Thought for the Day:
“I don’t sit around waiting for passion to strike me. I keep working steadily because I believe it is our privilege as humans to keep making things. Most of all, I keep working because I trust that creativity is always trying to find me, even when I have lost sight of it.”
~ Elizabeth Gilbert ~
Gifts for My Writer Friends:
Do you have scenes that feel dead? Lisa Hall-Wilson has some great answers for you HERE in her post called How To Fix a Scene That Feels Dead. She has such great examples.
I haven’t spent much time thinking about theme since I retired from teaching high school. I used to think about it a lot. When I ran across the post HERE from Janice Hardy in one of her Narrative Nuggets, I remembered just why theme is so important.
I do love research, and have done some research into clothing for my writing, but not a lot. HERE is a great post Story Empire Blog by NOELLEG44 (interesting moniker) on Dressing Your Characters. There is something for everyone here.
My daughter Sara and her family have become Formula 1 racing fanatics. I have never paid much attention to it, although I did LOVE the book THE ART OF RACING IN THE RAIN by Garth Stein. That’s as much of a taste of F1 as I’ve had — until last night, that is. Sara’s family came over for a nice family dinner, and I got to watch my very first F1 race. It was the Australian Grand Prix, and it was the first race of the season. Some of the F1 races are run on the streets of a town, and some of them are on tracks. Last night’s race was on a track, and, from what my family told me, it wasn’t a very challenging track. I have to say, it wasn’t terribly exciting. The most fascinating thing for me was watching the pit stops. The crew can change all the tires in a couple of seconds! It’s amazing to watch. I’m told the next race will be in China next week. I hope it’s a little more exciting. My family is really into the racing to the point they even have fantasy teams. I don’t think I will get that into it, but it sure is fun to spend extra time with my family.
It’s always exciting when a favorite author has a new book coming out. I think I’ve read everything Shannon Hitchcock has written, and I have loved it all. I met Shannon many years ago at a Highlights Workshop. We stayed in touch after, and when her first book, THE BALLAD OF JESSIE PEARL, came out, she was kind enough to send me a copy which I reiewed on my blog HERE. It has been a real treat tvo watch Shannon’s career. Take a look at her site and see all the beautiful books she has written. Her new book, WILD MONTAIN IVY just came out this week, and it is closly related to her first book.
Ivy is struggling to do her regular activities. She just has no energy since she had Covid and subsequently was diagnosed with long Covid. All she wants to do is nap. Sometimes she even falls asleep in school. She can hardly play her violin, something she really loves. Ivy’s mom is a teacher and is always there for her. Her dad is a musician who travels most of the time, but they text every day. When school is out for the summer, Ivy’s mom thinks it would be a good idea for them to get away, and they go to Ivy’s Uncle Cam’s mountain bed and breakfast near Asheville. The place had been a sanatorium in the past, used for treating tuberculosis patients. The patients were young women and girls. Ivy stays in a room that is called Jessie’s room. As time goes on, Ivy feels like she is getting to know Jessie Pearl, one of the patients from the sanatorium, as Jessie visits Ivy’s dreams. Most of the dreams tell Ivy things that turn out to be true. Ivy’s uncle gives Ivy a dulcimer that was in the house, and she teaches herself to play it. Her dad tells her that he wants her to play it with his band when she is better. As the summer comes to a close, Ivy’s mom decides they should move to the mountai ns to be closer to Uncle Cam and Asheville, where Ivy’s dad’s band can get lots of gigs. Ivy isn’t sure what that will mean to her family and her best friend back home.
Shannon Hitchcock’s writing is simply lovely, and her storytelling skills are terrific. The characters are all very real and well-rounded, and the story is compelling. It is part mystery, part historical fiction, and part family story with some middle-grade friendship problems thrown in. I have long Covid, and somehow I never thought about kids getting it. I always think of young people as being so resilient that they just bounce right back from any illness. It never occurred to me that a young girl like Ivy would suffer so. But Shannon makes all of this very real to her readers, and it makes for a layered, complex story. This is a sweet book young readers will surely love. And those who haven’t read THE BALLAD OF JESSIE PEARL will want to read that book too. It’s always a bonus when kids want to read another book!
I have a gently-read hardback ARC to give to one of you. All you need to do is be a follower (it’s free and easy — see the top, right corner of the post) with a US Address, and leave a comment. If you share the link to this post on social media, please let me know in your comment, and you will get an extra chance. And please don’t forget to check for other Marvelous Middle-Grade Monday posts at Greg Pattridge’s blog HERE.
Rosi Hollinbeck 
This one sounds like it hits many of my favorite subgenres within MG. I also like books that touch on experiences kids have had firsthand or have witnessed others go through.
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This is a good one. Your senior listeners would like it. Thanks for the comment. Good luck in the drawing.
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Yes, spending extra time with family is always good. I’m looking forward to having dinner with my daughter and son-in-law this week. Congrats to Shannon on her new book. I’ll let someone win who has time to read it now.
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I hope you had good family time this weekend, Natalie. Thanks for always reading and commenting.
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Thanks for the shout out, Rosi!
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Thanks for the content, Noelle. Good luck in the drawing.
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This book sounds very emotional. I don’t know anyone here personally that has been diagnosed with long COVID, but it sounds horrible. I am a huge F1 fan and my favorite driver and his team mate (a second favorite) took first and second so I’m thrilled. Both are so talented. I do enjoy “traveling” to other countries while watching the events but am so worried about all the races in the middle east now. I shared this post on tumblr and X.
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It’s a very good book. Yeah, long Covid is pretty awful, but what can one do? Thanks for the comment and for sharing my link, Danielle. I appreciate it. An extra chance for you. Good luck.
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This sounds like a fascinating novel. I love that it has so many different things going on and that it sounds like it touches on the past/historical fiction, one of my favorite genres. I’m so sorry to hear that you have long COVID. Watching the racing sounds fun! My oldest son and I really got into the Olympics.
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The Olympics were fun. My late husband’s cousin won three gold medals for Norway in cross country events! Very exciting. This is a fascinating book, Jenni. Thanks for the comment and good luck in the drawing.
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I loved the Ballad of Jesse Pearl! Can’t wait to read Ivy’s story… like you, I’ve been following her career and books. Also – I thought The Art of Racing in the Rain was interesting (though I’m not a race fan).
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Shannon is having an amazing career. It’s fun to see. Thanks for the comment, Sue, and good luck in the drawing.
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I’m seeing a lot of coverage on this one today and it sounds like a great story with a special main character. I have it high on my future read list. Thanks for the links. Spring break is next week so I will wait until then to catch up with all the advice from today’s chosen blogs.. Thank for taking the time to find these and for being a valued member of the MMGM family.
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The book is getting a lot of buzz, Greg, and it’s well-deserved. You will like it when you get to it. Thanks for the comment. Good luck in the drawing.
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I will defintiely pcik this one up. Thanks for putting it on my radar! Your cartoon this week made me laugh out loud. Unlike long COVID. It’s no laughing matter. I got it after I caught COVID in March, 2020. Nobody knew what is was back then, so of us who were sick had to try to figure it out for ourselves. We had the misfortune of being ahead of the science. (Or maybe we were the science.)
Mine lasted about a year, and it was excruciating. I’m sorry that you have it. I’m sending you my best wishes.
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So glad to hear when someone likes the cartoon. We all need to laugh these days, Linda. Yeah, long Covid is no joke. I’ve been fighting it for over a year, and I still don’t have any energy. Thanks for your good wishes and the comment. Good luck in the drawing.
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My mom plays the hammered dulcimer, but we have a dulcimer in the house, too, so as soon as I saw this cover, I knew I would have to check out this book. It sounds both timely and intriguing. Thanks so much for sharing your thoughts. I also love the Elizabeth Gilbert quote. 🙂
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So glad you like the quote! The dulcimer is a beautiful instrument. Thanks for the comment, Kasey, and good luck in the drawing.
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I just read about this book elsewhere. Please throw my name in the basket for the drawing.
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Absolutely, Susan. Good luck!
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I have never seen FI racing- but I know my dad loves it.
I know an adult with long covid- it is life changing for sure. This sounds like a great read. Thanks for sharing!
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It really is good, Stephanie. Thanks for the comment. Good luck in the drawing.
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