Choose January 2016's Book!

Okay ladies and gents, it's time to choose our book for January!

January's theme is all about snowy locales, and it's up to you to decide which one we'll visit. Below you'll find 4 books to choose from. You have until 8pm on 12/14 to vote.

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Shiver (Wolves of Mercy Falls #1) by Maggie Stiefvater

For years, Grace has watched the wolves in the woods behind her house. One yellow-eyed wolf--her wolf--is a chilling presence she can't seem to live without. Meanwhile, Sam has lived two lives: In winter, the frozen woods, the protection of the pack, and the silent company of a fearless girl. In summer, a few precious months of being human . . . until the cold makes him shift back again.

Now, Grace meets a yellow-eyed boy whose familiarity takes her breath away. It's her wolf. It has to be. But as winter nears, Sam must fight to stay human--or risk losing himself, and Grace, forever.

YA Fiction - 416 pages

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The Winter People by Jennifer McMahon

West Hall, Vermont, has always been a town of strange disappearances and old legends. The most mysterious is that of Sara Harrison Shea, who, in 1908, was found dead in the field behind her house just months after the tragic death of her daughter.

Now, in present day, nineteen-year-old Ruthie lives in Sara’s farmhouse with her mother, Alice, and her younger sister. Alice has always insisted that they live off the grid, a decision that has weighty consequences when Ruthie wakes up one morning to find that Alice has vanished. In her search for clues, she is startled to find a copy of Sara Harrison Shea's diary hidden beneath the floorboards of her mother's bedroom. As Ruthie gets sucked into the historical mystery, she discovers that she’s not the only person looking for someone that they’ve lost. But she may be the only one who can stop history from repeating itself.

Adult Fiction - 400 pages

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The Snow Child by Eowyn Ivey

Alaska, 1920: a brutal place to homestead, and especially tough for recent arrivals Jack and Mabel. Childless, they are drifting apart--he breaking under the weight of the work of the farm; she crumbling from loneliness and despair. In a moment of levity during the season's first snowfall, they build a child out of snow. The next morning the snow child is gone--but they glimpse a young, blonde-haired girl running through the trees.

This little girl, who calls herself Faina, seems to be a child of the woods. She hunts with a red fox at her side, skims lightly across the snow, and somehow survives alone in the Alaskan wilderness. As Jack and Mabel struggle to understand this child who could have stepped from the pages of a fairy tale, they come to love her as their own daughter. But in this beautiful, violent place things are rarely as they appear, and what they eventually learn about Faina will transform all of them.

Adult Fiction - 389 pages

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Breadcrumbs by Anne Ursu

Once upon a time, Hazel and Jack were best friends. But that was before he stopped talking to her and disappeared into a forest with a mysterious woman made of ice. Now it's up to Hazel to go in after him. Inspired by Hans Christian Andersen's "The Snow Queen," Breadcrumbs is a stunningly original fairy tale of modern-day America, a dazzling ode to the power of fantasy, and a heartbreaking meditation on how growing up is as much a choice as it is something that happens to us.

In Breadcrumbs, Anne Ursu tells, in her one-of-a-kind voice, a story that brings together fifty years of children's literature in a tale as modern as it is timeless. Hazel's journey to come to terms with her evolving friendship with Jack will deeply resonate with young readers.

Middle Grade Fiction - 336 pages

Vote Now!

Monthly Theme List for 2016!

In an effort to get a jump on next year, as I'm planning on it being altogether amazing, I've compiled a list of all the themes we'll be tackling! See below.

January 2016 - Dashing Through The Snow

* Choose a book that is set in a snowy locale!

February 2016 - Swoon Worthy Protagonists

* Let's steam up February with some HOT protagonists! Yes, girl crushes are allowed.

March 2016 - Books About Books

* Is it set in a library? Is the protagonist an author? Let's read books about books!

April 2016 - Graphic Novels

* We are doing this! I know we skipped it last year. Stories aren't always just words.

May 2016 - Middle Grade Magic

* May is all about amazing Middle Grade characters, and stories steeped in magic.

June 2016 - Road Trips

* Have a favorite book about a road trip? Here's your chance to share!

July 2016 - Independence

* A country, a family, a character. Anyone fighting for independence fits here.

August 2016 - The High Seas

* Arrrr mateys! We be choosing books about Pirates in August.

September 2016 - Banned Books

* So many books are banned every year, which is why we'll put them in the spotlight.

October 2016 - Haunted Houses/Cities

* Things get spooky in October, and we'll celebrate by visiting some haunted dwellings.

November 2016 - Novellas

* We'll slow things down in November, in preparation for the holidays, with a few shorter reads.

December 2016 - THE BIG HOLIDAY GIVEAWAY: TAKE 3!
* December is all about bonding, planning for the new year, and winning awesome stuff!

More information on how our monthly book choice is going to work next year, coming soon! 

2nd Annual Great Big Holiday Giveaway!

Well my darling bookworms, another year is winding down. 

Can you believe that we've been a book club for over a year now? I know, I'm tearing up too. It's all so lovely! Having others to share your passion with is amazing, and our bookish community is one of the best. It's why I love being your moderator.

To say thank you to all of you, I'm doing another holiday giveaway!

This year's giveaway is a brand new, shiny Amazon Fire Tablet!

Perfect for all of your reading, Netflix watching, and game playing needs. I thought I'd mix it up a bit this time. I hope you're all excited!

***

So how do you enter?

Here's the skinny.

All month long I'll be giving you opportunities to win entries into the raffle for this, starting today! The trick? You must watch our Facebook group for the questions/challenges/scavenger hunts daily. If you miss a day, that just means you miss an entry. Each entry challenge is open for 24 hours. (Until 8pm PST the next day.)

On December 31st I'll tally the entries, and let the random number generator pick a winner! Then  your Fire Tablet will ship straight to you, and you can cuddle it forever and always ;).

Ready for today's entry?

Step 1: Go to the NOVELLA NOVEMBER post.

Step 2: Leave a comment!

It can be an entry (which gains you points in the giveaway that ends tomorrow), or a comment on someone else's entry. Go interact!

 

That's it. You'll get one entry. Then check back in our FB group for another entry tomorrow.

Happy winning!

2015 Winter Wonder Swap

ARE YOU READY? You'd better be, because it's time to swap again!

To start, please make sure you read the General Guidelines post. If you get to the end of the document and still have a burning question, email me or comment here! I'm always happy to help.

ON TO THE DETAILS!

This swap is Christmas themed, or Winter themed if that's better for you. I understand not everyone celebrates Christmas, so tweak it to whatever suits you. The theme is open to interpretation!

The following items are required in your package:

* One book of your choice. It can be Winter/Christmas themed... or not!

* One thing that edible. Cookies, candy, or even peanuts. It's all fair game.

* One handmade item. That's right! You're going to make something. Make an ornament, knit a scarf, draw a picture. Your choice!

* One bookmark. This can also be handmade, or store bought. Give your buddy something to help mark their place!

* A note to your lovely swap partner.

Money Limit: 

Your box must contain items that add up to at least $20. Anything beyond that is your own personal choice, if you'd like to add extras. You may also add items that are not on the theme list if you so choose!

        * Some helpful hints:

                 - Check out dollar stores. You can get lots of fantastic and fun items there!

                 - Shop the dollar spot at local stores like Target or Walmart.

                 - Go thrift store hunting. This is perfectly okay! Just make sure the item is in good 

                    condition.

                    (A good rule of thumb is to think, "Would I want to receive this?")

                 - Re-gift something of yours (in good condition of course) that you think fits the box.

                 - Make something. It's cool to include something handmade. Again, just make sure it's 

                    something you'd like to receive yourself.

Shipping Information:

This swap is open to members with addresses located in the U.S. All delivery confirmation numbers must be in no later than December 19th. This also means your box should be shipped no later than this date. You must procure a delivery confirmation number when sending your package, and include it in the form located here. No delivery confirmation means you won't be eligible for future swaps.

Ready to join in?

Fill out THIS FORM completely to sign up. 

I'll match you with a swapping buddy and send out information as to who you will be mailing to. Please know I try to keep this a surprise, so you won't know who is mailing to you unless you specifically ask.

***Sign ups will be open until December 7th***

Late sign ups will not be accepted. I need that time to match people up and still give you ample time to go and do some shopping!

REMEMBER:

If you sign up, your are promising to send a package. Please make sure you can follow through! I never want anyone to end up without a box. Thanks!

Novella November - Post 2

It's that time!!!

Fall Leaves - Or Winter Snow

I suppose it depends on where you live? If you live in California, it's still kind of hot. And green. So... there's that.

Here's a recap of what you already know:

THE RULES

This post is open until December 1st. Between now and then, you can post as entries as you'd like!

To enter:

* Read a novella or a novelette.

* Stop by this post and write a 200 to 300 word blurb about why we should read it!

* Repeat!

Each blurb gains you an entry into the big giveaway at the end of the month! The winner will take home $30 worth of books from Book Depository!

THE UPDATES

Since work has been mad because of the upcoming holidays, I didn't put this up on time. So, to apologize and to make things interesting, here's how points will be awarded on this post:

3 points will be awarded to whomever posts a blurb for a novella that features CAKE in some way.

2 points will be awarded to whomever posts a blurb for a novella that features SOCKS in some way.

1 point will be awarded to all other blurbs.

The best part? You can convince me that your book does in fact deal with those items, whether they do or not. Be creative ;).

Novella November has begun!

It's that time!!!

Novella November has begun, and this is post one.

(Yeah, I went there. Rhyming for the win!)

THE RULES

This post is open until November 14th. Between now and then, you can post as entries as you'd like!

To enter:

* Read a novella or a novelette.

* Stop by this post and write a 200 to 300 word blurb about why we should read it!

* Repeat!

Each blurb gains you an entry into the big giveaway at the end of the month! The winner will take home $30 worth of books from Book Depository!

Get reading!

Ghost Story - Discussion Post #4

Are you ready to wrap up this read?

This time around, we're discussing the last portion of PART III and the Epilogue.

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DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

* Let's have an open discussion about the ending! What did you think? Were you happy with the resolution? Did it feel to you like everything tied up well enough?

==================================================================

MODERATOR THOUGHTS

Well, I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised with the ending! I'll admit that I completely forgot about the first portion of this story, and so when things wrapped back around I was so impressed! Finally, some resolution. I really liked Don as a character, so the fact that he was the one to finish everything up felt really apt to me. The youngest, the fittest, maybe not the bravest but definitely willing to do whatever it took. The way this whole thing at at Don killed me, but I was thrilled that he tackled it head on.

Am I a bit devastated that so many of our main characters were lost to the madness? Of course. Sears James especially, because no matter how grumpy he may have been he was still Ricky's best friend. It broke my heart that Ricky had to go on without him. Still, it takes a special kind of person to sacrifice themselves for others, and so Sears went out with bang and not with a whimper. Good for him.

If I had to rate this book, I'd give it a 4. It was a slow burn, but the middle and the ending made it all worth it. I wouldn't quite put this on par with Stephen King, to be honest. I know a lot of people compare them. To me, Peter Straub is more reserved. Or at least in this story he was. Yes, there is violence. Yes, there is death. It's not quite on the same level though. It's a bit more palatable.