Thought for the Day:
“Good fiction creates empathy. A novel takes you somewhere and asks you to look through the eyes of another person, to live another life.”
~ Barbara Kingsolver ~
Gifts for My Writer Friends:
Janice Hardy has such a great guest post HERE on Writers in the Storm with 5 Ways to Add Depth to a Scene. Don’t miss it.
Has your writing muse gone AWOL? Melissa Donovan at Writing Forward has a good post HERE called How to Find Writing Inspiration When Your Muse is on Vacation.
Anne R. Allen always has good things on her blog, HERE she a great post with 5 Tips for Writing Vivid Secondary Characters Who Don’t Take Over the Story. Sometimes secondary characters need to be wrestled into their place. This post is very helpful.
I hope you are enjoying whatever holiday you celebrate this weekend with family and friends. I will be having a family dinner later and am very much looking forward to that. We are having a perfect spring day here after some rain in the last week, with a little more rain coming late this week. That really is cause for celebration here. We are in the midst of the worst drought in 1200 years. I have no news on the health front. I had a second CT scan on Friday, and my pulmonologist will call me tomorrow with results and next steps. This is really a mystery. Maybe I will be written about in the medical journals! It could be my 15 minutes of fame. Through it all, I have baseball to make my days a little brighter. My beloved San Francisco Giants are having a great start to the season, and I am enjoying every minute.
A couple years ago, I read and really enjoyed a book by Jennifer Richard Jacobson called The Dollar Kids. You can see my review of it HERE. I loved the characters and they had a great story. When I saw another book by this author on the review list for the Manhattan Book Review, I requested it right away. What a fun book! And how could you resist that cute cover? Here is the review I wrote for MBR.
While on an early morning bike ride, Peyton discovers a boy who has been hit by a car. She visits the hospital where the boy, Gray, lies in a coma and develops a crush on him. Peyton and her sisters move back and forth between their parents’ two homes, dealing with the aftermath of an amicable divorce. Their mother is a journalist and needs to break a good story. Peyton decides to solve the mystery of who hit Gray to help her mother, although she steps on toes and gets in trouble. Peyton revises her “perfect boyfriend” list to fit Gray, setting herself up for either perfect love or terrible disappointment. When Gray wakes up, Peyton is in for some surprises.
Jennifer Richard Jacobson has created a character who is clearly twelve, with all the foibles that come with that age. The strong first-person telling of the story works well and keeps readers with Peyton every step of the way. The characters are all well-developed and believable, the dialogue is spot-on for the ages of the characters, and the story is compelling. This is a perfect middle-grade book with plenty of mystery, romance, and angst.
There won’t be a giveaway this week. I’ve already passed this one along. Please don’t forget to check for other Marvelous Middle-Grade Monday posts at Greg Pattridge’s blog HERE.
Rosi Hollinbeck 
What a great and unique premise for a book! Looks adorable too. Thanks for sharing.
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Yes, it is. Thanks for stopping by, Carol.
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Such an intriguing story line. You’ve got me curious! I think I missed an earlier post about your health but I do hope the docs figure you out!
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Thanks, Joyce. I hope so too! I hope you get to read Crashing in Love. It’s very cute.
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Hope you enjoyed your holiday dinner. And that your latest test helps your doctor figure out why you’re not feeling good. This sounds like a great story. I love that there’s a mystery.
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Dinner was great, Natalie. Thanks. The mystery really carries this book. You’ll like it.
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This book sounds like a lot of fun with a serious side, too. Good luck with the CT results. I had my first one this year when I landed in the hospital. Not feeling good and not knowing why is such an awful feeling. I hope things improve.
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Thanks so much. I’m hoping for improvement and answers.
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I enjoyed this book a lot. So much growth for the character and a mystery to be solved. Great review!
Hope you are feeling better and am glad you spent Easter with family! I hope they have some answers for you today!
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I’m so glad you enjoyed the story, Patricia! You and Rosi have provided me with much writing energy today!
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Yes, Patricia, the MC really did have a lot of growth. Thanks for stopping by.
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Thanks, Rosi, for a heartwarming review! I’m so glad you found Peyton well-developed and believable– she’s one of the most fun characters I’ve created. I loved spending time with her.
I do hope your own mystery is resolved soon and that you’re on the path to a speedy recovery.
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Thanks for your good wishes, Jennifer. I’m glad you enjoyed the review. Peyton is a terrific character.
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Perfect set of links to day. I never get tired of reading Janice Hardy’s advice.
Your review of this book has me anxious to get a copy right now. Such a intriguing story and the perfect characters to pull it off. Thanks for featuring this one on MMGM.
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Janice Hardy never gets old, does she, Greg? I always learn from her. Thanks for stopping by and commenting.
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Love that easter egg comic!
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Hahaha. Me too, Maria. Thanks for reading and commenting.
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If I could send snowstorms your way, I would! We don’t need this heavy, wet snow (1 foot at least). Definitely putting that book on my list!
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The book is great, Sue. Tahoe had snow this week and we had a little rain. Not enough, but better than nothing. Thanks for visiting.
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Love the Easter egg joke too! Hope you feel better and get good news on the health front soon!
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Thanks, Valinora. I hope so too!
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