Thought for the Day:
“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.”
~ Will Durant ~
Gifts for My Writer Friends:
David Griffin Brown has a guest post HERE on The Creative Penn that will help you create memorable characters.
Edie Jarolim has a post HERE with 5 Tools to Track Your Writing Submissions. This is something I really need to be better about.
I have been working on some picture books lately and found this terrific post HERE from Inkygirl with some great free templates, helpful links, and other good information.
On Tuesday morning, my daughter Sara will leave for Bemidji State University to take my grandson, Gehrig, to begin his college career. It’s a very exciting time. I’m not sure how much blogging I will get done in the next couple weeks as I will be flying to Minnesota to ferry the car back to California. My daughter can’t take enough time off to make the round trip. If I’m here, great. If I’m not, please understand and know I will be back soon.
Years ago, when I was teaching at Independence High School in San Jose, CA, I had a LOT of Filipino students. They were delightful, hardworking students and their families were generous and caring. In all my middle-grade reading, I don’t remember running across books that included Filipino characters or anything about their culture. When I saw My Fate According to the Butterfly by Gail D. Villanueva available for review from the Manhattan Book Review, I was really excited to read it. I was not disappointed. Here is the review I wrote for them.
Sab is only a week away from her eleventh birthday, but it looks like it won’t be a great one. Her mother is away on business, her father doesn’t live with them, and her older sister, Nadine, hasn’t spoken to her father in over a year. Her dream is to have everyone together for her birthday, but it’s not looking good. Sab’s best friend, Pepper, helps Sab spy on Nadine to see if they can figure out why Nadine refuses to speak to their father. But when Sab gets a visit from a black butterfly, something her superstitious father had told her portends death, she decides she will do whatever it takes to repair the family before she dies.
Author Gail D. Villanueva has written a book that will give readers a real taste of life in the Philippines with their superstitions, their formal ways of addressing people, their prejudices, poverty and hunger, the overcrowded conditions in neighborhoods and on transit, and most of all, the destructive drug trade. Her writing is superb, the dialog seems very natural, the characters are well-rounded and interesting, and the story is compelling. This is a terrific addition to the middle-grade canon.
I have an ARC of this book 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 middle grade mysteries and I am looking for 2019 MG and YA mysteries.
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Nice to see you here. Keep reading and you will hear of some good mysteries. I do like them and review them when I can. Good luck in the drawing.
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I’ve heard of this one, Rosi, but of course haven’t read it. I’m so far behind on my reading, I’m afraid I’ll never catch up. We definitely need more books about Filipino characters. Have you read any of Erin Entrada Kelly’s books? Not just her Newbery winner, but also THE LAND OF FORGOTTEN GIRLS and BLACKBIRD FLY.
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I have not read Kelly’s books. I will put her on my list. Thanks for the heads up.Good luck in the drawing.
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this looks like a great book. Count me in and safe travels. Family and life first, blogging second!
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Thanks, Carol. It’s going to be a looooong drive. Good luck in the drawing.
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Have a safe trip and best of luck to Gehrig as he begins this new chapter in his life.
Your book selection today is one I will have to read. The characters and story sound like they would lead to a lot of discussion. Let someone else win your copy as my stack for the next few months has gotten out of hand.
I’ve bookmarked your links and will get to them this weekend. My week is overflowing without time to pause.
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This is a busy time of year for teachers, isn’t it? I hope you get everything done. Thanks for stopping by.
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Oh, I haven’t read any books either (PB or MG) with Filipino characters. Will have to check it out. Would love to know more about the culture and traditions. Include me in your drawing. Love the cover.
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You are in the drawing, Patrica. Thanks for stopping by and good luck in the drawing.
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Glad Joanne won! I found a copy of the book in my library! Win – win!
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This book is already on my TBR, so thank you for the chance to win a copy. I love to learn about other cultures while reading and this one is unlike any other I’ve read. I shared on Facebook, pinterest, tumblr, and twitter.
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Thanks for sharing my link. I do appreciate it. Good luck in the drawing.
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This book sounds wonderful! It’s neat to hear how much this book depicts about a country I am largely unfamiliar with. I’ll let someone else win the ARC, but thanks so much for the review!
(P.S. Good luck to you on your trip, and good luck to your grandson at college!)
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Thanks for your good wishes and for stopping by and commenting.
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Wow, this sounds like a fabulous book for young people of any group to read. But, when I had Filipino students in my classroom before I retired from teaching, I shared your frustration about never finding books that included mention of their culture. This is a great find for teachers and for students on many levels.
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It is a good find and such a rare thing. Thanks for the comment. Good luck in the drawing.
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This book sounds fantastic! I’d love to read it at some point, although you can leave me out of the giveaway for now as I’m really behind on my TBR pile. Thanks so much for sharing it!
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My TBR pile is always so big! It is a fantastic book. I hope you get to it one day. Thanks for stopping by.
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I have seen this one around, but haven’t had a chance to read it yet. It sounds excellent. Thanks for sharing your review. I hope to get to read it soon. 🙂
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I hope you do too, Stephanie. Maybe you will win! Good luck in the drawing.
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I hadn’t heard about this book, but it sounds really good. Thanks for your review!
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You’re welcome. Good luck in the drawing.
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sounds like a good one! Thanks for the review.
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It is a magical book. Thanks for stopping by and commenting. Good luck in the drawing.
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