Author: CAstfalk

Catholic Teen Books Back-to-School Giveaways

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Catholic Teen Books is sponsoring two HUGE giveaways for Catholic school libraries. Schools may enter to win either a Junior High or High School bundle of books – or, if a K-12 school, BOTH.

Then faculty, staff, families, and students can vote for their school, earning more chances to win!

Find all the details at Catholic Teen Books.

Contest is for brick-and-mortar Catholic schools in the continental United States only. Contest ends September, 30, 2023.

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An Open Book

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Welcome to the August 2023 edition of An Open Book, hosted both at My Scribbler’s Heart and CatholicMom.com!

Operation Paperclip

After a long dry spell in his reading, my husband has been listening to Annie Jacobsen’s Operation Paperclip: The Secret Intelligence Program that Brought Nazi Scientists to America. Using interviews and archival documents, the author brings to light the decades-long secret post-WWII project bringing Nazi Germany’s greatest minds –those who had committed war crimes and mass murder—to the United States. These men, relocated to the United States with their families, were also responsible for great American scientific achievements. This isn’t a new book, and it’s not unfamiliar to me, but it seems timely as I regularly learn of ways in which the U.S. government is or has been lying to or misleading the American public.

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An Open Book

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Welcome to the July 2023 edition of An Open Book, hosted both at My Scribbler’s Heart and CatholicMom.com!

Blink and We'll Miss It

I’ve enjoyed some additional reading time since the school year wrapped up. First up was Ginny Kochis’s debut YA novel, Blink and We’ll Miss It. From the cover to the content, this is a perfectly summery read for teens and adults. Set in the Outer Banks on the Atlantic Coast, it reminded me a lot of T.I. Lowe’s Under the Magnolias, another novel featuring a Southern female teen protagonist trying to hold everything together in the wake of a parent’s ongoing manic episodes (with the help of a handsome, loyal, compassionate boy who loves her).

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All in Good Time for $1.99 on Kindle!

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This time of year, my kids and I love to watch hundreds upon hundreds of lightning bugs rising out of the soy bean fields behind our neighborhood at dusk. It’s nothing short of spectacular.

Lightning bugs make a couple of appearances in my novel All in Good Time – including the cover! So, what better time to put the Kindle ebook on sale?

Only $1.99 on Kindle right now. Sale runs through July 4, 2023.

Download All in Good Time Now
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Relevant Fiction Reviews: Go South, Y’All

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Relevant Fiction Reviews

Southern fiction is a genre that has clear parameters in my mind that don’t quite match the descriptions I’ve been able to find. One obvious definition is books that are set in the southern United States. I’ve read plenty of those, but only a handful, to my mind, are Southern fiction.

Southern fiction, by my definition, is characterized by a particular mood. It includes quirky characters, languid summer days, and secrets. Usually family secrets. It may lean a bit toward the macabre or Southern Gothic.

Whatever you want to call it, these are some novels that fit my definition.

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Summer YA Reading: Blink and We’ll Miss It

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For decades now, our family’s summers have been marked by visits to the local libraries. It used to be Books & Babies, Book Buddies, and Chewsy Readers programs with added visits for summer performances and activities.

My children have grown and the pandemic ended many of our beloved summer reading activities, but these months still mean reading and racking up the books read to increase chances of more summer rewards. I’ll never tire of the return trips from the library when the usually raucous ride is silent as everyone but the driver delves into their new book.

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Summer Book Club: In Pieces by Rhonda Ortiz

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On Thursday, July 20, 2023, at 7:00 p.m. EDT, I’ll be facilitating a Catholics Read book club meeting. We’ll be chatting about Rhonda Ortiz’s debut novel, first in the Molly Chase series, In Pieces (Chrism Press).

This historical novel set in colonial Boston, while a romance, has wide appeal. There are rogues, spies, gossipy hens, and crusty sailors. More than that, there’s a lot to contemplate on duty, marriage, family, faith, dignity, conscience, and the pursuit of truth. Those are the kinds of things I hope we’ll talk about. And whatever YOU want to discuss!

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