Dear Reader

Dear Reader Column 09-17-14

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


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

Dear Reader,

I'm on vacation this week and author Chrysler Szarlan has offered to pen today's column.

As a child, Chrysler's two favorite places were the barn and the bookstore. When she was twelve years old, a bookseller handed her a copy of Jane Eyre. She went from "being a horsey girl who read horsey books" to a "besotted reader of 19th century literature." And she began scribbling her own stories, too. Now Chrysler has two dream jobs: author and part-time bookseller at the Odyssey Bookshop in South Hadley, MA. Her debut novel, The Hawley Book of the Dead, is the first in a series featuring her heroine, Revelation Dyer, stage magic and real magic, suspense, romance, and of course, horses.

Send an email and welcome Chrysler to the book club, and when you do, you'll be entered in her book drawing. You can reach Chrysler at: [email protected] (Please be sure to include your preferred shipping address, in case you're a winner.)

Welcome Chrysler Szarlan...

Sometimes I'm asked how my characters most resemble me. In my current book, the answer is easy. They love horses, and I was a horsey girl from way back. When I was a kid, all I wanted, besides books, was a horse. My parents were mystified. We lived in a small house, with a small suburban yard: no room for a horse. They thought I'd get over it, but I turned my nose up at dolls, pretty clothes, promises of Disney vacations. I cried. I kept saying, "All I want is a horse. I'll get good grades. I'll clean my room. I'll be good FOREVER."

In other words, I was a brat, but after only two years of crying, my parents agreed to riding lessons. So they drove me down the dirt road to Riendeau's farm, and I jounced up and down on the broad backs of ponies. I was seven. But I still wanted a horse of my own.

I spent every blazing hot summer day at the barn, every frigid January evening after school. I learned the archaic language of the horse: withers and stifle, snaffle and throatlatch. How to braid manes, how to clean a stall. When I was twelve, my parents let me work at the farm, work off the lease of a horse. It dates me, but leasing a horse then cost thirty dollars a month. Thirty dollars worth of hauling water buckets and shoveling manure, and Diamond was mine for the riding. Any time I wanted I could saddle her and ride off on the trails, or set up jumps in the ring and fly over every one.

When I was fourteen my parents bought me my first horse. I worked for his board, as my friends did. Horsey girls were always there to barter away all our free time. We did not complain. It was a privilege to be around the beautiful, lithe, strange creatures that smelled like the earth itself. So I came to own Tiko, or he owned me. I taught him to follow me around the pasture, to gently nuzzle my pockets and pull out a treat. I taught him to bow and to dance, nodding his head in time to the beat of Three Dog Night. He was my boon companion. He was my first love.

Since then, I've always had a horse. Sometimes I've had to scrimp and eat lots of lentils to afford the hay and grain and vet bills. But I never did get over it. Horsey girls never do.

--Chrysler Szarlan

**To see a photo of Chrysler with her horse, visit our Facebook page at: https://www.facebook.com/pages/DearReadercom/291327524280953

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

Warm regards from the vacationing,
Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]

* This month's Penguin Classics book is SAGITTARIUS RISING by Cecil Lewis. Start reading now and don't forget to enter the drawing for your chance to win a Penguin Totebag: http://www.supportlibrary.com/bc/v.cfm?L=drclassqqxqQ1AFE3FA73E7&c=CLASSICS

AUTHORBUZZ: THE COLOR OF JUSTICE (Fiction) by Ace Collins

Fifty years after his attorney grandfather tried a case that rewrote their family history, Coop Lindsay arrives in Justice, Mississippi, looking for answers to unresolved questions. When a new case is presented, this third generation lawyer believes he can finally right the wrongs of the past--if only he can stay alive long enough to prove it.

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader click on THE COLOR OF JUSTICE to read more and to email author Ace Collins, you'll get a reply.

 

 

Dear Reader Column 09-16-14

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


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

Dear Reader,

Congratulations to this year's Grand Prize winner of the Write a Dear Reader Contest, Elaine Sorrentino!

I loved the writing style in Elaine's winning column, and I especially loved the message she shared. Her words are so true. You have to be in touch with yourself and at ease in the world to observe what Elaine clearly sees. It's the little things in life that make a big difference in the joy each of us experience.

Elaine shares in today's column that...It's All About Attitude

I subscribe to the Monty Python "Always look on the bright side of life" way of living. It has helped me through lots of bumpy times.

When I was in my 30's, I spent three nights a week pouring coffee at a Dunkin' Donuts. While it was not what I ever thought I'd be doing, with my children in preschool and kindergarten, and my finances and marriage going south, Dunkies offered income and hours that worked with my situation. I knew that once my children were in full-day school, I could return to work full time. For this brief period of time, however, Dunkin' Donuts fit the bill.

There's really no secret to pouring coffee, but there are secrets to enjoying pouring coffee. As with any job I've ever had, I tried to find a way to make it fun. I have always had a passion for talking with people. Although this did not work for me when I was in elementary school and my teachers wanted a quiet class, in my 30's I could use this love to engage customers by saying something pleasant to everyone who came in. I vowed that their coffee experience would be memorable every time, and the exchange would always be positive.

Every customer who came through the door received a great big smile and pleasant conversation. Now, not every customer who came through the door wanted a great big smile and pleasant conversation, but they got a great big smile and pleasant conversation with their coffee. And soon, even the grumpiest of customers warmed up.

There was this one man, though, who just never smiled. He wasn't a regular customer. He was more of an occasional customer. He never smiled or even acknowledged that you were talking to him. He just ordered his coffee and that was that. Never anything more. Just coffee, thank you.

One day he came in and ordered a dozen doughnuts. He said he was having a meeting at work and needed to bring doughnuts. So, with box in one hand and tissue paper in the other, I asked him what kind of doughnuts he wanted.

"Oh, just any kind," he snapped, as if I was wasting his time. "Give me what other people don't want."

"Okay," I said, "I'll give you the anchovy doughnuts."

I looked at Grumpy Man and got nothing. No smile. No grin. Nothing. I wondered if I'd crossed the line. Is this the end of my short-lived Dunkin' Donuts career? Will I be dishonorably discharged from pouring coffee? I quickly filled his box with an assortment of the most popular flavors (I was already feeling sorry for those people in his meeting), and sent him on his way. The end. Or was it?

My next work day, in came Grumpy Man again. Uh-oh. I gave him the usual smile and pleasant greeting, nervously waiting for him to order his coffee. Instead, he shocked me by offering me a job. Turns out he was a school photographer (how did he ever succeed in getting those kids to smile when he never smiled?) and he was looking for a salesperson to help promote his business, and thought I was perfect for the job. He thought I was hilarious! "Anchovy doughnuts," he said, "That's the funniest thing I've ever heard."

As flattering as it was to be offered a job, I thanked him but turned him down. I just couldn't work with someone who wouldn't even give me the guffaw I truly deserved!

-- Elaine Sorrentino

It was the 10th year for my annual Write a Dear Reader Contest. Thank you to everyone who entered. It was a delight to read your stories and remember--same time, same place, next year. Start writing!

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

Enjoying vacation,
Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]

* This month's Penguin Classics book is SAGITTARIUS RISING by Cecil Lewis. Start reading now and don't forget to enter the drawing for your chance to win a Penguin Totebag: http://www.supportlibrary.com/bc/v.cfm?L=drclassqqxqQ1AFE3FA73E7&c=CLASSICS

AUTHORBUZZ: AZAGOTH (Fiction) by Larissa Ione

I'm often asked how I can write romances set in dark worlds full of violence and monsters. My answer? The human world is also full of violence, darkness, and monsters, but we still find the beauty, love, and laughter in life. When I wrote this novel, which is set almost entirely in the underworld realm of the Grim Reaper, I definitely had my work cut out for me! It's dark and gritty, and yet, steamy and romantic. Hope you enjoy!

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

Dear Reader Column 09-15-14

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


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

Dear Reader,

(Suzanne is on vacation.)

Welcome a long-time friend of the book club, author M.J. Rose, today's guest columnist.

M.J. grew up in New York City (I know, because a few years back when I was visiting, she would narrate the history of each street as we walked around--fascinating.) Growing up, M.J. spent most of her time in the labyrinthine galleries of the Metropolitan Museum, the dark tunnels and lush gardens of Central Park and reading her mother's favorite books before she was allowed. M.J. Rose believes mystery and magic are all around us but we are too often too busy to notice.... Books that exaggerate mystery and magic draw attention to it and remind us to look for it and revel in it.

M.J. lives in Connecticut with Doug Scofield, a composer, and their very spoiled dog, Winka. Her most recent novel is The Collector of Dying Breaths.

Say hello. M.J. loves to hear from readers and she answers every email. And, of course she has gifts, two copies of The Collector of Dying Breaths are waiting for lucky readers. (Please be sure to include your preferred shipping address, in case you're a winner.) Email: [email protected]

Welcome today, M.J. Rose...

The Dali Lama said if you compare yourself to people who have more than you, you will always be unhappy. But if you compare yourself to people who have less that you, you will always be happy.

I think that's amazing advice but I'd even go further and ask do we have to compare ourselves to anyone?

Can every one of us really be "big"? Does every artist, writer, musician, doctor, chef, teacher honestly have that potential?

"The measure of achievement is not winning awards. It's doing something that you appreciate, something you believe is worthwhile. I think of my strawberry souffle. I did that at least twenty-eight times before I finally conquered it."--Julia Child

I think the most important thing we each can do is figure out how we define what success will mean to us and focus on that.

From the very beginning I envisioned success as selling enough books so I could keep getting published and continue to write what I wanted to without compromising my stories.

Did I want to be a bestseller, make millions and get amazing reviews? If you'd asked I'm sure I would have said yes, but that just wasn't what I thought about.

I was focused about having the kind of long term career that would allow me to keep writing, because writing is what saves my life each and every day.

So here I am almost 15 years later with my 15th novel to be published in 2015. I've never comprised what I wanted to write.

Am I a success?

Or do I have to tell you how many best seller lists I've been on or how many copies my books I've sold?

I don't think so but there are authors and publishers who need that information to judge. So clearly success depends on who you ask. Or maybe if you're smart you'll stop asking anyone and not look beyond yourself to figure it out. Because is it what anyone else thinks, or is it what you think?

Do you want to be big? Or bold? Be popular or remarkable? Or all of them?

One of my favorite poets, Mary Oliver, wrote: Tell me, what is it you plan to do / with your one wild and precious life?

I am pretty sure no one reading this column would think that worrying about meeting some arbitrary measure of success is worth spending that one life on.

--M.J. Rose

Email M.J., say hello and you might win a copy of The Collector of Dying Breaths. Contact her at: [email protected]

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

On Vacation,
Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]

* This month's Penguin Classics book is SAGITTARIUS RISING by Cecil Lewis. Start reading now and don't forget to enter the drawing for your chance to win a Penguin Totebag: http://www.supportlibrary.com/bc/v.cfm?L=drclassqqxqQ1AFE3FA73E7&c=CLASSICS

AUTHORBUZZ: HAND OF FIRE: A Novel of Briseis and The Trojan War (Fiction) by Judith Starkston

This novel grew from my love of ancient Greeks and from a psychological puzzle posed by a Trojan War tale. Achilles, a half-immortal warrior, takes a woman captive after destroying her city and menfolk--hardly a heartwarming courtship. Yet the story shows a loving connection between them, but no explanation. I created a young healing priestess, designated as future queen, defending her city. In her lay the seeds for their relationship and for a tale of hope and resiliency.

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader click on HAND OF FIRE to read more and to email author Judith Starkston, you'll get a reply.

 

Dear Reader Column 09-12-14

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


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

Dear Reader,

I'm on vacation this week. But I'm pleased, very pleased to introduce today's guest writer Sarah Healy. Sarah is the author of Can I Get an Amen? and the newly released, House of Wonder. Her work has appeared in the New York Times and on NPR. She lives with her husband and children in Vermont where she is working on her third novel.

Email: [email protected] say hello, and you might get one of three copies of House of Wonder that are waiting for readers. (To save our guest authors' valuable time, please be sure to always include your preferred shipping address, in case you're a winner.)

Take it away Sarah Healy...

I never refer to myself as a writer; never tell people that's what I do. The few times I've tried, the word sounded strange leaving my lips. Writers have MFAs and grants and degrees from the Ivy League! Writers go to conferences! They're on panels! Writers don't write in bed. They don't write in their underpants. (Or maybe they do; I don't know many writers.) But it's also the question that follows that keeps me from calling myself a writer: the natural, innocent, "What do you write?"

How does any writer answer that question? How do we encapsulate the months and years spent with characters and ideas into a sentence or two? How do we distill our stories down to bite-size, dinner-party-friendly morsels? Try as I might, I can't do it. The words end up stuck in my mouth as I attempt to describe something that has occupied my mind for a very long time. (To which my listener surely thinks: "Wow, you're really articulate. Yes, I can see that you're a writer.")

This is especially true before publication, when the readers that have been introduced to my characters are few, when I want to protect my story--my precious story!--from being judged. It seems to go that way, doesn't it? That the culmination of all of our efforts is also the culmination of all of our fears.

My second novel, House Of Wonder, is about to be released. I worked on it for about two-and-a-half years. During that time, I thought about the people in it every day. I thought about their hearts and minds. About who they are and how they ended up where they did. I thought about their wounds and their redemption. And while that isn't really a good recipe for mental health, it has made me care deeply about them.

It can be a daunting task, writing a book. It can be long and hard and lonely and terrifying. But I've found little else that gives me quite the same sense of purpose as wanting to tell my characters' stories, as wanting to tell them well. And I don't know when I'll call myself a writer, if even after a dozen books the title would feel like it fits. Maybe it'll be when I realize that what I call myself doesn't much matter. Maybe then, if asked, I'll say that I'm a writer.

--Sarah Healy
[email protected]

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

* Congratulations to the winners of Crushed: Why Guys Don't Have to Make or Break You by Guest Columnist Jessie Minassian: Amy B., Heidi Z., Pat H., Pat C., Janice K., Linda D., Pamela C., Jan V., Gayle T., Patricia K., Linda W., Julia P., Dorie F. and Heather M.

On Vacation,
Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]

AUTHORBUZZ: A PROMISE BY DAYLIGHT (Fiction) by Alison DeLaine

Would you spy on someone in the bath? The Duke of Winston has a moral code all his own. Shrewd, no-nonsense Miss Millicent Germain is sure she can manipulate the debauched duke to suit her own agenda--but she might be making a small miscalculation.

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader click on A PROMISE BY DAYLIGHT to read more and to email author Alison DeLaine, you'll get a reply.

KIDSBUZZ: Meet new authors -- send an email, ask a question and they will reply. Plus this week, enter to win a free copy of books for kids of all ages: PINKERTON, BEHAVE! written and illustrated by Steven Kellogg; anniversary editions of IT'S SO AMAZING! and IT'S PERFECTLY NORMAL by Robie H. Harris, illustrated by Michael Emberley; and WATCH OUT, HOLLYWOOD!: CONFESSIONS OF A SO-CALLED MIDDLE CHILD by M.T. Lennon. For a chance to win, say hello to the authors, and more, see http://www.authorbuzz.com/kidsbuzz.

* This month's Penguin Classics book is SAGITTARIUS RISING by Cecil Lewis. Start reading now and don't forget to enter the drawing for your chance to win a Penguin Totebag: http://www.supportlibrary.com/bc/v.cfm?L=drclassqqxqQ1AFE3FA73E7&c=CLASSICS

 

 

 

Dear Reader Column 09-11-14

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


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

Dear Reader,

Congratulations to Rick Martin, this year's 1st runner-up in my annual Write a Dear Reader Contest. Every year I tell folks who want to enter the contest that all they need to do is tell a story. Write from your heart and it helps if you have a great first line. Indeed Rick followed the formula. What a delight to read his entry. I could tell you how Rick's story changed his life, but reading his words will do it so much better. I can tell you that this delightful man fell head over heels in love with his wife Kathleen when they both were in the fourth grade. "We were grade school sweethearts. I remember when I was in the 8th grade and we had a square dance, I was wishing Kathleen could be my partner."

And so she is now--for life. It was such a pleasure to talk with Rick. You'll enjoy his entry and be sure to look at the photo. It's beautiful.

Congratulations again, Rick Martin. Thanks so much for entering this year's contest...

When I was nine years old my mother taught me to knit. Being a boy of a short attention span I knit a nine-inch square and never knit again until about five years ago when I turned 55 and needed a quiet hobby that I could do while my wife slept.

You see I had developed an illness that caused extreme itching to the point where I would be awake scratching for periods lasting 48 hours or more. I would scratch myself until I bled and then finally fall asleep from exhaustion. So I turned to knitting in order to keep my hands busy doing something other than making myself bleed.

The doctors couldn't figure out what this illness was nor could they make the periods of itching stop. So I kept knitting--and itching. My skills at knitting kept improving while due to the itching, along with other chronic health issues, my health deteriorated ever more rapidly. My family feared I was dying.

Our daughter was dating, my health kept declining, and the doctors kept scratching their heads while performing more tests and trying different drugs. And all the while I kept knitting.

I feared that my beautiful daughter would wed and I wouldn't be there. I feared never walking her down an aisle. Our family had many open honest talks about what our future might be. I even talked to one of my long-time friends about his taking my place at her wedding. I told him the words I would want him to say in my stead. He agreed while I kept itching and knitting.

I began knitting a wedding veil for my daughter. I spent a year and four months knitting this veil out of very fine silk thread. I could only knit when my health was decent enough that I could sit up and concentrate as much as needed. I inserted 4,725 crystal beads along the way. Each of those beads represented a prayer that I prayed for my daughter and her future husband and family that I felt I'd never know.

I kept itching while doctors kept scratching their heads. And, I kept knitting.

My wife and I made a visit to a hospice. Our daughter and my wife would sit by my side and we'd talk, and cry, and pray. We had friends who came along side us helping with meals, doctor visits, and a myriad of other things. We didn't know what more to do.

My daughter met a young man and fell in love. My wife and I loved him also. I told my daughter that if I was not to live long enough to participate in her wedding that as she wore the veil it would represent my arms enveloping her with her father's love.

Finally there was a new diagnosis and with it a new batch of drugs. My health began a slow turn around. The veil was completed and it lay finished in a drawer for two years.

The young man my daughter had met proposed so my daughter picked up the veil and took it the bridal store to find the perfect dress to go with it. She held onto my arm as I walked her down the aisle and I said the words to her that I had prayed into the veil. She was married on August 10, 2013.

I'm now in better health than I've been in five years. I'm still knitting but no longer itching. The doctors are no longer scratching their heads either.

It is my prayer that if you are in a place of despair that my story might bring you hope--even while others look on and scratch their heads.

--Rick Martin

**To see photos of the beautiful veil, visit our Facebook page at: https://www.facebook.com/pages/DearReadercom/291327524280953

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

From the vacationing,
Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]

AUTHORBUZZ: With so many new books out every week, we promise these titles deserve your attention:

(Fiction)
COUNTDOWN by Fern Michaels

(Fiction)
THE BIG CROWD by Kevin Baker

(Fiction)
ROPED IN by Lorelei James

(Fiction)
A PROMISE BY DAYLIGHT by Alison DeLaine

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

* This month's Penguin Classics book is SAGITTARIUS RISING by Cecil Lewis. Start reading now and don't forget to enter the drawing for your chance to win a Penguin Totebag: http://www.supportlibrary.com/bc/v.cfm?L=drclassqqxqQ1AFE3FA73E7&c=CLASSICS

 

 

 

Dear Reader Column 09-10-14

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


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

Dear Reader,

Suzanne is on vacation this week. But you can enjoy two special treats today--and two chances to win.

First, this month's featured Penguin Classic is Sagittarius Rising by Cecil Lewis. You can start reading an excerpt now, by clicking: http://www.supportlibrary.com/bc/v.cfm?L=drclassqqxqQ1AFE3FA73E7&c=CLASSICS Don't forget to enter the drawing for a free book bag.

The second treat is today's guest writer, Cindy Woodsmall. A New York Times and CBA best-selling author of numerous works of fiction and one of nonfiction. Cindy and her dearest Old Order Amish friend, Miriam Flaud, coauthored the nonfiction, Plain Wisdom: An Invitation into an Amish Home and the Hearts of Two Women.

Cindy's been featured on ABC Nightline and the front page of the Wall Street Journal, and has worked with National Geographic on a documentary concerning Amish life. In June of 2013, the Wall Street Journal listed Cindy as one of the top three Amish fiction writers. She lives in the Foothills of the North Georgia Mountains with her family. Her latest and just released book is A Love Undone.

Five copies of A Love Undone are waiting for book club readers. Send an email and Cindy may be sending one to your address. Email: [email protected] (To save our guest authors valuable time, please be sure to include your shipping address, in case you're a winner.)

The Law of Life

Change is the law of life.
--John F. Kennedy

I welcome change when it benefits my life, and I tend to detest it when it unsettles my life or my beloved traditions.

If we look back at history, we find that the mark of most generations is the tug-of-war between what is and what is being ushered in. Whatever is established in one generation is challenged and often changed in the next--whether we're talking business models or young people's perspectives.

Change is inevitable.

As odd as it may sound, the Old Order Amish community changes too--despite that their goal is to not change with the times. It may not look as if they've changed with the times because they live without electricity, have school in a one-room schoolhouse, and travel by horse and carriage. Even though the Old Order Amish are one of the most self-sustaining cultures in America, they have to allow some changes for each younger generation or the Amish would be forced to disband and melt into our modern society.

About thirty years ago, the Amish leaders decided they wouldn't allow change concerning how their farmers worked the field. If the men worked in a shop (usually on their own property), they could use solar-powered air compression and some battery-powered tools to get their work done.

But the farmers were not allowed to use any of those things in the field. According to the leaders, their Amish forefathers had farmed without modern equipment and so could that generation.

The leaders didn't bank on what would happen next. The younger generation left the fields and opened shops of all kinds--cabinetry, indoor and outdoor furniture, shed building, etc.

At the time of their decision, the Amish leaders thought they were preserving the Old Ways. As it turned out, they undermined them. The newest generation of young adult Amish now needs to span out beyond the "home shops" because the market will only support so many Amish stores.

Apparently even the Amish can't stop change.

But the question isn't "Will I appreciate the next change or detest it?" The real question is "Am I helping usher in needed changes for the next generation, or am I holding on to the idealism of traditions?"

--Cindy Woodsmall
[email protected]

* Congratulations to the winners of Summer of the Dead by Guest Columnist Julia Keller: Diane C., Janice D., Susan B., Nancy P. and Patricia C.

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

Warm regards, from the vacationing,
Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]

AUTHORBUZZ: ROPED IN (Fiction) by Lorelei James

Injured bulldogger Sutton Grant needs help with his high-strung horse and the one woman who can give it to him--ain't exactly his biggest fan. But when horse trainer London Gradsky sees the hot, sexy cowboy, she knows he's just the man she needs to get over being dumped. When Sutton realizes the attraction between them is as real and red-hot as the feisty cowgirl's temper, he pulls out every rope trick he knows to tie her to him forever.

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader click on ROPED IN to read more and to email author Lorelei James, you'll get a reply.

KIDSBUZZ: Meet new authors -- send an email, ask a question and they will reply. Plus this week, enter to win a free copy of books for kids of all ages: PINKERTON, BEHAVE! written and illustrated by Steven Kellogg; anniversary editions of IT'S SO AMAZING! and IT'S PERFECTLY NORMAL by Robie H. Harris, illustrated by Michael Emberley; and WATCH OUT, HOLLYWOOD!: CONFESSIONS OF A SO-CALLED MIDDLE CHILD by M.T. Lennon. For a chance to win, say hello to the authors, and more, see http://www.authorbuzz.com/kidsbuzz.

* This month's Penguin Classics book is SAGITTARIUS RISING by Cecil Lewis. Start reading now and don't forget to enter the drawing for your chance to win a Penguin Totebag: http://www.supportlibrary.com/bc/v.cfm?L=drclassqqxqQ1AFE3FA73E7&c=CLASSICS

 

 

 

Dear Reader Column 09-09-14

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


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

Dear Reader,

Hundreds and hundreds of folks entered this year's 10th Annual Write a Dear Reader Contest. I'm pleased to introduce this year's 2nd Runner Up, Teresa Bateman, from Tacoma, WA.

Teresa is a delightful elementary school librarian who says she walks to school every day with her trusty new pedometer attached to her waist. But she confesses, "Walking, counting calories, it's completely useless. No matter how I eat, that extra 10 pounds is joined to my hip--maybe more?"

Nine brothers and sisters, Teresa grew up in a family of readers. Her mom was the reading inspiration for the children, "Mom was always reading to Dad whenever we would drive some place, so us kids would listen, too. She wasn't reading children's books, because really she was trying to inspire Dad to read more. But looking back, I realize Mom edited some of the books she read aloud. Because I'm sure when a main character in a book gets shot in the leg, they don't say, "'Oh, ouch! That hurt!"'

Congratulations Teresa. It's a delightful column and thank you for entering this year's contest. Your prize check is in the mail.

Enjoy Teresa's column, I sure did...

THE PERFECT PAIR OF PEDOMETER PANTS

I need to lose weight, but it's hard to know who to trust.

The Internet is next to useless.

Carbs? It depends on who you ask. Protein? Ditto. Eggs? What, are you crazy? Raw foods? Pureed foods? Steamed foods?

One thing experts seem to agree on is exercise. (Drat.) And, to make it easy, they say walking is a pretty good choice.

That's a relief, because everything else seems to require an outfit--some sort of skin-tight, all-revealing costume that is to be worn in a group setting at a gym or pool.

I don't know about anyone else, but it's hard enough for me to contemplate exercise without also having to consider the horror a form-fitting outfit would engender among those around me.

When did we slump away from sweats? Now, THAT was the perfect exercise outfit. Bulky. One size fits none. Those were the days.

But back to walking. You need no special equipment or outfits for that. Ignore those speed-walkers zipping past you in the sprayed-on shorts. (Is that the tattoo of a kitten on her tush?) They'll be out of sight in seconds, thank goodness.

You'll just need good shoes and a pedometer. Pedometers, naturally, come in a variety of shapes, sizes, and functions. There are some that can calculate calories, have GPS, monitor all your bodily functions, and can call 9-1-1 if you collapse on the path. I suspect the best ones might also have an emergency link to the nearest ice cream shop, but that's just wild speculation.

I decided to go for a simple pedometer--one that counts steps. (The very definition of "pedometer.") I was told 10,000 steps a day was a good goal, and it seemed doable. Plan in place, I clipped the machine to my waistband and set to walk.

Within a week of using my pedometer I discovered some important truths:

Pedometers and bathrooms are basically incompatible.

When a pedometer hits the floor of the bathroom stall and beeps, it automatically punishes you by deleting every step you've taken so far that day.

After picking a pedometer up off a public restroom floor you can wash it, and your hands, but a level of trust has been lost that may never be regained.

The person in the next stall, spotting the pedometer on the floor, will giggle hysterically with no attempt to muffle the sound.

A falling pedometer does not always hit tile.

The biggest thing I learned, however, is that pedometers behave differently depending on the pants you're wearing. Clip one to certain high-waisted trousers and you could walk from San Francisco to New York and the pedometer would calmly inform you that you had taken a total of 4,093 steps, assuming no unfortunate bathroom breaks.

Clip the same pedometer onto a pair of hip-huggers (or "muffin-toppers" as I prefer to call them) and merely breathing in and out makes it look like you've hiked to the top of Mount Everest. Twice.

Of course the downside is that you are sporting a pair of pants that tells everyone why you're wearing a pedometer in the first place. So throw on a long bulky shirt to cover the expanse from waist to rear. You know what kind of shirt would work really well? A big sweatshirt!

Unfortunately, I discovered the best pedometer pants in my wardrobe--the ones that gave me the most steps with the least effort--were plaid, green and orange, and bell-bottomed. They engender horror in all those around me.

Well, sacrifices have to be made for health, right? And with exercise it's all about the outfit.

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

Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]

AUTHORBUZZ: THE BIG CROWD (Fiction) by Kevin Baker

Based closely on the greatest mystery in mob lore, this is the story of a mayor of New York, married to the hottest fashion model in the country, who must flee to Mexico when he's accused of having a key criminal witness murdered. Did he do it?

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader click on THE BIG CROWD to find out more about the book and the author, Kevin Baker. Send him an email, he'd love to hear from you.

Dear Reader Column 09-08-14

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


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

Dear Reader,

Every year I take a long vacation in September. Usually my husband and I head to the Smoky Mountains, but this year we're sprucing up our house. (Well, I am anyway. My husband is sprucing up an old sailboat.) A local artist is helping me redo my kitchen, so it reflects my vintage style and my bathroom is getting a whitewash--I'll explain later complete with photos. I'm looking forward to the transformation. Since I work from my home, my surroundings are important and inspiring.

I'll be gone until September 22nd, but while I'm away you'll be reading a column written by a different author each day, and you'll be able to read the winning entries in this year's 10th Annual Write a Dear Reader Contest.

In case I don't say it often enough, it's a real pleasure to prepare the book club and to talk with you via email every day. Thanks for reading with me. It's an honor to read with friends like you.

Today's guest writer is Jamie Langston Turner, the award-winning author of several novels, including Sometimes a Light Surprises and Winter Birds. Her latest novel, To See the Moon Again was just released.

Jamie has been a teacher for more than forty years. She is currently a professor of poetry and creative writing at Bob Jones University. Jamie lives in Greenville, South Carolina, with her husband.

Please welcome Jamie to the book club and she has copies of To See the Moon Again, to give to readers. To enter the drawing, go to: http://www.jamielangstonturner.net/contact.htm and be sure to put BOOK GIVEAWAY on the subject line.

Take it away Jamie Langston Turner...

THE CHALLENGE

I was a skinny fourteen-year-old when Daddy said, "I have a challenge for you. If you can beat me in a game of tennis, I'll give you ten bucks. And if you take a set, twenty." As a pair of coveted penny loafers sprang to my mind--on sale for $18.99 at Anderson's Department Store downtown--I knew I had to go for the set, not just a game.

The challenge sounded easy. After all, I had recently won a trophy in the city tournament for juniors. My father, already in his forties, had won no trophies that I was aware of.

But I soon learned that it would be harder than I thought. At first every time we played, the score was 6-0, his favor. I couldn't even win a game, much less a set. Fortunately, though, due to a little luck on my part and a couple of unforced errors on Daddy's, I finally won the ten-dollar challenge when I was sixteen.

Winning a set, however, eluded me--for decades, in fact. I went to college, graduated, started teaching, got married, had a child, wrote some books. Meanwhile Daddy kept increasing the pot, until it was up to $250. We would play a set or two every time we were together, but his crafty placement and drop shots, which he called "chilly dippers," were always my downfall.

Years later I helped my parents move from their home in Kentucky to South Carolina, where we lived. Daddy and I played tennis more regularly now, but he still won each set.

And then one fall day it finally happened. I somehow managed to beat him 7-5. I was 50, and he was 77. It was nearing sundown that day--metaphorical, I thought, since neither of us was getting any better.

I was laughing and crying at the same time as Daddy gave me a hug and said he would pay up the next day after he went to the bank. He did, and I went shopping a few days later. One of my purchases was a pink dress with pearl buttons.

I wore it to Daddy's funeral three years later.

When it was time to retire the dress after several years, I cut it up to use as background fabric for a cross-stitch picture I made as a gift for our first grandchild. With every stitch, I thought about the happy prospect of Svana someday saying to one of her own children, "I have a challenge for you...."

--Jamie Langston Turner
http://www.jamielangstonturner.net/contact.htm

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

On Vacation,
Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]

AUTHORBUZZ: COUNTDOWN (Fiction) by Fern Michaels

The Sisterhood have had many adventures together over the course of over twenty books, and now the men in their lives are stepping into the spotlight!

It takes a special kind of man to love and be loved by one of the Sisterhood. The women's escapades have brought them worldwide fame and created a bond among their menfolk too. But now, Jack, Ted, Harry, Joe, Bert and Abner have formed a secret group of their own and they've got a project in mind--taking down some of Washington, D.C.'s most ruthless slum landlords.

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader click on COUNTDOWN to read more and to email author Fern Michaels, you'll get a reply.

Dear Reader Column 09-05-14

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


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

Dear Reader,

I'm home, everything is lined up. My heart is at peace.

Warm towels, it's a tradition at our house. When my husband hears the bath tub water running, he throws two fluffy, white towels into the dryer and sets in on high. Then he brings another towel into the bathroom, doubles it up, and sits down on top of the toilet seat. It's a solid, sleek vintage looking toilet cover that looks great, but it's hard on your behind if you sit too long. My husband and I, we talk, or not. We love being together in the same room. It's romantic. After 36 years together we can share "conversation" without saying a word out loud.

"Just a minute, let me get the towels," my husband sees that I'm starting to get out of the bath, he gets up, heads to the dryer, and soon I'm wrapped in two warm bath towels.

Cradled in warm towels, I lay back on my bed and sigh, and soon I feel like I'm home. Thankfully not the home I grew up in. The new home I've created for myself inside my heart. It's a challenge to find my way home sometimes. The business of life, worrying and fretting, some days I feel like a wandering old woman whose memory is slowly fading away. I struggle to find my way home. Life can be too much, but finally in a clearer moment, when I can let go of worry and stress, there it is. I see it clearly. I walk through the familiar door, and I'm home.

My heart has found peace. 'You're home, Suzanne. Welcome home!'

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

Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]

AUTHORBUZZ: ACCIDENTS OF MARRIAGE (Fiction) by Randy Susan Meyers

What is the toll of emotional abuse? Maddy's husband is her greatest blessing and biggest curse. Brilliant and charming when he chooses, Ben turns into a raging bull when crossed--and Maddy never knew what would cross him. An examination of the effect a tragic accident has on a family, exploring unintended consequences, traumatic injury and children lost in the shuffle.

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader click on ACCIDENTS OF MARRIAGE to read more and to email author Randy Susan Meyers, you'll get a reply.

Dear Reader Column 09-04-14

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


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

Dear Reader,

My cat chose me. Abby was a stray cat and I guess one day she just decided she was tired of living in the streets, wanted a home, and she chose mine. Just a little bit of a thing, still a baby, she'd sit in my driveway and meow. Her cries were so sweet; I couldn't resist going outside to see what she wanted. I'd give her some food, pet her, give her a few snuggles and then I'd go back inside.

The little bundle of joy didn't give up. Day after day she'd sit in my driveway, in the afternoon she'd jump up on the windowsill and watch me working through my sunroom window. Then she'd call out to me, I'd go outside to see her and finally one day we came back inside together. Abby chose me. I had no idea I needed her, but she was patient with me.

Maybe other things in life can choose me too, if I let them? Maybe I don't need to spend so much time looking, trying to figure everything out. I do my best writing when I don't really think about it. One key, then another, the words come easily, and when I have trouble writing, it's me that's standing in the way. But thankfully the words are patient, because just like Abby, they know where they belong.

*Couldn't resist showing you a picture of Abby, go to: http://www.emailbookclub.com:80/photo/abby.html

* The winner of the Surprise Box filled with Good Stuff giveaway is Glynis S.

* Congratulations to the winners of Thief of Glory by Guest Columnist Sigmund Brouwer: Sharon T., Lynn D., Jan J., Pat H., Pat C., Betty R., Debbie F., Laura J., Susan M., and Rita P.

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

Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]

AUTHORBUZZ: With so many new books out every week, we promise these titles deserve your attention:

(Fiction)
TRIED AND TRUE by Mary Connealy

(Fiction)
A LIGHT IN THE WILDERNESS by Jane Kirkpatrick

(Fiction)
THE MOMENT OF EVERYTHING by Shelly King

(Fiction)
ACCIDENTS OF MARRIAGE by Randy Susan Meyers

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