First Thoughts

I love Jo Beverley’s novels. With sadness I share the following article from the May 25 Shelf Awareness email newsletter:

Jo Beverley, a prolific author of historical and contemporary romance novels, died May 23. She was 68. In a tribute on the Word Wenches romance authors blog, Mary Jo Putney announced her friend's death "with the deepest of sadness" and wrote: "She won five RITAs--a full basketball team--and many other awards, including the RWA Hall of Fame. Her books deserved all of that and more, and I'm happy to report that she had finished her book for next year, so we have that to look forward to." Beverley's work included the Company of Rogues, the Malloren and the Georges series.

The Romance Writers of America noted that Beverley "was generous with her time and her knowledge, giving workshops at RWA conferences and writing articles for the Romance Writers Report magazine. She was a much-loved and admired member of the romance writing community.

~from the December Do It Green! E-Newsletter:

The holiday season is here! A time for family, friends, fellowship and, of course, stress. Time commitments, to-do lists, shopping lists and money worries can overwhelm us, sap our energy and keep us from experiencing the joys of the season. Consider letting go of some of that stress by simplifying your holidays. From Thanksgiving to New Year’s Day, household waste increases by more than 25% due to extra food, shopping bags, packaging, and wrapping paper. Simplifying your holidays can also green your holidays. Less waste and less stuff = less stress.

Be more mindful of your time as a family

Turn off the TV and put down your cell phones

Read a book out loud together or hold a game night

Get outdoors: go ice skating or cross country skiing or take a walk in the woods

Cook a healthy meal together

Avoid excess packaging by giving the gift of an experience such as music or cooking lessons or tickets to a play or a sporting event.

Wrap presents in eco-friendly alternative wrapping like scarves, bandannas, or newspaper

Avoid holiday food waste by planning ahead, rethinking portion sizes and using leftovers creatively

Kerala and Rurik sat on the hilltop, shoulder to shoulder, the late afternoon sun peeking in from behind them, washing over the valley below. Kerala fidgeted with a stalk of prairie grass, twirling it between her fingers.

“I understand why you’re reluctant, being caught off-guard and all,” Rurik said.

“And you were not?” Kerala queried.

“I grew up knowing, I just didn’t know if you’ld ever show up.”

“How do you feel about that? That I’m here?”

“I did view it as an insurance policy, wouldn’t ever have to change my life if my affianced wife never appeared!” Rurik replied. “We don’t have to rush the next step, in fact if you decide not to and just leave for your next assignment without ... that’s fine too.”

Kerala sighed. So many decisions.

“It’s just, well, let’s take some time to get to know each other,” Rurik said.

“As much time as we need,” she affirmed.

Rurik nodded.

“How did you learn the proper braid?” he asked.

“My matria knew it. She must have known about the betrothal. She never explained that part. She just said my braid was different because I belonged to a different house. I just assumed it was my father’s house. You know.” Kerala waived her hand.

“I was impressed that my matria did not re-braid.”

“Thanks.” At least all those tears and stress and aggravation had not been wasted.

“So how much of the valley is your’s?” Kerala asked.

To the customer who walked out this morning under served. I try very hard to get to everyone at some point when they visit the store. Today I failed you. I’m Sorry.

I’m attempting to train my 13-year-old son to help out at the bookstore, and work on task management and organizational skills at the same time (he is a “spectrum” child). Between finishing up with an existing customer and starting my son on his next task I forgot to check in and see if you needed any assistance.

When I think of cherry orchards I think of northern Michigan, Traverse City, and a long day trip when we lived in Chicago to go cherry picking. I remember being alarmed when John noticed two trails of cherry juice running down Sebastian’s chin. I didn’t see them because he was in the baby backpack (thank you, Rachelle, so convenient). Apparently as I was picking cherries I swung Sebastian within range of some fruit and he wanted to try some for himself. Stones and all. He had the biggest smile on his face. He loved cherries! This was before cell phones were ubiquitous; however, John had one and we called mom to make sure a cherry stone (or two) wouldn’t pose a great danger to Sebastian’s intestines. No worries, Sebastian was (and is) fine. We gathered cherries, created stories to share, and made some great memories that day.

Chocolate!!!   Dark chocolate? Milk Chocolate? Both? Neither?

We are proud and honored to announce that An Open Book has been chosen as an American Small Business Champion by SCORE and Sam’s Club.

The American Small Business Championship (championship.score.org) awarded the title to 102 small businesses, two in every state and the District of Columbia, for their sacrifices and dedication to the success of their business. The American Small Business Champions each received a $1,000 Sam's Club gift card, an all-expense-paid trip to a training event, SCORE mentoring for one year, and promotion throughout the year to showcase each Champion’s story.

We are honored to have been chosen and look forward to attending the training event and connecting with our very own SCORE mentor to really take our business to the next level.

A Book Review by Jon G.

I’ll tell you right away, in my opinion, Rick Mofina's Into The Dark, not a terrific book.  Part of a mystery, which I guess this is supposed to be, is figuring out who done it, no?  Well you can guess almost right away, and a few chapters in the author just up and tells you.  Maybe it’s supposed to be a suspense novel.  If that’s the case I think it falls short for the genre as well.  The pacing seemed too slow at first and then rushed at the end, like the author just wanted to get it over with.  A lot if the details we just don’t need to know; does the fact that the character Claire always has whole wheat toast and some sort of fruit for breakfast really have an impact on the plot?  I can see mentioning it once as a typical breakfast and then counting on your readers to fill in the blanks from there.

          And some of the logical leaps didn’t work for me either.  As if, after 9/11, someone can get to be a pilot without a really thorough background check?  My suspension of disbelief just hit the wall, sorry Mr. Mofina.

At first glance, this novel may come across as a typical teen read, albeit aimed at young men instead of young ladies.  And while that would fall in with what the publisher would have you believe, I disagree.

Give Christopher 'Kit' Bristol a chance.  He is a boy with nothing but a job working for the man who snatched him from poverty and certain death.  Thrust into his master's role after a series of frightening yet believable (for a fantasy novel, let's not get too ahead of ourselves here) events, Kit grows up without getting old.  Anyone who has read some of the longer fantasy series out there (not to be named because we fans need to stick together) knows that often these metamorphosis-based tropes can seem old before their time.  Luckily, there is a Princess and some goblings (NOT goblins, don't call them that, goblins are stories, gob-LINGS are the real thing) to help Kit keep his head squarely on his shoulders.

By the time the book wraps, and it felt just right in length, Kit is a young man.  Not an adolescent in anything but body, he has grown and figured some things out – about his master, his ward, and himself.  This is not your typical fantasy.  No wands to cast, no 'familiars' (but he does travel with a dog, Demon, who most assuredly would be a wonderful point of view for Tripp to write a companion novella in), just a group of people, working together to find the right path to finish their quest.  For the time being, that is.

Tripp deserves to be shelved along with Piers Anthony, Robert Asprin and the like.  The prose is tight yet flowing as needed.  The story (which I shan't give away – you really should read the book) leaves off in, what is in my opinion, the perfect place for the first in a trilogy.

Kyo, the book-wench

Never have five stories meshed together so beautifully. After the first part I was hooked and had to know what happened. This story goes on about how one girl traveled across the country and how she impacted 4 strangers lives. Every one has one thing in common though. They're lost and they just don't know it yet and they all need to learn how to find what they're looking for. There are so many emotions that this book brings to the table. This is a must read!

            I am an employee at An Open Book in Wadena. This job is great for me because I love to read. I typically read young adult books and I love series. So if you're a young reader you should definitely check out the books that I talk about below. I'm sure you will love them too.

The first series I am going to talk about is a newer one. The first book is called City of Bones. I don’t usually like books on demons, vampires, and werewolves but the moment I picked up this book I fell in love with it and could not wait to read the next one. This book is about Clary Fray an ordinary girl with an extraordinary gift. She meets a shadowhunter (a demon hunter) named Jace and is pulled into his world filled with things you could never imagine. Don't forget to look for the other books in the series: City of Ashes, City of Glass, and City of Fallen Angels.

Another great series is Blue is for Nightmares. This is the first series that I ever read and it is by far one of my favorites. The main character in this series is Stacey. Her main gift is witchcraft which has been passed down through her family. But that isn’t the only thing that is special about her. She also has dreams that come true and she must figure out exactly what her dreams are trying to tell her or terrible things will happen to the people she loves. The other books in this series are: White is for Magic, Silver is for Secrets, and Red is for Remembrance.

In The Divide Felix is pulled into a magical world where humans are myths and unicorns, elves, and dragons are real. The book starts out with Felix on a hiking trip with his parents and he faints when he is standing over the divide. He is somehow pulled into the other world. Felix makes many unique friends and must travel all over in order to find his way home. Don't miss the other wonderful books Back to the Divide and Jinx on the Divide.

The most unforgettable series you will ever read is The Shadow Children. In this series families aren't allowed to have more than two children. These books take you through the lives of illegal third children (shadow children) who have gone into hiding and their struggle to make it to freedom. This books starts out with Luke who lives with his mom, dad, and two brothers on their farm house. Luke is a shadow child who meets Jen another shadow child, Jen shows him how to communicate with others like them. The books in this series are: Among the Hidden, Among the Imposters, Among the Betrayed, Among the Barons, Among the Brave, Among the Enemy, and the unforgettable ending Among the Free.

The last book I am going to talk about is not a series. It's called Scribbler of Dreams. This is the first chapter book I ever read. It is still my favorite book today. Kaitlin Malone is transferred to a different school after her father goes to jail for killing a man. At this school Kaitlin meets a boy who she instantly falls in love with. She is so drawn to this boy that even after she finds out he is a Crutchfield she cannot stay away. The Malone family have hated the Crutchfields for generations and vice versa. Kaitlin must keep her true identity a secret or lose the boy of her dreams. This is a wonderful love story about finding true love in the most unexpected places.