OK, I realized today, while scheduling a couple upcoming posts, that it’s been way too long since I’ve done a Giveaway! That’s why I decided, to close out 2014, I’m going to run one on BOTH my blogs 🙂 Yay! The prizes are the same, so if you didn’t win one of the three I offered to celebrate my blog launches, here’s an opportunity (and there will be more next year) to give it another go! Continue reading
Seriously—can you imagine what it would be like without them? And in this day and age, libraries are not solely for the housing and sharing of printed material. Along with owning video and audio libraries, many serve as the sole source for computer and internet activity for a lot of people. In many cases local libraries are the hub of community activity! Continue reading
(NOTE: while this post is current, scroll on the sidebar —in a separate tab or window—to click to listen to Hedwig’s Theme while reading 😀)
Nudged by Sheila at Book Journey, I recently completed (for the 4th time) Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (CoS), the second book in the “Harry Potter” series, and I continue to be amazed by the storytelling skills Jo(anne) Rowling possesses. Her characters, world and plotting were (are) so well-constructed and clear in her mind (though I know she had to occasionally check on certain details as she wrote the latter books), everything stayed true from the first book through the last. This vividness has afforded us, as readers, the experience of knowing these characters and her wizard world as acutely defined and “real.” Continue reading
A “Lighter Side Up” Q&A:
Getting to Know
Matthew Winner
I am honored to be a stop
on the Blog + Pod Tour
in celebration of…
It is no accident when someone like Matthew Winner achieves what is akin to royalty status in the world of school libraries and children’s literature. But he is not the type king who rules with an iron fist. Instead, he leads with a passionate spirit.
When I first became aware of Matthew, through Twitter, and eventually became a true fan of his “Let’s Get Busy” podcasts (now at All the Wonders), I had no idea just how much this man accomplishes. He is one BUSY Librarian! The truth is, he’s more of a “jack of all trades,” as he puts it. (I call it multi-talented and driven 😉 ) That versatility has enabled him to touch the lives of an ever-growing, wide variety of people, including mine. His expressive personality and exceptional insight shines through with fervor and enthusiasm in all aspects of his life: as a Teacher-Librarian, a Media Specialist, a podcast interviewer, and as a husband and father. His genuine interest in and caring about people is evident—he naturally “connects” with whomever he engages, whether it’s a child in a classroom, a colleague face-to-face and on Twitter, or a Kidlit professional through Skype. Continue reading
Well, I don’t know about you, but I’m thinking the launch parties were a success on both sites! The party’s not over, though, until all the party favors are handed out 🙂 Of course, in this case they’re handed out to a randomly select few. I sincerely wish I could give them to ALL my party guests, but after shelling out quite a bit for the band, disco lights and fireworks…well, you get the picture 😉
With a whopping 6 giveaways—3 on each blog— Continue reading
Writer Side UP! 