting Tree focuses on the relationship of Claire and Minna.  What you see is not necessarily what you understand and Soli capitalizes on this.

So much of The Forgetting Tree is immersed in the senses.  Soli captures the sense of place with mesmerizing detail.  The orchard fruit of oranges, lemons, and avocados is a enticing backdrop with food being the staple of our lives.  I could literally taste and smell the oranges from Soli's description and wanted to bite into one.  The descriptions of lemons made my mouth water.

The Forgetting Tree is a family saga that questions the meaning of home and finding one's place of belonging in the world.  It is complex novel with vivid characters that Soli paints with dark colors, dripping with stymied emotion.  Tragedy holds many characters back from truly living.

The Forgetting Tree would make a great book for people in a book club where it can be discussed and treasured for it's complexity.  Pair it with Jane Eyre or Wide Sargasso Sea.  While I was reading I thought of multiple women in my life who would enjoy this book and relate to the main character.  Claire is a version of every woman.

Experience The Forgetting Tree, "a place where you leave your bad memories behind so they don't poison your life". (pg 296)  "Listen to my words.  My words are all you will have someday."

September Hometown Track Author in the Spotlight

September Hometown Track Author in the Spotlight

It's September!  Time to head back to school, get out your winter clothes, go for walks with leaves crunching under your feet and when your done raking, there is always time for a good book.

This month's Author in the Spotlight is Brian Farrey.  Brian won the Minnesota Book Award this year for his young adult novel:  With or Without You.  With or Without You is also a Stonewall Honor Book.

Here is the synopsis on Goodreads:
Eighteen year-old Evan and his best friend, Davis, get beaten up for being loners. For being gay. For just being themselves. But as rough as things often seem, at least Evan can take comfort in his sweet, sexy boyfriend Erik--whom he’s kept secret from everyone for almost a year. 

Then Evan and Davis are recruited to join the Chasers, a fringe crowd that promises them protection and status. Davis is swept up in the excitement, but Evan is caught between his loyalty to Davis and his love for Erik. Evan’s lied to keep his two worlds separate. Now his lies are about to implode…and destroy the very relationships he’s been trying to protect.


This month you can expect a book review, a contest, an author interview and I am crossing my fingers that Brian will write a guest post for us.  Brian has a new book being released in October.  You can visit Brian at his website:  http://www.brianfarreybooks.com/

Have a great month!!