Tif Talks Books meme is Book Libs, which is like Mad Libs Except with your books. I totally love this idea because I was addicted to Mad Libs when I was a kid!

Once upon a time in the land of Scargrave Manor, there lived Miss Austen and the Lieutenant happily ever after. Is that not how the story always goes?!? On the night before the wedding, Miss Austen was sleeping peacefully when all of a sudden there was a noise. She jumped out of bed to awaken the Lieutenant.

As both stood there, looking at the snow in their front room, they felt gratitude. How could it be? Was it true? To be face to face with snow was not possible. What were they to do?

With quick thinking, Miss Austen and the Lieutenant exchanged a knowing glance and struggled.

From there, we may never know what happened in this story. It could be penniless. Or, it could be lonely. It truly is a mystery! However what we do know is this . . . . Thanks an awful lot.

"I condemn this mad, destructive act that accentuates the horror of the situation," UNESCO head Irina Bokova said in a statement.

The Islamic State group on Saturday circulated an undated video showing militants equipped with sledgehammers and power tools breaking artefacts before rigging the site with large barrels of powder.

The subsequent footage shows a massive explosion and its aftermath, suggesting the ruins of Nimrud-- which lie on the Tigris about 30 kilometres (18 miles) southeast of IS-held Mosul -- were largely levelled.

Nimrud, founded in the 13th century BC, is one of the most famous archaeological sites in a country often described as the cradle of civilisation.

"With their hammers and explosives they are also obliterating the site itself, clearly determined to wipe out all traces of the history of Iraq’s people," Bokova said.

Iraqi government reports of Nimrud's destruction emerged in early March, when the UNESCO chief branded the IS's violence against the ancient the site as a "war crime".

Bokova repeated the charge on Monday, after the full extent of the crime became known.

"We will do everything possible to fight against this and document it, to ensure that those responsible are identified and brought to justice," she said.

Nimrud was on UNESCO's tentative list of world heritage sites.

Most of the city's priceless artefacts were moved long ago to museums but giant "lamassu" statues -- winged bulls with human heads -- and reliefs were still on site.

The IS tries to justify the destruction of antiquities by saying they are idolatrous, but experts say the group traffics in them to fund its self-proclaimed "caliphate" and destroys only those pieces that are too bulky to be smuggled.

The UN Security Council in February adopted a resolution aimed at choking off financing for IS from antiquities trafficking as well as oil smuggling and ransom payments.

A ban on looted antiquities in Iraq was already in force, and was expanded to Syria under the resolution.

Source: AFP [April 13, 2015]

Hey everyone! Joining us today is author Daniel Coleman. If you remember back to yesterday, I just reviewed Coleman's novel, Jabberwocky. (click the link to read my review) It was a great story, one I felt definitely did the poem justice, and I'm really happy to have him here on the blog today for an interview! So, here's Daniel! BIO:
When he’s not firefighting, Daniel Coleman spends his free time jumping genres in fiction. In 2006 he discovered small-town living and isn’t looking back. Jabberwocky, a novella, is available now. Hatter comes out June 10th. If you’ve got a few hours to kill he’d be happy to discuss PEZ, ice cream, or Scrabble.
The Interview:
What made you decide to become a writer?
This may seem scripted, but I started writing novels so I could tell the story behind the Jabberwocky poem.

Why Jabberwocky? What made you want to turn this poem into a story?
I learned the poem in college and fell in love with the imagery and heroism. If this monster was so horrible, how could a boy kill it? And what’s the significance of the Tumtum tree? And why was the hero so uffish while he stood there leaning against it? Of course, in any decent hero story there’s got to be a girl involved. Who is she and how does she fit in? For more than a decade the questions percolated in my mind before I came up with the story for Jabberwocky.

If you weren't a writer, what would be your dream job?
I’m the luckiest guy alive because my two dream jobs are writer and Fireman, and I get paid to do both! I’m a Firefighter/Paramedic with the biggest department in Utah. While firefighting involves real life-and-death situations, writing gives me a chance to escape and decide on the outcome for myself. I see people on the worst day of their lives, and I do my best to channel that emotion when I write.

Do you have another project currently in the works? If so, can you share anything about it with us?
I’ve written another novel set in the same world as Jabberwocky. It’s inspired by the Mad Hatter and tells his backstory—how he ended up going mad and why he’s such an influential character in Wonderland. For those who’ve read Jabberwocky, you’ll recognize Chism; he’s one of the main characters in Hatter. It will be available through Amazon on June 10th! The first two chapters are available on my website: www.dcolemanbooks.com.

If you had only one thing to say to your readers, what would it be?
I realize it takes a tremendous amount of trust to try a new author. Your time is valuable and your reading time is invaluable, so I try to make every word worthwhile while building to a surprisingly satisfying climax. But it’s a very small investment to read some sample chapters or download a sample and give it a try.
You heard him folks! Stop by and read a few sample chapters! Also, I think it bears mentioning the right now, you can purchase your own copy as an ebook on Amazon or Smashwords for only. 99! (Link) Jabberwocky Or, you can purchase the paperback for only $4.99! Jabberwocky How great is that?! I definitely recommend checking this book out! And Daniel, thanks again for joining us today! I loved reading your story, loved the interview, and I look forward to reading more from you in the future!

I've got Daniel Coleman joining us today, author of Jabberwocky and Hatter . (Click titles to read my reviews). I really enjoyed both books, so I'll let that be all the intro he needs!

"But It's Been Told a Hundred Times."

Have you ever read a story that made you want to spend months or years in the world instead of just a few days with a single book? THAT is why I wrote Hatter. Lewis Carroll touches so briefly on the Mad Hatter; he only appears in a few brief scenes. Yet he's such a rich character, he is one of the most revisited in literature.

While writing Jabberwocky, I met and envisioned characters that had a lot more story to tell. A few minor and major characters from Jabberwocky found their way into Hatter, but it stands alone as its own novel. (In fact, two of the members of my writing group didn't even know I had written another novel in the same world. I purposely kept it a secret to make sure Hatter worked as a standalone.)

I thought long and hard about tackling such a popular and beloved character. It wasn't until I came up with a complementary character that I finally decided to write him. Chism (pronounced with a 'ch' like challenge), is the perfect contrast. He eventually emerges as a recognizable character of Wonderland, but I'm not going to say which one.

Not to sound trite, but once I came up with the storyline and character arcs, it felt like the Mad Hatter was begging me to tell my version of his story. I stayed true to Lewis Carroll's vision, but I also included enough original details to make the story unique enough to contribute to Hatter lore.

"The Hopes of a Reader and the Hopes of a Writer"

I am, of course, a reader and a writer. When I read, my main hope is for something original that will make me either think deeply or smile widely. Also, I trust that the writer won't waste my time; that the ending will be worth my investment.

As a writer, I have similar goals. First and foremost, I don't want to waste a reader's precious reading time. I'm honored that with the millions of books out there, they've picked up mine. It means sometimes I have to leave out details I'd love to spend chapters on. Also, I sometimes go into detail when I'd rather skim. It's all about making the story valuable and enjoyable for the reader.

Endings are one of the strong points in my novels. I feel comfortable telling readers that they won't be left disappointed.

I love it! Thank you so much for joining us today Daniel! I'm so excited that there will be more set in this world you've created, and I cam't wait to read what's next. I'm also now very intrigued to see who Chism is going to turn out to be!

Bonnie from A Backwards Story is with us again today, bringing us another fantastic interview — this time with Carolyn Turgeon!

Carolyn Turgeon is the author of three novels, Rain Village, Godmother, and Mermaid. Her next novel, The Next Full Moon, is scheduled to come out in August/September 2011. Based on Te Swan Maiden, this will be Turgeon’s debut novel for young readers. Her novels tend to be twisted versions of fairy tales you’ve never seen before, such as The Little Mermaid from the princess’ perspective in addition to the mermaid’s or a version of Cinderella where the godmother is banished from the fairy realm when something goes horribly wrong... For a review of Turgeon’s work, please visit the above links. Reviews of her other titles will come to A Backwards Story later this year. Godmother and Mermaid are also featured in a FTF guest post titled FRACTURED FAIRY TALES.

1) What were your favorite fairy tales growing up? What drew you to them?
I can recall loving all kinds of stories, such as Thumbelina and The Princess and the Pea, with all their strange and wonderful images—the tiny girl floating along in an acorn, the princess with her stack of mattresses. I think my favorite fairy tales were by Oscar Wilde: The Happy Prince, The Nightingale and the Rose… but my favorite was The Selfish Giant. It’s very sad and strange and beautiful—the ghostly little boy, the lush garden, the endless snow and frost, the giant who gets struck down, covered in white blossoms… I’ve always tended to like stories that are very sad.

2) What made you decide to write alternative versions of fairytales from unique perspectives?
I didn’t really start out intending to write alternative versions of fairy tales. When I started Godmother: The Secret Cinderella Story, I just wanted to tell the Cinderella story straight, with lots of wonderful, lush detail and full, fleshed-out characters and all kinds of weirdness and darkness, etc. That’s what I love about fairytales, by the way—that strange combination of beauty and darkness you find in all of them. After my first book, Rain Village, which took forever to write, I wanted to do something that I thought would be a lot of fun, something that I would really love writing. I only decided to tell the story through the perspective of the fairy godmother when I realized how limited Cinderella’s perspective was—back then I only ever wrote in first person—so I figured that if the fairy godmother was narrating she could be pretty omniscient, tell you what was going on with Cinderella and the other characters. Plus, she could tell you her own story, too, which I thought might be interesting. Later, I decided to set the book in contemporary New York City and only have the godmother remembering everything that had happened in the other world. The book is set half in New York and half in the fairy tale world (in flashbacks). I only decided to do that after joining a writing workshop and seeing that the people in the workshop didn’t seem to be responding to the straight-out fairy tale I was writing. I wanted to win them over and I thought maybe I could lure them in with a present-day story set in the city, win them over that way, and then plunge them into the fairy tale.
So the book only slowly evolved into this alternative version. Once I put the fairy tale in via flashbacks, I knew something had to have gone terribly wrong. Why else would the fairy godmother be an old woman in New York?
After writing the book, though, I felt there was something really powerful in taking a story as well known as Cinderella, a story that’s in our blood and bones, and telling the “real” story from a perspective you never think or care about.

3) Can you tell us more about your upcoming book, The Next Full Moon?
The Next Full Moon is my first children’s book, a middle-grade novel about a 12-year-old girl who’s being raised alone by her father in Pennsylvania and who starts growing feathers, which is totally mortifying and confusing for her of course. She then comes to discover that her mother, whom she thought died when she was an infant, was (and is) a swan maiden. The story’s based on the old tales in which a man steals a swan maiden’s feathered robe when she’s in her human form, takes her home, marries her and has children with her. One day she discovers the robe and flies away—there are various reasons for this, depending on the version you read. I wondered: what happens when those kids she leaves behind hit puberty? In my book, the man and woman had only one child, and now here’s the kid ten years later with feathers appearing on her arms and back, having no idea that her mother is still alive and, of course, no idea that she’s a swan maiden.
I like the idea of a 12-year-old girl, full of shame and embarrassment, slowly discovering that she’s magical and amazing.

4) What other ideas are you working on right now?
Well, I’m working on a few things right now. Because of Mermaid, I started this blog, I Am a Mermaid, where I talk to all kinds of people about mermaids. I’ve realized that there’s this whole mermaid culture out there that’s really fascinating and lovely. So I’m writing my first non-fiction (but still quite fantastical!) book. And I’m working on a new novel that has to do with Weeki Wachee and a YA novel about a drowning pool, and I have this half-done thriller that I hope to finish this year…

5) Was it hard coming up with your own lore when you began world-building? How did you bring everything together?
It was challenging for me to write about magical worlds, I think, in that I was afraid of making them too Disney-ish or corny. So with Godmother, at first I was very vague when talking about the fairy world; in fact in the first draft, the flashbacks start with the godmother meeting Cinderella and we don’t really see her in her own world at all. It was only after the book sold that my editors pushed me to make the fairy world more defined and vivid, to explain the rules of that world and the landscape of it and so on. So I added in the first couple of flashback chapters that are in the book now, and they were probably the hardest chapters for me to write, even though they’re probably the lightest ones in the whole book.
With Mermaid, I mainly had to explain the rules we see in the original Hans Christian Andersen story… like why the mermaids can only visit the human world once, on their birthdays, and so on. It was more like putting together a puzzle than anything else, trying to create the worlds in that book and make them adhere to specific points from the original story.

6) Which of the books you've written is your favorite so far? What makes it the most special to you?
Hmmm. I think that would always tend to be the latest one. Right now I’m very excited about The Next Full Moon and writing for this younger age group. I found it surprisingly easy to write as a twelve-year-old, which is possibly a little worrisome, and was able to draw on my own memories and experiences more than I have for any other book. Like the characters all go to the lake in their town, where there’s an old carousel and people sell lemonade and they can all go swimming or lie out on the beach. And I was just directly describing the lake my friends and I used to go to in East Lansing, Michigan, where I lived from when I was twelve to fourteen, and I hadn’t thought about that lake in years. We moved around a lot when I was growing up, and so I’m really distanced from some of those memories and places. It was kind of nostalgic and wonderful, writing that book and slipping into those memories and this old self. Also, I have to say, I think the trauma and awkwardness of being twelve mixes really well with the fairy tale elements in the book, and I like the idea that something magical is happening to you as you hit puberty and you just have to figure that out.

7) What are some of your favorite fairy tale inspired novels and/or authors?
I love Angela Carter and her weird, gorgeous visions. I love Alice Hoffman, Francesca Lia Block, Joanne Harris, Isabel Allende, Jeanette Winterson, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Italo Calvino... They’re not all fairy tale writers and I don’t know to what extent they’ve all been inspired by fairy tales, but they all write in that vein I think, lush and magical. I really enjoyed Erzebet Yellowboy’s Sleeping Helena. And I also, by the way, really loved the way the Pied Piper story is used in the movie The Sweet Hereafter. It’s pretty brilliant.

8) If you could live out any fairy tale, what would it be and why?
Oh, I think maybe Thumbelina. I mean, who wouldn’t want to ride around in an acorn? For the most part, I think fairy tales are not the stories I would like to live out. Though I wouldn’t mind being the little mermaid for a day, before she goes and sees the sea witch and ruins her life…

9) What's your favorite Disney rendition of a fairy tale? What makes it so special?
I’m going to have to defer to my childhood self, who loved all those movies quite passionately. As an adult, I could barely even get through The Little Mermaid, which I was totally swept away by as a teenager. Probably my favorite, though, is Snow White. The old versions of that tale are really very shockingly weird and violent, and even the Disney version is incredibly creepy, with our semi-dead heroine lying gorgeously in a glass coffin in the forest and our hot prince having a thing for dead chicks.

FUN AND CRAZY ROUND!

~Best fairy tale villain and why?
Oh, the stepmother from Snow White. She’s a gorgeous witch with a magic mirror who has her stepdaughter murdered in the forest and then eats her heart (or lungs or what have you). Even though she’s betrayed by her huntsman and actually eats a stag’s heart, she believes she’s eating Snow White’s. It’s hard to think of a more perverse female villain! And I love the image of her skulking through the forest with her cloak and her basket full of poisoned apples.

~Rapunzel is named after lettuce; what odd thing would you be named after if you were in a fairy tale?
Oh, I love Rapunzel and the lettuce that is so delicious and addictive that Rapunzel’s mother craves it above all else and even makes her husband climb into a witch’s garden to get more for her. I mean, who pines for lettuce? Now I totally want some lettuce, now that I’m thinking about it...
I’d like to be something equally un-chocolate-y, if you know what I mean, some other pedestrian, unsexy vegetable with hidden powers of seduction. Like a rutabaga or a turnip. Turnip is kind of a cute word, not too far off from the delightful “tulip.” I’d like some fairytale character to be sitting in a room wasting away from a mad desire for turnips.

~ Using that name, give us a line from your life as a fairy tale:
She stared out the window at the impossibly lush turnips growing outside just beyond reach, their leaves shooting into the air like hands, their bodies dense and purple, as round as breasts. Her mouth watered as she watched the turnip leaves undulating in the breeze. As if they were bellydancing, she thought.

Meanwhile, Turnip was enjoying a large slice of chocolate cake at Jean Georges.

~Would you rather:

- — eat magic beans or golden eggs? Golden eggs. Don’t those sound delectable? A magic bean is just wrong.

- — style 50ft long hair or polish 100 pairs of glass slippers? I think polishing the glass slippers would be much more manageable. And I love things made out of glass, especially slippers and dresses. Are you aware of Karen LaMonte’s glass dresses? Look:

- — have a fairy godmother or a Prince Charming? Oh, a fairy godmother. Who wouldn’t want an endless supply of dresses and carriages? And let’s face it: Prince Charming isn’t all he’s cracked up to be.
Come to think of it, though… if we’re talking about the fairy godmother from my own book, then I’d really have to go for the hot prince, or even one of the coachman or mice. Anyone but the godmother, please!

-----------------------------------------
Okay, okay, here’s the part you’re all waiting for: The giveaway! Carolyn has generously agreed to give away three—yes, THREE—autographed copies of Mermaid as well as some fun mermaid tattoos! You know you want to win this contest and read this fantastic book.

To enter,. In addition, please leave a comment answering this question: What would you do if you could be a mermaid for a day? Also, what would you be willing to sacrifice in order to become a mermaid?

Entries must be received by MAY 5th. May 8th This giveaway is INTERNATIONAL!
Good luck and I can’t wait to see your responses!

PS from Misty: I love this picture! ----->

Today is Do Nothing But Read Day, which is kind of like a readathon but more relaxed. We're not staying up for 24 hours trying to read, we're just relaxing and spending the day reading as much as we can. Here is a little information about the day:

On December 3, 2009, Amanda Lanyon-LeSage said something on Facebook that could possibly change the world. She merely wished that she could take a day off and do nothing but read. Her idea was seconded–and thirded and fourthed–and then it happened for real.
The first Do Nothing But Read Day was held on Sunday, December 20, 2009. Hundreds of people took a day off from the mad rush of holiday preparations and other things to just read.
Required:

• You have to read. This can be whatever format you want: paperback, hardcover, eBook, newspaper, comic book, etc.
• You have to enjoy yourself.

Yeah, how awesome is that? If you're not doing anything today you can still sign up at their website, Do Nothing But Read Day and you'll be entered to win some prizes! You just have to sign up before 11:59 tonight.

Today I'm going to start off by finishing The Imperfectionists by Tom Rachman, which I only have about sixty pages left in. Then I'm going to move on to the Passage by Justin Cronin. I'm about halfway through that one right now so it will be interesting to see how far I can get in it. I'd like to read at least a little bit of Gone With the Wind by Margaret Mitchell today and then I'm going to read some of No One Belongs Here More Than You by Miranda July for breaks.

I'm off to go read! I'll post an update later of exactly what I accomplished- happy reading!

I know I already did a post at the end of my one hour, but I didn't include any stats so I figured I'd just include them here.

But first, mini challenges! I couldn't resist I Just Wanna Sit Here and Read's mini-challenge to make a soundtrack for a chapter of the book you are reading. I just finished Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury and I wanted to pick a song to be playing during the scenes where Guy Montag and Clarisse McClellan are talking and Montag starts to realize that something is really wrong with the world. The song I chose is Something to Talk About by Badly Drawn Boy, which was actually mad for the soundtrack of the movie About A Boy which is a great book by British author Nick Hornby. So I got very literary on this one.

This song might sound a little too peppy to be on a soundtrack for Fahrenheit 451, but can imagine it being really cool in a movie for the scene, especially since I see Clarisse as being a soft but strong character.

And I'm also going to do 'Til We Read Again's And The Nominees Are challenge.

Favorite Female Character in a book: Marian Halcombe from the Woman in White by Wilkie Collins
Favorite Male Character in a book: Henry DeTamble from The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger
Favorite Side Kick in a book: I really like Dick in High Fidelity by Nick Hornby, is he a sidekick?
Favorite Couple in a Book: Jane and Rochester in Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
Favorite Book Series: Right now probably The Luxe series by Anna Godbersen
Favorite Author: As far as authors I have read multiple books by... I'd probably have to say Virginia Woolf
Favorite Book Cover: I really like the cover of The Swan Thieves by Elizabeth Kostova
Favorite Book of 2009: Middlemarch by George Eliot, which is a book I read in 2009

And lastly, I'll do a kick rundown:
Title of book(s) read since last update: Fahrentheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
Number of books read since you started: 1
Pages read since last update: 179
Running total of pages read since you started: 179
Amount of time spent reading since last update: 3.5
Running total of time spent reading since you started: 3.5
Mini-challenges completed: Miss Remmers' Kick-off Challenge, I Just Wanna Sit Here and Read's Soundtrack Challenge, and 'Til We Read Again's And The Nominees Are challenge.

Today, I have J.L. Powers, author of This Thing Called the Future here to share with us to share the books her main character, Khosi would love. Who doesn't like talking about books right?! So here we go!

What books do my characters love?

In my recent novel, This Thing Called the Future, my main character Khosi is a fourteen year old citizen of South Africa, struggling with school, a boy she likes, and the conflict between her grandmother (who is a traditional Zulu) and her mother (who is very modern and wants Khosi to leave behind what she calls the “superstition of the old ways”). Khosi wants to please everybody in her life, but she also wants to be herself. At the beginning of the novel, the next-door neighbor accuses Khosi’s mother of stealing money; a witch
curses the family; and a drunk man with shape-shifting powers starts to stalk Khosi.

Khosi doesn’t have access to a lot of books, since her family struggles to survive and doesn't have extra money for books. And to be honest, she doesn't crack open a book during the entire novel. But she loves school and there is a library there. So what books would she check out and read in her spare time?

Khosi’s world is steeped in mystery and spiritual beings that talk to her, help her, and wreck havoc in her life. She would definitely be a fan of fantasy and would probably appreciate the Lord of the Rings series by J.R.R. Tolkien. Tolkien’s creation of evil beings, and the ability of goodness to stand up against evil power, would appeal to her. She would probably enjoy books by Janni Lee Simner. She would probably like the classic fantasy books by Madeleine L’Engle and would definitely identify with Nancy Farmer’s protagonist Nhamo in A Girl Named Disaster.

She would probably find the books by Gabriel Garcia Marqez to be set in a world that is familiar to her—the spiritual and the physical worlds meshed together, not kept distinct and separated the way they are in so many books written by American and European writers.

Khosi also loves loves loves science, so although it’s not sexy to say so, she would probably really like to read a biology textbook. Most of the herbal knowledge she will eventually learn and know will come to her through access to her ancestors, who have passed on to the other world, as well as from her mentor who ushers her into the secret knowledge of traditional healers. But still, she’d like a handbook on herbal lore, especially one that identified the herbs of South Africa. Perhaps she’d like Mad Apple by Christina Meldrum because of the plant and herbal lore in it.

And this might surprise people but, like many girls in South Africa today, she probably read the Twilight series and swooned over Jacob and Edward!

How fun! What a varied list!! Thanks so much for stopping by to share with us today J.L.!

Paradise by Jill Alexander is a book I'm really torn on. I've had a hard time deciding how I felt about this book overall because I felt so different when I finished from when I started. I asked on Twitter if my review could just be — "I loved this book. Until the end. When I didn't... " — I know it's not really enough to be a review on it's own, but it actually sums up how I felt about this book quite nicely. So, I'm saying it.

This is a book about so many things — music, passion, first love, parents, family, life, trust, pain, hope, etc. But at it's core, it's the story of a young girl, filled with more than she knows what to do with, trying to figure out who she is, and where she belongs.

I think the strongest part of this book is the characterization. Alexander has created such a strong and unique cast of characters and each character has their own very distinct voice. I was amazed at how much Alexander was able to convey about each character with so little. Cal is the perfect example of this. The only time we hear his thoughts is through the lyrics he writes in his song journal and yet those few lyrics tell us so much about him and how he feels and how he views life. It's amazing. But, all of the characters are full and whole and so well developed. I could go on and on and each has something unique to bring to the story that no one else would be able to offer.

I also loved Paisley's character. She's fierce and strong and a little unsure of herself at times. Gabriela is a completely new experience for Paisley. He comes from Paradise, Texas, so that's what she starts calling him and it seems to fit him really well. He's good looking, confident (or cocky, depending on the day and who you ask) and he's into her. Like, really into her. But Paisley has an interesting mom. One who has drilled and drilled and drilled it into her that she is not to get pregnant and stuck in their small town. So, Paisley has worn an abstinence ring for years and because she is so focused on her music, boys have never really been a priority before, so it isn't a big deal to her. But Paradise makes her starting thinking about things and makes her wonder how she really feels about it.

I loved this part of Paisley's character. I know that teens have sex. Really, I do. I promise. I know that it happens. But I also know that it doesn't happen as often as media makes us think it does. There are teens out there who have never had sex and don't feel ready for it as teenagers, and that's okay! So, Paisley is working out for herself whether or not she is ready to make that choice. And she thinks about it. A lot. Which I thought was incredible. It's a huge choice and it is one that, once made, you cannot take back. I loved the line where Paisley and Paradise are making out and Paradise tries to go farther than she is ready for. She backs away and he tells her that she doesn't have to be afraid to say yes to him. She replies with something along the lines of, I know. I'm not afraid to say yes, but I'm also not afraid to say no. I think more teens need to realize this. Especially if they are feeling under pressure to make a choice they aren't sure they are ready for. Be sure. And if you are not, there is nothing wrong with saying no.

I also thought it was very interesting to watch Paisley's interaction with her mother and the ways that Paisley and Lacey (her older sister) both handled their mother's controlling nature. She's so worried that they are going to end up like her — stuck in a tiny town because they got pregnant in high school (even though she is still married to their dad and he is awesome!) so she takes the extreme on everything. Boys are terrible and forbidden, as is anything she doesn't believe will help them leave the town. So Paisley hides the fact that she's in a band, hides a huge part of her true self from her mother and you definitely feel the strain of that begin to weigh in throughout the book.

It's such a strong book. It's a realistic story full of believable characters, people that I would love to know in real life. This book is an example of Contemporary YA at it's finest and a great example of why I love Contemporary. Why it's always my favorite genre. Or, at least it was... Until that ending...

I don't want to say to much about the ending of this book, because not only has every review I've read for this book talked about the ending, but also because it is something that really should be experienced for yourself and I really don't want to spoil it for anyone. I knew when I started the book that the ending was going to be shocking and huge, but I didn't know anything more than that. To be honest, it gave me serious anxiety when I reached the part of the book where I knew the shocking moment was close. I stalled myself at those last chapters for a long time because I was afraid to see what happened.

And the thing is, I didn't like it. It was shocking, it was a big thing, but I felt like it was there just to be shocking. Not because it really added to the story, not because it was necessarily the best place for the story to go, but because it made for some awesome drama. Maybe that's not really fair of me to say, or to assume. But it's how I felt reading it, and what you take away as the reader is ultimately what the story becomes. To me, the ending is one of the absolute most important parts of a book. An ending can turn a really great book into something terrible (I'm looking at you, Julie of the Wolves) or it can take a book I'm fairly lukewarm about and make it into something really special (mad props to The Bronze Bow). Unfortunately, this book was more of the former. While the ending didn't completely ruin the book for me, it definitely changed (and lowered) my overall feelings for the book.

Even though the ending was a disappointment, this is still a book that I would recommend to people, and I'd actually even recommend it strongly to most people. Alexander is a great writer. She writes strong characters and I'm amazed by how much she's able to convey with this story. I just wish that it had remained that way through to the end.

*Disclaimer — I received an ARC from the author through the Teen Book Scene for a fair and unbiased review.

The Architectural Heap

In the modern world you are surprised — as architects of the past could build approximately in one style, according to the general mood of an epoch, and consider it as art?

The original architectural project

In Competition on Originality there was a new applicant. Peking bureau MAD has offered the skyscraper project on which each floor gardens will blossom.
The basic feature of a design — not at height, and on horizontal saturation. The tower represents a heap of the floors, one on another where each layer will shift aside, thus creating open space for a patio and gardens. A 385-metre tower name Urban Forest.

Art Architecture in China

By the end of 2009 year architects plan to finish work on the design concept. The tower becomes the third studio in a portfolio. The studio offers new directions for development of city architecture in China. Namely actualization of ecologically steady multiplane structures which would return the nature in cities. The city of Chongking became the fourth on size a city of China in 1997.

VIA «The Architectural Chinese Greatness»

Tripp Lake is the story of Lauren Slater's time at camp, and the first time she realizes her fears. She discusses her family, the way they've been fighting and how, as a nine-year-old, that creates a greater sense of awareness for her. At camp she becomes more aware of how alone she is in the world, which she describes through a few sports scenes.

During a game of dodgeball she says, "I couldn't hurl that ball at her; it seemed existentially horible that we were called to do this sort of thing in the world, to live in a way where someone had to lose. I stood there, locked in place, mesmerized by her skin and her foot, while Nancy lifted the basketball high above her head and hurled it toward me with as much muster as she could muster, and I let the ball hit me on the hip. Nancy won. That was the only outcome I could tolerate."

And later, "You cannot really play lacrosse or soccer unless you are playing against someone, and this againstness requires that you see yourself as separate, with all that implies. But horseback riding is something you can do alone in the woods, or in a dusty riding rink, or even in your mind, in which you can canter, too. Riding is not about separation. It is not about dominance. The only person you might hurt is you. You are, at long last, without guilt."

While she is at camp the counselors see that she is sad, and they encourage her to start horseback riding even though she is too young for it. Through horseback riding she is able to approach her fear. With every attempt to jump she gets a little bit closer.

I loved this essay when I found it in The Best American Essays 2008 edited by Adam Gopnik, because I felt it so perfectly summarized the way I feel about a lot of things. I've always been more of an individual athlete because I hate the pressure of letting down a whole team. I also always hated dodgeball in school. More than anything though, I know what kind of guilt she is talking about in this essay. The guilt of leaving her parents, especially her mother, which she touches on throughout the essay. I can't find this anywhere online, but you should really go to your library or purchase this book (it's full of great essays!) and read Tripp Lake. I'll leave you with one last passage that represents what I mean about guilt.

"I knew brittle was breakable. Sometimes, driving in the car, she crushed the accelerator to the floor, just for the feeling of speed, and other times she cried with her mouth closed. I had the feeling, there at the bust stop, that she wished she were me, about to board a bus heading for the horizon, a green-striped bus with Peter Pan dancing on its flank and girls unabashedly eating apples. And because I felt her long, inchoate, certainly unspoken, my chest seemed to split with sadness, and also guilt. This was a new emotion, en emotion that sits in the throat, an emotion that is maybe more imagistic than all the others. Guilt mad eme imagine that while I was away, my mother would come undone: her arm would fall off; her hair would drift from her head."

Background on my guest reviewer: John is my 9 year old son. After several years of reading problems due to his ADD, John was a very reluctant reader. Reading was always difficult for him and whenever he was asked to read, he would get upset and shut down. Then one day, I happened to discover the Horrid Henry books. They hadn't been released in the States yet, but I believe I found an excerpt online. I showed it to John, who showed a bit of reluctance at first. Then I read the few pages aloud to him. And he was instantly drawn in to Horrid Henry's world! Ok, now back to John's review!

This is my review of Horrid Horrid Henry's Stinkbomb

. Horrid Henry is rude, impolite, and thinks that the pranks he pulls are funny. He thinks only of himself. Henry has a little brother named Perfect Peter. Peter is perfect. He is very polite and isn't selfish.

Horrid Henry's Stinkbomb

is made up of four stories. I'm going to tell you about my favorite story:Henry Reads a Book.

Horrid Henry's class is going to have a reading competition. Whoever reads the most books wins a trip to a brand new amusement park. Henry gets excited when he hears this and asks if comic books count. His teacher, Miss Battle-Axe shouts "NO!" I don't understand why comic books don't count; they are books afterall! Oh, and they also have to write a book report for every book they read.

Henry plans to start reading as soon as he gets home. Instead, he reads comics (not allowed!), watches TV and plays a computer game. Suddenly, it is the end of the competition and Henry hasn't read one SINGLE book! He tries to steal Perfect Peter's books from him but can't. He goes to his room and thinks he can just write down the names of all the books in his room, but remembers he has to write a report for all the books he reads. Miss Battle-Axe would recognize the books and would know that Henry didn't read them. So he makes up the titles of books and adds them to his list.

The next day at school, the winner is announced. It is Clever Clare! She read 28 books! Henry is so mad! Then, Miss Battle Axe notices that Clare accidentally wrote one book down twice! There is now a tie between Clever Clare and Horrid Henry, so they both win tickets. The tickets are to Book World (this doesn't sound like a very exciting amusement park to me, Mom, but you'd probably like it!). The story ends with Henry screaming "ARRRGGGHH!!" So, even though Henry wins the tickets, he sort of also learns a lesson about lying about the books he read. The prize is one that Clare will like because she loves books, but it's punishment for Henry because he doesn't like to read.

I then asked John why he liked the Horrid Henry books:

I like the Horrid Henry books because it has nice people in it as well as Horrid Henry. It reminds me of me and my little brother, Justin. (I ask, which character are you in the book? His response: I am Perfect Peter and Justin is Horrid Henry. I always act polite, and Justin is not.) I like the Horrid Henry books because they are chapter books that are easy to read. They make me laugh! And Horrid Henry does do some mean things, but at the end of each story he usually learns his lesson! I want to read the rest of the Horrid Henry books and hope my library at school will get them. I think my friends will like them too. Besides Henry and Peter, there are some other characters with funny names like Moody Margaret, Rude Ralph, and Beefy Bart. I think the names are funny but it's good because they also describe that person!

I just want to wrap up by reiterating what John said about why the Horrid Henry books are so fabulous. Children are drawn to Horrid Henry because he is bad, but don't think that the Horrid Henry books promote or encourage bad behavior. They don't..Horrid Henry in some manner does get punished or suffer repercussions for his actions. In addition, the illustrations are humorous and at a level that early readers can comprehend. I found that while my son loves to read these to himself, they are best experienced if read aloud!

To learn more about the other Horrid Henry books, please visit Horrid Henry's Facebook page! Thank you to Sourcebooks for providing John copies of the Horrid Henry books!

Australian Muay Thai legend John Wayne Parr is many things; lethal, fighter, champion. Now add movie star to the list. Parr is the subject and star of a new documentary, Beneath The Venom, which charts his evolution from a kid dreaming of being a boxer to his current status as one of the most recognised fighters in the world.

In January Parr and a camera crew headed to Thailand where they interviewed trainers, promoters and opponents who were there for the first part of his professional journey which began at a Muay Thai camp when he was 17.
``I was a kid with a dream who in 1996 had the opportunity to go to Thailand and I was only supposed to be there for six months but after I won a few fights they saw I had the potential to go all the way,'' said Parr.
``I went and lived in Thailand for four years and had about 40 to 45 fights over there.
``It did a lot for the Australian Muay Thai scene and I was the first Australian to fight at Lumpinee Stadium and on the Thai King's birthday which had crowds of 150 000 out in the park.
``I was the first Westerner to really make an impression on them and we've managed to get fight footage from those early days in Thailand that no one's ever seen before.''

Working on the documentary with Parr as the writer, director and producer is Guy Norris, best known for his second unit directing work on the Oscar-winning Lord Of The Rings trilogy.
Parr, who's known of Norris' work as the head stuntman on films such as Moulin Rouge, Superman Returns and the upcoming Mad Max 4: Fury Road, said he was ``very lucky'' to work with him on the doco.
``He showed a lot of interest and got behind it,'' said Parr.
``He's got contacts to some big players in Sydney who helped get the doco going financially.''
Parr said the documentary is ``about ninety per cent finished'' and already they are in talks with several major Australian TV networks for the broadcasting rights. Beneath The Venom is also expected to get a limited theatrical release in America later this year. In the meantime the seven-time world champion, based at the Boonchu Gym in Burleigh, is concentrating on defending his World Kickboxng Federation title against Mike Zambidis in Melbourne later this month. Parr has six more fights scheduled for the year but after that he said he's looking at hanging up his gloves and pursuing a career in film.
``I wanted to be a fighter since I was five or six-years old and now I'm almost 35 and have been lucky enough to live my dream many times over,'' he said.
``Hopefully this documentary opens a few doors.''
Parr made his acting debut in the short film The Violent which won the Best Fight Choreography Short at the Action On Film International Film Festival in Los Angeles. Beneath The Venom is set to debut on Australian television later this year.

VIA Parr-ty time, excellent

Hey, all!

Great to see all the different Historical Fiction posts out there! I have so many books added to my TBR pile, it's not even funny. I had a busy week so wasn't able to get a post in--maybe tonight?

Which brings me to a point I want to make sure everyone understands, since we've gained quite a few new people in recent weeks: there is no deadline to Weekly Geeks! You have all week to post your assigment--or you can even pick up a topic in a different week--or skip a week entirely. No need to apologize for missing or being "late"--no pressure to "catch up"--just jump in when you can and we'll be glad to see you!

And now, on to the round-up of some of the blogs that addressed this question of Historical proportions.

Sometimes feeling passionate about history can be a barrier to enjoying Historical Fiction. Take Sari, for example. She's working towards a Masters degree in European Medieval History, and admits she's too picky for a lot of historical fiction but she's your go-to girl for nonfiction. She's got me sold on Ghost Map by Steven Johnson, a book "about the 1854 Cholera outbreak and how John Snow stopped the epidemic. It reads like a detective novel and is very hard to put down."

Melissa of Book Nut gets mad when historical details aren't accurate, and the throwing of books ensues. She offers a list of entertaining (and, presumably, historically accurate) YA and adult historical fiction she thinks our fictionally reluctant Ashley will love.

Rikki got hooked on I, Claudius years ago, and now takes us on a literary tour of ancient Rome, with a film recommendation to go along with it.

Looking for something a little out of the mainstream? Susan offers a book list that includes many authors of color, including two stories by authors of Haitian and Dominican descent that take place in the Dominican Republic under dictator Trujillo. I'll definitely be seeking those out.

Paxton, of Calvacade of Awesome, ponders books that take place mostly in the present but have a focus on history (take the Da Vinci Code, for example)--do they count as Historical Fiction? (For the record, I'd vote yes, if the book transports the reader back to that time in any way). Paxton also takes us through his introduction to Westerns, starting with the Emilio Estevez movie, Young Guns.

And a big welcome to Jodie, of Book Gazing--this is her first Weekly Geeks assignment! (Jodie is a big fan of lit that takes place in the 17th century, and has challenged herself to read more in 2009. Be sure to stop by and welcome Jodie to the Weekly Geeks family.

Thanks to all for participating--I can't wait to see what Chris has in store for us next week!

Ali

I love Contemporary fiction. That should be a given. I'm hosting a month long event devoted entirely to Contemporary and I talk about it. All the time. So telling you why it is that I love Contemporary should be easy, right? A no brainer? When something is your favorite, you should be able to talk about why, right?

And yet... I find myself unable to really put my finger on exactly why it is that I love Contemporary so much. I've tried before and everything I've said is true. For me, Contemporary is more emotional, it's more connective and more believable. But really, when it comes right down to it — I don't really have a specific reason I can lay out for you. I just... like it better.

I read books because I love them. And a large part of why I love to read is because they make me feel. And Contemporary makes me feel more than any other genre. But more than that, what it makes me feel is more real. When I read an intense dystopian, I'm horrified, my heart pounds and you get that 'peek through the fingers' feeling. But when I put the book down, I know that this is a world created by an author to taunt and torment and terrify and I take comfort that no matter how screwed up my world is, at least it's not there yet. It's the same with a fantasy novel. Voldemort loses his ability to incite terror once I've put the book down and remember that nasty snake things can't actually be reborn from the blood of their magical enemies.

But with Contemporary, I don't have that. I'm not offered that way out, because a truly well written Contemporary is writing about real life. It might not be your real life, but on some level, it's life for some of us and it could be life for one of us. Kids get abducted, abused, hurt, bullied and tormented every single day. I can't take brush off the sad/mad/righteous rage/wrath/vengeful madness that comes after reading a Contemporary book about a parent hurting their children because it's 'only happening in a book' because it isn't only happening in a book. The horrors of drug addiction, manipulation, death eating disorders, low self worth, suicide don't go away just because I set the book down. They are part of our world, whether we like it or not and that means that the feelings I get while reading those books stick around, long after the book has been put away.

But it's not just the sad, hurtful or angry emotions that linger either. There are some books out there so incredibly full of love and life and light and hope that it simply fills my whole being. Most of those books have suffering or problems in them too. And that's okay. That's life. Everyone has suffered something at some point, at many points. But the struggles and the hurts aren't always the focal point of the story. Some of these books where love is the overwhelming emotion just slay me. And I'm not even talking romantic love (although that has it's place too).

Contemporary is just... more. Often, the fantasy or dystopian novels are more intense, more pulse racing, heart bounding, flip through the pages so fast because you are holding your breath until you know what happens next and you are running out of oxygen and OHMYGOODNESS just let me find out what happens next!!!! And I love that feeling. Don't get me wrong. I LOVE it. But there is something more to a story where your heart just stops because you can't believe a kid so young would have to go through something like that, where you can't breathe because your lungs have forgotten how to pull in oxygen because you hurt for these characters so much.

And let me tell you — When you find that book, when you find that book that pulls you so deeply into the lives and stories of these characters that you wonder why you aren't meeting up with them for lunch every Tuesday, it does something to you. I think that's part of why Harry Potter has been so incredibly successful — By setting the story in a Contemporary world that simply has magic hidden under the surface, Harry, Ron and Hermione really could become your new best friends.

Let me try to illustrate exactly what I mean — When I was a kid, I read Where the Red Fern Grows a hundred million times (alright, so I'm exaggerating, it was probably closer to 45). I'm sure you all know how this story ends, but it broke me. Seriously, broke me into pieces. It's been my favorite book for forever, because it was the first book to ever hit me like that. When Billy realizes that Old Dan is seriously injured, he sinks his axe blade deep into the trunk of a tree, hangs his lantern off the blade and picks up his dog so he can carry him home. At the very end of the story of that summer, Billy and his family move from the mountains into town and Billy, now reminiscing from 50 years down the road has never been back, but he wonders if now he could return and find that old rusty lantern and the blade of that axe, since the wooden handle would have rotted long ago. I honestly and truly used to believe that I could go to the Ozarks for Billy and find his axe, that I could walk the trails, somehow figure out exactly where he had lived and I could stumble across that axe and lantern. I knew it was a story. I knew it wasn't real, that Billy had never actually been a real person and Old Dan and Little Ann never hunted anywhere except an old man's imagination. But that didn't matter. I just knew that if I could get there, I would find that axe.

I have never, in all my years of reading had a paranormal, fantasy, dystopian or science fiction (etc and etc) novel hit me that hard, move me that much. But it happens to me again and again with Contemporary. I no longer believe that I could walk into the setting of the novel and meet the characters, but a small part of me weeps every time I finish a book like this, because I realize that they will only ever exist on paper.

And that is what Contemporary does to me. That is why I love it above all other genres. And that is why I will work my hardest to introduce others to Contemporary. Because going through life, never connecting that deeply to a story? Well it's a crying shame.

How would the world be different if all the books were burned? Guy Montag, a fireman whose only purpose is to burn books, has never really questioned the world he lives in. Then Clarisse comes along and makes him question it. He goes mad after he takes a book from a home and doesn't know how to face the consequences. His wife, Mildred, also forces him to question society when she is in need of medical attention but doesn't receive the amount she deserves in Montag's eyes. Fahrenheit 451 was written towards the beginning of the Cold War when censorship was beginning to take over; this novel is a representation of how the world could end up.

I found the writing in this novel to be beautiful, especially the passages about books; "There is nothing magical in them at all. The magic is only in what books say, how they stitched the patches of the universe together into one garment for us" (83). This novel definitely pulls people together, like others of the time period, to see how censorship or other forms of control could ruin the world. Beyond that, I couldn't help but love one of the messages tucked inside these pages; "I know, I know. You're afraid of making mistakes. Don't be. Mistakes can be profited by" (104). I just think that is a great thing to remind yourself every day, but it's also interesting in the historical context of this novel. The Cold War was history in the making, and looking back on it now I think it's safe to say we learned a few things from that experience. Most of history is just learning from mistakes people before us made, but we can't be reminded of those mistakes unless there are books for us to remember them. That is true of nonfiction accounts such as my awesome American History textbook and fictional accounts such as this book.

The novel is fairly short and it's really a propaganda piece, which means there are some things left out of the story. I sometimes felt like characters were introduced and then I never knew who those characters were. Still, I don't think that is necessarily the worst thing in the world. I think what is really important with this book is to walk away with the idea of a world without books ingrained in your mind. And this novel certainly did that for me.

This novel earned an A.

I am an Amazon Affiliate. If you make a purchase using one of my links I will earn a small percentage which will then go back into this blog.

My guest poster today is Jacinda, one of the sisters that runs the blog The Reading Housewives of Indiana. Jacinda is such a fun blogger to chat with and she's amazing. Seriously. She's pretty much amazing! I'm thrilled that she wanted to share a guest post, so here she is — talking about her favorite Contemporary novels EVER!

Picking my favorite contemporary novels of all time…that’s a difficult task. I decided to go with my
favorite contemporary novels I think aren’t as popular, at least at the moment…which pretty much
means I had to leave off Lola and Anna…I almost cried! Many of these might have been popular when
they were published, but they are somewhat new to me and aren’t talked about so much right now. Or
maybe I’m the only one who has one of these on my favorites list..I’m okay with that!
My Favorite Young Adult Contemporary Novels Which Need More Loving in 2011 and
Beyond!

Sea by Heidi R. Kling

I’d been wanting to
read this book for the longest time. My library didn’t have it and for some reason I’d never bought it.
As soon as someone offered this book up to me for trade I jumped at it! I’m so glad I did! As you can
tell it has become one of my favorites! I felt so many different emotions about this one! I love being
able to travel to foreign lands in books and Sea has that. I’m looking forward to reading anything Heidi
writes! I’m reviewing Sea sometime during Just Contemporary! I’ve been sitting on this review for a few months!

I Now
Pronounce You Someone Else by Erin McCahan
This is a contemporary book I don’t think has gotten enough buzz. I read this before I started reviewing
and before I started my blog. I wish I would have read it afterwards to push it at people! It’s been a very
long time since I’ve read it, but I remember wanting to hug this book after I read it! Just thinking about it
has me wanting to re-read it!

Summer Sisters by Judy
Blume
Summer Sisters was one of the first contemporary books I’ve ever read. It was a book club pick and I was
pleasantly surprised by it! I HATED a few different characters in this one. I was screaming at them on the
inside that they were acting stupid and being totally selfish. I loved following these characters through
numerous years because you get to see so much growth and change.
You should also check out Forever by Judy Blume

Sign Language by Amy Ackley

This book set a record for me. I cried the most during Sign Language than any other book I’ve ever
read. Prior to this one, The Iron Queen by Julie Kagawa held that title because of the brutal ending to
the story that had me crying for about the last ten percent. Sign Language had me using tissues during
the entire first half. It was a horrible feeling having to cry that often while reading it, but it shows how
well the author told the story. I normally shy away from stories having main characters in the 12-15
year-old range, but I’m so happy I didn’t pass this one up! Sign Language has a certain quote/life lesson
that will always stick with me and it is one of only a few books I can remember quotes from.

Rich and Mad by William
Nicholson
I think many people didn’t like this one. I completely fell in love with it! I want to re-read it one of these
days to see if my love for it is still there and I really hope it is! I will probably cry if I feel different about it
the second time. It’s a story about a guy and girl chasing and looking for the wrong person to fall in love
with. I don’t remember exactly what had me falling all over this one, I just know I felt wonderful while
reading it. There is a point/part in this book people hated, I seemed to not care or I overlooked it, either
way, I loved this one! For some reason, I see myself constantly defending my love for this one…maybe
that’s because I’ve seen a couple of people tear it apart. Oh well, I loved it!

Sixteenth Summer by
Michelle Dalton

Sixteenth Summer is the cutest and most adorable book I’ve ever read! I catch myself thinking about
it on occasion! This book had me craving ice cream and sweet tea! If you need a book to put you in a
good mood or to read in the summertime, Sixteenth Summer is the book for you! It will give you warm
fuzzies!

My Ridiculous, Romantic Obsesessions by Becca Wilhite
Ever have a perfect book come to you at the perfect time?! My Ridiculous, Romantic Obsessions
was that book for me. I remember feeling down about everything, but after reading this, I felt 100%
better…even though I cried a bit. The protagonist is college-aged which I love in young adult! She’s
obsessed with romance novels and refers to them in every aspect of her life. Such a great fast read
which will always be a favorite of mine!

The North of Beautiful
by Justina Chen Headley
The theme for many favorites of mine is my lack for reasons as to why I love them…my memory is
horrible! North of Beautiful is one of those books! It’s a book teaching us to look inside of ourselves for
beauty because beauty isn’t on the outside. I just remember enjoying the struggle the main character
has with herself and the general theme of the book is unique and it stands out.

The Disreputable History of Frankie
Landau-Banks by E. Lockhart
I’m thankful for the Award Winning Reads Challenge Ashley hosted with me because I might not
have picked this one up! Frankie was so strong! I loved her! It was a book based not on romance, but
Frankie’s struggle with wanting to be accepted in something she feels like she has a right to be a part
of and challenging it. I love romance in my books and this one has a bit, but I found myself not
caring if the romance was there or not…that means this book is fantastic coming from me!

The Chosen One by Carol
Lynch Williams
This is one of those “tough issues” books. Kyra is one of 21 children of her father’s from his three wives.
Kyra lives in a very religious community. She decides after she is to be wed to her uncle that she needs
to get away. I loved getting a glimpse, even if fictional, into a community like this especially from a 13
year-olds point of view. The ending of this one is very fitting for the story.

I’m a 26 year-old Hoosier. Currently I’m a SAHM to a 4 year-old boy
and a 3 year-old girl. I’ve been married to my hubby, Seth, for 6 years and I’ve known him since I was
senior in high school. I have two dogs and a cat which I love dearly even though they can make my
life more hectic than it needs to be. Besides my love of reading which is obvious, I love my Keurig,
crafting, and football. I’m afraid of heights to the point where I will not stay in a hotel

room above the 7^{th floor or drive in mountains unless it’s at night. I dislike milk and anything banana or coconut
flavored, so I’m limited on my cocktail choices. I’m a big young adult reader, but I do read an occasional
adult book. My favorite types of books would have to be contemporary and historical fiction, but it used
to be paranormal before I became more of an avid reader.}

I am soincredibly excited to have Stephanie on my blog today! She is amazing. I read Ballads of Suburbia earlier this year and was completely blown away by the book and the stories within the story. Stephanie wrote such a raw and emotional book that I was consumed by it for days and now I talk about it all the time. (Wanna read my review? :) ) So, when I got the idea for Just Contemporary, I knew that I wanted to ask Stephanie to be a part of it and I made embarrassing noises she emailed me yes!:)

Here are some links to places where you can see more of Stephanie — Her website, her blog, Rookie an online magazine she writes for (and is crazy excited about, with good reason to be), and Twitter. And now — The Interview:

I've heard you mention before that Ballads of Suburbia is a deeply personal book, one that a lot of you went into writing. What was it like, to write a book like that? A book that used so much of you? Did that make it easier or harder to write that I Wanna Be Your Joey Ramone?

It was definitely a lot harder to write than IWBYJR, though that book dealt with some pretty hefty things, too, so there were some scenes that were difficult, but all of Ballads was hard. I mean I guess writing the setting was easier because unlike with IWBYJR, I wasn't making it up, I was writing about the place I lived during the time I lived there, so it was all in my memory, but that was the only easy part about that book. Early on, I worried a lot that I didn't want to make it too autobiographical. Fortunately as soon as I stopped thinking about it and started really creating the characters, especially through their ballads, I was relieved to find that they were all fictional... Well, Kara has a lot in common with me, but her story is different. Then it was time for revisions and the main feedback I got from my editor on it was something like "get closer to Kara's emotions, get into her head and really let us feel what she's feeling." At first I was all mad, thinking, I did that! Kara's head was basically my head when I was a teenager. But then I reread it and realized I'd actually held back a lot during my first few drafts, not intentionally but because I didn't want to go back there. The things I dealt with as a teenager, primarily the depression and the self-injury affected me into my early twenties. I'd felt like I'd healed, but probably only about five years before I was working on Ballads, so I had those emotions locked up pretty carefully and I knew it would be scary to revisit them. I reread old journals and things I wrote about cutting to get into Kara's mindset. I actually got so scary close to her that I was exhausted both mentally and physically when I finished the revision. When I was a teenager I'd had an ulcer form from all the stress and that ulcer had healed in my mid-twenties, but started acting up again after I finished Ballads. It really was the hardest thing I've ever done, but as a result, it is also the thing I am most proud of.

Does I Wanna Be Your Joey Ramone draw from your personal experiences the way that Ballads did?

Both books in a way are me looking at my own life and saying "What could have happened if... " With Ballads it was, "What could have happened if I did heroin more than once" because in real life I did it one time and it scared the shit out of me, so I sobered up completely for the rest of high school. With IWBYJR it was, "What would have happened if I actually could have learned to play the music I loved so much." If Kara from Ballads was the girl I was was, then Emily from IWBYJR is the girl I wanted to be. However, I actually have more in common with Louisa. Without giving the book away, I'll say that Louisa is carrying an awful secret that has to do with a guy she dated in high school, while I dated a guy who didn't do quite as bad things as this guy, he did some pretty bad things to me and while I didn't do what she did to the guy, I still came away from the situation, well to put it bluntly, really fucked up and I ran away in a manner of speaking for awhile, but not as long as Louisa did. Once again, with her I projected, "What would have happened if I never came to terms with that guy did to me... " I know that a lot of readers really don't like or relate to Louisa, but I actually feel for her because that could have been me. For the most part though, IWBYJR came from my love of punk rock, especially girl bands like Sleater-Kinney whose song "I Wanna Be Your Joey Ramone" I named the book after. I dreamed of a world where they would take over the mainstream rock airwaves.

Did you have a goal while writing either of these books? A specific message or meaning you hoped people would take away from the experience? Or were they just stories that needed telling?

They were just stories that needed telling. I honestly wrote both books because they were the books I needed as a teenager. I was a punk kid and I wanted there to be this big girl rock revolution, and would have loved reading about it, so I wrote it. On a more serious note, my friends and I were dealing with some pretty heavy stuff like the characters in Ballads, but in the mid-90s there weren't really YA books that dealt with that or if they did, they were all preachy and after-school special like. I just wanted to see someone like who survived so that I could draw strength from that. I wrote that story to give voice to teenage me and all the other teenagers like me who weren't seeing their stories out there.

Do you look back on either of these novels and see things you would like to change? Things you wish you would have done differently?

There is one minor character in IWBYJR that I wanted to kill off, but my agent told me not to. I still sort of wish I had. I can't really say more without spoilers. There are probably sentences or words here or there that I might change just because everyone grows as a writer (hopefully) so I might see a phrase as awkward or overwritten now that I didn't back then, but if I intentionally looked for that stuff it would make me crazy, so I don't. I am very proud of those books. I told the stories I wanted to tell. The only thing I wish is that I'd fought harder for them to be marketed more as YA. Sometimes they were in the adult sections of book stories and libraries and I want more teens to be able to find them.

I know the 'Bartender Book' is considered to be more Women's Fiction than YA, but is there crossover appeal? Are the people (specifically the teens) who enjoyed your previous novels likely to want to read the Bartender Book?

I must say that the Bartender Book isn't the actual title, I'm just being all secretive about that because I'm afraid of jinxing it, but yeah it is set a lot in a bar, so that and the fact that the main characters are 18 and 38 makes it "women's fiction" rather than YA, but like IWBYJR it is a mother/daughter story. The mother is in the story a lot more than Louisa was in IWBYJR because the chapters alternate, but the mother is actually a lot more like a teenager than the daughter. I actually tried to inject a bit more humor into it because I had to after writing a book like Ballads or that ulcer would come back for good, but it's not a "light" book by any means
It deals with a lot of the same issues as my other books though, like finding a home or place to fit in, coping with grief and life not turning out like how you thought it would be. I'm pitching it as "an edgier version of The Gilmore Girls." So if you liked that show and/or if you like my other books, I think you'll like this one. At least I hope so!

Any hints or ideas you can give us for what is in the works next?

The Bartender Book is only just going on submission, so I'm not deep into anything else yet. I have three ideas... No, two, I think I've successfully limited it down to two. They are both YA, so a YA project is definitely next. They are both the edgy, real-life type of stories that readers have come to expect from me, but both would have a paranormal/magical realism twist to them because I have always admired Francesca Lia Block and wanted to add some small element of strangeness to the very real contemporary issues that my characters are dealing with. Though I love reading paranormal and sci-fi books, I'm kind of afraid to dip more than my feet into those waters, but I feel like I should at least deep my feet in and challenge myself if that makes sense.

Other than the writing itself, what is the hardest part of being a writer.

Honestly there are a lot of hard parts. Waiting is hard. Things happen at a snail's pace in publishing. Rejection is super hard and so is reading really nasty reviews. I am not a thick-skinned person and that is why I would say hardest of all is the self-doubt and the worrying. Even though I have two books published, I worry that I am not good enough to get published again. I worry that I will never be successful enough as a writer to properly make ends meet and should get a more reliable job. I worry that I will run out of ideas or start to suck. I worry that deep down I really do suck, but have been managing to squeak by somehow. In short, there is a lot of self-doubt and worrying that goes along with writing for me. But I do my damnedest to push past it because I love telling stories, I don't know what I would do if I couldn't write.

Anything else you'd like to add or share with us?

I just want to thank you for having me and supporting contemporary fiction!

You are so welcome Stephanie and thank you so very much for being a part of this event! You are amazing and I for one am very grateful that you keep writing! Can't wait to read your next book!

And now — The giveaway! Because Stephanie is all kinds of awesome, she has donated a signed copy of either of her books, winners choice! How awesome is that?! Both are amazing and I'm so excited that you will have a chance to win!

To enter, fill out the Rafflecopter below! It's open US/CN only will end Dec 10 and there are chances for extra entries!! I promise, you don't want to miss this one! Here is the link to Rookie , the online magazine. Going there will get you extra giveaway entries!