Re-release of Duck and Cover

I've been so busy writing and rewriting lately, that I seem to have lost track of time. In addition to working on getting my book back on Amazon, I have also been working on another historical fiction novel (this one geared more toward adults) and my picture book manuscripts.

My contract was up with my middle grade historical fiction, and I decided not to renew it.

I wanted to change the cover (I thought the children on the original cover were too young for the main characters and intended readers of the book) and make some formatting changes to the manuscript. Some of the changes may seem trivial to people, but I feel that little things can sometimes make a big difference.

Here is a small snippet from the book that I feel fits right in with the cover:

***************

   The house was so quiet, I couldn't sleep. I put my clothes on, slipped out of bed and walked outside. While I stared at the moon, a shooting star flashed across the sky.
   Is that what a Russian missile would look like? I hope I didn't ever find out. I closed my eyes tight, made a wish and went back inside and climbed into my bed. 

***************

The main character also yearns to be an astronaut and travel to the moon when he grows up, so I thought the front cover needed a moon - and a shooting star to make his wishes on.

You will now find a new cover, a few !'s marks scattered here and there in the story (which I feel were really needed), a short timeline in the back of the book and a slightly different format.


I hope you like the changes I made - I do.

You can click on the cover on the sidebar and find it on Amazon.

I'm not very good at making book trailers yet, but here is the one I made for Duck and Cover.
It takes a few seconds, but it will play.

Or . . . you can click here to view it on YouTube.  Give me a thumbs up or thumbs down or leave a comment.   Thanks!

Happy writing and reading everyone!

MMGM - The Little Riders & Ghost

I've read two books this past week. An older one . . .

 

by Margaretha Shemin

illustrated by Peter Spier

I found this gem in one of our town's Little Libraries. It was originally published in 1963, but was published again in 1988. There was a movie made from it in 1996.

An eleven-year-old American girl named Johanna is living in Nazi-occupied Holland. She sits at her window and views the church steeple and watches the little riders as they ride out on their white horses when the clock strikes the hour. She resents the presence of a German soldier quartered in her grandparent's house, until the night she tries to hide part of the town's treasured clock mechanism.

I loved this little book. It is short, the book I have is only 76 pages, but it is a good historical fiction that takes place during WWII. Johanna is a very likeable main character. She is courageous and, near the end, forgiving. 

and a newer one . . . 

 

 

by Raina Telgemeier

Ghosts, is a graphic novel. According to the reviews on Amazon, Raina Telgemeier's graphic novels are very popular.

I'm not really into graphic novels, but I must admit I loved Archie, Betty and Veronica when I was a child. Kids seem to love them. I think they would appeal to the reluctant reader because of the graphics and the lesser word count.  But I can tell there is a lot of work that goes into writing them.  Her characters are very expressive.

Here is what it says on Amazon:

Catrina and her family are moving to the coast of Northern California because her little sister, Maya, is sick. Cat isn't happy about leaving her friends for Bahía de la Luna, but Maya has cystic fibrosis and will benefit from the cool, salty air that blows in from the sea. As the girls explore their new home, a neighbor lets them in on a secret: There are ghosts in Bahía de la Luna. Maya is determined to meet one, but Cat wants nothing to do with them. As the time of year when ghosts reunite with their loved ones approaches, Cat must figure out how to put aside her fears for her sister's sake - and her own.

If you, or a child you know, like graphic novels, I would recommend this book to you.

Go over to Always in the Middle to find out who else is posting about MG Books.

A Writer's Bookshelves

I love books!

This is a bookshelf that sits next to my computer. It has my reference books in it and some of my favorite middle grade books.

For 8 years I wrote a column for kids and I also like writing historical fiction.

My middle grade book (which means it is geared toward 8-12 year olds - but baby boomers love it, too, because they were young when this story takes place) Duck and Cover, is a historical fiction novel. It takes place in the fall of 1962 during the Cuban Missile Crisis.
 
Here are some more reference type books that I have on my shelves that I have found to be very helpful in my writing.

Of course, this is only the tip of the iceberg. I have 3 other bookcases in our family room. They are filled with numerous other books, including picture books, chapter books, vintage books, copies of Two Lane Livin' (the magazine I wrote a children's column in). etc. etc.

Oh, I can't leave out a pic of this old floor-model radio which was converted into a bookcase. I bought this at a yard sale for $3. It is filled with Little Golden Books!

Do you have lots of books, too?
If you like, tell us about them in your comment.
Or better yet, do a blog post about them and come back and put a link to it in your comment - I'd love to see them.

Happy Writing

 

A Book Review - Fever 1793

I write. I write all the time. But I also squeeze in time to read.

You become a better writer by reading what you write.


I read in the evenings, I read when my husband and I are riding around and I read whenever I can find the time.

I recently read Fever 1793 by Laurie Halse Anderson.
I had heard of this book and always wanted to read it.
(In case you don't know, I love historical fiction)
It is for young adults and has an appendix in the back giving information about the facts of the time period and famous people touched by the fever.

Here is the blurb from the back:
During the summer of 1793, Mattie Cook lives above the family coffee shop with her widowed mother and grandfather. Mattie spends her days avoiding chores and making plans to turn the family business into the finest Philadelphia has ever seen. But then the fever breaks out.
Disease sweeps the streets, destroying everything in its path and turning Mattie's world upside down. At her feverish mother's insistence, Mattie flees the city with her grandfather. But she soon discovers that the sickness is everywhere, and Mattie must learn quickly how to survive in a city turned frantic with disease.

If you like historical fiction, I feel you will like this book. It is very detailed in sections about how life was like during that time period. You can tell she did a lot of research. It is so sad they did not know how yellow fever was caught and spread.
When they bled people, it just made chills go down me.
When the characters mentioned swatting mosquitoes away from their faces, I cringed.

Have you read this book? Did you enjoy it?

What have you read lately?



Janet Smart
author of Duck and Cover

MMGM - What the Moon Said

Today is Marvelous Middle Grade Monday.
To see what middle grade book other bloggers posted about, follow the links on  Shannon Messenger's site.

What The Moon Said

by Gayle Rosengren

2014 G.P. Putnam's Sons

 

Click here to read more about Gayle and her book.

I love historical fiction and after reading the info about it on the Jacket Flap, I suspicioned I would enjoy this book. And, don't you just love the cover?

I fell in love with the ten year old character, Esther. This story takes place during the depression. Her pa loses his job and she and her family leave Chicago and move to a farm in Wisconsin. In Esther's words, they are like pioneers. They had no electricity and no bathroom. But she did get a best friend and a dog named Mickey.

Her mother is very superstitious about everything. Or should I say, very very superstitious. She forbids her to see her new friend because she says she is marked by angry fairies.

The thing Esther longs for most is for her mother to tell her she loves her and to give her a hug, which she has never gotten. But, in the end she realizes:

     Love was actions more than words. And not just easy actions like hugs and kisses. It was the hard ones, like sticking by someone in bad times, not just in good. It was working for them, even when you were tired. It was putting their needs first, even before your own. It was taking care of them when they were sick. It was forgiving them when they disappointed you. It was protecting them and teaching them. It was all the things Ma had always done for Ester.

If you like historical fiction, I recommend this book!

Posted byJanet Smart on Creative Writing in the Blackberry Patch.