Celebrating Stephanie Faris's Cover Reveal: A Book My Granddaughter Would Like

I'm joining others this week in celebrating Stephanie Faris's new Piper Morgan Series and Cover reveal for Book 3 in the series:

Piper Morgan to the Rescue

When I first learned about Stephanie's character Piper, I thought of my spunky eight-year-old granddaughter Liza and her family's menagerie of pets. At one time I counted 3 dogs, 2 cats, 2 birds, one frog, and a beta fish. Oh, and I probably missed a hamster somewhere in the mix.

Their household changes with the seasons, and some of their pets have been adopted too. Their home could easily be an animal shelter, because, like Piper, they love animals. I plan to share the series with Liza. The story is endearing, and isn't the cover a delight to the eye? I just love the bright colors.

Read Book Blurb Here...

Piper Morgan to the Rescue: Piper helps some four-legged friends find the perfect home in the third book of the brand-new Piper Morgan series.

Piper is super excited to help out at Bark Street, a local animal shelter in town. Who wouldn’t want to be surrounded by adorable puppies and dogs all day? And when Piper sees Taffy, the cutest dog she has ever seen, Piper is determined to find a way to bring Taffy home. But it won’t be easy—especially when she finds out someone else wants to make Taffy a part of their family, too!

Release Dates

--PIPER MORGAN JOINS THE CIRCUS (Simon & Schuster/Aladdin, August 2016)
(Click on title if interested in an advanced reviewer copy. Stephanie is giving away a free copy through the 28th)
--PIPER MORGAN IN CHARGE (Simon & Schuster/Aladdin, August 2016)
--PIPER MORGAN TO THE RESCUE 

Bio:
Stephanie Faris knew she wanted to be an author from a very young age. In fact, her mother often told her to stop reading so much and go outside and play with the other kids. After graduating from Middle Tennessee State University with a Bachelor of Science in broadcast journalism, she somehow found herself working in information technology. But she never stopped writing.

Stephanie is the Simon & Schuster author of 30 Days of No Gossip and 25 Roses, as well as the upcoming Piper Morgan series. When she isn’t crafting fiction, she writes for a variety of online websites on the topics of business, technology, and her favorite subject of all—fashion. She lives in Nashville with her husband, a sales executive.


Links:
Website
Blog
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram

I wanted to add that I appreciate Stephanie's professionalism. She made it easy to share her book series and cover reveal on my blog. She emailed me a Press kit, complete with Book jacket, Head shot, Blurb about her book/series, Bio, other Books published, and Links.  

   

Congratulations, Stephanie. Wishing you the best of success!!

On another note, this is Celebrate the Small Things Friday. I haven't been keeping up that much, but I still love the simplicity of this lovely blog hop. As I spent most of this week fighting a nasty cold, today I'm celebrating a clean bill of health. 

I've neglected my writing, but I did manage to finish our taxes (just need to mail) and especially enjoyed the sunshine today. It's in the 50s here and the warm air (when out of wind) feels glorious. 

Happy Weekend Everyone!

Celebrate the Small Things: To join, please visit Lexa's Blog for the rules. We post every Friday about something we are grateful for that week. It can be about writing, family, school, general life or whatever.

Sharon M. Himsl

Writer/Author. Blogging since 2011. 
Published with Evernight Teen: 
~~The Shells of Mersing

The Classics - Opening Lines: White Fang by Jack London

"Dark Spruce frowned on either side of the frozen waterway. The trees had been stripped by a recent wind of their white covering of frost, and they seemed to lean toward each other, black and ominous, in the fading light. A vast silence reigned over the land."      Published 1906


I love the classics and plan to share some "opening lines" over the coming months. Comment if you like, or read for inspiration. Writing styles were different then, but were they really?
 

War Dogs by Kathryn Selbert: Book Review

War Dogs

Kathryn Selbert
Publisher: Charlesbridge, 2013

Reviewer: Sharon M. Himsl
Ages: 5 up, Picture Book



War Dogs is about two ‘real’ war dogs, Great Britain’s Prime Minister Winston Churchill and his beloved pet poodle Rufus. During World War II, Winston (also known as the British Bulldog) lived in a secret underground bunker in London with war office staff, his wife Clementine, and Rufus. Selbert describes the busy life that Winston led during the war. Writing war speeches and following the war’s progress were among his many duties. He delivered speeches to the House of Commons and met with his advisors, too. Rufus was Winston’s faithful companion and best friend throughout all and rarely left his side. He listened to Winston’s deepest concerns about the war. He was there when London was bombed and walked with Winston in the aftermath, surveying the damage. Then he waited faithfully for Winston’s return as he met with leaders in America and Russia on how to end the war. D-day, the invasion of Normandy, and soon the end of the war came, and Rufus returned to the countryside with Winston to rest. 

Selbert gently touches on London’s worst moments during the war, the bombings that took lives and destroyed its buildings by fire. She then shows the aftermath of the war when London rebuilt and started over again. Illustrations are in rich color, vivid and lifelike, but thoughtful of younger eyes. Rufus is on most pages and moves the story forward. A Time Line and short bio of Winston and Rufus are provided at the end. War Dogs is a good introduction to World War II history for young readers, but adults will need to explain the events as they unfold.

Copyright 2013 © Sharon M. Himsl



 

Good Friends: Stereoviews A-Z

I was a Tomboy once. That could have been me on the left in the pink. I climbed every tree in the neighborhood. My favorite was a monkey tree on the University of Puget Sound campus in Tacoma (WA). I lived about 10 blocks away and would bike there whenever I could. Mishaps were inevitable. 

"The Young Tomboy" (ca. 1900)

I fell out of another tree when I was six years old, puncturing the bottom of my foot on something hard. Billie, one of my playmates, had just returned from boy scout camp and knew everything there was to know about first aid. He ripped his white tee shirt off, wrapped it around my foot, draped my arm over his shoulder, and walked me home. ~~Swoon~~ I have been a hopeless romantic every since.

"Seaside Sunbeams" (1894) 
(Underwood & Underwood/Jarvis/Littleton) 

I love the title "Seaside Sunbeams." It was too faded to read at first, but another stereoview online in better condition solved the mystery, and also gave the exact date. I am reminded of Point Defiance Beach as a girl in Tacoma. I liked to see how far I could travel jumping from one piece of drift wood to the next without touching the sand. Ever do that?

"Bobbing Party" (ca. 1900)

"Heavy Load"   (ca. 1890s)

 "Good Friends" (ca. 1900)

Good friends. Who are they really? For me, a good friend is someone who loves me unconditionally, in my best of times and worst of times. Emerson wrote: "I didn't find my friends; the good God gave them to me." I like that, too. Friends are a blessing, a gift from God. How about you? What does friendship mean to you?

Copyright 2013 © Sharon Himsl [stereoviews from Gravseth family archive]

Sharon M. Himsl

Writer/Author. Blogging since 2011. 
Published with Evernight Teen: 
~~The Shells of Mersing