At the Market: A Poem Video

Thank you to Jone Rush MacCulloch and Jasmine for creating this beautiful video for my poem. 

Two New Books and Facebook Live

Today I'm excited to celebrate the book birthday of two new books.  Not only am I excited to share two wonderful new books, I'm also the proud mama of the authors!  

LIBRARY OF LESSONS & LIES is a novel-in-verse by Tim Kulp.  It is a fast-paced dark fantasy I would recommend for upper YA and beyond. 

A book loving loner, Beatrix is enjoying a rare night out with her odd couple roommate, social media megastar Claudia. When their fun is ruined by a magical book, Beatrix’s latent powers are awakened, throwing the friends into a mystical world of monsters, sorcerers and extra-dimensional beings. Beatrix and Claudia find their way to a library of magical books, where they must discover who is trying to help them and who is trying to enslave them with promises of power and answers. Their inner demons drive them to deadly decisions with implications that will resonate further than they can imagine. Will Beatrix and Claudia conquer their demons and save each other, or will the horrors of their past unleash the end of all things?

Tim is the author of numerous books for a variety of audiences including MG, YA, and adult. His books take readers on adventures both internally and externally. Tim's day job keeps him on the frontier of AI, an element that often shows up in his writing.   He consults with companies and designs programs to help them use new technology. Tim also teaches undergraduate courses in technology. 

Join Tim tonight, (Feb. 17) at 8PM eastern for a Facebook Live book launch (https://fb.me/e/2E6RLL0dQ). Tim will be sharing secrets about the book and answering questions about his writing process. I'll be there and will randomly draw the name of an attendee to win a copy of LIBRARY OF LESSONS & LIES.  Drop by Tim's Facebook page to learn more. Hope to see your there tonight!

SELECTION is a dystopian science fiction debut novel by Chris Kulp. I would recommend it for upper YA and beyond. His stories offer characters who confront current and future issues facing society.  Chris is a professor of physics, science fiction author, and the winner of the Mike Resnick Memorial Award for Best Science Fiction Short Story by a New Author. His fiction has appeared in Galaxy's Edge magazine. He has co-authored nearly 30 scientific articles and one textbook.  Check out Chris' Facebook page for updates about his writing. Here is a brief description of SELECTION.

Humanity almost destroyed itself. To survive the changing climate, we trusted every aspect of our lives to an all-knowing, all-seeing artificial intelligence known as the Algorithm. With scarce resources, the Algorithm decides who lives in poverty and who lives in luxury to build an optimal society.

Omegas clean. Sigmas manage. Betas create. Alphas, lead.

No one questions the Algorithm.

SELECTION follows Sam, Jack, Jennie and Tabitha as they discover the Algorithm’s plan may be more than it seems.

But do four people stand a chance against an omnipotent AI who may know them better than they know themselves?

LIBRARY OF LESSONS & LIES and SELECTION are both published by Making Adventure. You may know Making Adventure is the publishing company Tim started last year. With a lot of hard work, Making Adventure is gaining an audience and growing, but becoming a successful publishing business takes a village. If you would like to help, here are a couple of things you can do.

Please consider ordering one or both of the books and reviewing them on Amazon. It really helps spread the word. 

If you are on social media, posting about the books can help them reach new people. 

I appreciate you reading this long post.  Thank you so much for supporting my sons' and their books. I am very grateful to be part of the Poetry Friday family.

A special thank you to Molly for hosting this week's Poetry Friday.

Snow At Last!

 We've had a mild January with above average temperatures. On Wednesday, we got our first snowfall of the year. Our neighborhood was decorated in white. The weather forecast told us it would last long so I walked toward a wooded area near my house and snapped this picture.

A big thank you to Jan at Book Seed Studio for hosting this week's Poetry Friday.

Homemade Gifts

Homemade gifts are the best!  It fills my heart with joy when someone takes the time to make something just for me. A homemade gift is so much more personal than a store bought gift.  I do enjoy choosing store bought gifts for the people I love, but I always try to include a homemade gift too. Crocheted Christmas ornaments, a collection of family recipes, poems, and baked goods are some of my favorite gifts to give. 

Speaking of making things, I am grateful to have poems in three of the new anthologies edited by Sylvia Vardell and Janet Wong. I consider these books homemade. The poems were written especially for the anthologies by poets who love sharing the gift of words. Then Janet and Sylvia gathered the poems, created award-winning books for readers to enjoy, and will donate 100% of the profits to the IBBY Children in Crisis Fund.  What a beautiful way to spread kindness through poetry!

The THINGS WE... series is designed for young children, and WHAT IS A FRIEND? is for middle grade readers. Readers of all ages will enjoy these anthologies. Poetry is a gift that can be enjoyed again and again.  I think that is the best kind of gift!

For more poetry and great books, check out Pomelo Books.

 

A big thank you to Karen for hosting today's Poetry Friday.

Wishing you peace, love, and joy!

Linda

A Memory

The other day, my husband and I were out for a walk enjoying the gorgeous fall colors.  When my husband suggested we look for acorns, a faint memory popped into my mind. 

I was four or five years old.  My mother had taken us either to the woods or maybe it was a park to look for acorns.  I don't know if we walked on pine needles or if everything in my poem actually happened. I do remember taking home leaves, acorns, and pinecones.  Autumn has always been my favorite season, and I'm grateful for this memory.

A big thank you to Bridget at wee words for wee ones for hosting this week's Poetry Friday.

"Hot Off the Press"

My internet is spotty this morning so I'm typing fast hoping to get this post written before I lose it again. Technology!  

WHAT IS A FRIEND? is a new middle grade poetry anthology edited by Sylvia Vardell and Janet Wong.   A Children's Book Council "Hot Off the Presses" selection that examines many forms of friendship.  It belongs in every classroom library and will be well-loved by middle grade readers.

I'm very excited to be a small part of this important book about friendship. I have always loved horses, and this photo made me think of the horse therapy farm near my home. It can be read from either the child's or the horse's point of view. I wanted the reader to be able to empathize with both of them.

I am grateful to Sylvia and Janet including my poem "Rescue" and for all the meaningful, heartfelt books they are putting out into the world. 

In the coming days, I'll share more about this beautiful book.  

A special thank you to Sarah Grace Tuttle for hosting Poetry Friday.

A Compelling Novel-in-Verse

This week I’m excited to share an excerpt from a review of [dis]connection, a new novel-in-verse written by t. kulp.     [dis]connection is  “Frankenstein for the Social Network Generation,”  but it also takes us into the world of a young girl with a strong desire to belong while also searching for her own true identity.

   

The reviewer, Mary Lanni (who has reviewed more than 500 books) writes:

 

Tech, myth and magic collide in this novel-in-verse perfect for fans of the Girls Who Code series now ready for a YA techno thriller. This compelling story is presented primarily in verse and is told from the perspectives of three different characters. 

 

Erin Ulman is the new girl, and despite her popularity at her last school, she is anything but popular at her new school in Glen Coast, Maryland. Her computer coding skills and comfortable fashion choices are not appreciated by her classmates, and Erin often finds herself discussed on SocialNet whenever her behavior falls too far outside the norm. A mysterious package arrives for Erin one day, tempting her with the call of the unknown as she fits the pieces together and starts a computer program she has never seen before. Battling the drama of school and social media is only the beginning, and Erin must learn the truth behind the questionable parcel before time runs out.

 

From the very beginning, readers will be curious to discover exactly what is happening in Erin’s world. As a coder, Erin often thinks in computer code, and this appears frequently within her segments of the novel. Regardless of one’s experience with coding themselves, these inclusions make sense and help readers connect more deeply with Erin’s character. Profound and important, this book shows the damage social media and cyberbullying can have on a person within a beautiful and thought-provoking design. Anyone who has ever considered the potentials of artificial intelligence or the damage that can be caused by comments both in school and on social media will appreciate the unique combination presented in this story. This is a memorable young adult novel in both substance and style.

 

A compelling and unique approach to the dangers of both artificial intelligence and social media communication.

You can read the entire review here.

The very first poem puts the reader right in the middle of Erin's dilemma as a the new girl. Figuring out how to fit in is just one of the many obstacles she faces in this emotion-packed novel.

You can read the rest of the poem and purchase [dis]connection here.

Find out more about t. kulp and his latest projects here.

Be sure to look for the hidden website in the book.  So far, only 10 readers have found it!  The website tells more about the secret organization that plays a key role in the story.

A special thank you to Kathryn for hosting Poetry Friday.

Have a great weekend!