Bo's Cafe Upcoming Book Tour and Giveaway

High-powered executive Steven Kerner is living the dream in southern California. But when his bottled pain ignites in anger one night, his wife kicks him out. Then an eccentric mystery man named Andy Monroe befriends Steven and begins unravelling his tightly wound world. Andy leads Steven through a series of frustrating and revealing encounters to repair his life through genuine friendship and the grace and love of a God who has been waiting for him to accept it. A story to challenge and encourage, BO'S CAFE is a model for all who struggle with unresolved problems and a performance-based life.

About Author

Bruce McNicol is president of Leadership Catalyst, Inc. and an international speaker and consultant. He holds a master's in theology and a doctorate in organizational and leadership development. Previously he served for ten years as president of the international church planting organization Interest Associates. ... more

Audio and Video

Category: FICTION

Format: TRADE PAPERBACK

Publish Date: 9/25/2009

Price: $13.99/$16.99

ISBN: 9781935170044

Pages: 256

Size: 5-1/4" x 8"

Be sure to stop back by on October 2 when I tour and post my review on this book!

There are 5 copies available giveaway, courtesy of Miriam and Hatchett Book Group. Thanks Miriam!

Rules:
1. Please include your email address with your answer, so that I can contact you if you win. You will have 3 days to respond to the email. You must put your email address in the comments or your entry is invalid. Format like faithfulgirl4[at]gmail[dot]com
2. For an extra entry, sign up to be a follower. If you're already a follower, let me know and you'll get the extra entry as well.
3. For another extra entry, subscribe via googlereader, blogger or by email and let me know that you do.
4. For another entry, blog about this giveaway and send me the link.
5. For another entry, Tweet about this contest and include @faithfulgirl along with website link.
6. For another entry, enter to win another of my giveaways and tell me that you have entered by leaving a comment here as to which one.
7. Leave a separate comment for each entry or you'll only be entered once.

The contest is limited to US and Canada only. No P.O. boxes. The contest ends at 11:59 pm EST on October 2, 2009.

August Book Giveaway Winners!!

I had 2 copies of The Lost Dog to give away compliments of the Hatchette Book Group. The winners are:

Gwendolyn
Codie

I also had 5 copies of The Blue Star to give away, compliments of the Hatchette Book Group. The winners are:

Majorie
Linda
Josh
Kelly
Andrea Jasmine

Damas, Dramas, and Ana Ruiz by Belinda Acosta

Category: FICTION

Format: TRADE PAPERBACK

Publish Date: 8/11/2009

Price: $13.99/$15.50

ISBN: 9780446540513

Pages: 336

Size: 5-1/4" x 8"

All Ana Ruiz wanted was to have a traditional quinceañera for her daughter, Carmen. She wanted a nice way to mark this milestone year in her daughter's life. But Carmen was not interested in celebrating. Hurt and bitter over her father Esteban's departure, she blamed Ana for destroying their happy family, as did everyone else. A good man is hard to find, especially at your age Ana was told. Why not forgive his one indiscretion? Despite everything, Ana didn't want to tarnish Carmen's childlike devotion to her beloved father. But Ana knows that growing up sometimes means facing hard truths. In the end, Ana discovers that if she's going to teach Carmen anything about what it means to be a woman, it will take more than simply a fancy party to do it... ... more

About Author

Belinda Acosta has written and published plays, short stories, and essays. As a journalist, her work has appeared in the Austin American-Statesman, The Austin Chronicle, the San Antonio Express-News, The San Antonio Current, and AlterNet. Her short story Tortilla Dough appeared in Saguaro, a publication of the University of Arizona in 1992. In 1993, she produced, directed and performed in a multi-media dance-theater performance of La Llorona. National exposure came in 1995 when she read her personal essay Gran Baile, on Latino USA - the Radio Journal of News and Culture, carried on National Public Radio. ... more

About the Author:
Belinda Acosta has written and published plays, short stories, and essays. As a journalist, her work has appeared in the Austin American-Statesman, The Austin Chronicle, the San Antonio Express-News, The San Antonio Current, and AlterNet. Her short story Tortilla Dough appeared in Saguaro, a publication of the University of Arizona in 1992. In 1993, she produced, directed and performed in a multi-media dance-theater performance of La Llorona. National exposure came in 1995 when she read her personal essay Gran Baile, on Latino USA - the Radio Journal of News and Culture, carried on National Public Radio.

Acosta received a Master of Fine Arts in Writing from The University of Texas in 1997. She lives in Austin, Texas and is the TV and media columnist for The Austin Chronicle.

My Review:
This was my first attempt to read a book that was a little out of my usual reading genre. I LOVED this book!! I thought I would struggle with it since there are some Spanish words in it but the book is written in a way that the reader can figure out the context of what is being said. This book opened up some dialog between the Spanish teacher at my school and I was able to learn a few new words!

I have always wanted to know about what a quinceanera is and the significance behind it. This book talks about it and how it can impact a family that is already struggling.

I found myself identifying with Bianca in this book. She is a work horse who does so to hide from issues at home. I could easily be here in this book with the exception of my inability to sew!

This is a great book for mothers and daughters alike! I would recommend it to all. There is some mild language so if that is something that bothers you, you might not want to read this particular novel. I am excited about the next book in the series, Sisters, Strangers, and Starting Over!

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Special thanks to Miriam and the Hatchett Book Group for hosting this blog tour and sending the book to review.

Be sure to check out the link to Belinda Acosta's blog here!
Join the Facebook fan page for Belinda Acosta here!

Visit these other bloggers who are also featuring this book!
August 10
http://startingfresh-gaby317.blogspot.com/
http://www.foreigncircuslibrary.blogspot.com/
http://www.latinitasmagazine.org
http://authorslatino.com/wordpress

August 11
http://yougottareadguest.blogspot.com/
http://peekingbetweenthepages.blogspot.com
http://booksandneedlepoint.blogspot.com/
http://bookinwithbingo.blogspot.com
http://molcotw.blogspot.com/
http://bridget3420.blogspot.com

August 12
http://reviewfromhere.com/
http://fallingofftheshelf.blogspot.com
http://www.brimfulcuriosities.com/
http://www.iheartmonster.com/
http://halfdesertedstreets.com/

August 13
http://bookjourney.wordpress.com/
http://booksiesblog.blogspot.com/
http://www.cherylsbooknook.blogspot.com/
http://books-movies-chinesefood.blogspot.com/
http://my-book-views.blogspot.com/

August 14
http://www.frommipov.blogspot.com/
http://brainlair.blogspot.com/
http://dreyslibrary.blogspot.com/
http://ajourneyofbooks.blogspot.com/
http://locacrazywriter.blogspot.com/

August 15
http://jennsbookshelf.blogspot.com/
http://www.thisbookforfree.com
http://abookbloggersdiary.blogspot.com/
http://bethsbookreviewblog.blogspot.com/
http://aparkavenueprincess.blogspot.com/
http://bookmagic418.blogspot.com/

Last but not least, I'm giving away a copy of this book to one lucky reader of my blog. Just leave a comment WITH YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS (in case you win so I can contact you) and tell me about the best birthday party ever! I will draw the lucky winner's name on Tuesday, Sept. 15 in conjunction with Book Blogger Appreciation Week! Look for other giveaways to occur during that time as well and be sure to vote for your favorite bloggers!!

Book Giveaway: The Blue Star by Tony Earley

Thank you to Valerie and Hatchett Books for offering 5 copies of this book for a giveaway!

Seven years ago, readers everywhere fell in love with Jim Glass, the precocious ten-year-old at the heart of Tony Earley's bestseller Jim the Boy. Now a teenager, Jim returns in another tender and wise story of young love on the eve of World War Two.

Jim Glass has fallen in love, as only a teenage boy can fall in love, with his classmate Chrissie Steppe. Unfortunately, Chrissie is Bucky Bucklaw's girlfriend, and Bucky has joined the Navy on the eve of war. Jim vows to win Chrissie's heart in his absence, but the war makes high school less than a safe haven, and gives a young man's emotions a grown man's gravity.

With the uncanny insight into the well-intentioned heart that made Jim the Boy a favorite novel for thousands of readers, Tony Earley has fashioned another nuanced and unforgettable portrait of America in another time--making it again even realer than our own day.

This is a timeless and moving story of discovery, loss and growing up, proving why Tony Earley's writing "radiates with a largeness of heart" (Esquire).

About Tony Earley

Tony Earley is the author of four books: Here We Are in Paradise, a collection of stories; the novel Jim the Boy; the personal essay collection Somehow Form a Family; and The Blue Star, a novel released in Spring, 2008. A winner of a National Magazine Award for fiction, he was named one of the twenty best writers of his generation by both Granta, in 1996, and The New Yorker in 1999. His fiction and/or nonfiction have appeared in Harper's, Esquire, The New Yorker, The Oxford American, The New York Times Book Review, Tin House, Best American Short Stories, New Stories from the South and many other magazines and anthologies.

He is a native of western North Carolina and a graduate of Warren Wilson College and The University of Alabama. He lives in Nashville, Tennessee with his wife and daughter, where he is the Samuel Milton Fleming Associate Professor of English at Vanderbilt University.


Interview with Tony Earley

Read a Chapter Excerpt

Contest Rules:
To enter, tell me about your first crush/love.

My first crush (he hated me!) was a boy named Eli. He could sing and play guitar and I thought he was the cutest thing ever. Of course, he ended up being a total jerk!!

Rules:
1. Please include your email address with your answer, so that I can contact you if you win. You will have 3 days to respond to the email. You must put your email address in the comments or your entry is invalid. Format like faithfulgirl4[at]gmail[dot]com
2. For an extra entry, sign up to be a follower. If you're already a follower, let me know and you'll get the extra entry as well.
3. For another extra entry, subscribe via googlereader, blogger or by email and let me know that you do.
4. For another entry, blog about this giveaway and send me the link.
5. For another entry, Tweet about this contest and include @faithfulgirl along with website link.
6. For another entry, enter to win another of my giveaways and tell me that you have entered by leaving a comment here as to which one.
7. Leave a separate comment for each entry or you'll only be entered once.

The contest is limited to US and Canada only. No P.O. boxes. The contest ends at 11:59 pm EST on August 31, 2009. Only one title per winning household will be awarded.

Book Giveaway: The Lost Dog by Michelle de Kretser

Special thanks to Valerie at Hatchett Book Group for allowing me to give away 2 copies of this book!

Tom Loxley, an Indian-Australian professor, is less concerned with finishing his book on Henry James than with finding his dog, who is lost in the Australian bush.

Joining his daily hunt is Nelly Zhang, an artist whose husband disappeared mysteriously years before Tom met her. Although Nelly helps him search for his beloved pet, Tom isn't sure if he should trust this new friend.

Tom has preoccupations other than his book and Nelly and his missing dog, mainly concerning his mother, who is suffering from the various indignities of old age. He is constantly drawn from the cerebral to the primitive--by his mother's infirmities, as well as by Nelly's attractions. THE LOST DOG makes brilliant use of the conventions of suspense and atmosphere while leading us to see anew the ever-present conflicts between our bodies and our minds, the present and the past, the primal and the civilized.

About Michelle de Kretser

Michelle de Kretser was born in Sri Lanka and emigrated to Australia when she was fourteen. She was educated in Melbourne and Paris and has worked as an editor and a book reviewer.

The Hamilton Case, her second novel, received the Commonwealth Writers Prize (SE Asia and Pacific region), and the Society of Authors’ (U.K.) Encore Award for best second novel of the year. It was also first runner-up for Barnes & Noble’s Discover Award in Fiction, and a New York Times Notable Book.

The Lost Dog is her third novel. It was a finalist for the Commonwealth Writers Prize and received the 2008 Christina Stead Prize for fiction.


Article: Michelle's motivation for her newest novel

Contest Rules:
To enter, leave a comment telling me about something you've lost that meant a lot to you. Did you ever find it?

I lose my mind all the time and know that if my head wasn't attached to my shoulders, it would roll off!! :)

Rules:
1. Please include your email address with your answer, so that I can contact you if you win. You will have 3 days to respond to the email. You must put your email address in the comments or your entry is invalid. Format like faithfulgirl4[at]gmail[dot]com
2. For an extra entry, sign up to be a follower. If you're already a follower, let me know and you'll get the extra entry as well.
3. For another extra entry, subscribe via googlereader, blogger or by email and let me know that you do.
4. For another entry, blog about this giveaway and send me the link.
5. For another entry, Tweet about this contest and include @faithfulgirl along with website link.
6. For another entry, enter to win another of my giveaways and tell me that you have entered by leaving a comment here as to which one.
7. Leave a separate comment for each entry or you'll only be entered once.

The contest is limited to US and Canada only. No P.O. boxes. The contest ends at 11:59 pm EST on August 31, 2009. Only one title per winning household will be awarded.

Teaser Tuesday

Teaser Tuesdays is hosted by MizB over at Should Be Reading.

TEASER TUESDAYS asks you to:

Grab your current read.Let the book fall open to a random page.

Share with us two (2) “teaser” sentences from that page, somewhere between lines 7 and 12.
You also need to share the title of the book that you’re getting your “teaser” from … that way people can have some great book recommendations if they like the teaser you’ve given!

Please avoid spoilers!!

"Yeah, because you know the most important part of the quinceanera is the barbecue after. Brisket, chicken, sausage---something more than that prissy food you girls like. The men quieren comer!" he roared.

Taken from Damas, Dramas, and Ana Ruiz by Belinda Acosta

Winners of The Night Giveaway

Thanks again to Allison and Hatchett Books for allowing me to host this giveaway. There were 5 copies available but only 4 entries qualified. Remember to leave your email address!!!

The winners are....

codiegates@....
lscho4jm@...
alipet813@...
nazatraz@...

Congrats for being my first contest giveaway winners!! Be sure to email me your complete mailing address no later than July 3!!!