Oh My Godmother: The Glitter Trap - Event Announcement and Giveaway

by Barbara Brauner and James Mattson
Publication Date: May 14, 2013 (Hyperion Books)

Middle school is far from a fairytale for adorkable misfit Lacey Unger-Ware. When Lacey ends up with popular girl Paige Harrington's smart-mouthed fairy godmother, Katarina, trapped in her hair, life gets more magical--just not in a 'prince charming' kind of way.

Katarina's wings are too damaged to continue her fairy duties, and Lacey must take over as Paige's fairy godmother. Distracted by her new responsibilities, Lacey's in danger of losing her best friend, Sunny. Can Lacey get the hang of magic, make Paige's dreams come true, and survive middle school?
Barbara Brauner and James Iver Mattson's debut novel is full of heart and charm. Get ready for the Oh My Godmother series to cast a spell on tween girls!


Today, Barbara Brauner and James Mattson stops by to share about a giveaway they are doing for Oh My Godmother: The Glitter Trap.  Stop by GoodReads to enter to win a signed copy of the book.  And for those of you living in Southern California, don't forget to stop by Once Upon a Time Bookstore in Montrose on Wednesday, July 24th for Adventures Inbetween and meet Barbara and James.

As a special treat I asked them to answer a quick question: It's summer time.  Can you name 3 characters from books that you would like to go on a summer vacation with and where would you go? 

Professor William Waterman Sherman from The Twenty-One Balloons. He’s probably still got a stash of diamonds from Krakatoa, so we could balloon during the day and stay in the best hotels at night.


Nancy Drew from the original edition of the series. We’d like to visit her in River Heights because there’s sure to be a good mystery. And we’d look good in that blue roadster.

Claudia and Jamie Kincaid from From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler. They've already done the Met, so we’re thinking a couple of weeks at the Louvre would be nice.

The character we don’t want to go on a summer vacation with is Harry Potter, because we’d have to stay with the Dursleys, and that wouldn’t be any fun at all.

Check out this video from the Launch Party for OMG The Glitter Trap:


For more information about Barbara and James: website | blog | facebook | Barbara on Twitter | James on Twitter

July Kindle Fire HD Giveaway

Welcome to our Kindle Fire HD giveaway! Sponsored by   
Kid Lit Frenzy  
Read Now Sleep Later
Nite Lite Book Reviews  
The Windy Pages  
The Book Pixie  
There's a Book  
The Late Bloomer's Book Blog  
Teach Mentor Texts  
The Reading Date
Nancy Tandon  
Read Write Mom  

Show our blogger friends some love and at the same time earn entries into the giveaway! The Kindle Fire HD winner (US only) will also get their choice of 1 July or August Kindle eBook from Kid Lit Frenzy 1 YA Kindle eBook from Read Now Sleep Later 1 MG Kindle eBook from There's a Book  

If you are not from the United States, use the second Rafflecopter to enter to win up to $20 worth of books from BookDepository.com  and an ARC or signed copy of a book from Kid Lit Frenzy (A list of possible prizes will be posted after July 14, so check back!) 

If you are a blogger, you can earn an extra entry by re-posting the giveaway. Copy the HTML from this page and paste it into a new post. We cannot count your entry unless you leave us the link, so remember to paste the link into the Rafflecopter widget. If you cannot embed the Rafflecopter widget, here is the Share Link for the Kindle Fire HD (US only) and the Share Link for the International $20 bookdepository.com widgets.

Rules:
1. You must be 13 years of age or older to enter, or have a parent/guardian enter for you. All entries are subject to verification.
2. We will notify the winner via email within 48 hours after the contest's end (11:59 pm on July 29).
3. The Kindle Fire HD winner must have a mailing address in the United States. The International ($20 bookdepository.com books) winner can be anywhere except the United States.
4. The winners will have 48 hours to reply with their mailing address or another winner will be chosen.
5. Contest sponsors are not responsible for items lost in the mail.
6. We love comments, but please do not leave personal information such as email or mailing addresses in the comments! We are using Rafflecopter because it will keep your information private.

Questions? Please email the organizer, Alethea, at frootjoos at gmail dot com.

Good luck!

Inspired by Kathy at I am a Reader

Despicable Me 2: Book Giveaway



About the film:
Get ready for more Minion madness in Despicable Me 2. Chris Meledandri and his acclaimed filmmaking team create an all-new comedy adventure featuring the return of (former?) super-villain Gru (Steve Carell), his adorable girls, the unpredictably hilarious Minions...and a host of new and outrageously funny characters.

Check out the film trailer:



About the books:
 

Meet The Minions, Ages 4-8. The Minions have one job, and one job only--they work for Gru! Join Dave, Kevin, Tom, Stuart, Jerry and the rest of the gang as they do everything from stealing the moon to testing jelly recipes!

Despicable Me 2: The Junior Novel, Ages 8 and up. Gru used to be one of the most villainous villains in the world. He and his army of Minions even stole the moon! But when he adopted Margo, Edith, and Agnes, Gru became a dad. Instead of stealing landmarks, he makes pancakes, blows up unicorn balloons, and dresses like a fairy princess! Little does this dad know, though, he's about to make another career change--as a spy for the Anti-Villain League...

Despicable Me 2: The Anti-Villain League Handbook, Ages 8 and up. Do you have what it takes to join the Anti-Villain League? Find out in this hilarious companion book to the animated film Despicable Me 2, which includes never-before-published background on the preeminent anti-villain organization, top secret spying strategies, and a detailed look at the world's most high-tech arsenal.

DESPICABLE ME 2 – In Theaters July 3
Like Despicable Me on Facebook
Follow @DespicableMe on Twitter
Watch the trailer on YouTube
Follow Despicable Me on Google+
Pin on Pinterest
Follow on Instagram
#DespicableMe2

Doesn't this make you want to see the movie? I really enjoyed the first one and looking forward to going to this one with my niece. 

One lucky reader (US mailing addresses only) will will a special prize pack courtesy of Universal Pictures:



To enter, please fill out the form below:
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The Barftastic Life of Louie Burger Blog Tour - Interview & Giveaway


Today, I am excited to welcome author, Jenny Meyerhoff to Kid Lit Frenzy.  She answers some questions about her newest book The Barftastic Life of Louie Burger, about her writing and more.  Thanks Jenny for stopping by and chatting.

Can you share with readers a little bit about The Barftastic Life of Louie Burger?

Louie wants to be a stand-up comedian, but he’s got one big problem. He’s afraid to do his act in front of other people. He’s just fine when he performs in his closet in front of tennis shoes and baseball caps. He’s even got an amazing catch phrase…Barftastic! It means amazing times fantastic plus unbelievable. Squared. For Louie, life is barftastic, until his dad decides Louie should perform in the school talent show and Louie’s best friend starts spending all his time with the new kid. Louie wonders if doing well in the talent show will make all his problems go away. He just doesn’t know if he will kill (that’s comedian talk for do really, really awesome) or if he’ll bomb (that’s comedian talk for stink worse than the tuna sandwich you accidentally left in your lunch box over spring break.)

On your blog, you mentioned that you got the idea for this book from something that happened with your son? Were there other ways that he and his friends influenced the story or characters?

All of my kids (and their friends) are large influences on my writing. I steal character first names and last names from their friends. I’ll often ask to borrow bits of dialogue that I overhear. And the experiences that are happening in their lives often wind up in the book I’m writing at that moment, from a friend who hasn’t lost any baby teeth, to square dancing lessons in gym, to being homesick at camp. In the case of The Barftastic Life of Louie Burger, my son was also my first reader and gave me lots of great suggestions, like changing the word girl-illas to girlzillas. I also may have borrowed some of his most embarrassing moments, but I’ve promised him never to reveal which ones. ☺

Louie wants to do stand-up comedy, but struggles with stage fright. Do you have anything on your list of fears you would like to conquer?

I don’t have stage fright the way Louie does, but I often feel that way about my writing. I don’t want to let anyone see it. That’s kind of a problem if you want to be a published author. Letting people see what you wrote is an essential part of the job. So every day, I work on my fear of letting my work out into the world and trusting, that it will somehow find the readers it is meant for. I do have lots of other fears—jumping from airplanes, fighting tigers, and accidentally going grocery shopping in my underwear, for example. But I do not plan on conquering any of them.

If you could spend the day with any fictional character (not one of your own), who would it be and what would you do?

I’d like to make myself thirteen again and send myself to Avonlea to hang out with Anne of Green Gables, and all her friends. I’d be game for any of her adventures: acting out dramatic poems, thinking up scary stories in the haunted woods, or serving ourselves up a “grown-up” tea. I hope she’d find me a kindred spirit!

Where do you like to write and what does your writing space look like?
 


I mainly write in my office, which is a converted storage space in my husband’s business suite. I find it challenging to write at home with consistency and used to write at cafés. I still do that now sometimes for fun, but I love my cozy little room, filled with inspirational pictures and sayings. When I walk in the room and shut the door, the real world disappears and the worlds I create are all that remain.

If you could claim credit for another children's book (one written by another author), what book would it be and why?

I’m going to go with Anne of Green Gables, by L. M. Montgomery, again. I’d love to create a character as lovable as Anne. Anne is flawed, but charmingly so. Even though she’s always making mistakes, readers are rooting for her to find love and happiness on every page. I think that’s one of the reasons the book is so enduring.

Who would you credit as having the most influence on your work?

The authors I read over and over growing up were Judy Blume and Shel Silverstein and I think that their styles and aesthetics just seeped into my cells. I don’t know if I would be a writer at all if I hadn’t read their books to shreds.

Can you share about any future projects that you are working on?

Right now I’m focused on the second book in Louie’s Barftastic life. It’ll be out next spring. It’s still a work in progress, so for now I’ll just say, Halloween, square-dancing and coupons.

What top 3 books do you recommend for 8 to 12 year olds for summer reading?

I am going to recommend two series that the 8-12 year olds in my house are reading. These books are being read over and over, which is about the best recommendation I can think of!

The Charlie Joe Jackson books by Tommy Greenwald. Funny and a little bit subversive in just the right way.

The Astronaut Academy Books by Dave Roman. Awesome graphic novels!

And lastly, I recommend Dorko The Magnificent by the hilarious Andrea Beaty. This book about a boy magician pairs great with Louie Buger! Those two could hold one heck of a talent show.

Author Bio: 
Jenny Meyerhoff is the author of a young adult novel, Queen of Secrets, and three books for young readers--Sami's Sleepaway Summer, Third Grade Baby, and most recently, The Barftastic Life of Louie Burger, a story about an aspiring stand-up comic with an unusual catch phrase. Unlike Louie, Jenny is not a comedian, but she does know a lot about barf. After all, she’s a mom. Her three kids love fluffernutters, comedy and reading. Jenny lives in Riverwoods, Illinois with her funny kids and her delightful husband. For more information, visit her website: www.jennymeyerhoff.com. 

Check out all of the stops on the blog tour:

Tues, June 4 Green Bean Teen Queen - http://www.greenbeanteenqueen.com/
Thurs, June 6 The OWL for YA and Hooked on Books - http://owlforya.blogspot.com/
Fri, June 7 Dear Teen Me - http://dearteenme.com/
Mon, June 10 Mother Daughter Book Club - http://motherdaughterbookclub.com/
Tues, June 11 Geo Librarian - http://geolibrarian.blogspot.com/
Wed, June 12 The Children's Book Review - http://www.thechildrensbookreview.com/
Thurs, June 13 The Book Monsters - http://www.thebookmonsters.com/
Fri, June 14 Ms. Yingling Reads - http://msyinglingreads.blogspot.com/
Sun, June 16 Nerdy Book Club http://nerdybookclub.wordpress.com/
Mon, June 17 As They Grow Up http://www.astheygrowup.com/
Tues, June 18 Kid Lit Frenzy - http://www.kidlitfrenzy.com/
Wed, June 19 Mundie Kids - http://mundiekids.blogspot.com/
Thurs, June 20 There's a Book - http://www.theresabook.com/

Thank you to Blue Slip Media for The Barftastic Life of Louie Burger Giveaway for participants with US mailing addresses.- Enter below: a Rafflecopter giveaway

The Wig in the Window Blog Tour & Giveaway


The Wig in the Window
by Kristen Kittscher
Publication Date: June 18, 2013 by HarperCollins

About the book:
Sophie Young and Grace Yang have made a game of spying on their neighbors, but when they stake out the home of notoriously phony middle school counselor Dr. Charlotte Agford (aka Dr. Awkward), they stumble across a terrifying scene.

Or do they? The girls are convinced that Dr. Agford’s sugary sweet façade hides a dark secret. But as they get closer to the truth about Agford, the strain of the investigation pushes Sophie and Grace farther apart. Even if they crack their case, will their friendship survive?

Perfect for fans of The Mysterious Benedict Society, The Wig in the Window is a smart, funny middle-grade mystery with a Rear Window twist.

Jax, Age 12 and her mom talk about the book:

I am sitting here with Jackie (you know her from the Interview Video) and her mom talking about The Wig in the Window.

Mom:  Why did you think I liked this book?

Jax: I think you liked this book because it kept you on the edge of your seat and it captured you from the start and you didn't want to put it down... 

Mom:  Can I put words in your mouth?  You told me that it needed to be captivating for me because I had a short attention span.

(now they are trying to bribe me not to write this)

Jax: That is so true.  Mom, do you relate to any of the characters  and why?

Mom: Kids aren't suppose to ask questions like that...hmmmm...well...I relate more to the kids than the adults because when you break rules, I haven't been successful in taking your phone for any length of time...  And I do like the idea of spying on neighbors.

Jax: How do you know I haven't already done so?

Mom:  Give me your phone, girl! *waits, turns to me* See she won't give it to me... Jackie, I felt this book brought us closer.  I want to start a spy business with you now.

Jax:  Am I getting paid for that?

Mom: You can stick to making fan videos!  Why did you like the book?

Jax:  I liked the book partially for the same reasons; kept me on the edge of my seat, there were these smooth turns that kept me wanting to read it. It, it grabs your chest, I mean it, it holds your heart.

Mom: Are you trying to say it made you anxious or excited or that the book grew arms and attacked you?

*laughter all around at this point*

Jax: No, it was like...I wanted to use a big word...It is inevitable that...

Mom:  ...You will devour it, much liked pickled beets?  ...I bet those tasted horrible.  What a loser gift.  I never trusted that counselor.  Anyhow, Did you think it was realistic?

Jax:  I thought it was realistic because of what the characters went through seemed realistic, plus they seemed realistic and the plot line seemed realistic and the scenes were realistic...

Mom: can you say realistic one more time...*giggles*

Jax: *rolls eyes* Realistic, I said it one more time.

Mom: When I read it, it sounded realistic (don't write that word!) and I went "no way... way... they'd never... well maybe... no way!... way!  where am I going with this? 

Jax: Did you have a fight inside your head?  Wait, what do you call that?

Mom: Domestic violence?

Me: Dang this has just deterioriated...maybe we need to go back to...

Mom: I do have a short attention span!!

Me:....maybe we need to just watch the video.

 And now for a special treat - Jackie and Amelia's Shameless Promotion Video


The Wig in the Window: Jackie & Amelia's Shameless Promotion from Alyson Beecher on Vimeo.


About the author:  "Kristen Kittscher was a child neighborhood spy but (allegedly) grew up to be an upstanding citizen and middle school English teacher. A graduate of Brown University, she now works as a writing tutor in Pasadena, California where she lives with her husband, Kai, and their hyperactive lab mix. The Wig in the Window is her first novel. Visit kristenkittscher.com to investigate more about her and Young & Yang's next adventure, The Tiara on the Terrace."

Kristen Kittscher: website | facebook | twitter |

If you haven't seen, the Author interview conducted by Jackie and Amelia, click here.  Check out the official book trailer, here.

To check out all of the blog tour stops, click here.



As part of the blog tour, I am giving away a signed hardcover of The Wig in the Window by Kristen Kittscher.

This giveaway is open to those with US and Canadian mailing addresses:

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