Saturday, September 29, 2012

The New York Times Top 15 Best Sellers for the week ending Sunday, September 30th, 2012 with Book Trailers OR Author Interviews! Let me know what you think! Please LEAVE A COMMENT BELOW! Thanks!

Enjoy!

Combined Print and Ebook:

1. Winter of the World: Book Two of the Century Trilogy by Ken Follett
Print Book: $19.99
Ebook:       $19.99


 




2. Fifty Shades of Grey: Book One of the Fifty Shades Trilogy by E L James
Print Book: $9.57
Ebook:       $9.99


3. Fifty Shades Darker: Book Two of the Fifty Shades Trilogy by E L James

Print Book: $9.57
Ebook:       $9.99

 

4. Fifty Shades Freed: Book Three of the Fifty Shades Trilogy by E L James
Print Book: $9.99
Ebook:       $9.57

 

5. A Wanted Man: A Jack Reacher Novel by Lee Child
Print Book: $15.74
Ebook:       $12.99



 

6. Gone Girl: A Novel by Gillian Flynn
Print Book: $13.94
Ebook:       $12.99

There is a political advertisement prior to the start of this video for Proposal 4, I believe. It is 30 seconds long then it goes into an Author Interview from "The View" with Gillian Flynn.

 

7. The Time Keeper by Mitch Albom
Print Book: $14.40
Ebook:       $  9.50



 

8. Low Pressure by Sandra Brown
Print Book: $17.81
Ebook:       $12.99

 

9. Severe Clear (Stone Barrington) by Stuart Woods
Print Book: Not Available at this time. There is a problem with this item being defective. IT WILL be back in stock SOON.
Ebook: $12.99 - YES! The ebook IS AVAILABLE!

 

10. Fall of Giants: Book One of the Century Trilogy



 

11. Bared to You: A Crossfire Novel by Sylvia Day
Print Book: $9.00
Ebook:       $7.99



12. Telegraph Avenue: A Novel by Michael Chabon
Print Book: $16.79
Ebook:       $  9.99

This is from the BEA, where ALL of us Bloggers WANT TO GO every year! This is the Author speaking all about his book! Enjoy!

 

13. This Is How You Lose Her by Junot Diaz
Print Book: $16.17
Ebook:       $12.99



   

14. Zoo by James Patterson and Michael Ledwidge
Print Book: $18.47
Ebook:       $12.99

 

15. Cloud Atlas: A Novel by David Mitchell
Print Book: $  9.00
Ebook:       $11.99

 




Don't Let Me Go by Catherine Ryan Hyde - Review


Goodreads Synopsis:
Sometimes a child knows better...

GRACE

Ten-year-old Grace knows that her mum loves her, but her mum loves drugs too. And there’s only so long Grace can fend off the ‘woman from the county’ who is threatening to put her into care. Her only hope is...

BILLY

Grown-man Billy Shine hasn’t been out of his apartment for years. People scare him, and the outside world scares him even more. Day in, day out, he lives a perfectly orchestrated silent life within his four walls. Until now. . .

THE PLAN

Grace bursts into Billy’s life with a loud voice and a brave plan to get her mum clean. And it won’t be easy, because they will have to confiscate the one thing her mum holds most dear . . . they will have to kidnap Grace.

5-Stars
HIGHLY Recommended!
Who wouldn't love little Grace? Oh, my! This little eight year old girl is spunky, happy, and tries not to let anyone know how sad she is about her junkie Mother. What's Grace to do? She is not happy when she is around her Mom at all as she retreats into herself, and her mother doesn't do much at all to help Grace feel good about herself, as she doesn't even allow Grace to do the things that make her happy, such as see the people she loves the most which happens to be their neighbors.
The neighbors. These are the people in Grace's life that make her life with all of them, even with her mother, possible. These are the people in her life who are most important to her for reasons beyond what little Grace can even conceive. They are not only saving Grace from her mother's bad habits, but most importantly are saving her from Child Protective Services. They go above and beyond to do anything it takes to guard her and keep her out of the 'not-so-great' Foster Care System we have. Through all that they do for Grace, she ends up touching all of their own lives as well, which they are all very well aware of. Grace is an amazing little girl! I dare you not to fall in love with her!
One of the most important neighbors who impacts Grace the most is Billy Shine, previously a Broadway star, now Agoraphobic. He teaches her how to tap dance. She loves it so much that another neighbor whom they thought didn't like anyone buys her a piece of plywood so she can tap dance on it in Billy's living room when he takes care of her. Grace turns out to be a natural and enters a school talent show, which she banks on everyone coming to watch her dance in, including her mother. Can this happen? Will everyone come together, including agoraphobic Billy, to see her dance? This is the BIG question!
This story digs itself into your heart and never goes away. It's permanently embedded in mine. Catherine Ryan Hyde writes stories that make a huge  difference in this world. All of her books are written for the greater good of people. Take her book, "Pay It Forward", for instance. Yes! This is the author who wrote that book which was turned into a wonderful box office hit and is also rerun on TV now all the time! "Pay It Forward" is a common household name! This book changed the world. We all think of other people and try to do good for them. Yes, this author is STILL writing and making a huge difference in the lives of people who read them, and can warm any one's hearts.This is how this author writes all of her books, including this one. God Bless Catherine Ryan Hyde for writing such heart warming, life changing stories, one by one.
I received this book for FREE from the Author 'just because'! It was specifically for 'this book', which I really WANTED to read, so I could read her book for free, NOT EVEN in exchange to write a review about it! I happened to bump into her at another blog one day and she is such a very generous person she just gifted me the book, not even asking for a review! Pay It Forward! Yes, she wrote that! She DOES IT! I took it upon myself to write a review as I loved this book so much I wanted to share it with everyone in the form of a review.
Laurie

You can purchase this book here, just below, as you will notice the cover is  now different. I read this book as an ebook and that is where this link takes you directly to, however, you can click on the word Paperback at Amazon and it will take you to that page. 
You can click on the TITLE of this book, or click on the photo and it will take you directly there! OR, you could even 'gift it' to a friend! Enjoy!

Don't Let Me Go by Catherine Ryan Hyde
Print Copy: $14.99
Ebook        $  3.99



Sunday, September 23, 2012

New York Times Top 15 Best Sellers for the week ending September 23rd, 2012


I would like to share this article with you about a court ruling about ebooks:

http://www.digitalspy.com/media/news/a404565/judge-approves-landmark-ebook-price-fixing-settlement.html 
PLEASE READ THIS ABOUT EBOOKS!
It is titled 

Judge approves landmark eBook price-fixing settlement

It covers the cost of ebooks and how 3 of the big publishers agreed to a $69M or $L44 Settlement for the Publishers to reimburse CONSUMERS from April 1st, 2010 to May 21, 2012 for what exactly? Price fixing? In the SAME article, they accuse Amazon of price DISCOUNTING ebooks and holding them at $9.99! I, personally, have NOT seen this EVER happening. A practice they have NEVER done! It ALWAYS states "This price was set by the Publisher". Take for instance #3 on our list. 
Now this week the publishers have taken a mass-market paperback book that we could pick up in a drugstore, for $7.99 and they have priced the ebook at $12.99! Come on! Unbelievable! This is NOT AMAZON'S PRICE DISCOUNTING, but the Publisher PRICE-GAUGING US! Read the article so YOU are in the know! It refers to the VERY thing! Then sure enough!
Feel FREE to LEAVE A COMMENT at that article so MORE people see it! The more WE complain about the price of ebooks, the more we will be heard!
Finally 50 Shades of Grey has LOST it's #1 position after ALL these weeks! ALL of these 3 books in the series have moved around the list! I guess America has had enough of them! Thanks, Lee Child! At least in MY opinion! Here we go!

        Welcome to the weekly Top 15 Best Selling books!
Fiction - Combined Print and Ebook

1. A Wanted Man: A Jack Reacher Novel by Lee Child
Print Book: $15.75
Ebook:       $12.99

 

2. Fifty Shades of Grey: Book One of the Fifty Shades Trilogy by E L James
Print Book: $9.57
Ebook:       $9.99

  

3. Delusion in Death by J D Robb (Mass Market Paperback version)
Print Book: $7.99
Ebook:     $12.99 - What is wrong with this? This is a mass market paperback version of this book. You know what those look like, yet the ebook is STILL the price of a hardcover? What is going on? The ebook almost costs double? What are the publishers doing to us? Is 'this' their way of hurting US, the Consumer because of the Judge's Landmark Decision? Whatever it is, it is WRONG! Even the article states with an ebook, once it is changed into a paperback, ALL the publisher needs to do to the file is change the price! Obviously that did NOT happen with THIS BOOK! UGH!

 

4. Fifty Shades Freed: Book Three of the Fifty Shades Trilogy by E L James
Print Book: $9.57
Ebook:       $9.99

 

5. Fifty Shades Darker: Book Two of the Fifty Shades Trilogy by E L James
Print Book: $9.57
Ebook:       $9.99

 

6. Gone Girl: A Novel by Gillian Flynn (sorry - Amazon will NOT allow us to grab the photo of this book!)
Print Book: $13.94
Ebook:       $12.99

 

7. Frozen Heat (Nikki Heat, Book 4) by Richard Castle
Print Book: $16.65
Ebook:       $  9.45

 

8. The Time Keeper by Mitch Albom
Print Book: $14.40
Ebook:       $  9.50

 

9. Zoo by James Patterson and Michael Ledwidge
Print Book: $10.19
Ebook:       $12.99
This book is a PRE-ORDER and will release on May 14, 2013! Wow! This book is not even out yet and it's on the Best Seller list as a pre-order! Amazing!



10. Bared to You: A Crossfire Novel by Sylvia Day
Print Book: $9.00
Ebook:       $7.99

 

11. Telegraph Avenue: A Novel by Michael Chabon
Print Book: $16.27
Ebook:       $  9.99

 

12. Simply Irresistible (A Lucky Harbor Novel) by Jill  Shavis
Print Book: $7.99
Ebook:       $  .99

 

13. Love Unrehearsed: The Love Series, Book 2 by Tina Reber
Print Book: $10.01
Ebook:       $  7.99

 

14. Winter's Tale by Mark Helprin
Print Book: $10.81
Ebook:       $  2.99

 

15. This Is How You Lose Her by Junot Diaz
Print Book: $16.17
Ebook:       $12.99

 

Saturday, September 22, 2012

Fall Into Reading 2012 - September 22nd to December 21st, 2012


Here it is! Time for the "Fall Into Reading 2012" Reading Challenge sponsored by Callapidder Days! If you click on the name of her blog there, it will take you to the page where the LINKY list is posted. I'm not positive if this is the page where it all takes place, but if need be, I'll come back and edit this so YOU can go and see what everyone is doing!
Here are the rules of the hop, which is COPIED AND PASTED from her blog:

Here’s a brief recap of how to be a part of Fall Into Reading 2012:

  • Make a list of books you want to read (or finish reading) this fall. Your list can be as long or as short as you’d like.
  • Write a blog post containing your list and submit it to this post using the Mr. Linky below.
  • Get reading! The challenge goes from today, September 22nd, through December 21st.
  • Check out other participants’ lists and add to your own to-read-someday pile, if you wish!
  • Write a post about your challenge experience in December, telling us all about whether you reached your goals and how Fall Into Reading went for you. But remember: this is a low-pressure challenge that should be fun.

Okay! Here is 'my' LONG list of books I have on my TBR list! I'm HOPING to get to ALL of them! I really wanted to do a nice post with the photos of the books with them, but time constraints today! I've already done several posts today, and have one more to do yet, so the photos will have to wait and go along with my reviews! I'll just be posting a list here now with the titles and the authors! I may surprise myself with the number of books I have! We'll see! These are NOT in ANY particular order, and I am also waiting on some titles from NetGalley to see if I can get them to read! One guess as to what they are? Christmas books! I also may have a few Indie Authors I have books from 'if' I can get to them as well. If I don't, I may end up doing a post on 'About the Book' and have an Author Interview or Author Guest Post, as well. I LOVE Indie Authors and LOVE to help support them, too! ALL authors pretty much started out that way! So, here's to the Indie Authors!

Here goes! This is my list!

First, Some Christmas Books:
1.    The Christmas Star by Ace Collins
2.    The Bridge by Karen Kingsbury
3.    An Amish Gift by Cynthia Keller
4.    Christmas in Apple Ridge by Cindy Woodsmall (have to buy this one yet)

Amish Reading:
5.    *DONE!!* The Memory Jar by Tricia Goyer
6.    Accidentally Amish by Olivia Newport
7.    The Struggle (A Kentucky Brothers) Wanda E Brumstetter
8.    The Mercy by Beverly Lewis
9.    *DONE!!*  Life with Lilly by Mary Anne Kinsinger and Suzanne Woods Fisher
10.  The Haven, (A Stoney Ridge Seasons) by Suzanne Woods Fisher (Note to self: need to buy this one yet.)
11.  Material Witness by Vanessa Chapman
12.  A Home for Lydia by Vanetta Chapman

(I am in an Amish Challenge, and I think this will take care of ALL my Amish books I am supposed to read! I think that Challenge has 15 Amish Books to read for it. I alwahs LOVE to read about the Amish! I have some of my favorite authors, too! However, Melody Carlson is one of my favorite authors, too, and I saw she has an Amish Christmas book, too. I should grab that book while I can!
Thanks for reading this LONG list! Here are the rest:

Other:
13.  Longing by Karen Kingsbury
14.  Deception in Paradise by Deborah Brown
15.  *DONE!!*  The Color of Tea by Hanah Tunnicliffe
16.  South by Southeast by Blair Underwood, Tananarive Due
17.  *DONE!!*  The Reluctant Bachelorette by Rachael Renee Anderson
18.  The Unwords by The Unauthor
19.  Suzy's Case by Andy Siegel
20.  1222 by Anne Holt
21.  Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
22.  *DONE!!*  Sister Wives by Cody Brown and his Wives (The Polygamist family that I've watch on TV on TLC - The Learning Channel - and although I struggle to understand it, I did buy this book because I am curious as to HOW the wives can 'share' a husband? Not to mention, they have 17 children, and with the purchase of the book, it would help to buy their book and to help in that way.

I LOVE some of the other shows on that station, too, such as 19 Kids and Counting, United Bates of America, The Little Couple, and my MOST favorite, Little People, Big World! Every family on this earth has struggles, but these people embrace life, and the ones with disabilities (I have one, so perhaps that is what attracts me to some of the shows?) really make a wonderful life with what they have been given! Oh! Plus the NEW show, Abby and Britney! The conjoined twins. It's super neat to watch how they work together!
I might be in a few Book Tours, but I won't know until I am notified. Once notified, I'll add them to the list with an update.

I HOPE to get to read ALL of these books! I know I CAN. We have 13 weeks, and if anyone was to read two books a week, which is the norm for me, that would be a total of 26 books. No problem, right?!  

EDIT - As of November 22nd, 2012 - These are additional books I have read due to Book Tours, or books I've received from authors, or even from NetGalley and other sources which I have obtained over the course of this Challenge that I had to read, in addition too these that are listed above. I was not planning on reading these, but am VERY grateful I did have the opportunity to! I'll have to come back with ALL my books and post the review links to ALL of the books! So these books ARE READ! *DONE!!*

1.         Courting Cate by Tricia Goyer
2.         A Merry Little Christmas by Anita Higman
3.         Song for Papa Crow by Marit Menzin
4.         After the Snow Falls by Carey Jane Clark
5.         Midnight Cravings - Book One of The Eternal Dead Series by Joelle Sterling - This book is WAY OUT of my genre! The Publisher did NOT make clear what this book was about, and it upset me VERY much!
6.        Don't Let Me Go by Catherine Ryan Hyde (Author of Pay It Forward)
7.        Debt Proof Your Christmas: Celebrating the Holidays without Breaking the Bank by Mary Hunt


ANNOUNCEMENT!!!
A "Christmas Book Giveaway Hop" scheduled for December 1st to December 7th, 2012! Mark your calendars, make sure you follow me on Twitter @laurieisreading - or scroll up above to my Twitter widget, and make sure you are following me! MORE INFO TO COME! You can also watch Kathy's site, and her link, the name of her blog, is just below in purple! I asked if we could partner together, and she said yes! I'm SO excited!
The *name* IS subject to change!
Christmas books are one of my FAVORITE books to read, and to collect! I have been VERY interested in partnering with someone to do a Christmas Book Giveaway Hop with! So I asked Kathy at I Am A Reader, Not A Writer if she would partner with me! Guess what? She said YES! So, it will be a "CHRISTMAS BOOK" GIVEAWAY HOP"! The 'name is subject to change!' I am SO VERY excited about this! It will take place on December 1st to December 7th, 2012. It will be a giveaway of Christmas Books! You will give one, two, or however many, or maybe even an ornament with a book as a giveaway prize during those dates! Most all of you know how those work!
"I" am working on a photo for it now. Then I will have to learn HOW to add the HTML coding to it! I may need HELP! I've NEVER done this before!

Make SURE to mark your calendars!!! I would be HONORED for ALL of you to participate in it!

Stay tuned for MORE information to come! The photo for the Hop, and further directions, etc! I hope you will ALL join in with Kathy and myself! Thanks! I am SO looking forward to this!

Point of Retreat by Colleen Hoover - Review


Goodreads Synopsis:
Layken and Will have proved their love can get them through anything; until someone from Will’s past re-emerges, leaving Layken questioning the very foundation on which their relationship was built. Will is forced to face the ultimate challenge…how to prove his love for a girl who refuses to stop ‘carving pumpkins.’

New Adult Genre
5-Stars!
Wow! What can I say? I LOVED THIS BOOK, "Point of Retreat"! This is Book 2 in the "Slammed Series". Book 1 is "Slammed", and I LOVED that one, too! I do 'highly suggest' you read Book 1 first, just so you can appreciate this book even better. A lot of times you can pick a book up that is in a series and just read it alone, but with this series, I do suggest you read it in order so you can fully appreciate it.
Overall, this is a great story about a relationship between two people who are in love. We all love stories about love, but this one is a little complicated. Okay, a lot complicated. 
I just want to mention, when I pulled this book up at Amazon, I did see Slammed 3, so does that mean there will be another in this series? I'm not positive, but usually when you  see this, that usually means YES! So, we'll see! How exciting!
This second book is absolutely "BUTTERFLYING AMAZING", just as great as the first book! I could not stop reading this book, either, just like the first book. The author, Colleen Hoover, has a style of writing which captures your own heart and gets you so connected and actually addicted to this story, you have to read this book all the way through in one sitting because you want to. You are so into this story you really cannot put it down, so keep this in mind when you go to read these books. Don't cut your enjoyment short! The author writes about something we all can relate to. Love. 
When reading a love story, we all want to know what is going to happen next. We even want to know this in our own lives as well, yet cannot know as we have to live it out. The best thing about a love story in a book is that we do get to find out what is going to happen unlike real life, which I feel is part of the 'pull' is in these books! 
I had to read this second book the day after I finished reading the first book, "Slammed". I was craving more of this story, knowing there was a second book, I had to get back into these characters' lives. I was not ready to leave them yet, knowing they were there inside this second book and I wanted more of them, and I got it! 
The attraction between Will and Lake is so strong, the writer really makes you feel it. I could relate to how Lake felt towards Will, and her brother and Will's, too. Their two brothers are inseparable best buddies running back and forth from house to house. During the times when love was not going so well, Lake and Will had to deal with this and each other still, because of both of their brothers.
The most unique thing about this book is the fact that it is told from Will's point of view. I LOVED this approach to the story! Getting to hear this entire story from Will's point of view made the story even better. This made both books even better. It even gave us more insight into Book 1. We don't often get to know a story from the perspective of both characters. In fact, this is the first book I have read like this, giving us this information. I loved this approach. It was like re-reading the entire story over again, yet learning even more about the characters. I really enjoyed this.
We get to learn the 'inside scoop' of what the 'guy' is thinking and feeling in this relationship. The events that occurred in this story were so realistic and so well written that it was another thing I could easily relate to and made me want to read even more. There were no lulls in these books at all. I wanted to and did keep reading and reading until I finished both books. I do miss these character today, but hold this story in my heart as one of the all-time favorites I have ever read. 
The author of these books has a very unique way of capturing our attention getting us wound into this story in ways we all can relate to. One really neat thing she did in each book was start each chapter of this book with a verse from a song by the Avett Brothers, a band the author personally loves.
I honestly cannot say I did not like either book any better than the other. They were both equally brilliant! It is not often a book has you so literally addicted to it. Both were equally a wonderful read and both told in a different way. The only thing in common were most of the events along with new ones, the characters, and relationships among them all.
I do not want to go into anymore detail as to what this book was about as I don't want to ruin anything for you. These books deserve to be read, and NOT have someone write a review and end up spoiling it for you. I did cover what is intriguing in this book, but am refraining from telling anymore. You have to read this book! Both of these books! Also, if I were to give anything else away, it would ruin the first book for you. Both of these books are at the top of my favorite books of 2012!
Simon and Schuster Publishing House has now bought these books from the Author. She did self-publish these books (and this is the version I read. I don't know if any changes were made.) as an Independent Author initially through Amazon herself. Not anymore! You might have noticed these books have NOT been available lately in their print format, but have been and still are available as an ebook. This is because since Simon and Schuster has re-published these titles with their logos, their designs, etc., on them, which is what they usually do when they purchase books from self-published authors. 
These books ARE NOW AVAILABLE IN PRINT FORM AGAIN!
I can also tell you that BOTH of these books, prior to the publisher purchasing them, did make it onto the New York Times Best Seller list with Colleen Hoover as the self-published author through Amazon, and "Slammed" made it 
to the Top 15! It made it to number NINE, at one point! It did NOT go unnoticed! "Point of Retreat" also made it onto the Best Seller list as well, within the Top 30 before is was unavailable in print. (Does this mean most people prefer the "print version" of books over an ebooks? Interesting!)
This book was absolutely "Butterflying Amazing!"
I received this book for FREE from the Author, Colleen Hoover, as a gift for me to read and enjoy this book for FREE. She probably KNEW I would NEED to have it since I was reading "Slammed"! You cannot read her first book without reading the second book!
THIS REVIEW I HAVE WRITTEN WAS MY OWN CHOICE TO DO SO. THIS BOOK WAS GIVEN TO ME AS A GIFT ONLY, WITHOUT ANY EXPECTATIONS FROM THE AUTHOR FOR ME TO WRITE A REVIEW AND WITH NO STRINGS ATTACHED TO WRITE A REVIEW FOR IT, AND THERE WAS NO  INTENTION FROM THE AUTHOR FOR ME TO WRITE A REVIEW ABOUT THIS BOOK.
I HOPE AMAZON SEES THIS AS "MY OWN DECISION" TO WRITE THE REVIEW  BECAUSE I WANTED TO.
You WILL NOTE I have NOT included the usual statement I do about the FTC Guidelines I usually add to my reviews when I read a book 'for review purposes' because I was NOT ASKED TO REVIEW THIS BOOK. 

You can get BOTH books through these LINKS HERE:

Point of Retreat: A Novel by Colleen Hoover
Print Book: $9.66
Ebook:       $7.99


Slammed: A Novel by Colleen Hoover
Print Book: $10.20
Ebook:       $  7.99




Book Blogger Hop! 9-21 to 9-27-2012

Hosted by Crazy for Books PLEASE click on that link to go to see all the other blogs that participate in this weekly hop! ALL the blogs listed there also answer this very same question and it is SO neat to read all the different answers and see all the different blogs! Have fun!

This week's question:

Blogging Question: What is one thing that your blog readers probably do not know about you?

My Answer:
Hmmm? This is a hard question! 
I've got it!
I grew up taking ballet! I took ballet for 13 years! My dream my entire childhood and as an early teen was to go to New York and get hired into one of the ballet companies.
I lived, loved, ate, slept, and did EVERYTHING ballet! Even after school, before I did homework, I went down the basement and practiced ballet. 
My mother made and altered ALL of the costumes for the entire school, "La Rue School of Ballet", in St. Clair Shores, Michigan. When we moved to New Baltimore, Michigan, it was a small town of less than 5,000 people. I missed out on 1 year of ballet when a new school opened up! YES! I enrolled immediately! I was taking classes.
We had a recital coming up soon. I got my costume and I felt like a COW! I thought I looked like a COW, too! OH, MY! What happened? I grew up. I grew up. I grew up. I now had the body of a young adult woman. I had curves. I had a chest. I had hips. No longer did I have the body of a ballet dancer. What went wrong? WHY?
My dreams of dancing on stage in New York were ruined! No more would I ever be able to dance for a ballet company. I would get on stage and they would just laugh at me now. I was so depressed. Also, the photos of myself in that costume have disappeared. Gee, I wonder where they went? (He, he!)
Okay, on to Plan #2. Cosmetology College. I had been cutting my own hair since the 7th grade. I had a next-door neighbor who worked in a salon. I had her give me a few perms way back then when they were all the rage. I watched how she did it and learned a lot. I was now excited about doing that. I excelled! I won First Place in a Men's Hair Cutting Competition! I cut Craig's hair, a dear friend and Big Brother to me. I won a huge trophy, and was very happy! This was "it"!
I did end up working in a few different salons until I found the one I felt I fit in. The only problem was the haircuts only cost $6.50. That was NOT enough money to survive on. When the day came I could not make my car payment, I then applied for a position for an office job. I got hired! So then I was an Administrative Assistant. The business classes I took in High School paid off very well. My typing skills of over 90 word per minute helped, and I also could do "Shorthand" at over 120 words per minute! 
Does anyone here know what Shorthand is? Can anyone do it?
Back then, it was just when computers were coming out in large businesses. The rooms these computers were in were in basements of buildings and took up the entire area. The room had to be climate controlled and people could not just walk around these huge machines because it caused static electricity, which was not good for computers. At that time, Word Processors (which were in type-writers) had just come out. There would be a digital bar across the top above the keys, and it was only about 3-4" long. You could see what you were typing.
We have come a long way since back then! Never did we ever think we would one day even know what a laptop computer was, and here I am now, typing one now!
Amazing how everything changes in life.
(I have two children. A daughter and a son. My daughter started ballet at age 3! No, she is not a ballet dancer, either, for the very same reasons!)
Thanks for reading this week!
Laurie

Thursday, September 20, 2012

Freedom Road by T M Sauders - BOOK BLAST! $50 Amazon Gift Code!

Freedom Road by T.M. Souders

Book Summary:

Since the tender age of eight, music served as Samantha Becker’s source of solace against her father’s tyranny and her mother’s alcoholism. Now at eighteen, her only dream is to study classical guitar at Juilliard. But when her father’s careless actions lead to an “accident,” which threatens her ability to play the guitar, Sam becomes despondent. Losing all confidence in her future, Sam hides behind the emotional barriers that have protected her for years.

Just when Sam has given up, two unexpected people enter her life, giving her the confidence she needs, and forcing her to evaluate all she’s ever known. Battling her father’s plans for her future, band mates using her for personal gain, and a permanent injury, the odds are stacked against her. With auditions approaching and time running out, Sam must relearn to play the guitar, or be destined to give up her dreams 


About the Author:


Links:
Website: http://www.tmsouders.com/ 
Twitter: https://twitter.com/tmsouders 

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5044358.T_M_Souders
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/TM-Souders-Author/181198815275423


T.M. Souders was born in Johnstown, Pennsylvania and grew up in the suburbs outside of Pittsburgh. She graduated in 2004, from Youngstown State University, with a degree in Psychology and minor in Women’s Studies. She is the author of bestselling women’s fiction novel,Waiting on Hope, as well as the novelette Dashing Through The Snow and the newly released young adult/crossover novel ,Freedom Road. In her spare time when she is nor writing she is an active volunteer for The World Literary Cafe, a site dedicated to authors and readers. She currently lives in rural Ohio with her husband and children. 

Freedom Road by T M Sauders




a Rafflecopter giveaway




"Stuck in Books Giveaway Hop!" Sept 20th to Sept 25th, 2012!

           Sponsored by I Am A Reader, Not a Writer and Stuck in Books 

Welcome, and thank you for coming!
I have "4" Winners of 4 "Paranormal Romance ebooks" from Amazon that I am giving away! Come see what they are!

if you would like to enter this Giveaway Hop, please click - - - > CLICK HERE! < - - - ! Good Luck and HAVE FUN!
After you enter the Rafflecopter form, make sure to look at the list of ALL the other participating blogs and start HOPPING from Blog to Blog to enter THEIR Giveaways, too! Have fun! Good Luck in winning LOTS of GREAT BOOKS you will become glued to like the rest of us were!

Thanks for coming by! 

Want to win a $50 Amazon Gift Code? It's a BOOK BLAST!
Make SURE to come by my blog later today for a chance to enter to WIN A $50 Amazon Gift Code from author T M Sauders for her NEW book, "Freedom Road"! Don't miss this event! It will be posted by NOON today, Thursday, September 20th, and runs through Wednesday, September 26th, 2012! Don't miss this!


Sunday, September 16, 2012

The Book Blogger Hop! 9-14 to 9-20-12

This is sponsored by Jen at Crazy for Books! You can go to that site and see the LINKY List of ALL the Blogs that participate in this Blog Hop and go to them and read their answers, too!

Well, this is usually done on Friday, but, I had two doctors' appointments that day that were very far away. It took my husband and I the entire day, and with my neuro disease, I was wiped OUT! I think I slept Saturday away! One lost day of my life! LOL!
So I say, 'BETTER LATE THAN NEVER for this post!

So, the question this week is:

Highlight one of your favorite reviews from the past month!

My favorite review this last month (since Friday was the 14th!) goes to August 14th, 2012, is definitely "Slammed" by Colleen Hoover because it  that book was absolutely BUTTERFLYING AMAZING! WOW! I have NOT read a book that sucked me in SO much quite like that book did in a LONG time! It was breathtaking! The pace of the story and the surprises were STUNNING!
If any of you out there have read this book, or this SERIES, because Book 2 is "Point of Retreat", you KNOW what I am talking about! OMGosh! A love story like NO other, EVER have I read!
There was a movie about Prince William and Princess Kate and their courtship. It was a GREAT movie! One of the things I LOVED about it was a game they played. It was called "Never Have I Ever . . . " At first I couldn't really catch onto the meaning of that game, until I read this book! That phrase popped into my head, and it went like this: NEVER have I EVER read a book quite like this AMAZING story! Wow!
I would LOVE to get inside Colleen Hoover's head just to see and hear what she's thinking as she's connecting and building a story inside! Wow! She can WRITE! She can write with such passionate characters that get into your bloodstream and take you away to their world! You can feel what these characters do and WISH you could be them for a time! She just blew me AWAY with these books! It's no wonder Simon and Schuster came along and bought them from her! Yes! An Indie Author got bought out by a BIG Publishing House! 
This is a book for ALL ages to read! I am a lot of years old, and FAR beyond my first and only love, but, the feelings were STILL CAME ALIVE for me, at least the way Colleen Hoover writes! BUTTERFLYING AMAZING!
You can read my review of this book here: "Slammed" by Colleen Hoover  I HAVE read the 2nd book, as a matter of fact, I read it the day after I finished Slammed! I HAD to! It's called "Point of Retreat", and the review is almost done! I WILL have it posted this week!
LEAVE A COMMENT if you'd like to! I'd LOVE to hear it!

You can GRAB THESE BOOKS HERE:

Slammed: A Novel by Colleen Hoover
Re-Releasing on Tuesday, September 18th, 2012! *Pre-Order NOW!
Print Book: $9.70
Ebook:       $7.99



Point of Retreat: A Novel by Colleen Hoover
Re-Releasing on Tuesday, September 18th, 2012 *Pre-Order NOW!
Print Book: $9.39
Ebook:       $7.99


Now, go on over to Crazy for Books to see the HUGE list of ALL the other Blogs that are participating in this Book Blogger Hop through this Thursday, September 20th, 2012! The next day, Friday, September 21st, 2012, starts a NEW Question for us Bloggers to answer! Have fun reading and hopping!