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Help a Reader Out: Going to Grandma’s House

A mystery keyword searcher is looking for…

…a children’s scary story about a little boy visiting Grandma and not going to sleep.

It could be Henry and Mudge and the Bedtime Thumps, which is about a little boy visiting his grandma and not going to sleep, but if you’re looking for something scarier, this probably isn’t the one our searcher is looking for (although, if you’d like to check it out, it is part of a great series of easy readers by Cynthia Rylant).

But I suspect that it is Monster Night at Grandma’s House, by Richard Peck, published in 1979. It has wonderful, scary illustrations to go along with Peck’s excellent storytelling. Sadly, it is out of print, but you can find used copies on Amazon, or possibly at your local library, which is where I initially discovered it.

Any other suggestions?

Posted on October 9, 2012 by , Reply

All Hallow’s Read: Give a Book This Halloween

All Hallow’s Read is a “new” Halloween tradition established by author Neil Gaiman, who suggested on Twitter a few years ago that we all give someone we love a great scary read on October 31st. After all, why should gifts wait for birthdays or Christmas? I love this idea.

  I’m not the only one, by far. But in particular, a number of authors have decided that All Hallow’s         Read is a great opportunity to not only give the gift of fear to the ones you love, but also to share it with other people who might not be so lucky. Ten authors have banded together for a blog tour– Fiction Frolic for All Hallow’s Read— to encourage people to donate books to the nonprofit literacy organization Books for America, based in Washington, D.C., between now and October 19.  Donating books will enter you in a giveaway, but who needs a reason to share their love of reading?  Here are the details about the giveaway and about donating books, sent to me by the authors participating in the Fiction Frolic. I hope you’ll decide to donate!

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Help Raise 1,000 books for charity and enter to win $200, signed books and swag!

We are excited to share about an ambitious blog tour—Fiction Frolic for All Hallow’s Read—where ten authors from several genres are working hard to raise 1,000 books in three weeks for Books for America.

From October 1st to 19th, donate a new book (or books!) and earn extra bonus points in a huge giveaway that these authors are hosting.

Two winners will each receive the following PRIZES!          a Rafflecopter giveaway

$100 Amazon G.C.
5 signed books from the authors hosting the event
A swag bag
Plus—in honor of All Hallow’s read, gift a signed copy of one of our books to a friend!

With a total of $200, 12 signed books (including the gifted books) and major swag, what better way is there to raise books for charity and celebrate All Hallow’s Read?

Each author participating is also donating signed copies of their books to Books for America, an awesome charity that is officially sponsoring their event and excited to be involved with All Hallow’s Read. In 2011, Books for America donated more than $800,000 worth of books and materials to DC area schools, shelters and dozens of other educational programs and organizations.

The authors are blogging throughout the event at The Fiction Frolic Blog.
• 10/1-5 Read about how books shaped their love for reading and writing.
• 10/8-12 Read their scariest, funniest or craziest Halloween experiences, or learn about their favorite Halloween themed book or movie, or favorite work of “dark” literature.
• 10/15-19 Enjoy some flash fiction, short stories and novel excerpts.

So donate, share, and look for daily ways to enter to win. Donate to charity for bonus points!.

This event is sponsored by:
Eleanor T Beaty, author of the YA paranormal Veiled Mist
Brewin’ author of the supernatural horror, The Dark Horde
Andy Gavin, author of the fantasy horror, The Darkening Dream
Laxmi Hariharan, author of the YA fantasy, The Destiny of Shaitan
Kimberly Kinrade, author of the YA paranormal thriller/romances, Forbidden Mind & Forbidden Fire
Richard Long, author of the supernatural thriller/horror, The Book of Paul
M.C. Mars, author of the mind-bending novel, Burner
Melissa McPhail, author of epic fantasy Cephrael’s Hand
Sheryl Steines, author of She Wulf & Days of First Sun
Pavarti K Tyler., author of the Lit Fic Shadow on the Wall and the erotic horror Consumed by Love

Posted on October 9, 2012 by , 1 comment

Why Libraries Will Never Die

There’s a guy named Marc Bodnick, who apparently participates in some kind of social media experiment at Forbes magazine called Quora, where the contributors ask questions of each other and then they all try to answer the question as completely as possible and organize the information effectively, such as “What is a Realistic Trade The Lakers Can Get to Get Dwight Howard”? Kinda sounds like they’re trying to invent Wikipedia, with fewer contributors, but experiment is the way we learn.

Marc decided to address a different question, and the question he decided to answer is: “Will Public Libraries Go Exctinct”? His answer, although he elaborated it in much more detail here, was “basically, yes”, That’s based on his assumption that the most important service libraries have is lending books, and that people don’t borrow books anymore because they all have ereaders, which are more convenient. And also, that most “power readers” will love reading on their Kindles instead of holding a book in their hands. (News flash, Marc, I’m one of those power readers (aka insane bibliomaniacs) and I know many others who read not just one kind of book, but BOTH). My dad agrees with Marc,  by the way… thanks for the support, Dad.

The response to Marc’s theory from librarian Erica Freedman, which appeared just below his response, was this:

 

Most libraries now lend e-books, music, and magic.

Wow. That’s something I never thought I’d see in Forbes. Or in any response by any librarian to this particular argument. But I like it. And I think it’s true.

Wait. That can’t be right. Maybe I need to finish my coffee?

 

Okay, done now. Let me see that again.

 

Most libraries now lend e-books, music, and other media as well. But the real reason libraries will disappear is that people “perceive” them as only lending books”.

 

Well, that’s more what I expected, especially in a response that appears in Forbes. But I liked the first one better, Erica. Optimism and magic are both pluses in the library world. Can I change it back? I think I will, if it’s okay with you.

 

…Libraries lend e-books, music, and magic.

 

 

Marc, imagine what else they might share with this world. Or others. A Kindle book won’t protect you, once you start moving through the story of Stephen King’s Ur. You might WANT to give that back to the library.

I don’t think anyone wants the magic to die. And, since libraries aren’t businesses, and the world needs them for much more than ebooks, these places of knowledge, growth, and inspiration, the heartblood of their communities, will continue on. And the magic will, too.

And that is why libraries will never die.

Posted on October 8, 2012 by , Reply
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