Dear Reader

Dear Reader Column 03-16-12

Subscribe to one of Suzanne's online bookclubs and receive her daily
column at: DearReader.com


Sample Suzanne's book at:
Muffins and Mayhem, Recipes for a Happy (if disorderly) Life

AUTHORBUZZ: Discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win: Goto: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader

Dear Reader,

My desk is a mess. I admit it. Nobody except me can find anything on it. Everyone tells me that I should clean it, because then my life would be more organized. (I was complaining to my staff yesterday that things felt a little out of control.) They suggested a good "Spring Cleaning" was in order, but I'm not so sure that I buy their line.

They were trying to sell me on the idea that if I wanted to up the ante on the quality and amount of work that I produce, all I needed to do was clean my desk. (Go to: http://tinyurl.com/messy0316 to see my desk.) On the other hand, studies of highly productive, famous people--I might add--suggest just the opposite is true: a messy desk indicates a detailed person sits there.

I am seeing a little "office sprawl" lately. I bought a freestanding shelf last week, put it next to my desk and filled it up within the hour. And it's true, I do always have books stacked on the floor around my desk, but I'm gracious and clear a path when anyone heads in my direction.

When I published a business magazine, years ago, I had a very nice office. Handmade desk and credenza, gorgeous wall paper, comfy sofa, sun shining through my windows and artwork on my wall. People were impressed when they came to visit me. But in order to keep my office looking impressive I had to keep my "real" work piled up in stacks, on a desk out of the main office area.

Today, it's rare that anyone drops by (people email me) but if they do decide to see me in person, they visit at their own risk. I work in a corner of our home office, no door to open and close. My desk is a sight, but it's hidden behind a freestanding bookshelf, so I still look respectable. And most importantly, I feel right at home.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com
http://www.muffinsandmayhem.com/

KIDSBUZZ: Meet new authors--send an email, ask a question and they will reply. Plus enter to win a free (signed!) copy of the featured books from Jamie Harper, MISS MINGO WEATHERS THE STORM and Margaret Gelbwasser, PIECES OF US. For a chance to win free copies, say hello to the authors, and more, see www.authorbuzz.com/kidsbuzz

* This month's Penguin Classics book is THE LIFE OF JOHN THOMPSON, A FUGITIVE SLAVE by John Thompson. Start reading now and enter to win a Penguin totebag. Go to: http://tinyurl.com/March12Classics

AUTHORBUZZ: WISHES FULFILLED (Nonfiction) by Dr. Wayne W. Dyer

WISHES FULFILLED is designed to take you on a voyage of discovery, wherein you can begin to tap into the amazing manifesting powers that you possess within you and create a life in which all that you imagine for yourself becomes a present fact

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader click on WISHES FULFILLED to read more and to email author Dr. Wayne W. Dyer, you'll get a reply.

Dear Reader Column 03-15-12

Subscribe to one of Suzanne's online bookclubs and receive her daily
column at: DearReader.com


Sample Suzanne's book at:
Muffins and Mayhem, Recipes for a Happy (if disorderly) Life

AUTHORBUZZ: Discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win: Goto: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader

Dear Reader,

I took my car in for some minor repairs today and they gave me a free loaner while mine is in the shop. Usually they give me a car from the local rental company. But today, the guy who sold me my car offered me something different.

"Can you drive a stick?" he asked.

"No problem." I assured him. One of my dad's requirements for getting my driver's license was that the first car I learned to drive had to be a stick. He said if I could handle shifting on a manual, then I could drive anything. He was right and I've thanked him for it many times.

When the white BMW convertible pulled up in front of me and my salesperson got out and handed me the keys, the first thing I did was tell him not to hurry with the repairs on my car.

I'd never driven a convertible before and after driving for only one hour, I quickly learned that there are definite "do's" and "don'ts" when you're driving with the top down:

DON'T park under an oak tree. When you start driving, leaves will start flying out of your car.

DON'T look up when pelicans are flying low overhead; believe me it's frightening.

DON'T try to wave to people when you're shifting into 3rd gear, or any gear, for that matter.

DO secure any paper and light objects to something. I was eating a bag of those miniature carrots and when I finished the last one, the bag went airborne. (I caught it before it whirled out the back.)

DO wear sunglasses and roll up the side windows, or you could become a human bug shield.

And finally, if you like to sing along with the CD player when you drive, like I do...DON'T...people can definitely tell that your voice isn't the radio when you're driving with the top down.

Well, that's about everything that I've learned so far. The sun is out, (remember I'm in Florida), and it's getting late in the day. They may call and say that my car is finished soon, so...come to think of it, I really should do a few errands, cruising with the top down....of course!

* Congratulations to the winners of the new perfume that Joya Studio created after reading "The Book of Lost Fragrances," M.J. Rose's terrific new book: Jan, Joan B, Aleta, Nancy, Edie, Susan, Tami, Jane, Mary Anne, Elva, Sunshin and Kenneth.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com
www.muffinsandmayhem.com

AUTHORBUZZ: LIVING FULLY: Finding Joy in Every Breath (Nonfiction) by Shyalpa Tenzin Rinpoche

In LIVING FULLY I share my understanding of Buddhist teachings and practices. It is my heartfelt wish that these sacred teachings help to lead us toward a more meaningful and fulfilling life. The more we can integrate with the essential richness of our being, the more fully we can live.

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader click on LIVING FULLY to find out more about the book and the author, Shyalpa Tenzin Rinpoche. Send her an email, she'd love to hear from you.

*Fun, free books and meet authors. Ask questions, they'll reply and read samples from their books. Visit AuthorBuzz at: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader

(Fiction)
CHASING THE SUN, Land of the Lone Star series by Tracie Peterson

(Fiction)
ANOTHER PIECE OF MY HEART by Jane Green

(Fiction)
DAWN COMES EARLY by Margaret Brownley

(Nonfiction)
LIVING FULLY: Finding Joy in Every Breath by Shyalpa Tenzin Rinpoche

(Nonfiction)
WISHES FULFILLED by Dr. Wayne W. Dyer

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader

* This month's Penguin Classics book is THE LIFE OF JOHN THOMPSON, A FUGITIVE SLAVE by John Thompson. Start reading now and enter to win a Penguin totebag. Go to: http://tinyurl.com/March12Classics

 

 

Dear Reader Column 03-14-12

Subscribe to one of Suzanne's online bookclubs and receive her daily
column at: DearReader.com


Sample Suzanne's book at:
Muffins and Mayhem, Recipes for a Happy (if disorderly) Life

AUTHORBUZZ: Discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win: Goto: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader

Dear Reader,

Dan Chaon, author of two best-selling novels, AWAIT YOUR REPLY and YOU REMIND ME OF ME, AMONG THE MISSING, and his most recent book STAY AWAKE, a collection of short fiction inspired by the ghost stories he and his sister read as kids, is today's Dear Reader Guest Columnist.

Send Dan an email: stayawake2012@gmail.com and you'll receive a personal reply, and you might receive one of three books he's giving away to readers.

Thank you for visiting the book clubs, Dan...take it away.

My sister and I loved monster movies and mystery books, and often took turns telling one another creepy stories. At the same time, both of us were easily terrified--scared of ghosts and monsters and murderers, of course, but also scared of the dark itself, scared of the old country road beyond our house with its high rustling weeds, etc. etc.

You'd think that two people who suffered from so many fears would have better sense than to fill their minds with horror stories, but this was what my sister and I loved to read. It drove my mother crazy. Why were we drawn to such stuff, she demanded to know. We couldn't sleep without a nightlight; we dreaded being sent out to the garage to get something from the freezer after dark. Why would we want to read tales that made us even more prone to nightmares? That summer, we were camping with our younger cousins. The cousins were not prepared for the tales that my sister and I told them late at night around the fire. All of the adults were asleep when my sister began to talk about how kids in our school had begun to disappear. Every day there were more empty desks, my sister said, and turned to me. "Then, we would hear them at the playground at night," I said. They were laughing and playing tag, swinging on the swings. My sister told of how the two of us decided to go to the playground to investigate. We were surprised to find so many of our classmates gathered there. "They were very pale," I told my cousins. And when we approached, my sister said, they all closed around us. I nodded. "We saw how sharp their teeth were," I said.

Our cousins were saucer-eyed. "How did you get away?" the youngest asked, and my sister smiled sweetly. "Oh, we didn't," she said. "We're vampires now, too."

As you can imagine, the cousins' parents, our aunts and uncles, did not take kindly to having their children terrorized. My mother was furious. "What's wrong with you? Scaring those little kids like that?" She fixed her glare on the two of us. "You wait! When you least expect it, I'm going to scare the two of you like you've never been scared before! It may not happen tomorrow, it may not happen next week, but it will happen. Then we'll see how you like it!"

Weeks passed, and my sister and I waited with trepidation. I remember walking along the old dirt road and hearing a soft rustling behind me, and the hairs on my neck prickled. "Mom, I know that's you!" I cried, and took off running. But there was nothing there. Even after years, my sister said that she would sometimes think about it. She would be babysitting, alone in the house with the children asleep, and my mother's words would come to her. "I'll scare you like you've never been scared before." And she'd turn on all the lights in the house.

No doubt my mother forgot all about her threat. But my sister and I think of it. Even though she's been dead for fifteen years, we'll get that feeling of someone hiding around the corner.

"Mom?" we'll think.

Dan Chaon
http://danchaon.com/
stayawake2012@gmail.com

KIDSBUZZ: Meet new authors--send an email, ask a question and they will reply. Plus enter to win a free (signed!) copy of the featured books from Jamie Harper, MISS MINGO WEATHERS THE STORM and Margaret Gelbwasser, PIECES OF US. For a chance to win free copies, say hello to the authors, and more, see www.authorbuzz.com/kidsbuzz

* This month's Penguin Classics book is THE LIFE OF JOHN THOMPSON, A FUGITIVE SLAVE by John Thompson. Start reading now and enter to win a Penguin totebag. Go to: http://tinyurl.com/March12Classics

AUTHORBUZZ: DAWN COMES EARLY (Fiction) by Margaret Brownley

Shortly after dime novelist Kate Tenney's latest book is banned in her hometown of Boston, she answers an ad to become 'heiress' to a cattle ranch in Arizona Territory. There's one catch: If chosen, she can't marry. Kate doesn't mind; she doesn't trust men anyway...until Kate goes out West and meets Luke Adams, the town blacksmith. He awakens feelings Kate has never known.

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader click on DAWN COMES EARLY to read more and to email author Margaret Brownley, you'll get a reply.

 

Dear Reader Column 03-13-12

Subscribe to one of Suzanne's online bookclubs and receive her daily
column at: DearReader.com


Sample Suzanne's book at:
Muffins and Mayhem, Recipes for a Happy (if disorderly) Life

AUTHORBUZZ: Discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win: Goto: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader

Dear Reader,

Let's get right to it. I invite you to sample this month's Penguin Classic, THE LIFE OF JOHN THOMPSON, A FUGITIVE SLAVE, by John Thompson. I enjoyed it and I think you will, too. Start reading now and be sure to enter to win a Penguin tote bag, like the one I use.

Sample this month's Classic and enter for a Penguin tote bag, go to: http://tinyurl.com/March12Classics

And congratulations to the winners of the February Chocolate Chip Cookie Contest. Later this week, winners: Michel Gallegos, Jo Gale (from the St. Charles Public Library) and Robert Guyan, will be dunking and munching homemade cookies. (Sorry, but you'll have to get your own milk!) Please be sure to send a photo. I sure would appreciate it.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com
www.muffinsandmayhem.com

AUTHORBUZZ: ANOTHER PIECE OF MY HEART (Fiction) by Jane Green

Andi has spent much of her adult life looking for the perfect man, and at thirty-seven, she's finally found him. Ethan--divorced with two daughters, Emily and Sophia. Andi embraces the girls like they were her own. But when the dynamics between Andi & Emily escalate, they threaten everything Andi believes about love, family, and motherhood--leaving both women standing at a crossroad in their lives--and in their hearts.

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader click on ANOTHER PIECE OF MY HEART to find out more about the book and the author, Jane Green. Send her an email, she'd love to hear from you.

Dear Reader Column 03-12-12

Subscribe to one of Suzanne's online bookclubs and receive her daily
column at: DearReader.com


Sample Suzanne's book at:
Muffins and Mayhem, Recipes for a Happy (if disorderly) Life

AUTHORBUZZ: Discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win: Goto: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader

Dear Reader,

"I am grateful for this writing opportunity Suzanne."

It was a postscript at the end of one of last year's Write a Dear Reader Contest entries. When I read the note, first it made me smile, then it made me cry. Actually cry. Because being able to write brings gratitude and is a blessing in my heart. I am grateful that I've been given the job of writer here on this earth, and I am so very grateful to folks who read what I write, and take the time to write back. Yes, many people say thank you, "I loved what you wrote this morning in your column," but what I'm really grateful for are the stories readers share with me. When they read my column, it reminds them of one of their own stories. Might be a situation that happened years ago, the sweet thing their husband said to them yesterday morning, or the joy or struggle they're experiencing in their life at that very moment. Sharing stories is divine inspiration for both the writer and the reader.

Thank you for taking the time to share a little bit of your life with me, and with the authors whose books I feature at the book clubs, and at AuthorBuzz and KidsBuzz. When you send email to let an author know that their book made you laugh, or cry or inspired you, it's truly a wonderful gift.

From my Email Bag:

I have been coming down to Sarasota, specifically Turtle Beach for the past five years, a month at a time during the end of February/beginning of March. During one visit, there was an article in the local newspaper entitled 'Muffins, Mayhem and Inspiration.' It so had me intrigued and I had to read the book. I am back in Florida again for our annual trek and just finished reading your book, Muffins and Mayhem... There were times I felt you talking directly to me, as even at my age I am struggling with concern about what people think and not measuring up. Others times I was looking in a mirror...I could just so relate to what you were going/had gone through. I lost my Mom in 2007, and [the chapter] 'I Miss My Mother' truly hit home.

I truly want to thank you for writing this book and speaking to me as you did...not sure when I started reading the first 13 chapters, but I already want to go back and read it all over again. Bless you for 'not doing life the way most people do it,' and reassuring those of us others that it is O.K.'d"

Love and God-hugs, Kathy

P.S. Also loved the quote on the bookmark you sent with the bookplate...'a memoir that will make you laugh, make you cry, and make you want to cook.' I figure '2 out of 3 ain't bad' 'cause getting me to want to cook (I figure there are more important things in life) would be quite the feat but I will admit several of the recipes have peaked my interest.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Gratefully,
Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com
www.muffinsandmayhem.com

AUTHORBUZZ: CHASING THE SUN, Land of the Lone Star series (Fiction) by Tracie Peterson

Christmas in 1863 Texas is full of all the wrong kinds of surprises for Hannah Dandridge--the Civil War, news her father might be dead and a strange attraction to a rancher who appears and insists her new home belongs to him. Will running after hope and love just be like chasing the sun?

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader click on CHASING THE SUN to read more and to email author Tracie Peterson, you'll get a reply.

Dear Reader Column 03-09-12

Subscribe to one of Suzanne's online bookclubs and receive her daily
column at: DearReader.com


Sample Suzanne's book at:
Muffins and Mayhem, Recipes for a Happy (if disorderly) Life

AUTHORBUZZ: Discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win: Goto: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader

Dear Reader,

In my 30's I wanted everything in my life and in my home to be in it's place. It wasn't an obsession, but I do confess to thinking that all of the furniture in my newly built home should be color coordinated, the house always neat, no water marks on the faucets, and if a corner of the wallpaper was turning up--God forbid--get the super glue and pin it down, and hurry!

Looking back, I spent a lot of time detailing my house and detailing my life. I never wanted things to get messy and if they did, I never wanted anyone else to see my mess. Pretend everything is fine, even if it isn't. But the truth is--life is messy. And, I discovered years ago that sometimes making a mess is necessary. In fact, at times it felt pretty darn good because it took the pressure off.

I live in an old historical home now. When I get a nick in the windowsill it's called character. It's part of living. And the messes that have put a little dent in me personally, well they're character, too. Now I embrace the dents and the little smudges instead of always trying to cover them up or touch them up so they don't show.

Because life is messy and you don't always have to clean it up.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com
http://www.muffinsandmayhem.com/

AUTHORBUZZ: JUICY JOY--7 Simple Steps to Your Glorious, Gutsy Self (Nonfiction) by Lisa McCourt

Imagine feeling blissfully comfortable in your own skin, all the time. If you've ever longed for a richer life--filled with passion, clarity, and purpose--I invite you to take the 7 deceptively simple, transformative steps to Juicy Joy.

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader click on JUICY JOY to read more and to email author Lisa McCourt, you'll get a reply.

Dear Reader Column 03-08-12

Subscribe to one of Suzanne's online bookclubs and receive her daily
column at: DearReader.com


Sample Suzanne's book at:
Muffins and Mayhem, Recipes for a Happy (if disorderly) Life

AUTHORBUZZ: Discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win: Goto: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader

Dear Reader,

Today's guest columnist offers one of the most interesting "story behind the book" columns that I've ever read, and she has a very unique giveaway for readers.

When I read M.J. Rose's latest release, The Book of Lost Fragrances, I was as mesmerized by the glossary of research at the beginning of the book, as I was by the story. I'm a dedicated nonfiction reader, but The Book of Lost Fragrances was so engaging that I couldn't put it down.

Please welcome today's guest columnist, author M.J. Rose. Send her a welcome email, read her book, and hopefully you'll be one of the ten readers to receive a sample of the perfume that Joya Studio created after reading The Book of Lost Fragrances.

Email M.J.Rose at: LostFragrances@gmail.com

The Story Behind The Book of Lost Fragrances by M.J. Rose

Several years ago, I went to a brocante--a flea market--in Cannes, France. It was a perfect morning to peruse antiques; warm with a little breeze to mingle the scent of fresh flowers with seaside town's fresh salty air.

One table that caught my attention offered an intriguing mix of items laid out as if they were resting on an elegant woman's vanity.

Next to a shagreen jewelry box--opened to reveal strings of pearls, was a pair of fine creamy white kid gloves. Sunshine glinted off the silver trim of a turquoise cloisonne hair brush set and illuminated the gold lettering on a group of leather bound books all about mythology.

There were also a dozen perfume decanters scattered around. Some were cut crystal with fancy repousee silver caps. Others were intricately sculpted pieces of glasswork--the kind created by Lalique and Baccarat in the late 19th and early 20th century.

Sadly all the bottles were empty except for one with an inch or so of thick, dark perfume coating the bottom. It was the least ornate flacon. A residue of glue was visible to show where a label had once been pasted. It was capped with a green ceramic stopper shaped into a lotus--a flower that I recognized from Ancient Egyptian tomb paintings.

As I daydreamed about the woman who'd owned all these treasures, I picked up the bottle, uncapped it and sniffed.

In Remembrance of Things Past, Proust wrote about how the taste and smell of a Madeline returned him to his youth with an immediacy that nothing else ever had.

For me it was the scent in that bottle that returned me to a day years before.

Suddenly I wasn't in the square in front of the Hotel De Ville in that French town but was sixteen years old, standing on the hill overlooking Bethesda Fountain in Central Park, talking to a boy who I'd just met.

He was telling me about Plato's theory of soul mates.

And I was falling in love.

The scent in the bottle in the flea market was his scent. He'd worn a cologne--discontinued before he was even born--that he'd found in a house his parents had rented one summer.

It had been so long since I'd even smelled it--or even thought of it. But suddenly everything about that meeting--and learning about soul mates--and being sure I'd found one--and the tall boy with sly smile who had sadly long since died--came rushing back in that one inhalation.

The Book of Lost Fragrances is a very much a suspense novel weaving history into a tense hunt for a important treasure but the theme for book--an ancient scent that would help people identify their soul mates--came to life that lazy day in the south of France.

I bought the bottle from the antique dealer and it sits on a shelf with the rest of my perfume collection. I've never opened it again--I don't want the scent to evaporate any more quickly than nature will insist upon.

It's enough to know that memories lay captured inside and they were strong enough to inspire a novel.

Ten people who write me at LostFragrances@gmail.com will get a sample of the perfume that Joya Studio created after reading The Book of Lost Fragrances.

Cheers,
Author, M.J. Rose
Please visit my website: http://www.TheBookOfLostFragrances.com

AUTHORBUZZ: ILLUSION (Science Fiction) by Frank Peretti

A couple married forty years are separated by tragedy, and must overcome obstacles of time, space, and human evil to find each other, and rediscover the love they always had. ILLUSION is a sci-fi mystery and an emotionally stirring story. You'll find yourself entertained, intrigued, and turning pages as fast you can!

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader click on ILLUSION to find out more about the book and the author, Frank Peretti. Send him an email, he'd love to hear from you.

*Fun, free books and meet authors. Ask questions, they'll reply and read samples from their books. Visit AuthorBuzz at: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader

(Fiction)
THE MESSENGER by Siri Mitchell

(Fiction)
LIVING PROOF by Kira Peikoff

(Mystery)
AGONY OF THE LEAVES, A Tea Shop Mystery by Laura Childs

(Science Fiction)
ILLUSION by Frank Peretti

(Nonfiction)
JUICY JOY--7 Simple Steps to Your Glorious, Gutsy Self by Lisa McCourt

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader

 

 

 

Dear Reader Column 03-07-12

Subscribe to one of Suzanne's online bookclubs and receive her daily
column at: DearReader.com


Sample Suzanne's book at:
Muffins and Mayhem, Recipes for a Happy (if disorderly) Life

AUTHORBUZZ: Discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win: Goto: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader

Dear Reader,

Thanks for taking the time to write. Susan's been reading at the book clubs for six years and she finally had to ask...

"Hi Suzanne,

Last Friday's column about your pink skirt prompted me to email and ask a question I have been wondering about for some time. Why do you always wear skirts? I can't remember seeing a picture of you in pants or shorts, and I've been reading at the book club for 6 years now. Around here, most women only wear skirts or dresses to church, if even then, but rarely for everyday. You always look so cute in your skirts! I may have to try wearing one myself when the weather warms up.

I always enjoy your column and have discovered so many wonderful new books and authors through the book club. Thank you!"--Susan I.

(Suzanne replies:) Good eye, you are right. I rarely wear pants or shorts. My closet is filled with cotton (throw in the washer) skirts. When the weather gets cool in Florida, I add tights to the ensemble, otherwise I wear white ankle socks with Mary Jane shoes, a brightly colored shirt, accessorized with a pearl necklace and earrings and I top it off with my pink "Muffins and Mayhem" baseball cap. It's become my uniform. Thankfully skirts look cute on me, because all through the generations: great-grandma, my Grandma Hale, and my mother couldn't wear pants unless the waist stretched and allowed for...actually a column I wrote a few years ago says it best.

Every word is true, except over the years, the sizes have changed--but we don't need to go into that.

I keep two sizes of pants in my closet. Size 2 is the real me. Size 4 is my "bloat" size. Lately I have to do most of my eating at the dinner hour, because otherwise I have to change my pants half way through the day. I wear my size 2s before I eat, 4s after I eat, and then 2s later in the day when I "debloat" again. I always look smart. My pants are never wrinkled, because I don't have them on long enough to do any real crease damage.

I know the foods that cause me to expand like a balloon. Sugar is one of them. I try to avoid it. But it's tough. My husband says the problem is that I just don't eat enough of it. His advice is to eat tons of sugar, bloat up like the Goodyear blimp, switch to elastic-waist pants for a week, and get it over with once and for all. Then, my body will adjust and I'll be able to wear the size 2 pants all day long.

I know, I know, you might be thinking at this point, "Look Suzanne, I don't feel any sympathy for someone who starts at a size 2 and bloats to a size 4." But it's all relative, I assure you. If you are wearing a size 2 and you bloat up 4 inches, there just isn't room for expansion. There's no place for the bloat to go.

Well, that's the scoop from my end of the world today. I need to sign off now. I ate lunch 20 minutes ago and it's time to change my pants.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com
www.muffinsandmayhem.com

AUTHORBUZZ: AGONY OF THE LEAVES, A Tea Shop Mystery by Laura Childs

When tea shop owner Theodosia slips away from serving tea and scones at the Neptune Aquarium, she discovers the body of a man, tangled in a net, in the vast Ocean Wall exhibit. EMTs say the man drowned, but Theodosia spots defensive wounds. Though police aren't keen on her theory, Theodosia chases down a raft of suspects.

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader click on AGONY OF THE LEAVES to read more and to email author Laura Childs, you'll get a reply.

Dear Reader Column 03-06-12

Subscribe to one of Suzanne's online bookclubs and receive her daily
column at: DearReader.com


Sample Suzanne's book at:
Muffins and Mayhem, Recipes for a Happy (if disorderly) Life

AUTHORBUZZ: Discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win: Goto: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader

Dear Reader,

Do you know a teen who loves to read, or wants to be a writer? Pass on this email or if you're a librarian, post a sign in the library. I'm looking for teens who would like to write a column for our weekly Teen Book Club. It's fun, doesn't take a lot of time, and they'll have the chance to be published in the Teen Book Club.

To make it extra fun, we're having a drawing for any teens who email Tiffany this week. Teens will have the chance to win one of these great prizes: a $10 gift card to Target, Starbucks, a favorite book seller or a free teen audio book.

Have fun, get published at the club, and you might also win a gift card. Interested? Email Tiffany at: Teen@DearReader.com and on the subject line write: I WANT TO BE A TEEN COLUMNIST.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com
www.muffinsandmayhem.com

AUTHORBUZZ: LIVING PROOF (Fiction) by Kira Peikoff

In 2027, destroying an embryo is considered first-degree murder. Arianna Drake is a brilliant fertility doctor who's hiding an enormous secret. One so vital that her own life is at stake. She must protect it from the world at all costs--especially when she falls in love with the man who's out to expose her.

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader click on LIVING PROOF to find out more about the book and the author, Kira Peikoff. Send her an email, she'd love to hear from you.

Dear Reader Column 03-05-12

Subscribe to one of Suzanne's online bookclubs and receive her daily
column at: DearReader.com


Sample Suzanne's book at:
Muffins and Mayhem, Recipes for a Happy (if disorderly) Life

AUTHORBUZZ: Discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win: Goto: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader

Dear Reader,

I forgot the sugar. One and 2/3 cups of sugar. Everything was mixed and 24 cupcake liners were filled with batter and chunks of Oreo cookies, so there was no going back and adding the sugar, and re-mixing the batter, because the Oreo chunks would be mangled in the process. It was a big mistake. I even had to make a trip to the grocery store to buy another package of Oreos, and then it took another 30 minutes to redo the recipe. But I'm glad it was a whopper of a mistake, because Paul, my five-year-old grandson was watching.

Paul and I have been baking together, once a week, since he was three years old. He's quite the baker. He gathers the ingredients out of the cupboard, measures and levels flour, and even mixes and rolls pie crust from scratch. Paul's excited to learn, I'm privileged that I am able to teach him. Teacher and student, Grandma and Grandson. The student learns from the teacher, and when Paul and I were driving to the store to buy more Oreos, the teacher learned from the student.

"Don't worry, Grandma, when you make a mistake, it's okay, because you learn something new."

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com
www.muffinsandmayhem.com

AUTHORBUZZ: THE MESSENGER (Fiction) by Siri Mitchell

Hannah Sunderland felt content in her embrace of the Quaker faith, until her twin brother ran off and joined the army, and ended up captured. She longs to bring her brother some measure of comfort in the squalid, frigid prison where he remains. But Quakers believe they are not to take sides, not to take up arms. Can she sit by and do nothing while he suffers?

Spymaster Jeremiah Jones desperately needs access to the men in prison and he eyes Hannah as a possible way of garnering information. But for Hannah, agreeing to help would mean disobeying those she loves and abandoning a bedrock of her faith.

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader click on THE MESSENGER to read more and to email author Siri Mitchell, you'll get a reply.