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Friday, November 11, 2011
Thursday, November 10, 2011
Today we welcome Pavarti K Tyler, author of Two Moons of Sera. She is on an extensive book tour and has stopped by with a guest post.
The Esoteric Reader - by Pavarti K Tyler
I'm willing to bet that half the books on my bookshelves are things you've never heard of. I know, I sound like a snob when I say that, and in a way I am. A literary snob. Not because I've read and bow down to the greatness of canon (because I don't) but because I have made it my life's mission to find the books that are the most interesting, most unique, best crafted pieces of writing I can find. It's been a hit or miss endeavor but in the end it's been worth it.
This is not to say that I don't enjoy a good NYTs best seller now and then. Hell, I'm one of those "twilight people" you've been known to make fun of (don't pretend you haven't). I love a good new Sookie book and often pick up whatever the newest big thing is when I'm at the airport. But left to my own devices I'm more likely to check out the newest release from Interlink Books than Random House.
Perhaps this is why the idea of Indie Publishing is so exciting to me. I've not put much stock in the idea that doing things the way everyone else does is a good thing. I never have, just ask my family. I didn't go to the college I received a scholarship at because it wasn't what I wanted to do. I didn't marry a man my father approved of. I didn't get a job as a high powered professional. I didn't stay home with my kids like a good wife should. In fact, anytime there's a rule, the only thing you can count on is that I'll try my damnedest to find a way to break it.
When seen in that light it's not surprising that I make my day to day living as an entrepreneur, or that I am drawn to the stories that are rarely told. I certainly love a number of mainstream books but for a moment; let's revel in a few you may not know:
Moth Smoke - The world isn't really that big or complicated, we're all people
Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World - What is real?
Games of the Strong like Hunger Games? It was pretty much a direct rip-off of this
The Reapers Are the Angels - Zombies! Brains! The best book ever.
Amrita - What is it to be human?
A Sky So Close - A warzone through the eyes of a child
The Far Euphrates - the holocaust did so much more than kill people.
Changes: A Love Story - think you understand polygamy, you don't till you read this.
All of these books ARE traditionally published. Many of them have won awards and achieved significant success. I'm not special in my enjoyment of them, and believe me, I'm no high bar, Battlefield Earth is one of my absolute favorites (don't judge until you read it, you'll be shocked by how good it is). But these are not titles you will see in your local bookstore, or in the Barnes and Noble "Staff Pics" section. And why not? What is it about them that renders them commercially unviable?
Probably the same thing that draws me to them.
These are stories that are not comfortable, are not familiar. These are stories that challenge our minds in a way that Incarceron (which I couldn't even finish) simply does not. I love a book that I can loose myself in so completely that I become another person, live another culture, revel in the sorrows and pain of a life I have never lived.
And this is my definition of success. Why am I Indie Publishing? Because I don't want to ever hear "yeah, but if you change this it will sell better." Instead I want you to read it and then sit back, take a deep breath and shake your head, unable for a moment to be sure which world is real and which was within the pages of a book.
Pavarti K Tyler is an artist, wife, mother and number-cruncher who has been committed to causing trouble since her first moment on this Earth. Her eclectic career has flirted with Broadway, Teaching, Law Firms and the IRS.
Pavarti K Tyler's novel Two Moons of Sera is a Fantasy/Romance and is being released in a serial format. Her next novel Shadow on the Wall is scheduled for release early 2012. Shadow on the Wall is the saga of Recai Osman — businessman, philosopher, Muslim and . . . superhero.
Order Your Copy Now
As a thank you to all of my amazing readers and supporters, I am hosting a month long rafflecopter giveaway on my blog! Enter for your chance to win:
my review of Two Moons of Sera
Fascinating, well written fantasy tale. Serafay is the child of a Saulwet (creature of the sea) and an Erlander (creature of the land). She is hidden from a world at war with itself. Sera is a marvelous character, strong-willed and cautious, but eager to learn about others on her world. She meets Tor, an enigmatic character. He is large and brawny but also gentle and vulnerable. I love reading the interactions between these two characters.
This is part one of a serial novel. Part 2 will be released in January 2012. I look forward to reading the rest of the story. I want to learn more about these characters and about the strange genetic experiments that resulted in Sera's birth.
This is part one of a serial novel. Part 2 will be released in January 2012. I look forward to reading the rest of the story. I want to learn more about these characters and about the strange genetic experiments that resulted in Sera's birth.
What book am I thankful for?
WHAT BOOK AM I MOST
THANKFUL FOR?
Ok, this is an easy one.. kind of corny, but the book I am most thankful for is the one that started me on my reading voyage.
As a child, I hated reading. My mother tried everything to get me interested in reading, but to no avail. I thought it was a boring waste of time. The Scholastic Book pamphlet came home with me. I was in the second grade. Mom said "pick out a book and I'll buy it for you." I remember rolling my eyes, but I sat down at the table, looked through the pamphlet and chose a book. I fully expected to get the book and throw it in my desk, never to be read. Well...it didn't work as I planned. I read the book. I reread the book. Then I read it again. To this day that book has a very warm, solid place in my heart. I call it the beginning of my voyage. A voyage to other places, other times, other worlds. On my voyages throughout the years, I've met aliens, battled warlords, encountered evil magicians and rescued royalty. I'll never forget that book. To this day I still have a copy. I have two actually, my original copy that I keep in a sealed ziploc bag and a second copy I use to read when I'm feeling lonely. My mom is no longer with me, she passed away several years ago from cancer. I miss her terribly. When I'm feeling sad or lonely I pull out the book and read it. It reminds me of a simpler time. A time when I was a little girl just learning about the wonders of a good book, and I can hear her voice yelling "Donna, put that book down and come to the dinner table."
The name of this book? MAGIC ELIZABETH by Norma Kassirer
yes, this is the famous book, with the original cover. Notice the price of 75 cents. I love this book. I've included a summary of the book.
If it weren't for the picture of the girl and her doll hanging over the fireplace in her pretty room, Sally would be miserable staying with Aunt Sarah. For everything in this strange old house tucked between tall apartment buildings is scary and mysterious. In the dark, rainy night the house seems almost a witch's house, and Aunt Sarah herself, whom Sally has never seen before, is very old, a stooped figure with thin gray hair and gnarled fingers.
But the other Sally in the picture is smiling. She's about Sally's own age, and once, long ago, she lived in the big old house. In fact, her room was this very room. She's wearing a yellow bonnet with ribbons, a long blue dress with layers of ruffles, and high-buttoned shoes; and she's holding a rag doll on her lap, an adorable doll with eyes the pleasant shape of watermelon seeds, dressed exactly like her mistress except that her hands are tucked into a tiny white fur muff.
Sally soon finds the other Sally's trunk in the dusty old attic. The yellow bonnet and the blue dress are there, even the other Sally's diary. But not the rag doll, for Elizabeth mysteriously disappeared one snowy Christmas Eve long ago. The other Sally had thought Elizabeth might be magic, and maybe she was. For how else can you explain Sally's magical adventure in time that follows?
THANKFUL FOR?
courtesy of Beth Revis
Ok, this is an easy one.. kind of corny, but the book I am most thankful for is the one that started me on my reading voyage.
As a child, I hated reading. My mother tried everything to get me interested in reading, but to no avail. I thought it was a boring waste of time. The Scholastic Book pamphlet came home with me. I was in the second grade. Mom said "pick out a book and I'll buy it for you." I remember rolling my eyes, but I sat down at the table, looked through the pamphlet and chose a book. I fully expected to get the book and throw it in my desk, never to be read. Well...it didn't work as I planned. I read the book. I reread the book. Then I read it again. To this day that book has a very warm, solid place in my heart. I call it the beginning of my voyage. A voyage to other places, other times, other worlds. On my voyages throughout the years, I've met aliens, battled warlords, encountered evil magicians and rescued royalty. I'll never forget that book. To this day I still have a copy. I have two actually, my original copy that I keep in a sealed ziploc bag and a second copy I use to read when I'm feeling lonely. My mom is no longer with me, she passed away several years ago from cancer. I miss her terribly. When I'm feeling sad or lonely I pull out the book and read it. It reminds me of a simpler time. A time when I was a little girl just learning about the wonders of a good book, and I can hear her voice yelling "Donna, put that book down and come to the dinner table."
yes, this is the famous book, with the original cover. Notice the price of 75 cents. I love this book. I've included a summary of the book.
If it weren't for the picture of the girl and her doll hanging over the fireplace in her pretty room, Sally would be miserable staying with Aunt Sarah. For everything in this strange old house tucked between tall apartment buildings is scary and mysterious. In the dark, rainy night the house seems almost a witch's house, and Aunt Sarah herself, whom Sally has never seen before, is very old, a stooped figure with thin gray hair and gnarled fingers.
But the other Sally in the picture is smiling. She's about Sally's own age, and once, long ago, she lived in the big old house. In fact, her room was this very room. She's wearing a yellow bonnet with ribbons, a long blue dress with layers of ruffles, and high-buttoned shoes; and she's holding a rag doll on her lap, an adorable doll with eyes the pleasant shape of watermelon seeds, dressed exactly like her mistress except that her hands are tucked into a tiny white fur muff.
Sally soon finds the other Sally's trunk in the dusty old attic. The yellow bonnet and the blue dress are there, even the other Sally's diary. But not the rag doll, for Elizabeth mysteriously disappeared one snowy Christmas Eve long ago. The other Sally had thought Elizabeth might be magic, and maybe she was. For how else can you explain Sally's magical adventure in time that follows?
Wednesday, November 9, 2011
received from NetGalley for review
Cinder
by Marissa Meyer
publisher: Feiwel and Friends
available January 3, 2012
400 pages
Received this from NetGalley for a review.
FANTABULOUS! Is that even a word? It's the only word I can think of to describe Marissa Meyer's debut novel.
FANTABULOUS! Is that even a word? It's the only word I can think of to describe Marissa Meyer's debut novel.
Cinder is a clever, futuristic retelling of an old fairy tale. The story takes place in Asia, in a city called New Bejing, sometime after WW IV. Our heroine, Lihn Cinder is a human-cyborg combination. She was involved in a devastating accident that left her missing several pieces. These were replaced with cyborg components by some very specialized surgeons.
The story is complete with an 'evil stepmother' who cant quite accept a ward who is cyborg. Cyborgs are considered second class citizens in this world. Adri, the stepmother, thinks of Cinder as 'less than a person'. There is also an evil stepsister and yes, a prince. Prince Kai is a gentle, vulnerable and young prince who is overcoming personal tragedy. Our group is rounded out with the wicked witch Queen of Luna. The moon has been colonized and these 'lunar' people are enemies of the Earth. Constantly trying to start a war. These lunar people have the ability of mind manipulation, a handy gift which prevents the humans from seeing 'the real lunars'.
This is where the story changes from the well know take. Cinder is a tough as nails heroine. She is a mechanic in New Bejing. She repains androids and other electronic equipment. Her sidekick is an android with a sarcastic personality chip.
All characters from the original tale are well represented in Ms. Meyer's story. She has done an incredible job with this story. I found myself enchanted with this book. I couldn't put it down! I loved the character of Cinder- no shrinking violet here. She meets each challenge head on. I cannot wait for the continuing story. I won't give away any spoilers, and believe me, there are some incredible twists I've left out. This book is sure to be a runaway blockbuster!
Monday, November 7, 2011
Kids'n'books: Ok, I know this is a book blog, but every now and...
Kids'n'books:
Ok, I know this is a book blog, but every now and...: Ok, I know this is a book blog, but every now and then something comes around that I have to mention. The new ABC tv show ONCE UPON A...
Ok, I know this is a book blog, but every now and...: Ok, I know this is a book blog, but every now and then something comes around that I have to mention. The new ABC tv show ONCE UPON A...