Merry Wanderer of the Night:
weekend

More than 5,000 ancient coins found in a Buckinghamshire field are an "unprecedented" find, the county's keeper of archaeology has said.

A member of the Weekend Wanderers Metal Detecting Club discovered the 11th Century coins buried in a field near Aylesbury four days before Christmas.

Brett Thorn from Bucks County Museum said it was the largest hoard of Saxon coins ever found in the county and the second largest in the UK.

"It just doesn't happen," he said.

Paul Coleman, from Southampton, was taking part in a dig in the Padbury area on 21 December when he found the coins from the late Anglo Saxon, early Norman period, depicting the heads of kings Ethelred the Unready and Canute.

"I saw one shiny disk," he told BBC News. "It was reflecting in the sky and I immediately knew it was a coin, you just know. So I bent down to pick the coin up and as I could focus down in the hole I could see lots of circular shapes behind it. Club spokesman Peter Welch said the coins, which were buried in a lead bucket, had "looked almost uncirculated, like they were straight from a mint".

Mr Thorn said the find was "massive" and the largest find of Saxon coins since 1840 when about 7,000 were unearthed in Cuerdale, near Preston in Lancashire.

'Very significant'

"I was absolutely astounded," he said. "To give an idea of scale, people normally find between five and 20 [Saxon] coins. We have about 4,000 Roman coins in the Bucks County Museum and only 30 Saxon ones, so it is very significant both nationally and for the county, it is just unprecedented."

The coins, which feature at least two kings, will be cleaned and examined by the British Museum to establish which mint they came from.

"Until they are cleaned and dated [to find the oldest] we can't begin to find out why they were collected or why they were carefully wrapped and very definitely hidden," said Mr Thorn.

A coroner must rule if they are "treasure" under the Treasure Act.

Mr Thorn could not comment on their estimated value but said if the museum decided, in conjunction with the British Museum, to acquire them "it would be a major fundraising effort".

The largest UK hoard of Anglo Saxon treasure was about 1,600 items, including helmet parts and processional crosses.

It was found in a Staffordshire field in July 2009 and valued at £3.285m.

Source: BBC News Website [January 03, 2015]

Hey everyone and help me welcome Julianna today! She's a character in the upcoming Never Eighteen and she has agreed to answer a few questions for us today!

If you could change one of your past choices, change one decision that you made, what would it be?

I wish I'd never said yes to Ben.

Austin worried about you, because of the situation with your boyfriend, and made sure to talk to you, to try and persuade you to get out of a dangerous relationship. Do you have any intention of following Austin's advice? Of getting help before it's too late?

It’s already too late. I have no doubt in my mind that if I try to break up with Ben he’ll hurt me again, maybe even kill me this time. He’s threatened it before and I have no reason not to believe him. I stood up to him once—told him I was tired of his shit and that he better stop or I was going to call the cops. You know what he did? He laughed. Then he choked me to the point that I passed out. When I woke up he was leaning over me. Scared the hell out of me. I’ll never forget what he said. “Try to leave again and next time you won’t wake up.”

Austin spent a lot of time thinking about how he wanted to spend that weekend and you were definitely one of his priorities. Does knowing that trying to make sure you would be safe was one of his priorities make you more inclined to listen to his advice? What does knowing that mean to you?

Austin lost his right to care when he broke up with me. I mean, he comes over to my house with Kaylee? Things didn’t exactly end well between us. I was in love with him and he broke my heart. Just because he’s seeing the world through death glasses, doesn’t mean he has the right to butt in where he has no business.

How did you feel at the party, when Austin stepped in front of you?

I wanted to hit him. Such an idiot. He just made everything worse. I got a good beating after that party. One of the worst. Ben didn’t even bother to hit me in places that wouldn’t show like he normally does. I had a black eye, a swollen lip. I had to lie to my parents about what happened. If he wasn’t already dying, I might just kill him.

What would you say has been the defining moment or experience of your life so far?

Defining moment? I don’t have any defining moments. The only thing that defines me is Ben. He wouldn’t have it any other way.

Oh Julianna! It's never too late! This interview is breaking my heart, because I know that there are people who feel this way. So I'm going to take a moment here to just say — There is never such this as too late. Find people who you can talk to, who can help you. There are always options!

ALSO — Megan has been generous enough to donate some fun & awesome swag!! Just leave me a comment with your email address AND a statement related to Never Eighteen or the character interview above!


The swag pack includes a bookmark, sticker, bracelet, notebook, pen, temporary tattoo, a button, pack of tissues and a CD of songs that inspired the novel. This giveaway is also open Internationally and will close in 10 days, on November 9.

Ashfall by Mike Mullin is a post-apocalyptic novel that takes us into what it might be like if the Yellowstone Supervolcano were to actually explode.

I like in SE Idaho, which means that Yellowstone National Park is only about an hour and a half drive from my house. I spent many summers playing in the park, and I loved it. Seriously. If you've never been to Yellowstone, put it on your bucket list. Growing up so close to Yellowstone is what interested me in Ashfall in the first place. I knew the book wouldn't be about the park, because if the volcano erupts, I promise — there is going to be no park left. But I vividly remember the first time I went to the park after learning that it was one of the world's largest volcanoes. I was terrified and had these vivid mental images of my dad driving the car up the side of a giant mountain and straight down into the frothing, bubbling magma of the TV volcanoes.

Let me tell you — this book has made me insanely glad that I live where I do. Why? Because if the Yellowstone Volcano does explode? I die. Living so close makes for a great summer vacation but my survival chances are like 1 in 100gazillion million, if every single condition is absolutely 100% perfectly perfect. And even then, it's most likely that I'll live for an hour, getting to watch the massive, roiling cloud of dark death coming for me, and then I die.

Death isn't something I welcome, but I tell you what — after reading about the likely future for survivors?! I'm okay with it. The apocalyptic world that Mullin describes here in this book is freaky. And, not in the way that zombies are scary, because as much as we like to plan for 'when zombies attack' it's never actually going to happen. But this, this could definitely happen. If Yellowstone explodes, it would be absolutely devastating. We are talking thick blankets of ash coating most, if not all of the United States and worldwide weather changes from the ash in the sky. Everyone will suffer. Global chaos man. Ash coating a majority of the midwest or hanging out in the sky, obscuring the sun means that nothing will grow. No growing things means that animals will die. And, since most people don't keep much more food in the house than will last them a week, food will be scarce, people will start to scavenge, and things are gonna get nasty.

I'm glad I'm just going to go out with a bang with the volcano, because the afterlife has got to be better than this. But Mullin's main character, Alex, does an admirable job of surviving on his own. (And, he does make me regret, yet again, that I never learned karate as a kid...) Alex is left alone for a weekend, while his parents and younger sister go to visit his uncle about 2 hours away. And then — disaster. Alex is terrified, but stays for a few days with some neighbors, long enough for the insanely loud and massive rumblings of the volcano to stop. When Alex is no longer comfortable staying where he is, he decides to set out and find his family. Grabbing a pair of skis and some food and supplies, Alex walks out into the ash.

But Alex doesn't really know what he's doing. He doesn't bring enough food or water and he drinks it way too fast, drinking whole bottles at a time with his meals. But, Alex is lucky, and somehow, always manages to find what he needs right before, or right as his situation becomes dire. To be honest, it happened a few too many times to be wholly believable. When the world is in as much turmoil and panic, the likelihood of finding just exactly what you need just exactly when you need it, is slim. Like, finding an abandoned car right when you feel as if you can go no farther, even though you haven't seen any cars all day. There were a few times in the story when I thought, How convenient (mild eye-roll). But, we can't have our main characters dying on us, so I accepted the luck as necessary to the progression of the story, and honestly, the resourcefulness of the characters was a big help.

The only major complaint that I had with this story was the narrative style, but that is something that is more my problem than a problem with the writing. I find that I personally have a hard time feeling the proper urgency of a story when the main character already knows how the tale ends. I don't know what the proper name for this tense it, but it's first person, past tense? or something like that. But there are comments like, if 'I knew then what I know now', or 'I didn't know at the time, but found out later'. I hope that makes sense... For me, the story loses a bit of its urgency when I know the main character already knows how the story will end. It's not a conscious thing initially but it's been there in every story I've read that uses this style of writing. There's nothing wrong with it, I just don't connect to it as well as I do to some other styles.

This is a book about a journey, and it's a hard one. Alex struggles to travel, struggles to find genuinely good places to find food and water or sleep and Mullin doesn't hide from that. In the beginning, after Alex sets out to find his family, he realizes that it took him 6 days of walking on the skis to travel the distance it takes 30 minutes in the car. And Alex learns hard lessons too, many of which make him grateful for what he had and rueful that he ever took it for granted. It's a struggle every day for Alex to survive, and even with the luck thing, I would never want to be in his position. He finds enough to sustain him, but it's not like it's easy, and there is definitely no luxury to be had.

I was also impressed with Mullin's capture of human nature. The reactions of various characters Alex meets along the way are so varied, but so believable. Some are cruel and vicious, looking to scavenge or rob anything they can. Other communities rally together to protect and preserve all they can, realizing their chances of survival are better in a team. Still others seize and take power where they can, abusing those beneath them. And even in the communities where people are working together, you have to barter and trade for items you need and they pull every grain of food from you they possibly can. When faced with death, we will do pretty much everything in our power to ensure we can stave it off as long as possible and I thought Mullin captured that perfectly.

This review is already long enough, so I'll end with that even though I'm sure I could talk for hours about Yellowstone (and the interesting vacation pictures of me in it) and what the effects of this supervolcano erupting. It would be an absolutely devastating event, the likes of which civilization has never seen. You think the natural disasters we've experienced are bad? Just you wait until that gargantuanly massive volcano hanging out underneath Wyoming decides the pressure is too much. The world will be doomed.

*Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book for review from the author in exchange for a fair and unbiased review.

So, I'm a total sucker for a read-a-thon. I've been a little stressed lately at how much I need to read and now. I feel really behind on my books and with two events coming up (Psychtember at A Tapestry of Words in September and Just Contemporary in November here) it's getting even worse. So, when my friend Kristen mentioned Once Upon a Chapter's read-a-thon, going from Friday (today) until Sunday, I decided that I'd sign up last minute.:)

So, this is my starting post.

I could technically count the last 100 pages or so of Between Shades of Gray by Ruth Sepetys in my read-a-thon totals, since I finished it after midnight (and... Wow, btw. Amazing) but instead I'm just going to start with what I read starting in the morning. And, I might extend my own personal read-a-thon time into Monday, since I already have the day of work. It is also the day that my sister will be home from vacation, so I might spend time with her instead, so we shall see.

I do know that I won't spend the whole time reading either. I have stuff that needs to be done this weekend, and I need to finalize the pen-pal stuff so I can get that post up and that stuff started this weekend. But, I do plan to get a lot done. I'm going to set my goal between 6 and 9, with a hopeful possibility of 12.

The read-a-thon hosts did ask for a general idea of reading plans and goals, so — at the start, here they are:

What books are you starting with?
Rules of Attraction by Simone ElkelesBet Me by Jennifer Cruise
Also hope to read: Ashfall by Mike Mullin Willow by Julia Hoban Pearl by Jo Knowles The Mockingbirds by Daisy Whitney Harmonic Feedback by Tara Kelly Raven by Allison van Diepen
Warm Bodies by Isaac Marion
I hope to read: 9 books (or more!)
Status:
Total Books Read:
Books Read Since Last Update:
(there are more questions on the host's updates than mine, like pages read, time read. I might add it later, but I doubt it. I don't really keep track of time or pages, and don't want to.: P)
I'll update this post periodically, and will probably have a finish line post, although I might just update this one. We shall see.: P
Wish me luck!:)

I'm participating in another read-a-thon this weekend! This one is hosted by Back of the Book Reviews! This read-a-thon is quite a bit longer than any other I've participated in, going from Friday to Monday (96 hours!). I'm not sure what the official starting and ending time zones are (will update if/when I figure that out) so for now, I'm just acting as if it's by individual time zone.

I don't know for sure how dedicated I'll be each day, because I do have plans for this weekend, but I'm hoping to get a significant amount of reading done. My tentative goal is to shoot for 20 books. I managed to read 10 during my last (36 hour) read-a-thon, so really, this should be a piece of cake.:)

I don't really want to make a list of all the books I plan to read this weekend, because I never stick to it, but I will be back here to periodically update my status. I'll keep an update on this post of all the books I've read, and maybe how long I've spent reading. We'll see how it goes!:)

I'm so excited for this read-a-thon today! I have a huge stack of books just sitting here, waiting to be read! I am really hoping to get a lot of reading done, but we shall see. When I initially signed up for the read-a-thon, this weekend was almost completely empty. But it seems like things keep popping up, so I might have to take more breaks that I thought I would.: P We shall see.

Click the image to learn more!
Anyway, as mentioned over on Enna's blog, there are going to be regularly spaced giveaways throughout the day. Because entry into each of these giveaways requires a blog entry or update, I'm just going to use this post here to keep track of everything and offer each of my updates, so as not to overwhelm anyone's feed readers.:)

I'm going to keep a running list of each title that I complete at the very bottom of the post, so if that's what you are interested in, scroll all the way down.

I'll also be on Twitter and snooping around other blogs throughout the day, as I finish books, or need a break. If anyone wants to be update buddies, let me know! It's always more fun to have someone specific to share your progress with. If you want someone, I'd be more than happy to welcome in another update buddy!:)

I'm off to work for a few hours now, where it will hopefully be slow enough that I'll be able to get some reading done.

Fingers crossed and happy reading!

This is today's first update!! I had to work this morning, from 9 till 12, so I wasn't able to get online, although work was really slow today and it was 'movie day' for the kids so I had a lot of down time, which meant I got to read for pretty much the whole 3 hours (although, I did have to stop frequently to help take care of the aforementioned kiddies). I did take a break when I got home to eat lunch and then help my sister for a few minutes, check my email & Twitter) but then I got right back to reading. I'm going to try for one more book right now, and then I might take a quick power nap to kind of recharge. We'll see what happens.: P

I've chosen at this point not to do the update activites, because I'm too tired to think that hard, but I will return to at least a few of them later. I think a Wordle would be fun, and I always like to get my rant on about movie adaptations (because I hate them, but for now, I'm going to skip it. We'll see what happens at the 4:00 update.: P)

Figured I should probably tell you which books I've read!: P

1 — I Heart You, You Haunt Me — Lisa Schroeder
2 — Fog Magic — Julia L. Sauer (NBH)
3 — Monster — Walter Dean Meyers (PA, reread)
4 — The Five People You Meet in Heaven — Mitch Albom

Mini-Challenge w/ update 5: Sentence from book titles — (I couldn't take a picture because most of my books are in storage, and my copy of the final book title is the America version, not the Australia version, so it drops On the, which ruins my sentence.: P)

Beauty Queens Wither On the Jellicoe Road

UPDATE 2: (About 7:30)

Total Books Read: 4 Total Pages Read: 824 Books Read Since Last Update: 1 Pages Read since last update: 196 Total time read: 6 hours How I'm currently feeling: Awesome!:) I took a short nap at 4:00 because, as I mentioned, I was really tired. I decided sleeping now and having more energy was better than fighting to stay awake. Definitely a good plan!:) I'm ready to jump right into my next book! Make up some of the time I wasted on Twitter earlier!

UPDATE 1: (About 3:00)
Total Books Read: 3 Total Pages Read: 628 Books Read Since Last Update: 3 (first update...) Pages Read since last update: 628 (first update...) Total time read: 4 hours How I'm currently feeling: Good! I'm really enjoying the extra reading movitation!:) I'm hoping to get a lot more reading done today! I've made good progress, 3 books before 4:00 and I find that very encouraging and happy making. However, I am really tired today. I've been staying up later than I should the last few days (ahem... okay, fine. Weeks) and that's catching up to me, especially when I'm sitting in one place without moving for long periods of time. So, I might take a quick power nap here coming up, but I'm afraid a quick nap will turn into a looonng one. So, I'm undecided. I shall let you know at next update!:)

I know that neither of the reading challenges I'm participating in this weekend have officially finished, and I could easily squeeze more reading time in if I wanted to stay up all night. But, the last three hours of my evening have been spent reading the hashtag on Twitter — #YASaves. The hashtag ended up trending last night for quite a while, and it's in response to an article published by the Wall Street Journal. I've linked it here, but it's likely to make you angry... It's an article talking about how horrible the current YA market is, because so many of the books deal with dark topics like cutting, suicide, abuse, eating disorders and more.

Wait, what?! Seriously?! Somedays, I really hate people.

I could seriously rant about this for a long time. But, I won't. I'm going to rein in my tongue and accept that the many YASaves tweets last night from myself and so, so many others is enough to express my anger and disappointment on the issue. So, I will simply say that I am, once again, incredibly disappointed that they are letting someone who doesn't read YA lit, or understand the importance of YA lit to millions of people, speak as if they are the authority and the voice of the people. Really? Sigh. If you want people to take you seriously, you should probably read the books you are dismissing, demeaning and condemning.

I know I said I wouldn't really rant. But I had to let just a little out. Maybe later I'll have more to say, but right now, all I want to do is spew venom at the people who are so small minded they can't understand that not talking about a problem doesn't make it magically disappear, so I'm going to move on.

I spent hours on Twitter tweeting my own thoughts and reading about the experiences and thoughts of others. Which means, I wasn't reading my books.: P Because I spent to much time doing things not reading, I'm choosing to stop my readathons now, so that I can get some sleep tonight, and be awake and alert when I have to help keep 8 different 5 years old attentive and sitting still for 2 hours.

I did keep a fairly detailed accounting of my time spent on the challenge, but because I'm stopping so early, I don't actually think that time really makes a difference at this point, so I'll just tell you what I read.:)

Even with all the time I spent doing other things, I did manage to get 5 different books read, 6 if you count the book I read Friday morning, before I 'officially' started my challenge. I read:

What Daddy Did by Neal Shusterman (Friday, before the challenge began)
Stolen by Lucy Christopher
The Mermaid Summer by Mollie Hunter
The Boys Next Door by Jennifer Echols
Endless Summer — Jennifer Echols
King of the Wind — Marguerite Henry

Even though I spent a lot of time doing other things, I'm pretty proud of my reading progress this weekend. I *might* get a little more done tomorrow, but who knows. For now, I'm just glad I was able to participate and managed to read a little more than normal.:)

So, I know I have been going a little crazy with the posting. I feel like I've posted a lot in the last few days... Sorry about that. I'll keep this one short.:)

Mother Reader is hosting a 48 hour reading challenge on her blog this weekend. From Friday to Sunday, you pick your best, consecutive 48 hours and you read, all that you can. Taking time to write reviews of the books read counts for your time, as does 1 hour of social networking (blog/twitter comments) per 5 hours of reading time.

I'm behind on my reading (although, not as behind as on reviews!) so this chance to just read like crazy is awesome, and pretty much exactly what I need.

So, I'm starting now (3pm) and will go until 3pm on Sunday afternoon, MST. I'll most likely post another update tomorrow at some point, let you all see how my progress is going, and will also post on Sunday, to let you know how I did.

Because I'm crazy & also have no problems double dipping, I'm also participating in the Saturday readathon as Awesome Bookworm 's blog. So, on Saturday, I'll be putting a more intense focus on reading, and less on writing reviews (even more behind...) and not as much tweet checking.:) But, it should still be a lot of fun! The 24 hour readathons are even more motivating!:)

If any of you are participating in any of these readathons I'd love to hear from you! Stop by, say hello, leave a link, tell me what you're reading etc.

Wish me luck!:) Happy Reading

What I hope to get read:

The Boys Next Door/Endless Summer — Jennifer Echols
Mermaid Summer — Mollie Hunter
Amy and Roger's Epic Detour — Morgan Matson
Stolen — Lucy Christopher
Please Ignore Vera Dietz — A.S. King
Dobry — Monica Shannon
That Summer — Sarah Dessen
The Burning Bridge — John Flanagan
Twenty Boy Summer — Sarah Ockler

This is Ashley talking — just so we are all clear. Readers of my blog, Hey there! What's up guys?!
Readers of Misty's blog — I have taken over temporarily. I have locked Misty in a tower for a few minutes, because I had a lot of really awesome stuff to share with you, but I promise to give her back soon... Really. I promise.

Alright, fine. I'll pinky swear. Now, can I move on? Thanks. I appreciate it.

Anyway, Last Friday (April 22) my cousin Emily and I spent 3 hours in the car driving down to Logan, Utah to attend an author event with some seriously awesome authors. Attending the event were Shannon Hale, Brandon Mull, Ally Condie, James Dashner, and (yup) Jessica Day George!

I'll say more on the event on my blog after the awesomeness that is Fairy Tale Fortnight has ended, but for now, it is simply important for you to know that I went there, and that I was able to meet all five of these awesome authors. I had emailed Jessica prior to the event, letting her know I was coming, and asking if it would be alright for me to record her saying something nice to all you awesome Fairy Tale Fortnight readers.

And, she said yes!! I am going to apologize in advance for the bad sound on the video — There were over 1,000 people at the event, and it was loud in there! But, you can still hear Jessica, so here she is! Saying hello to all you awesome readers!

As if that wasn't cool enough, Misty and I had a strange visitor last weekend. I won't tell you how or why or what really happened (I'm not really sure I even know). But, Misty and I were visited by this magical being, known as the Giveaway Fairy. She sprinkled some magic dust (don't ask me how she managed to be in both Michigan and Idaho at the same time. She's a magic fairy, remember?!) and suddenly, it would seem that all of the giveaways for Fairy Tale Fortnight have been changed! Don't be alarmed, the giveaway fairy only brings good tidings. (It's that nasty giveback fairy you have to really watch out for).

So, thanks to the giveaway fairy, and the awesomeness that is Misty and myself, all Fairy Tale Fortnight giveaways will now end on Sunday, May 8th!! That gives you even more time to enter, tell your friends, comment away and get those extra entries in by spreading the word! (Note, not all the giveaways have extra entries, but many of them do! And, I imagine that, since we are dealing with fairies after all, good Karma definitely doesn't hurt!)

Misty escapes and comes bursting in, gasping and out of breath; She says: Ashley! What are you doing? Three hours. I have been in that tower for three hours, Ashley! Without any books!

Ashley freezes* (said in falsely cheerful voice) Misty! Hi! Umm... Hi! Oh, I said that already. I... Well, I... I just had to, okay?! I just had to share the awesome news with everyone and I didn't think you'd mind.

The awesome news? *lowers her voice* About the fairy? But Ashley... I don't know if they can take much more awesome. The fairy warned us --

Ashley interrupts: I know that. I know, I know... But I just had to risk it! I figured keeping that much awesome to ourselves would cause that whole global meltdown from awesome faster. Spontaneous awesome combustion, and all that.

Misty: Well, I guess when you put it that way. Okay go ahead and tell them.

Ashley: Oh, ya... Well, about that... You were gone for three hours... And, I kinda sorta... Well, I... I already told them.

Misty looks at Ashley. Sighs. Walks away, mumbling.

Ashley: Enjoy the rest of the Fortnight, everybody!

Please help us welcome back Mette Ivie Harrison! She wrote us a phenomenal guest post last week that also includes a giveaway of The Princess and the Hound. Make sure you check it out!
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Although your Princess books may not be a direct retelling of any one fairy tale fairy tale, there is a distinct fairy tale feeling to each of them, which is different from the way a traditional fantasy reads. Was this intentional, or just something that happened as you wrote?

I studied German literature in college, and I have always loved fairy tales. I wanted very much to get the feel of a fairy tale in these novels. It's part never-never land and part Germany in the Middle Ages and part my idea of the perfect romance world all combined. I think I still imagine that the world is full of people who are trying to be heroes, wherever and whenever they live.

As to intention, I wonder sometimes how much of any creative endeavor is really intentional and how much of it is simply the unconscious being let out freely. I don't outline my novels and I just have an idea of where the story might go, then let things play out on the page. My characters don't seem to be the kind who do what I tell them to do. Or maybe my unconscious just has better ideas than my conscious mind has. I think that I may be one of those people who is often thinking about how the world used to be and comparing it to the way it is now. I don't wish for that back, but I believe that people have not changed much over the centuries. Evolution just doesn't work that fast. So my characters are people in the same way that a contemporary novel's characters would be. I probably have lots of anachronisms, though I try not to write modern people back in time. I try to think how modern people would act if raised in the past and given the limited choices that existed in the past. How would they grow up? How would they think? How would they find a way to be heroic?

There were moments in each of the 3 Princess books where each of our heroines feel uncomfortable in their skin. Is this an idea you included in the books intentionally?

I don't know that I thought of it quite like that, but I suppose the teen experience is very much about figuring out how to feel comfortable in your skin. I know I felt very uncomfortable in my skin as a teen. Physically, I always felt like I was that fat kid in high school who couldn't run a mile and felt ridiculously self-conscious in a swim suit, despite the fact that I was on the swim team. Psychically, I was trying to figure out who my "group" was, who I belonged to tribally. I think I eventually found a circle of friends who remain friends of mine to this day, but it was a long road and it took the courage of refusing to be false to myself. I showed who I was and that was the only way I could find my real people.

This story of figuring out who you are is a pretty universal one, and it's not just for teens, though maybe that's the first time it happens. In fact, The Princess and the Hound wasn't originally meant to be YA. I didn't know what it was, to be honest, and at least one editor rejected it because George was simply too old and he got married at the end of the book, which some YA novels shy away from. I think I write on the seam of YA and adult, which is why a lot of adults like my books, too. And really, aren't adults constantly reinventing themselves? I think if we aren't, we are stagnant. I have been taking adult piano lessons for the last four years, trying to reimagine myself as a musician (still not working). I also discovered triathlon competitions about 7 years ago and it turns out I'm really good at them. One of the things I do every day is yoga and I spend at least a minute trying to accept myself in the skin I am in, my body as it is, with all its flaws and its power.

You have a new book coming out, Tris and Izzie (that I'm crazy excited about), a retelling of the the German story, Tristan and Isolde. Is there anything about your new book that you can share with us?

Tris and Izzie is about a teen girl who doesn't know that she has magic. She has a boyfriend Mark King who is the basketball star and she thinks she is happy. But she tries to figure out how to make a love potion for her friend Brangane who obviously is in love with a guy who doesn't notice her. But it all goes wrong. She ends up falling in love at first sight with Tristan, the guy who was supposed to be Brangane's, and then she has to figure out how to be true to herself while the world around her is changing. There's a hidden magical world and lots of danger and a past she has forgotten and well, lots of other cool stuff.

I've been thinking a lot about what I hate about romance lately, and there's a certain irony in the fact that I hate love triangles and I hate love at first sight romances and I hate it when girlfriends compete for the same guy. But those are all important parts of this story. I hope that I use those old ideas in a new way that makes this story feel very contemporary. I spent many years reading only literary novels for grad school, and I read fantasy on the weekends, on the sly. I didn't dare to even check the books out of the library for fear my professors would find out. I have a bit of a chip on my shoulder about the distinction between literary novels and genre novels. But I think I have finally become comfortable with the reality that I like my stories to have magic in them of some kind. It's not just that the stakes are higher. It's that I feel like there are certain experiences in life that are magical, and we don't have the right language to describe those experiences unless we turn to the supernatural. Romance is one of those experiences. It feels like it is part of another world, like we become different when we experience it.

None of your characters have the traditional 'Happily Ever After'. Although the books may end mostly happy, or hopeful, that semi-generic 'Happily Ever After' feeling is missing. I've read some of your posts and discussions about romance in stories, and I have a pretty strong hunch that this was intentional. Care to expound?

You should have read the first drafts. These are actually much happier endings than the versions I originally wrote. My editor convinced me to be slightly more optimistic. For example, at the end of The Princess and the Bear, I originally wrote that the bear gives up the ability to be human and she has to live as a bear the rest of her life. It made for a very odd wedding scene. I guess I don't much believe in HEA of the kind where they ride off into the sunset. The funny thing is, I consider myself to be a fierce feminist and yet a failry traditional wife and mom. I stayed home with the kids, but I have a PhD. So there's lots of weird combinations in my stories.

I love romance and I write romance. I am a romantic. I love romance movies. I love Jane Austen. But I think the punch of the romance is taken away if it's too easy, if that makes any sense. Real romance is about choosing to be with the person you are with, not events overtaking you and you having no other choice. That's my opinion, anyway. The best romance is when both sides are strong characters who have important things to do in their lives unrelated to the romance. I didn't give up who I was when I got married and had kids. It can be tempting to let go of yourself, but I have trained my kids that I am a writer as well as a mom. Since they were babies, there was a strict nap time rule. If they weren't sleepy, didn't matter, I got some time to myself. I think the same goes for real-life romance. It is desperately important, but it's not the only thing that's important in the world.

Although the story is very much your own, Mira, Mirror is a retelling, of sorts, of Snow White. How did you decide to tell the story of the mirror and the Queen rather than have Snow White be your main character?

Mira, Mirror began as a sort of experiment. A friend of mine said that you can't write a novel with an inanimate object as the viewpoint character. I took it as a challenge and tried to think of the most interesting inanimate object I could. The mirror in the Snow White fairy tale came to mind fairy soon, and I knew there would be magic in it. It was one of my first attempts to write YA fantasy, and when I brought it to my group, they all said that I had finally found what I should spend my life writing. They felt like it was just so unique and no one else could tell a fairy tale like that. It's not a retelling really and it's not a twisted fairy tale. I don't know quite what to call it. But in this case, I never intended for Snow White or the Queen to be main characters. It was always about the set up to the fairy tale and then the aftermath. In the original version, however, the mirror had never been human. It had a face and could talk, but it had learned everything it knew about humanity from the evil Queen. To make her more relatable, I gave her a backstory and then a quest to be human again.

Having written both a retelling and a fairy tale-esque story, which do you prefer? What are the limitations and benefits of each telling? What are your thoughts about writing for each of these very closely related genres?
One of the advantages of a retelling is that there is already a certain shape to the story, almost as if you had a first draft written for you by someone else, and you only had to fix it up as a second draft. There is less fear of the blank page, if that makes sense. The blank page is always a terrible thing to face. Where does the story go? What happens next? No one knows except you, the author. This probably tells you way too much about what my first drafts look like. They are often not a lot like what the second draft is like. Maybe I should call those first drafts "exploratory" drafts. I get to know the general world and characters, but all of the events change and often not one word remains the same. Well, maybe one or two.

Ironically, I spent about four years writing stories largely in first person, some in present tense. The Princess and the Hound was the first story I wrote where I tried to do a third person point of view. I had no idea if it was working or not, but it has been really successful. There's a certain fairy tale style in my writing that has a distance and an elevated language that is natural to me after years in grad school in German literature. It's updated, though, with a really intense psychological depth that you often get only in first person YA narratives. I am trying to combine the two. My readers will have to say if I've done it successfully.

Silly/Random

~ Rapunzel is named after lettuce; what odd thing would you be named after if you were in a fairy tale?
The number seven. I am obsessed with numbers and that is my favorite one. ~ Using that name, give us a line from your life as a fairy tale:
"Once upon a time there was a girl named Seven. She lived with her mother and father, One and Two, and her older sisters, Three, Four, Five, and Six."

~ Best fairy tale villain and why?
It's always been the stepmother from Cinderella, because she has no magic and she still has all this power. I love the idea of writing a novel someday about the stepmother who refuses to even see the magic when it's right in front of her face.

~ Favorite tale from childhood? Favorite tale as an adult? Least favorites?
I loved Hansel and Gretel as a kid. I think the idea of a gingerbread house really appealed to me. I liked to eat. A lot. I think I hate that fairy tale now because the parents are so disturbing. I like what Adam Gidwitz does to the story in A Tale Dark and Grimm.

As an adult, my idea of "fairy tale" has expanded. Right now, I'm quite taken with the idea of retelling The Happy Prince by Oscar Wilde. Also, An Ideal Husband as An Ideal Boyfriend. I love Oscar Wilde. In fact, whoever is my favorite author at the moment is the author I want to do a retelling of. Oh, yes, Jane Austen is on the list, too. And Shakespeare's A Winter's Tale. And Goethe's Faust.

~ If you could be any fairy tale character, or live through any fairy tale "happening," who/what would it be?
I think I'd like to be Jack the Giant Killer. It's interesting how girl-centered fairy tales are always about getting married and boy-centered fairy tales are always about adventures and killing people. But maybe Jack could meet a lady giant and fall in love with her? And that find out that if they kiss, she turns evil? Wait, that's Buffy, isn't it?

~ Would you rather:
- — eat magic beans or golden eggs?
As a vegan, I suppose I'll have to pick magic beans.

--style 50ft long hair or polish 100 pairs of glass slippers?
Long hair isn't so bad. You just keep it in a braid all the time. And I hate high heels. I own a couple of pairs for weddings, but almost all my shoes are flats. I think I have a strangely unfeminine dislike of shoes.

- — have a fairy godmother or a Prince Charming?
I guess I'll say Prince Charming, because I think every girl should be her own fairy godmother, in the end.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
What a wonderful interview! It's always great to hear the stories behind the books! It makes for truly fascinating reading! Thank you again Mette, so very much for being a part of Fairy Tale Fortnight!

Donal Gilroy from the Grange and Armada Development Association (GADA) said the discoveries underlined the fragility of the wrecks, described by one expert as “the best archaeological site for this time of maritime archaeology in the world”.

The National Museum and the heritage office at Sligo County Council were notified yesterday about the finds, which follow the discovery last year of part of a 20ft rudder from one of the vessels on the beach.

About 1,100 sailors died when three Spanish galleons were wrecked in violent storms off Streedagh in 1588. An interpretative centre is planned for the nearby village of Grange but there have been calls for the vessels to be excavated and housed in a purpose built local museum.

Mr Gilroy said it was possible that scheduled low tides this weekend may expose more wreckage.

“These have been buried off Streedagh for nearly 430 years. It is lucky they were not carried out by the tide,” he said.

He said that at the request of the county council he was placing the two pieces of wood, one found on Thursday by a member of the GADA, and the other yesterday, in salt water at an undisclosed location to ensure they are properly preserved pending a visit next week by experts from the National Museum.

“One piece is 13 feet long and the other about 16 feet long and they are well preserved oak. They both look like they came from the rib of a boat”, he said.

Thee three wrecks are located about 60 meters from the low tide mark in 15 meters of water.

“This is a protected site but we worry that these boats are being moved by storms. They have thrown up more in the last two years than in the previous 40,” said Mr Gilroy.

He said that there was a fully intact gun carriage and a number of cannons which were taken from the city walls in Palermo, on the vessels at Streedagh.

The Streedagh wrecks were rediscovered in 1985 by a team of divers led by Dr Colin Martin who had who had led previous explorations of Spanish Armada shipwrecks.

Author: Marese McDonagh | Source: The Irish Times [February 20, 2015]

Grace by Elizabeth Scott is my 5th Scott Contemporary (although it is arguable that this is not quite Contemporary) and it has firmly cemented the idea that I (quite atypically) much prefer Scott's lighter Contemporary novels to her darker more... issue-y set. Grace is a good book, don't get me wrong, but that's all it was. Just a way to spend an afternoon, flipping pages, which is, I assume, not what you are supposed to feel when reading a book about a suicide bomber who decides she doesn't want to die.

Grace was an angel — raised from birth, or just after, that she would be blessed to die for the cause, to die in a fight for freedom against tyranny. But when it comes time to actually die, she places her bomb and walks away, knowing that it will go off, but that she will go 'free'. Now she is on the run and she meets up with a man at the train station, running from something himself. They talk, because sitting on a train for hours, there's not really anything else to do and both learn things that will change their lives.

I never really connected with Grace or the man she travels with. I knew that there stories were ones that should have been emotional but I never felt it. And Grace had such a disregard for life that I had a hard time with her. I understand why — When you have known your whole life that you are going to die for the cause and that it is an honor, and that your death is more important if you are able to take other lives with you — life doesn't mean the same thing as it does to most people. But it took her so long to realize that what she had done — setting that bomb and walking away — was wrong, because people still got hurt and people died. She never even thought about it. And then, there is a scene on the train when Grace should have been taken off by soldiers for being one of the rebels, but they sacrifice another, completely innocent woman instead. That's not okay with me — Your life isn't more important than anyone else's and sending innocent people to death so you can live isn't okay with me. I will say that the ending to this book was solid. Grace learns a lot about what it means to be human and it's something that will really make you think.

But, even with that solid ending, while I didn't hate this book, I didn't particularly like it either. I felt like the story was too vague. They spent the whole time talking around things and never really talked about them. If you want to try it — go for it. There are others out there who really connected to it. It's just... not for me.

On a totally different note:

So Much Closer was my first book by Susane Colasanti, and while I didn't love this particular book, I can see why so many people really love Colasanti's writing. I actually loved the way the story was written, but the story itself was a little... off for me.

Brooke has had a huge crush on Scott for years. She just knows that he is the one for her, despite only having had one, maybe two conversations with him. So, when he announces that he's moving with his family to New York City, she decides to follow him and move in with the dad she hasn't spoken to since he walked out on them 6 years ago.

Okay — Seriously?! SERIOUSLY?! Who DOES that?! Who honestly thinks that's a good idea?! I don't care who you are — that's creepy stalker behavior and NOT a good idea. Note to Brooke — also not a good idea to tell him about it... So, poor Brooke has chased this guy to New York only to realize that he barely knows who she is and he already has a girlfriend.

But luckily for Brooke, she has always wanted to live in NYC, so even though she's not with her dream guy, she's living in her dream city. And honestly, I would have liked this book so much better if the romance with Scott had been left completely out of it. Have her decide to move because Scott broke her heart (still kinda pathetic, but way less creepy) or because she has just decided to stop dreaming about living in New York and actually get there. Or, it could have been about her dad. She hasn't spoken to him in 6 years, although he has tried a few times, so maybe it's time to mend that relationship. Instead, it ended up being a convinient plot device, giving her a way to follow Scott. I felt that the story line with her father ended up being a lot of wasted potential. It could have added so much to her growth as a character, so much to the story, but instead, dad was just the facade for an apartment for Brooke to legally sleep in at night.

I had such a hard time believing in, or relating to Brooke's character, but I totally felt her love for the city. The descriptions of New York were phenomenal and just made me want to revisit the city. I spent a weekend there when I was doing an internship in Washington DC and I loved it (although, since it was February, it was really cold). I loved reading while Brooke discovered the city. I also really liked the new friends Brooke makes at school, especially John and Sadie. They brought so much to the story and I just loved reading about them, watching them form a solid friendship.

For the most part, I really enjoyed the book. EXCEPT for Scott. Seriously. If Scott had just been completely erased from the book, I think I would really have enjoyed it. They wouldn't even have to change the title, it could just mean so much closer to her dreams, instead of to some random guy. There is enough other stuff happening in the story that Scott really wouldn't have been missed much. Or, he could have been a totally different character with a much smaller part. Maybe I'll just pretend he isn't real and only remember the awesome New York scenes and the awesome times she has with the new friends she makes.

A few hours later he chauffeured his wife Victoria to dinner at Matsuhisa restaurant in Beverly Hills.
Beckham wears his favourite black beanie for the trip to Pinkberry. Eldest son Brooklyn didn't join the boys' outing
The family dog Coco joined Beckham and the boys for the trip to Pinkberry, where they often stop off for a frozen treat.
Eldest son Brooklyn, who was with Beckham when the accident occurred on Friday, did not join the outing.
Date night: Beckham later drove his pregnant wife Victoria to dinner at Matsuhisa in Beverly Hills
Mrs Beckham sat in the back seat while her husband drove to Matsuhisa - part of the Nobu franchise.
The collision happened after a gold Mitsubishi stalled in the fast lane due to mechanical problems, a California Highway Patrol spokeswoman said.
She said: 'Yesterday at approximately 9.13am Beckham was involved with a collision on the southbound 405 Freeway just south of Artesia Boulevard.'
She added: 'The biggest commotion was when people realised it was David Beckham.'
‘David’s car was taken away from the scene by a tow truck. It had lost a front bumper in the collision.’
Scare: The footballer was involved in a collision over the weekend with son Brooklyn (pictured together in March) but both were unharmed
source:dailymail

VIA On the road again: After his car crash David Beckham treats the boys to ice cream

VIA Prince William and Kate Middleton Honeymoon to the Seychelles?

VIA Rachel McAdams joins 2010 best

Copyright by Supremebeing
SUPREMEBEING ARE FEELING FESTIVE THIS DECEMBER WITH TWO GREAT REASONS TO CHECK OUT THEIR WEBSITE FOR SOME GREAT PIECES OF ART WORK.
With Supremebeing'sAutumn/Winter 2011/12 collection taking inspiration from Mountain Culture and with the snow finally making its presence this weekend, now seems the perfect time to release 8 Limited Edition (only 25 each) Art Prints, from the in house designers at Supremebeing.
Each print is an original design from one of eight of Supremebeing's most greatest T Shirts from A/W 2011/12 and include the Mont Bar Bear, Piste, Polar (Bear) and Vos Vader Wolf.
So if you you are looking for the perfect Christmas gift for an art loving street wear bod, then look no further - but be quick theres only 25 of each remember!
And if thats not enough, then to add to to the festive cheer the oh so generous guys at Supremebeing are giving you the chance to WIN a one off original piece of art work by Street Artist Bue the Warrior - taken from Supremebeing's White Canvas Project exhibition. the piece of artwork is an up-cycled fold out table painted by Bue and is a one off piece! To be in a chance to win all you have to do is go to Supremebeing’s Facebook page and like the competition image, followed by answering a simple question.
The competition will end on the 5th January 2012 and the winner will be announced on Facebook as well as receiving an email.

SUPREMEBEING LTD EDT ART PRINTS

VIA Limited Edition Art Prints

VIA [VIDEO Trailer] Jumping The Broom (2011)

VIA Tina Fey Returns to "Saturday Night Live"

Trisha is an energetic, outgoing and caring individual. She believes in putting family first and is very thankful for the role that her family has played in making her the hard working and ambitious woman she is today.

Born in Edmonton and raised in northern Alberta’s Cold Lake she is proud to call Canada her home.

After graduating high school Trisha continued her education in Hanceville, Alabama USA studying her Bachelor of Science Degree in Medical Laboratory Technology. Upon returning to Canada she went a different direction and began working in Real Estate.

After three years she is the Office Manager of a Real Estate Investment Company in Edmonton, Alberta. Growing up she enjoyed dancing jazz, ballet, tap and folk and uses her dance back round to teach dance fitness classes evenings and weekends.

She enjoys leading an active lifestyle and in her spare time she is studying to become AFLCA certified in group exercise leadership.

Trish has a kind heart and believes that everyone can make a difference for positive change. She has volunteered with the Salvation Army, Samaritan’s Purse, The Edmonton Food Bank, Canadian Blood Services/One Match Stem Cell and Marrow Network and American Red Cross.

Growing up on acreage in a rural community Trish has always had an affinity for animals and is a member of PETA and the Soi Dog Foundation. She hopes to one day adopt a dog to Canada from the organization that helps abused and abandoned cats and dogs in Thailand.

In addition to dancing, Trish enjoys travelling, swimming, snowboarding, creating culinary sensations in the kitchen and making people laugh. Her favourite night of the week is Monday as she gets to catch up with Grammy and Gramps over supper. Her passion for life keeps her pretty busy when she isn’t on the go you can find her curled up reading a book or watching the Food Network.

Sponsored by:

Crystal’s Bridal, Joanne Halldorson Royal LePage Cold Lake, Master & Master Real Estate Edmonton, Tangles Hair Salon Cold Lake, Royal LePage Northern Lights Cold Lake, Louise Johnson Sutton Cold Lake, EK Designs, Shameless Accessories, Family and Friends.

Languages spoken Fluently (please include your native language if English is not your native language)

English

VIA Miss Universe Canada 2011 Contestant - Trisha Vergo

Leif Reads is a monthly feature I work on with Aths of Reading on a Rainy Day. Each month we choose a book that covers an environmental topic and discuss these topics and the book.

I've really enjoyed reading Coop this month because it's fitting in nicely with a long term comic I'm working on about sustainable agriculture. If you haven't noticed I've been thinking a lot about the disconnect that has happened between Americans and their food. While it's great that Michael Perry is able to live on his family's farm and teach his children about how food is grown and made I'm starting to realize that most people have never even set foot on a farm. A couple of weekends ago I went to an organic farm to do some volunteer work through an Iowa City organization called Local Foods Connection. Even though I grew up on a farm and around agriculture this farm was in a completely different league. I was amazed by the variety of produce they grew and the methods they used. The farm I visited started everything in a greenhouse and then moved it to a field.

If you have the ability to visit a farm or do some work with a farmer I would encourage you to do so. Next time you're at a farmer's market talk to the farmers there and find out what methods they use to grow their produce. It saddens me when I hear people talk about how lettuce comes from the bag. They don't realize that the lettuce in their bag was grown in Mexico and shipped to a plant where it was bagged and then shipped to their grocery store. They don't realize that the food they're putting in their mouths has gone through miles and miles of travel to reach them. They have no idea who is on the other side of that lettuce.

Even if you're not into gardening, visiting farms or farmer's markets, you might find it fruitful to grow a little something. I don't have my own yard but we're working on growing some things on our patio. Even if you don't have the option to do that, if you live in an apartment with one window you too can grow something. Jason and I are growing coneflowers, sunflowers, basil, and a few other things on our kitchen counter. It's set by a window and we water it every once in awhile. We planted all of these things just a few weeks ago and as you can see they are growing like crazy. If nothing else it's an exercise in understanding. Children often grow something small as part of their science classes in elementary school, but adults can learn from growing a flower in their kitchen to. It will help you understand that everything starts somewhere, even the book I'm reading came from a tree.

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