only question is, which book should you get each family member? There is a book perfect for each of them, but how do you find it? Buy Books for the Holidays is a great site for finding out about different genres and you can even ask for suggestions for that hard to buy for reader on your list. An even better option would be to visit your local independent bookstore and ask the knowledgeable staff there for help.
my NaWriMo novel! 50,000 words in 30 days! Yippee!! For those participants who haven’t finished yet, you have until Sunday, so don’t give up.
(CC) Larry D. Moore 
time for the Harvest Festival and Balloons Across America Celebration. Food, arts and crafts, children’s activities, what more could you ask for? The Business Scavenger Hunt, of course! This gives everyone a chance to check out all the local businesses and win great prizes. During the scavenger hunt, stop in to meet Margaret W. Jones, Ph.D. visiting all the way from Massachusetts to discuss bullying and sign copies of her new release, Not of My Making . This will give you a chance to warm up with a coffee or cocoa! The second Machickanee Players show and the homecoming dance wrap up Saturday’s events.
have recently published The 39 Clues which is being billed as a “groundbreaking multi-platform new series for children ages 8-12”. This series includes 10 action adventure books, 350 collectible cards 
and an online game to compete for prizes. The first book in the series, Maze of Bones , was written by Rick Riordan who you may recognize as the author of the Percy Jackson series. The book comes with six collectible cards and packs of sixteen cards are available to purchase separately. Kids can register their cards online where they can also track their points and their clues. Finding clues and earning points results in prizes including the grand prize of $10,000.
Exciting news! IndieBound has launched its social networking site, the IndieBound Community and now anyone can sign up to become part of the community. Not only can you connect with other book lovers, you can also become a fan of your local independent stores and share stories about them. If your favorite indie store, book or any other, is not listed you can add them. By adding your community stores and becoming fans, you can earn points to be entered into drawings for great prizes. Show your local independent businesses that you support them and share stories about your favorites. What more can anyone ask? Don’t forget to become friends with BayShore Books ! 
week reminding me to have my two kids at the bus stop ten minutes early along with offers to have care packages sent to my college student (how can I miss him enough to send a care package while I am still trying to figure out how we are going to get a futon, fridge, TV, mountain bike and five people in our compact car?) have assured me that yes, summer is over and I missed it completely. Why is it that when the kids were in grade school the end of summer couldn’t arrive soon enough and when they are in college it’s gone in a flash?
filled with such passion and fury and loneliness and longing. A story I foolishly believed would come to it’s conclusion long after I lost interest and was ready to read the happily ever after and move on to the next. There is no moving on from The Story of Edgar Sawtelle. He will be with me now for the rest of my days. I can only envy David Wroblewski who completed his life’s purpose with depth and beauty. How can I begin another book without feeling let down? How can another possibly compare to the one I just finished?
I prefer not to know anything about a book before reading it so I had no clue what I was getting myself into with this one. I’m not going to share any information with you, either. If you choose to know the characters, plot, twists and turns before opening the cover, you will have no trouble finding that information, but I will not spoil the story for you. The only complaint I have is that I wasn’t able to finish and then restart the entire book in one sitting.
What about you?
Did you read anything exciting in the past 8 days?
Do you like to know everything about a book before opening the cover or do you cherish the surprise?
And, do you believe today will be a lucky day?
Wisconsin authors, Victoria Houston . Since the publication of the ninth book in her Loon Lake mystery series was postponed a month, her visit was also postponed. This gave customers a whole extra month to reserve copies. Unfortunately the extra month didn’t help. As a small town bookstore, our orders are based on the number of reserved copies and previous sales. Since this is the third year this particular author visited us, we at least had the previous years’ numbers to go off of. We had an excellent turn out this year which proved to be good news/bad news. We had about half a dozen frustrated customers walk away without a signed copy of Dead Hot Shot – all but one were first time visitors from other towns. This is something we felt absolutely terrible about, which almost overshadowed the feeling of glee at selling twice as many as last year.
food prices soaring, who can afford luxury items? And, what would be considered a luxury item? 
summer compared to last. It may not be the change you would expect, though.
I suppose my life isn’t so different from that old camper. My kids are getting older and my life is taking on a new purpose and I know I’m not alone. Many of us take new directions in our life, either by choice or happenstance. Many of us want to make sure we are doing everything we can to have a happy life, which is obvious by looking at the bestsellers lists. The Secret , Quantum Wellness, Soul Wisdom, A New Earth , You Can Heal Your Life, The Power of Now , The Purpose-Driven Life , and Your Best Life Now . I have another personal favorite, Critical Choices that Change Lives .
have never thought of it that way. Used books aren’t just trash to be hauled away, but treasures waiting to be found. The library is another great location for a treasure hunt. In my city, the treasure box is as endearing as the treasure. The Farnsworth Public Library has a history of it’s own since it was dedicated on this day 105 years ago!
Everyone needs a little romance in their life, my only question is why do they have to muddy the covers up with so many words?
Two of my kids have been visiting relatives this week. Now I can finally get rid of all the unwanted items in the house without guilt. When they get home, I can tell them the two turtles and two cats joined the rest of the animals on the ark! They can’t blame me for that, can they?
in a day or two and then was disappointed because she couldn’t share her excitement. Now I know how she feels. I finished while she was away and now am anxiously awaiting her return so we can finally discuss who “A” is. Sara Shepard has been stringing us along for almost two years, so it was both thrilling and a little depressing to find out. Luckily, there will be four more books to continue with the characters we know and love and/or hate.
psychological mystery starts strong and had me from page one. In my mind the story could go one of two ways, so I devoured the story to see which direction it took. Although I enjoyed the journey, the end was like returning from a trip visiting relatives. I dump the dirty laundry out of my bag in exhaustion and don’t care enough at the moment to sort through it all. Maybe one day, but more likely it will be forgotten forever as I move on to the next journey.
80’s today? Is it because the kids will be out of school in a couple more days or because we have more customers parading around in shorts? No. The Stanley Cup has been awarded! Hooray Red Wings ! They had me worried for a game or two but they pulled through. For me a sure sign of summer is the end of the hockey season. At least for a couple of weeks until the youth summer hockey league begins.
How is that possible? It is not only possible, but in my experience quite common that we tend to overlook the great destinations all around us. I have not been to Copper Culture State Park 
although he handled it much differently than I. Instead of showing up at whatever location his son and his friends were hanging out at to become “one of the guys”, Steve took his son on a two month canoe trip. Instead of screaming until he was blue in the face, he taught his son about French explorers Joliet and Marquette as they followed the same route taken in 1673. Steve even brought his son home after the expedition! How tempting would it be to encourage him to spread his wings by leaving him at any one of the many stops along the way?
they need to accomplish before they die from the Bucket List to 1,000 Places to See Before You Die. The book I am currently reading, Where the River Ends includes a husband trying to help his wife complete her list before it’s too late.
feel about his return. Each Friday night before his visits home the past nine months I could hardly contain my excitement. “I will hug him and squeeze him and call him George”*!! By Sunday I still have not received a hug or even seen him for that matter. I know he arrived safely because twenty minutes before we are ready to drive him back to college he dumps out a garbage bag of laundry that he needs washed before we can leave.
waiting patiently on my nightstand for my attention. Stumbling out of bed, I tripped over the mound waiting to take the next open spot on the nightstand. Using both hands I was able to lift my novel laden purse onto to my poor aching shoulder and bring it to my car where I had to shove the emergency pile off the seat to make room. This morning was nothing unusual. Books have always been a large part of my life and I’m most content surrounded by them.
for this? I will never give up books. It is so much more than the written word which draws me to them. I love the sound of the pages turning and nothing beats the musty book smell or the surprise chocolate morsel waiting for my enjoyment since the last time the pages were opened. But, maybe it’s time to add to my experience. To join this century. I’m sure it’s not really as hard as I expect. Why, just last year I gave up my trusty VCR after it ate tape two of Titanic. (Does anyone know how it ends?) 
celebrate National Library Week . Librarian Wendy read three stories, including one of my personal favorites, Llama Llama Red Pajama by Anna 
Dewdney and one of hers, Wake Up, It’s Spring by Lisa Campbell Ernst. A percentage of all sales during this special preschool story time was then donated back to the library. It definitely made for a lively Friday morning in the bookstore!
This week wraps up TurnOff Week . Were you able to catch up on some of your reading instead of sitting in front of the TV or computer? Maybe you were out enjoying the beautiful weather that finally showed up for a short visit. Or were you busy riding your bike or picking up litter to celebrate Earth Day ?
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