I Won a Book!!!

Wed, 09 May 2007 18:33:41 GMT

I am so lucky. I have joined my local library's online bookclub for the past 2 years and have won many books through Suzanne's site Dear Reader and through author sites, like AuthorBuzz.com. I have won Shout Down the Moon (excellent books and one of my favorites as you can see from my book list), Sanity Savers, Creepers (creepy, mystery, suspense novel, excellent read) and today I just got word that I won Hick, by Andrea Portes. This is her debut novel and it seems like a real chiller, thriller. Here is what Publisher's Weekly had to say in Amazon.com: From Publishers Weekly
Portes's chilling debut tracks a 13-year-old Nebraska girl's hard-going life on the road. Young Luli knows losers—her "aging Brigitte Bardot" mother, Tammy, and her father, Nick, go at each other every night at the Alibi, the watering hole in hometown Palmyra, Neb. Tammy runs away one morning, and Nick soon follows, leaving Luli alone at home with the Smith and Wesson .45 her Uncle Nipper gave her. Pistol in tow, she hitches rides heading west to Vegas. A crooked man (literally; he "looks like an italic," says smart-alecky Luli) named Eddie picks her up briefly before throwing her out of the car. Next comes cocaine-snorting grifter Glenda, who enlists Luli as an accessory to a robbery that goes awry. Glenda takes Luli under her wing. The two cross paths again with Eddie, who rapes Luli and ties her up in a secluded motel. Glenda comes to her rescue, but the confrontation with Eddie ends badly. Luli's flippant narration makes for a love-it or hate-it read. Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

And here is the Book Description from the author:
Foreseeing a hopeless future in barrooms and parking lots, cagey 13-year-old Luli McMullen bolts headlong from the heartland, aiming at Las Vegas where she expects to find herself a sugar daddy. Almost immediately, crooked-bodied Eddie Kreezer, a roving obsessive with a violent
streak, and a fading but lovely grifter named Glenda begin to do battle for Luli’s head and heart. On their perilous journey westward, Luli is introduced to drifters, lowlifes, strippers, speed freaks, gold-diggers, and a Libertarian with a dog named Karl. Along the way, she learns the truth of American rootlessness and discovers both the power and the peril of her own sexual curiosity. Part coming-of-age story and part raggedy picaresque, Hick leads us at a blinding pace down broken roads through a world that seems to this extraordinary and indomitable young girl dangerously uncharted.

Well, it does not seem like your run-of-the-mill feel good novel, but I love a good challenge and a book that speaks to me in a voice I may never hear in my own head. I can't wait to read it. I am currently in the process of reading two books, plus the Kovel's 2007 Antique Guide to see if I own any Ebay-worthy possessions that I can sell and retire. I am sure that 1987 Sauder Entertainment Center that I put together myself and have lugged around from apartment to house to house to house....is worth at least....dare I say $5.00? Maybe a yard sale would be more appropriate than the Ebay crowd. I am sure people sell all kinds of things on Ebay, and have sold my share of things too. But I try to sell things that maybe people would pay real money for. You know, $10, at least.

Gotta run. I have a mystery physical to take...my real one is on Friday. E-gads!!! I'll probably need a battery of tests to make sure my family history does not catch up with me at the dear old age of 42. My poor kids, between my husband and I, they are screwed. Not that my husband or I have any ailments, yet, but between our family history we have enough disease and early death to make a person want to get a physical each year, or never get one and play slots with one's life. I decided I better get one. I love my kids and even sick, I want to be around for a long time. I am sure I am not sick though. Just headaches that won't go away. Oh well. Maybe they'll just lop out that part of my brain!!! Does that sound like a viable solution? Because when I get my headaches, I would lop it out if I had the tools sometimes.

I'm babbling. I'll be back later tonight or tomorrow to do my Thursday Thirteen. Maybe I can be one of the first 100 to get up so that people will come read my blog and comment. I have noticed the significant lack of comments lately on my blog and I think that is because I have not been a good partyer and gone out and met more people. I guess I need to give to get. So, hopefully after I've lopped out that part of my brain giving me headaches, I'll come visit you. However, don't blame me if you don't understand what I write. Who knows what else lies in that part of the brain. I'm just kidding. I am sounding kind of morbid. I guess I don't want to get a physical because I know I will need a stress test and a colonoscopy because of that damn family history and I really don't need any more stress or sticking it to me than I already have. Bye bye. See you on Fun Thursday Thirteen. Come and visit and stay a spell.

Peace,

Maureen

Technorati tags: bookclub, Andrea Portes, Hick, winning, physical, health

Back Again and book review

Tue, 17 Apr 2007 03:26:27 GMT

Well, I am back again after a long bout with a sinus infection and the need to sleep for the entire weekend. I still have a headache, but I am getting better. DH is in Des Moines for the next two nights and the kids miss him. He was held over in Chicago because of "lack of crew" for his airplane. So, they cancel a flight because the crew calls off sick. Jeez!!! He ended up getting a better flight on American Airlines, but he was still pretty pissed that he was held over for so long. Hopefully he makes it to his Joint Middle Management Conference that he is supposed to attend tomorrow.

Right now I am in the process of reading and reviewing a preview copy of a book I won from BlogHer.com called "Sanity Savers". I won the preview copy and I think that the website wants me to review it and comment on it. It is an interesting, chunky book in the same vein as the "Don't Sweat It" series. It has "thoughts" for different days of the weeks or you can pick and chose what you are having problems with. So far, I have been trying to read it from cover to cover, but just reading the sections that apply to me or interest me. It is well written by Dr. Dale Atkins and is supposedly "as seen on tv". I am enjoying it and getting little tidbits of information. I will comment more on it when I continue to read.

We have been having horrible weather here. We are going to be having high winds and rains all week. We might even have snow showers...snow!!!! It looks like the weekend looks much better back into the 60's. I was supposed to go to Hershey Gardens tomorrow, but they cancelled the field trip due to the weather and rescheduled it. The poor little 1st graders are all upset, but they'll get to go next week. I don't think we would have had a very nice time walking through the beautiful Hershey Gardens as the rain is pouring down and the wind is whipping about, swinging tree branches at our little kids. Oh well...you can't mess with Mother Nature.

I will write again later. The kids are a little spooked by the noise the wind is making and want me upstairs since Dad is gone. I guess I'll go up and read and watch HGTV until I fall asleep. I had computer problems this weekend and it feels weird to get back on and type. I just checked email today and that was all I could do. Am I getting to be a lazy computer person. A non-blogger? I hope not. I'll have to get my Thursday Thirteen list up this week and get back on the ball. I guess sometimes when your head hurts so bad, you don't want to stare at the computer.

I also have to get on the ball working on my website Fleawithmetours.com to get my bus tours up and running. I got my business cards and am very excited, but I think I am a little leary about failing, so I keep putting it off. Any ideas about getting a small home business up and started is welcome. My email for the business should be working by tomorrow also. It is fleawithmetours@verizon.net.

Hope to hear from you.

Maureen

I Want to be sane with 4 kids in Enola: Books

I Won a Book!!!

Back Again and book review