Once upon a time, I was telling a friend how mad I was at another person. Just steamed. I relayed how, in light of the situation, I would no longer be sharing my magazines with said person. My friend gasped and said, “Wow! You must have been really pissed if you took away someone’s reading material.” And I had to laugh, because it was true. Even funnier, I have no idea if that person even gave a hoot, but it made me feel a whole lot better because I took away one of the things I value most in the world. Words.
But, if I flip that scenario, you’ll see that words are my gift. If you get a book from me–if I’m sharing my reading material–I’m telling you I really love you, whether you realize it or not. It’s my way of saying you matter to me.
So, today I’d like to share with you a program called BOOKS FOR BOSTON. A way for us word people to hug the hell out of Boston. My friend AC Gaughen, the author of SCARLET is a Boston girl and I’d like to share her words with you…
BOOKS FOR BOSTON
I hardly know where to begin. I wasn’t at the marathon, but friends were. Family. Loved ones. Everyone made it through unscathed.
The manhunt happened disturbingly close to me, but again, no one I know was hurt.
That doesn’t mean that my city has made it through unscathed. That doesn’t mean there isn’t a tremendous amount of work and healing to be done.
I’ve spent a lot of time wondering what my place is in all of this. Should I donate money to the One Fund? Should I be contributing to charity auctions? Should I find a role for the non-profit I work with to play in all of this?
Those are all amazing answers, and I commend the people who want to help via those routes. But I remember being a senior in high school as the Twin Towers were hit, and I remember what it felt like to be old enough to understand and young enough to feel utterly lost, to feel all my security gone, to feel any semblance of faith in the world torn away from me.
The Boston Marathon is a family event, and the amount of small children that saw this and were impacted by this is unimaginable. By now most of us have heard about Martin Richards, an eight year old boy that died in the blasts. His family are deeply in need of support and healing, and I know the One Fund will make great strides in helping them.
But for his friends, his classmates, his community, I can only imagine what it feels like to explain this to a child. To have to talk to a child about what terror really means.
I think there’s something else I can do. And maybe it’s simplistic, and maybe it’s not, but it’s the one thing that felt like an honest, organic choice to me. And that’s books.
I can’t give the children of Boston their safety or their faith back. But I can give them a place to escape, and imagine, and dream again, because that’s what books always have been and always will be. They are a beautiful and sacred space of healing and love.
And I’m hoping you’ll help me.
I’m going to donate as many books as I can to the Boston Public Library and to Martin Richard’s school, Neighborhood House Charter School. Any books! Right now I plan to give middle grade books and younger to NHCS and YA and older to the Boston Public Library, so all books are welcome. All subjects are welcome.
If you’re an author, and would like to donate a copy of your book, please sign it and instead of your usual inscription, write a message of hope, courage, or resilience. Please don’t mention the attack, or the losses, or the scars Boston now bears.
If you’re not an author but would like to donate a book, I absolutely welcome the donation. Please do the same and write a message of hope, courage, or resilience inside the book.
Please email me at acgaughen @ gmail.com and I’ll give you my address for mailing.
Maybe we can help Boston heal in a really small way. I appreciate the help, and I would really appreciate it if you pass this along.
Much love xx
Tags: AC Gaughen, Authors, Books for Boston, Kim Sabatini, Kimberly Sabatini, Libraries
It’s time for my very first Bookanistas Review!!!!
I’ve picked a book and author that I adore…
WHEN YOU WERE HERE by Daisy Whitney.
Little, Brown Books for Young Readers (June 4th)
Preorder Here:
Amazon
Barnes & Noble
IndieBound
GOODREADS SUMMARY
Filled with humor, raw emotion, a strong voice, and a brilliant dog named Sandy Koufax, When You Were Here explores the two most powerful forces known to man-death and love. Daisy Whitney brings her characters to life with a deft touch and resonating authenticity.
Danny’s mother lost her five-year battle with cancer three weeks before his graduation-the one day that she was hanging on to see.
Now Danny is left alone, with only his memories, his dog, and his heart-breaking ex-girlfriend for company. He doesn’t know how to figure out what to do with her estate, what to say for his Valedictorian speech, let alone how to live or be happy anymore.
When he gets a letter from his mom’s property manager in Tokyo, where she had been going for treatment, it shows a side of his mother he never knew. So, with no other sense of direction, Danny travels to Tokyo to connect with his mother’s memory and make sense of her final months, which seemed filled with more joy than Danny ever knew. There, among the cherry blossoms, temples, and crowds, and with the help of an almost-but-definitely-not Harijuku girl, he begins to see how it may not have been ancient magic or mystical treatment that kept his mother going. Perhaps, the secret of how to live lies in how she died.
MY REVIEW
I loved this novel!!!!
This is a book that checks all the boxes. It’s funny AND heart wrenching. It’s familiar AND different. It’s smart AND relatable. It’s literary AND commercial. Then to top it all off, this novel has voice. It’s not just the MC Danny–but all of the characters, they are real, believable, flawed and likable. Additionally, I was mesmerized by the contrasting settings of California and Japan–unique and fascinating. When I closed the cover on WHEN YOU WERE HERE, I felt like I’d really been in the lives of these characters. They will be sticking with me for a long time. My favorite Daisy Whitney book to date.
ABOUT DAISY WHITNEY
By day, Daisy Whitney is a reporter and ghostwriter. At night, she writes novels for teens and is the author of THE MOCKINGBIRDS and its sequel THE RIVALS (Little, Brown). Her third novel WHEN YOU WERE HERE releases in June 2013 (Little, Brown), and her fourth novel STARRY NIGHTS (Bloomsbury) hits shelves in September 2013. When Daisy’s not inventing fictional high school worlds, she can be found somewhere north of San Francisco walking her adorable dog, watching online TV with her fabulous husband or playing with her fantastic kids.
A graduate of Brown University, she believes in shoes, chocolate chip cookies and karma. You can follow her writing blog and new media adventures at DaisyWhitney.com.
YOU CAN CHECK OUT MORE GREAT BOOKANISTAS REVIEWS HERE…
Katy Upperman ponders LOVE AND OTHER PERISHABLE ITEMS by Laura Buzo
Elana Johson falls for THE FAULT IN OUR STARS by John Green
Tracy Banghart loves LACRIMOSA by Christine Fonseca
Corrine Jackson adores the ARCADIA BELL series by Jenn Bennett
Rebecca Behrens delves into CODE NAME VERITY by Elizabeth Wein
Lenore Appelhans raves about THE RULES by Stacey Kade
Stasia Ward Kehoe wraps up National Poetry Month with THE POETRY TEACHER’S BOOK OF LISTS by Sylvia Vardell
Christine Fonseca celebrates UNDER THE NEVER SKY by Veronica Rossi
Jessica Love hails THIS IS WHAT HAPPY LOOKS LIKE by Jennifer E. Smith
Shannon Messenger discusses some recent reads
If you were to suddenly find yourself, more alone than not ,and drifting through the world, looking for a place to anchor yourself…where would you travel to?
Yesterday I FINALLY had my house relatively clean, a decent amount of laundry done, all three boys in school and the hubby back at work. There was no need to run because I had dance class in the evening and even the weather cooperated by being unseasonably cold and damp. It felt like a writing day. It also came to my attention that my fridge was empty and Panera would be a good place for lunch LOL! Without a doubt, all the stars were in alignment for me to pull out my newest work-in-progress called CHASING ADAPTATION.
Now, don’t get me wrong–I haven’t been neglecting this new manuscript. It has been in the research and mulling over phase while I did things like wash and put away snow pants and clean cat litter. I’ve been reading, making notes and participating in other forms of mental gymnastics. Lots of good things. But one of my writing resolutions this year is to move more quickly into the drafting phase after I’m finished with a project. (I say “finished” loosely, since we all know a novel is never done until it’s on the shelves.) Any-who, yesterday was the day to pull out the almost 6,000 words of CHASING ADAPTATION that I’d written during this year’s NaNoWriMo, otherwise known as National Novel Writing Month. And trust me, there was a lot of dust on that baby–I hadn’t read it since November.
I am soooooo happy that I wrote those 6,000 words!!! At the time I was disappointed that I couldn’t do more, but with the TOUCHING THE SURFACE book launch, Thanksgiving and a dance recital, almost 6,000 words was my best. This is a great reminder that sometimes it’s better to focus on starting than on finishing. Worry about finishing after you start LOL! It was so much easier to begin writing again, having a platform in place to jump off of. This experience has also cemented my desire to try NaNoWriMo again next year. I may not finish, but the writing I did do, turned out to be very helpful. Also, the NaNo draft (to my surprise) ended up being a lot better than I remembered it. I fully anticipated having to trash a sizable chunk of what I’d thrown down on paper, but I don’t think I’m going to do that at this point. My original instincts may have been better than I thought they were. I believe I’m going to give this puppy a little room to grow and see what my subconscious mind has planned. Have I ever told you how much I enjoy the voices in my head? They are pretty cool company.
Anyway–for the record–I want to say something out loud. You know, before I get to that part in the manuscript where I suck and would rather cut my wrists open with a plastic butter knife than ever write again.
I LOVE WRITING!!!!
I’m so deliriously happy that I’m pushing myself outside of my comfort zone. Jumping into a new book right away feels brave and daring.
It also makes me feel good to know that I’m always growing and adapting. Recognizing my method while simultaneously learning to challenge myself.
Finding a new balance.
And I adore the potential and excitement that comes with a new idea.
The start of a book leaves me tingly as I filter my brain onto paper.
BUT
I can’t babble about this forever. I must finish writing this post so I can go back to Scrivener and write more words.
More words…
How long does it take you to start writing again after you finish a project? Can you juggle multiple projects? Are you able to “work” on a book in your head while you’re busy doing other things? What’s your view on starting and finishing? Does starting a book make you giddy?
Tags: Chasing Adaptation, drafting, Kim Sabatini, Kimberly Sabatini, NaNoWriMo, Panera, Touching the Surface, writing
Lots of running going on in the Sabatini house. The boys woke up to giant allergy flair-ups–noses running and stuffed–an always unpleasant combination. Also headaches, puffy eyes and a general sense of bleh. I spent the morning playing with a combination of allergy medicine, alternative treatments and TLC. They are all off to school, so we shall see if they make it through the day ok.
On Friday I took my 12yo running with me for the first time. He’d recently run his first 5k at school and did very well and expressed and interest in hitting the road with me on a day off from school. I mentally prepared myself to run at a slower, more even pace to get him through the four miles and he proceeded to kick my ass. LOL! I was irrationally proud. I did cross the finish line first, think the tortoise and the hare, but he dominated. Now he needs to learn how to pace himself a little better. But that is almost always a skill that comes with experience.
Additionally, spring cleaning has me running up and down the stairs and all over the place trying to clean up my crap. The annual switching of the clothes and cleaning of the winter mess. Soon I’ll be running around with bags of mulch. I’ve also noticed quite a few runs in my dance tights, but with all this dashing around, who has time to buy new ones LOL!
And finally, now that the nice weather is finally here, but before the baking heat arrives, I am running more. In fact, I’m on my way out the door right now…
While I’m gone–tell me if you’ve got any running going on?
Tags: allergies, Kim Sabatini, Kimberly Sabatini, running, spring clean-up
I’m off and running–literally. I’m taking my 12yo for his first run. SQUEE! He came in 2nd place at a 5k at his school the other day and now he wants to run with me. So much fun!!!!! But I thought I’d pop in and let you know that I was invited to join the Bookanistas. I’m so excited…
Who are the Bookanistas?
Who We Are
We are a group of writers in various stages of the publishing process who have banded together to recommend/review the special books of our peers.
Combined, we reach over 10,000 followers
We recommend and review all kinds of children’s books, but focus mainly on YA, middle grade and now, picture books. (yes picture books too! Shocker!). As fellow writers, we have decided to only recommend books we absolutely LOVE, therefore, we do not post anything negative!
Yes, that’s right! We give nothing but love! There’s enough negativity in the world.
We post every Thursday covering a variety various book topics– upcoming ARCs, books we love, diamonds in the rough, classics, and even dish out some cover love from time to time.
Come join us on Thursdays and you can be be fashionable, too.
Because The Bookanistas think books are the new black!
You can check out my warm welcome to the Bookanistas and our prayers going out to Boston
HERE. And I’ll be posting my first Bookanistas Review on 4/25. Okey dokey…NOW I’m off and running LOL! Have a great weekend.
