Thought for the Day:
“A blank piece of paper is God’s way of telling us how hard it is to be God.”
~ Sidney Sheldon ~
Gifts for My Writer Friends:
I have often thought about writing a book with talking animals, but I never tackled it. But since reading the article from The Writer HERE by Yi Shun Lai called From the Front Lines: Writing Compelling Animals that Talk, I just might try it.
We have all been told it is important to include comp titles in our pitches. The Raven Quill Literary Agency has a great post HERE called The Dreaded “Comp Titles”: What Are They and How Do You Use Them?
It’s always a good idea to ramp up tension whenever you can. Janice Hardy at Fiction University has 8 Suspense-Boosting Techniques for Writers HERE to help you with that.
I have enjoyed most of my little vacation from blogging. I have gotten a lot of reading done and will be telling you about most of it as time goes on. I was grateful to have 2020 come to an end, and I somehow thought things would start to get better right away. What a foolish thought. The pandemic is raging more than ever, the vaccines aren’t getting to people very quickly. I’m a pretty senior senior, so I should be near the top of the list, but it seems until I have another birthday, I won’t be old enough. Ah, well, I’m sure my day will come soon. And then came January 6 and the angry mob of armed thugs fomented by the so-called president, and congresspeople and senators that lied about the results of a free and fair election and objected to confirming the electors, fomenting them even more. Come on January 20. Bring some sanity to our world.
I requested some ARCs from the publicist at Candlewick Press (Walker Books US) not long ago, and one of them was the sort of thing I normally wouldn’t choose, but there was something about the description that captured me. In fact, when I first got the package, they had sent the wrong book and not included this one. I got in touch with the publicist and asked for it again. That is how captured I was. It was the right move. Here is my review of Leonard (My Life as a Cat) by Carlie Sorosiak.
In a galaxy far, far away, beings are immortal. Each being, to celebrate one’s 300th birthday, is allowed to visit Earth for one month. The being can take on any form it likes — penguin, elephant, or human — and spend that month experiencing life on Earth in the chosen form. The beings study life on Earth by watching things like I Love Lucy shows. One of these aliens has been planning his trip to Earth for quite a while, and he is ready to take his place as a park ranger at Yellowstone National Park. He has dreamed of his month on Earth. “I’d … carry many useful things in my pockets: a Swiss Army knife, a butterfly net, a variety of pens for writing. Humor is a valued trait among humans, so for an entire year, I exclusively prepared jokes.” He wants to hold an umbrella in his hands, and he really can’t wait to have hands. But sometimes excitement overcomes one and one loses focus. This is what happens to our little alien. He loses focus on his way to Yellowstone, and instead of becoming a park ranger there for the month, he becomes a cat in South Carolina, rescued from a storm by an eleven-year-old girl named Olive. She is staying with her grandmother, Norma, and they both volunteer at the aquarium, working with a great guy named Q, a good friend of Norma’s. Olive names the cat Leonard, and Leonard has 30 days to figure out how to get to Yellowstone, his pick up point, or he will never be able to return to his own planet. While Leonard has the ability to converse with other animals, finding a way to talk to humans is no easy task. Leonard has his hands full trying to figure out how to communicate, whom to trust, and how to travel over 2000 miles in time to be picked up. It’s quite a tale.
I absolutely loved every word of this book. It made me laugh out loud, it had lots of tension to keep the pages turning, and it brought me to tears. The story concept is unique, the characters are all believable and interesting, there is lots of humor, and the writing is spectacular. Buy this one for every middle-grade kid you know and get a copy for yourself. You won’t regret it. I received an ARC from the publisher, Walker Books US, in exchange for an honest review.
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. And don’t forget to check for other Marvelous Middle-Grade Monday posts at the Greg Pattridge’s blog HERE.
Rosi Hollinbeck 
this looks like a fun read that my granddaughter would enjoy. thanks
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It’s a fun read everyone would enjoy. Good luck in the drawing.
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Thanks for all the links. I booked them both. Glad you got lots of reading done during your blogging break. Me too.
This sounds like a great book, but I’m going to pass on the giveaway. I have so many books from the library right now that I have to return some.
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I have to take books back to the library today too. Thanks for the reminder. This is a terrific book. I hope you find time to read it one day.
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I think I have this one on my TBR as an e book. I liked this author’s first book so much that I am going to read this even though it’s about a CAT. ; )
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I am not a cat person, but one doesn’t need to be to like this book. It’s so much fun. Thanks for stopping by. Good luck in the drawing.
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What a super-original book! I often wonder what aliens would think of our world if they existed and knew we did as well, and I imagine this book would satisfy that curiosity! I love the quote, and the meme is perfect—I don’t think I’ll ever allow myself to hope for a better next year ever again. I’ll pass on the giveaway, but thanks for the great post!
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You are welcome. Thanks for stopping by. It’s always nice to hear from you.
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This sounds a perfect books to lift spirits during this slog to the end of Covid. Thanks for mentioning it.
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Yes, it is a good spirit lifter. Thanks for the comment. Good luck in the drawing.
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I’m so happy you posted about this unique book! I love the premise and am headed to Goodreads to add this book to my wishlist. I shared on tumblr, Facebook, and twitter for extra chances. Love the meme this week too.
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Thanks for always sharing my link. This is such a unique book. Extra chances for you. Good luck in the drawing.
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What an interesting idea for a book! The creativity of authors never ceases to amaze me! I’d love to read it!
Best of luck to everyone as the world tries to get through this Covid crisis! And, best of luck to our country as we try to get back to a kinder society and to all of our elected officials who must make so many tough decisions this year.
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This week will be pivotal. I hope we all get through the next few weeks. This is an amazing book. Thanks for the comment. Good luck in the drawing.
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Totally with you on wanting a refund or reset to 2021! I keep finding myself thinking ‘wow, what a year it’s been’ and we’re less than two weeks in. Praying we get through January 20th and maybe some sanity prevails.
This book sounds hilarious and I could use a good laugh! Thank you for the introduction to Leonard. I follow, and I’ve tweeted about the giveaway. Fingers crossed! 😀
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Sanity will be a nice change. You will love this book when you get to it. Thanks for the comment. Good luck in the drawing.
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I selected this one from Candlewick and I really didn’t know what the book was about. Loved your review and will look forward to reading it before release date. Need a good escape book right now! Thanks for sharing!
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You will love it, Patricia. Thanks for stopping by and commenting.
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This sounds very funny! I love how he means to be something else but ends up as a cat. Thanks for sharing this.
And I totally agree with your Sidney Sheldon quote.
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So funny and sweet. Glad you like the quote! Thanks for the comment. Good luck in the drawing.
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What a fun sounding story. I’m not a big cat person but will have to give this one a go. The humor and set-up sold me!
Thanks for the links. I always struggle with comp titles and that article made it clear how to face the request.
Welcome back and you’ve written a great post for today’s Marvelous Middle Grade Monday.
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I am not a cat person either. I was so surprised finding myself asking and asking for this book, but I am so glad I did. Glad you found links that you like. Thanks for the comment. Good luck in the drawing.
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This sounds really unique! I know it would appeal to a lot of the MG-ers I know, because it involves aliens AND cats! Not to mention humor, which is what every kid seems to be looking for.
Thanks for featuring this! I’ll have to track this one down.
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This book will be a real kid-pleaser and an adult-pleaser! It will be worth your time to find this one. Thanks for stopping by and commenting. Good luck in the drawing.
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This sounds right up my alley!
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I think this one is right up anyone’s alley. Thanks for the comment. Good luck in the drawing.
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sounds fun! count me in please!
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Nice to see you here. You are in. Good luck!
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