Tuesday, 31 May 2011

Dear Ms. Swistock - I love you !

Dear Ms. Swistock of Jefferson Madison Regional Library, I do really, truly adore you.

You just made my day.

School Library Journal

Gr 3 4—P (short for Princess) wants a pet, but her father believes that any animal on their Oklahoma farm has to earn its keep. While he is away on combat duty, P loses sight of this rule when she begins caring for an orphaned opossum. P and Ike grow attached as she hand-feeds him and takes him everywhere. Of course, P knows she cannot keep Ike forever and soon she is forced to choose between doing what is right and doing what she wants. The conclusion of the story shows P learning an important lesson about doing what is right even when it is incredibly hard and is told in a way that is both touching and suspenseful.—Elizabeth Swistock, Jefferson Madison Regional Library, Charlottesville, VA

Monday, 30 May 2011

It's a giveaway!

Hey guys!

To celebrate the *dies* arrival of Possum Summer on bookshelves and in happy reader's hands everywhere, I'm hosting a giveaway over on Goodreads!

If you want, go and enter it! :-D


Goodreads Book Giveaway



Possum Summer by Jen K. Blom



Possum Summer


by Jen K. Blom

Giveaway ends June 05, 2011.

See the giveaway details
at Goodreads.


Enter to win !!!!

Friday, 27 May 2011

Updated book trailer!

My husband is a man full of patience, kindness, wonderfulness and awesomeness, all combined in one personable package! And can you imagine that he also is tremendously talented in book trailers?

He's updated mine - to show THE FACT THAT IT HAS BEEN SEEN IN THE WILD. Yep. The excitement, it can't be contained.

He is, quite simply, brilliant.

Possum Summer (Jen K Blom) from Jen K Blom on Vimeo.

Thursday, 26 May 2011

POSSUM SUMMER IS IN STOCK!

SO.

You have to excuse me.

BECAUSE I AM SO EXCITED.

SO SO SO EXCITED.

Possum Summer IS IN STOCK! It is leaving the warehouses for AWESOME local indies and Amazon! And it will then go to new happy owners!

Have you ordered it?

Yes? <<< YOU ARE SO AWESOME
No! <<< Why not? GET ON IT!

WHOHOOOOOOOOO!

(Thanks to Hil for pointing this out!)

Friday, 20 May 2011

Birthday books!!

Hello everybody!!

Happy Friday!!

And happy birthday to me!!

:-)

This naturally segues (for me anyway!) into a discussion of book character birthdays. Whivh do you remember-what were particularly memorable ones?

I remember Ramona's. And a birthday where a kid got a pony. (as a horse mad young girl I was in love with this book, heh). But why are all others escaping me?

When I was a kid, it seemed like I could begin again on my birthday. With my new cool (insert present here) I would save the world.

Have all those books gone? Is there a particular character's birthday that you remember?



Monday, 16 May 2011

Reviews. OH MY COMMA.

So reviews start to come in for POSSUM SUMMER!

This is the part I was pretty worked up about. it's rather stressful, to think that they are being reviewed by people that do this, you know, for a living. Everyone says not to worry about reviews, and then they say with the next breath to not buy into them too much, as if they're good you'll get a big head and if they're bad you'll want to kill yourself.

I can say that the above is all true, as I have lived through it these last couple weeks myself. And the highs and lows! MAN!

First, BOOKLIST:

Princess, or “P,” lives on a rural Oklahoma farm and is desperate for a pet. Defying her father’s belief that

all farm animals are simply workers that must earn their keep, she tries to befriend both the cattle dog and

a donkey. Then, in a defining moment, she impulsively rescues a baby possum, planning to release him

once he is older. Her family is too distracted to notice P’s subterfuge: her mom works long hours, her dad

is stationed in Iraq, and her asthmatic sister stays indoors. Then a rabies epidemic sweeps across the

county, threatening the well-being of both animals and free-roaming P and foreshadowing dangers to

come. Writing in P’s believable voice, Blom captures the feel of rural America, with lush descriptions of

scenery and daily farm work, in an authentic exploration of friendship, a family under stress, and a child

learning to cope with consequences. The ending provides hope but no clear resolution. Hand this to animal

lovers, children of soldiers, and readers who enjoy the rich details of rural life.

— Suzanne Harold


Pretty cool. :-D

Both PW and Kirkus agree that P is a strong character. Which is nice.

P is a feisty, honest country gal.

- Kirkus

and

First-time author Blom effectively evokes her novel's contemporary rural Oklahoma setting and creates a credibly feisty protagonist in narrator P.

- PW

Now I just have to wait a couple more weeks until it's released.

I can't believe we're this close. The countdown is ON!

Monday, 2 May 2011

*staggers in*

Newest MS is finished. Needs an edit but I've got those under controll-ah.

Now I'll edit THE SPOTTED PONY. And in the meantime, the new idea is making itself known. Just the title cracks me up:

TOOT WUNDER

I'm going to TRY and hold off on starting it for awhile, though. I think I've broke my brain with two books in two months. It's just two much.

(geddit? GEDDIT HUH DO YOU GEDDIT?)

Ok. I'm out.

*twitch*