Thought for the Day:
“Failure is the key to success; each mistake teaches us something.”
~ Morihei Ueshiba, Author ~
Gifts for My Writer Friends:
Names in writing always interest me. I could probably write a book on the names in Steinbeck’s books. He was, in my mind, the master of great literary naming. Anne R. Allen has a great post HERE on naming characters.
I was poking around the internet looking for some help for my revision with emotional tags. I ran across this very old, but very helpful post HERE on The Editor’s Blog.
I love almost everything I find on Writers Helping Writers. The post HERE on how to write introspection well is terrific.
This time of year is tough for me. Baseball season has really ramped up and my Giants are doing well enough to make things very exciting and to make me want to not miss a game. It is also hockey playoff time and my beloved Sharks are in the thick of things, doing well, and I can’t miss a minute of that. So if I disappear for a week, it probably means there were so many games on a Sunday, my day to blog, that I just didn’t get to it. Or it could mean that my head exploded from either sheer joy or crushing disappointment. Go, Sharks! Go, Giants!
Last week, I offered a gently read ARC of Shannon Hitchcock
‘s lovely and important new book, One True Way, to one of you. I hate to give this one away, but it needs to be shared. This week’s winner is Nancy! Congratulations! Thanks, Nancy, for reading and commenting and (I noticed) sharing my link on Facebook for an extra chance. I will get this out to you soon. For the rest of you, funny stuff on my giveaway this week. Please keep reading.
I am a Big Nate fan. There. I confess. All that middle-grade silliness speaks to me and I simply love having a book of cartoons I can pick up and read, but it doesn’t demand much from me except to enjoy and have fun. When I found the latest Big Nate book, Big Nate Silent But Deadly by Lincoln Peirce on the review list, I snapped it right up. Here is the review I wrote for the San Francisco Book Review.
Big Nate is back and the antics of this sixth-grader never seem to get old. Watching him train a new recruit to after-school detention or trying to mend the strange romance between Nate’s dog, Spitsy, and his lady love, Pickles the cat, with an REO Speedwagon song are the kinds of shenanigans one only finds in a Big Nate book. Big Nate’s followers never tire of his tomfoolery, laid out in colorful comic-strip stories several pages long each, covering a portion of a school year. This one has a bit of a focus on that know-it-all, Gina, and her sneaky, smelly fart problem. Some of the material, though, seems like the parents might get the jokes better than the kids.
Author and artist Lincoln Peirce has built such a great franchise with his Big Nate
character and all his sixth-grade friends. The writing is always snappy and funny, and the art work is about as good as cartooning can get with consistently fine characterization. Anyone in middle school or wanting to take a trip back in time to middle school will appreciate this and all the other Big Nate books.
I have a gently-read ARC for one of you. All you need do is be a follower or subscriber (it’s free!), have a U.S. address, and leave a comment below. If you would like extra chances, please share the link to this post on Facebook, Twitter, or any other social media outlet and let me know you have done that. If you are reading this in your email, please click HERE to get to my blog, then click on the title of the post, and leave a comment. And don’t forget to check for other Marvelous Middle-Grade Monday posts at the Greg Pattridge’s blog HERE.
Rosi Hollinbeck 
I love winning books! Thanks, Rosi. I look forward to reading and sharing. I’ll be sharing on Facebook, but please let someone else enjoy winning this week.
LikeLike
You’re welcome! Thanks for sharing the link!
LikeLike
Glad you’re excited for all your sports and I know you’ll be busy watching your grandkids play baseball too. Glad you’re enjoying it all so much. I know there are a lot of Big Nate fans out there so I’ll let one of them win this one.
LikeLike
Thanks for always reading and commenting. It’s always great to see you here. Sadly, my grandson is not playing baseball this year.
LikeLike
Thanks again for the links . I had to reread the one on emotions twice. So good! Sports are blah around here. Hockey and basketball players have cleaned out their lockers. Our baseball team can barely score a run. At least I have my trusted friend’s little league games.
Big Nate is wildly popular. I know since the covers get pretty beat up by the time school ends in the spring. Kids want humor and Mr. Peirce gives them that and more.
LikeLike
Colorado is having a tough sports year. Sorry that’s happening for you. Little League is always fun though. Glad you found the links useful. Thanks for always reading and commenting and for keeping MMGM going.
LikeLike
Thanks for featuring this author’s book this week–I’ve read about Nate’s adventures before and have enjoyed the silliness too. I shared your post on Facebook, Pinterest, twitter, Google+, and tumblr.
LikeLike
Thanks for sharing my link. I appreciate that and that you stop by every week. Good luck in the drawing.
LikeLike
Good luck on your favorite teams winning. And thanks for the links. I enjoyed Beth Hill’s tips on emotions. I thought it was interesting that she advised both making a character sympathetic or making one unsympathetic to engage the reader.
LikeLike
Glad you like the links. Hope you are enjoying your vacation in Spain. Good luck in the drawing.
LikeLike
Thanks so much for the links you shared today. Wonderful. I’m a fan of middle grade silliness, too, so Nate will be on my list for sure. I already love him, just seeing him on the cover. I guess you and I are neighbors? Shark’s fan? San Jose? Go Sharks!
LikeLike
Glad you like the links and silliness. Big Nate is a funny guy. I lived in San Jose for many years, but moved to the Sacramento area years ago and had to give up my season tickets to the Sharks. But I am still a fan! Thanks for the comment. Good luck in the drawing.
LikeLike
Appreciated your links. I am embarrassed tp admit I have not read the Big Nate series, which would certainly appeal to kids who like silly and love to laugh! I could use a dose of that right now.
LikeLike
Never read Big Nate? Ah, you poor thing! We can all use a dose of silliness now and then. Thanks for the comment. Glad you like the links. Good luck in the drawing.
LikeLike
I also love Writers Helping Writers. Great resource! But the Giants, hmmm…Go, Cardinals! (Sorry.) That’s great you’re doing a giveaway, but I’m going to let someone who’s a Big Nate fan enter. Thanks for sharing!
LikeLike
Well, the Cards have a great team too and their manager is a lot easier on the eyes than ours. Thanks for stopping by and commenting. I appreciate it.
LikeLike