Wednesday, April 18, 2012
Lemonade out of Lemons
Making lemonade out of lemons...No more dogs in any part of the Bookstore, it's the law. Any suggestions on how we can make the outside of our store more dog friendly and comfortable for their owners?
We are animal lovers in general, but The Grove is such a cool, laid back dog friendly atmosphere. We think it's very sad that one local person can complain enough that it ruins the fun for the rest of us. What we want to do is make our dogs feel welcome. Your thoughts will help us discover how to include all of our customers!
Monday, April 16, 2012
More about The "Jason Steed Series: Fledgling & Revenge"
Editorial Review
"Grades 5-7: Set during the 1960s and 1970s, the novel follows Jason Steed from his birth, which caused his mother's death and created a rift between him and his father, to a critical mission he accidentally joins at age 11. Jason is almost superhuman: his martial arts skills across several styles are amazing, his linguistic ability incredible, and his tenacity and resolve, even at age five, are impressive. But despite his amazing skills and his knack for getting himself into places and organizations where he shouldn't be, Jason has normal emotions: he craves his father's love, he develops firm friendships, he takes a stand against bullies, and he mourns when he cannot prevent the deaths of his friends. The action is fast, and the spy and military aspects of the Sea Cadets, a British organization that trains youngsters for the military, seem designed to appeal to reluctant male readers. The novel is violent, particularly in Jason's final (and accidental) mission, and the deaths that impact him are handled with grace, even while physical injuries are graphically described. The writing is a little unpolished, and Jason's maturity and abilities are over the top, but the adventure is exactly on target for the intended audience."
-Alana Joli Abbott, formerly at James Blackstone Memorial Library, Branford, CT (c) Copyright 2010.
Book 1 of 2
About the Author
"Mark A. Cooper was born in London and moved with his wife and son to the U.S. in 2003. When his 12-year-old son's grades improved after reading the Harry Potter series, Mark decided to encourage literacy with his own novel. He self-published Fledgling: Jason Steed and the novel has enjoyed huge success and a devoted following on the web."
Book Description
"Jason Steed is looking for a place to call home. He finds what he's looking for in the Sea Cadets-an elite group of British youngsters being groomed for lifelong service in the military. But when a routine training exercise goes awry, Jason finds himself in the middle of a secret mission. The future of the world hangs in the balance...and Jason might be the only one who can save it."
"Grades 5-7: Set during the 1960s and 1970s, the novel follows Jason Steed from his birth, which caused his mother's death and created a rift between him and his father, to a critical mission he accidentally joins at age 11. Jason is almost superhuman: his martial arts skills across several styles are amazing, his linguistic ability incredible, and his tenacity and resolve, even at age five, are impressive. But despite his amazing skills and his knack for getting himself into places and organizations where he shouldn't be, Jason has normal emotions: he craves his father's love, he develops firm friendships, he takes a stand against bullies, and he mourns when he cannot prevent the deaths of his friends. The action is fast, and the spy and military aspects of the Sea Cadets, a British organization that trains youngsters for the military, seem designed to appeal to reluctant male readers. The novel is violent, particularly in Jason's final (and accidental) mission, and the deaths that impact him are handled with grace, even while physical injuries are graphically described. The writing is a little unpolished, and Jason's maturity and abilities are over the top, but the adventure is exactly on target for the intended audience."
-Alana Joli Abbott, formerly at James Blackstone Memorial Library, Branford, CT (c) Copyright 2010.
Book 1 of 2
About the Author
"Mark A. Cooper was born in London and moved with his wife and son to the U.S. in 2003. When his 12-year-old son's grades improved after reading the Harry Potter series, Mark decided to encourage literacy with his own novel. He self-published Fledgling: Jason Steed and the novel has enjoyed huge success and a devoted following on the web."
Book Description
"Jason Steed is looking for a place to call home. He finds what he's looking for in the Sea Cadets-an elite group of British youngsters being groomed for lifelong service in the military. But when a routine training exercise goes awry, Jason finds himself in the middle of a secret mission. The future of the world hangs in the balance...and Jason might be the only one who can save it."
More about "Wicked Good"
"A single mom struggles to solve the puzzle of a son with Asperger's syndrome in this touching, winsome comic melodrama. A funny, frazzled tale of extreme parenting." -Kirkus Reviews
"Amy Lewis Faircloth and Joanne Lewis are sisters. Wicked Good, their novel about Archer Falcon and her 15 year old son, Rory, who has Asperger's syndrome, is a moving account of unconditional love. Amy lives in Maine with her two sons and two dogs. Joanne lives in Florida with her dog. Despite the distance, they know unconditional love."
More about "101 Salvations" & "Lies for The Entire Family"
Lies for the Entire Family is a great book of short stories full of facts and creative imagination. I believe it's audience will be children of all ages that have an open mind and want to look at things in a different perspective. The font is a script and is an illusion in itself with a color changing scroll. The blurb on the back cover reads: " Lies for the Entire Family was created with the goal of encouraging people of all ages to wonder, explore, think outside of the box and create their own realities about life.
101 Salvations is a great book for any animal lover! Written from the voice of actual rescue dogs each dog tells their tale of woe, rescue and their individual happy ending. The blurb on the back cover reads: "The purpose of this book is to share with you, the reader, the enormous and tragic plight of abandoned and forgotten dogs. Through these stories, you will read about the remarkable rewards that occur when the rejects of our society find a home where they are needed nd loved. Ultimately these outcasts will change the lives of the families that adopt them. You also can make a difference and change a life."
More about "A Summer Remembered"
A SUMMER REMEMBERED Libby, the author of several religious titles (The Forgiveness Book, 2010, etc.), makes his fiction debut with a charming, evocative coming-of-age novel.
In 1947, 16-year-old Cooper Dawkins is a normal American kid with a big problem—his parents are divorcing. Through a teacher at his Long Island high school, Cooper gets a job at a summer hotel in Vermont and considers it a perfect chance to escape. Planning to pass himself off as older and full of the ambition to “become a man, although he wasn’t quite sure what that meant,” Cooper arrives in Vermont and quickly discovers he sticks out like a sore thumb among the college students staffing the hotel (his proudly purchased cigarettes even turn out to be the wrong brand). He flirts with the beautiful Ronnie and the treacherous Sheila and befriends the brassy but true-hearted Rosie, who is proudly Jewish. The casual anti-Semitism Rosie endures, along with the fashions, music and mores, effectively evoke the era, warts and all. Cooper is assigned to the kitchens, presided over by the temperamental German chef Rudy and his long-suffering wife, Gretchen. Between his secret drinking, temper tantrums and vile screeds against Rosie, Rudy makes a memorable villain, though he also shows Cooper great kindness in the kitchen. As the summer wears on, Cooper has to contend with thwarted romance, sexual humiliation, an over-the-top confrontation with Rudy and an urgent summons home from his mother before the season is over. These bitter touches are a wonderful contrast to the frequent doses of nostalgia and give the work a pleasing verisimilitude. The commentary of the hotel’s gossipy laundry ladies is a distracting narrative device, and some of the characterizations of the staff go no deeper than their college affiliations, but these are small missteps. Luckily for readers, Cooper’s remembered summer ends on a high note, drawing to a memorable, satisfying conclusion. Given the potential for sentimentality in this material, restraint turns out to be the most admirable thing about Libby's prose; his matter-of-fact sentences evoke details without bogging down in wistfulness.
A truthful, touching coming-of-age novel that will have particular appeal for 1940s buffs and connoisseurs of New England summer-hotel culture.
In 1947, 16-year-old Cooper Dawkins is a normal American kid with a big problem—his parents are divorcing. Through a teacher at his Long Island high school, Cooper gets a job at a summer hotel in Vermont and considers it a perfect chance to escape. Planning to pass himself off as older and full of the ambition to “become a man, although he wasn’t quite sure what that meant,” Cooper arrives in Vermont and quickly discovers he sticks out like a sore thumb among the college students staffing the hotel (his proudly purchased cigarettes even turn out to be the wrong brand). He flirts with the beautiful Ronnie and the treacherous Sheila and befriends the brassy but true-hearted Rosie, who is proudly Jewish. The casual anti-Semitism Rosie endures, along with the fashions, music and mores, effectively evoke the era, warts and all. Cooper is assigned to the kitchens, presided over by the temperamental German chef Rudy and his long-suffering wife, Gretchen. Between his secret drinking, temper tantrums and vile screeds against Rosie, Rudy makes a memorable villain, though he also shows Cooper great kindness in the kitchen. As the summer wears on, Cooper has to contend with thwarted romance, sexual humiliation, an over-the-top confrontation with Rudy and an urgent summons home from his mother before the season is over. These bitter touches are a wonderful contrast to the frequent doses of nostalgia and give the work a pleasing verisimilitude. The commentary of the hotel’s gossipy laundry ladies is a distracting narrative device, and some of the characterizations of the staff go no deeper than their college affiliations, but these are small missteps. Luckily for readers, Cooper’s remembered summer ends on a high note, drawing to a memorable, satisfying conclusion. Given the potential for sentimentality in this material, restraint turns out to be the most admirable thing about Libby's prose; his matter-of-fact sentences evoke details without bogging down in wistfulness.
A truthful, touching coming-of-age novel that will have particular appeal for 1940s buffs and connoisseurs of New England summer-hotel culture.
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