Oct 27, 2011

The Write Stuff

Love book giveaways? So do we! Which is why we enjoy Brittany Roshelle's blog The Write Stuff. Not only does she post book reviews and author interviews, she often has giveaways for books, ebooks, merch surrounding books, you name it! Her upcoming post will be an interview with HASSIE CALHOUN author, Pamela Cory. And you'll have a chance to win a copy of Pamela's book!
You can look for this interview on Halloween (Monday, October 31), and you'll be sure to get at least one treat for the day!

Oct 18, 2011

Books, More Books, and a Twin Cities Book Festival!

This year's Twin Cities Book Festival was once again held at MCTC and the place was packed from when the doors opened at 10 am to when they closed at 5 pm. And just like previous years, this book fest did not disappoint. It was certainly the place to be in a weekend packed with other great literary events such as the launch party for Paper Darts' first book, John Jodzio's Get In If You Want To Live, Milkweed Editions' Book Lovers Ball, and FallCon 2011 with the Midwest Comic Book Association.
The Twin Cities Book Festival, like usual, offered something for everyone. Most of my day was spent upstairs in the wonderfully creative Children's Pavilion with author Penny Noyce. We set up a Lexicon Villages Event and had a blast with the kids. It was great watching them get into the activities whether they were feeding Emily the thesaurus/llama synonyms, creating flower sentences out of word petals, making tangrams of Lost in Lexicon images, and measuring EVERYTHING they could get their hands on with our non-standard measuring units of erasers, paperclips, and pennies.

Oct 13, 2011

"Hassie Calhoun is the perfect protagonist"

Have you checked out the Nevada Review lately? Well you should. And not just because they wrote a lovely review about Hassie Calhoun (though we're quite excited about that!), but because through our relationship with them, we've come to find that they write incredibly thorough and thoughtful reviews. Here's what they had to say about Hassie Calhoun:

"Author Pamela Cory delivers the perfect cocktail of hope and devastation in her latest novel, Hassie Calhoun: A Las Vegas Novel of Innocence. With one hand, Cory offers her readers untarnished hopes of the young and uninitiated, and with the other she delivers the inescapable realities of the real world and the people who live there."

"In the back of the book, author Pamela Cory provides a list of questions for readers to ponder. The first on the list begins by asking, 'How badly do you want to slap Hassie?' Although this question may seem too dismissive for a character who ultimately lives a relatively complex and successful life chasing her dream of stardom, it does in fact get to the heart of Cory’s development of Hassie’s character. Like Vegas offering the duality of hopes and exploitation, Hassie’s character offers a frustrating duality of innocence and stubborn arrogance that leads to so many of her painful choices. Perhaps more important to the question, though, is that Cory develops this excellent character and story so well that the reader will indeed want to slap Hassie."

You can find the rest of the review at the Nevada Review's website. And look for it in print in the spring issue of the Nevada Review as well!

Oct 12, 2011

Catch us at the Twin Cities Book Festival

A new world of entertainment awaits you at the Twin Cities Book Festival in Minneapolis! We hope you’ll stop by to visit with Scarletta Press & author Pendred Noyce!
 
Rain Taxi Review of Books will proudly sponsor the 11th Annual Twin Cities Book Festival this coming Saturday, October 15, at the Minneapolis Community and Technical College in downtown Minneapolis from 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM.

The book festival is open to the public, and hosts a wide array of publishers, bookstores, and other industry members for a day of children’s activities, used book fairs, spectacular authors, and panel discussions.
 
This year, Pendred Noyce has been invited to host a Lexicon Villages event at the festival’s children’s pavilion. The Lexicon Villages will be a featured event that children and adults of all ages can dive into from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM. You’ll travel from village to village, and puzzle over fun and engaging concepts together as the land of Lexicon comes to life. Don't be surprised if you walk away with a keepsake from Lexicon!
 
Lost in Lexicon is a literary fantasy for kids age 9-12. It tells the tale of two cousins on a journey through a magical land full of mixed up words and numbers, with a quest to return the lost children of Lexicon to their homes. It is the first in a four-part adventure series. Lost in Lexicon has won numerous awards, to include a Mom's Choice Gold Award, a Parents’ Choice Recommended award, a ForeWord Book of the Year Awards Honorable Mention, and an IBPA Ben Franklin for Interior Design.
 
And DON’T FORGET to stop by the Scarletta Press table in the main exhibit hall to purchase both new and old books at a discounted price. If you can’t make it to the book festival (although we hope you can!), Scarletta Press books are also available from your local bookstores, and from many large outlets as well. Check out our website to find out about all our books!


 
Author Biography
Pendred Noyce is a doctor, education reformer, and writer. Penny has practiced internal medicine, supervised medical residents, and become a leader in Massachusetts mathematics and science education reform. She serves on a number of nonprofit boards, including that of the Noyce Foundation, and she chairs the boards of Maine’s Libra Foundation and the Rennie Center for Education Research and Policy. Lost in Lexicon: An Adventure in Words and Numbers is Penny's first full novel and is the first in a four-part adventure series.

For more information on Lost in Lexicon: An Adventure in Words and Numbers, please visit www.lostinlexicon.com.

Oct 11, 2011

The Mom’s Choice Awards® Names LOST IN LEXICON Among Best In Family-Friendly Products

The Mom's Choice Awards® has named Lost in Lexicon: An Adventure in Words and Numbers by Pendred Noyce among the best in family-friendly media, products and services.
The Mom’s Choice Awards® (MCA) is an awards program that recognizes authors, inventors, companies, parents and others for their efforts in creating quality family-friendly media, products and services.

Parents, educators, librarians and retailers rely on MCA evaluations when selecting quality materials for children and families. An esteemed panel of judges includes education, media and other experts as well as parents, children, librarians, performing artists, producers, medical and business professionals, authors, scientists and others. To be considered for an award, each entrant submits five identical samples of a product. Entries are matched to judges in the MCA database. Judges perform a thorough analysis and submit a detailed assessment. Results are compiled and submitted to the MCA Executive Committee for final approval. The end result is a list of the best in family-friendly media, products and services that parents and educators can feel confident in using.
Lost in Lexicon is a literary fantasy for kids age 9-12. It tells the tale of two cousins on a journey through a magical land full of mixed up words and numbers, with a quest to return the lost children of Lexicon to their homes. It is the first in a four-part adventure series. Lost in Lexicon has won numerous awards, to include a Parents’ Choice Recommended award, a ForeWord Book of the Year Awards Honorable Mention, and an IBPA Ben Franklin for Interior Design.
For more information on Lost in Lexicon: An Adventure in Words and Numbers, please visit this website.



Oct 4, 2011

"Immensely readable and thoroughly enjoyable"

Undiscovered Scotland loved Scotland Is Not for the Squeamish saying:

"But the way Bill Watkins carries us with him through his adventures and misadventures is enthralling, often amusing, sometimes emotional, and always extremely well written. This is one of those rare books which keep you turning the page not through plot devices, but simply by keeping the reader engaged."

Thanks so much Ken Lussey! We're glad Scotland Is Not for the Squeamish is giving people one more reason to head to Scotland! And head to their website to check out the rest of the review!