Introduction Havelah McLat pens a story of defeating the odds, courage, and the American immigrant dream in The Silent Journey. In 1932, Anika, a Ukrainian deaf youth, lives in a silent world. She can read lips and communicate via speech, but her deafness makes her speech awkward, and she feels lonely and misunderstood. Her Papa,… Continue reading The Silent Journey: A Deaf Immigrant’s Tale
INTRODUCTION Many of you appreciated the last middle grade book that Kate Lundeen reviewed on my blog, LOON COVE. Today she is back with her analysis of an historical novel, ONE FINE VOICE by Rebecca Langston-George. REVIEW Historium Press proudly presents the middle-grade novel One Fine Voice by Rebecca Langston- George. As the new preacher’s kid in… Continue reading ‘One Fine Voice’: A Story of Courage and Compassion
INTRODUCTION Where Only Storms Grow by Alyssa Coleman is a suspenseful and seminal novel centered around the dust storms of the 1930s in Oklahoma. This historic story showcases the perspectives of two adolescent twins, Joanna and Howe Stanton. Throughout a six year journey, they overcame family turbulence, natural disasters, grief, and financial insecurity. REVIEW During the… Continue reading Alyssa Coleman’s Where Only Storms Grow: A Review
A Glimpse Into My WIP Now that I've successfully published my first novel, (Time out. True confession! That is an amazing sentence to write!), I know that readers want to know how I found my topic and why I chose to write about it. So, as I begin my next book, Out of the Flame,… Continue reading Behind the Scenes of Writing “Out of the Flame”
As far as I can tell, one of the best uses of social media is meeting someone who you connect with. That was the case with Cate Touryan, author of the award-winning debut novel, Turning Toward Eden. I met Cate on Author Media, Thomas Umstattd, Jr. social platform. It turned out that we were both… Continue reading Meet Cate Touryan: Insights from the Author of Turning Toward Eden
It's been a busy two weeks for me. My first school visit was to the 6-8th grade students at Saint Mary's Hall in San Antonio, Texas. I tried out my new school presentation, Welcome to My World, that combines how I researched and wrote Half-Truths with fun writing activities -- and it was a blast!… Continue reading Celebrating School Visits and Literary Awards
INTRODUCTION When you write "recent" historical fiction, sometimes you are fortunate enough to interview people who were alive during your story's period. I am one of those authors. HALF-TRUTHS takes place in Charlotte in 1950, and when I started researching the book twenty years ago, I searched for people who were alive in the 1950s.… Continue reading Learn to Read, Read to Learn
SUMMARY The Peach Thief, by Linda Joan Smith, is historical fiction about a young orphan girl named Scilla who lived in the woods. She would steal food to survive. One day Scilla climbed the Earl’s kitchen garden wall to steal a peach, and was caught by Mr. Layton, the head gardener. She was mistaken for… Continue reading The Peach Thief: A Middle Grade Book Gets a Thumbs Up from A New Guest Reviewer
INTRODUCTION The King of Montréal by Daniela I. Norris, is a young adult historical adventure featuring Louis-Charles, the lost prince of France in the year 1800. REVIEW I have to admit, I had decidedly mixed feelings about this book. On the one hand, there was a lot to like. However, it also had some problems,… Continue reading Exploring ‘The King of Montréal’: A Mixed Review
To Market, to Market, To Market I Go Ever since Half-Truths launched in April, it has been non-stop publicity and marketing. I'd heard that the hard work happens after you write a book. Now I'm living it! Image by Tish Bouvier Fortunately, I have friends who are inviting me to their bookclubs; I'm joining the… Continue reading ‘Tis the Season… for Podcasts and Book Signings!