Far World - Water Keep
THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED
Months ago I heard about an opportunity to join a blog tour for a book called Far World, Water Keep. All I knew was that Far World was of the Fantasy genre and that’s all I needed to know to want to get in. Fantasy is my favorite genre to read. So I eagerly signed up and waited for my Advanced Readers Copy to arrive. When it arrived I opened the book and 413 pages and 6 or so hours later I closed it. That’s how much I loved it. I just couldn’t put it down. And now that it’s over I can’t wait for the next one to come out.
In brief, the story is about two young children - Marcus Kanenas who is severely handicapped and wheelchair bound on earth and Kyja a young girl living in a magical world but who can’t do any magic herself. Under magical circumstances the two of them are brought together and begin an adventure trying to elude the Dark Circle which will stop at nothing to destroy them. All the while they’re trying to unravel the mystery of their pasts and why the Dark Circle wants them dead.
The author, J. Scott Savage has done a fabulous job writing a book that will appeal to both children and adults. It’s a story filled not only with adventure and magic but with the timeless values of honesty and always doing the right thing no matter the circumstance. This is a book I’ll have no problem reading with my boys (ages 6 and 5) and I can’t wait to start.
I also had the great opportunity of interviewing the author. He flew me to uh….Switzerland, yeah. Just because he knew how important my review might be to the success of his book. We talked while…taking a hike…in the alps. Ahem.
Me: I’ll be honest here - I’d never even heard of you until I saw a blog post advertising your Farworld blog tour. But Fantasy is my favorite genre and I’m always looking for great new books to read. Having said that, I noticed on your blog that Farworld is your first YA book and your first Fantasy series and that the other books you’ve written are mysteries. What made you decide to transcend genres?
Scott: I really didn’t “choose” to write YA or fantasy, even though I love reading the genre. I didn’t think I could write it, because it was so different from what I have read in the past. But I had this idea stuck in my head that wouldn’t let me sleep. I started writing this book at 2:00 AM to prove to myself I couldn’t do it and get this crazy storyline out of my head. But five hours and five thousand words later, I realized I was writing a fantasy and I was having a ball doing it. The rest of the book seemed to flow almost as easily. Now that I’ve done it though, I’m really glad I did.
Me: When you were conceptualizing this book, what was your intended target audience?
Scott: The same audience that read and loved Harry Potter. Not the people that read it because all their friends were. But the people who knew every character and read all the books multiple times before the next one came out. The people that went to the midnight release parties and started reading that night. I wanted to write a book that adults and kids could enjoy and discuss.
Me: So, do you think you achieved that goal and do you think the subsequent books in this series will stay within that range of maturity?
Scott: I hope so. I’ve been getting very positive reviews for the adult bloggers as well as having a lot of kids come to me and say they how much they loved Farworld and why. I guess I won’t know for sure until it hits shelves nationally. And even then, probably not until a couple of books are out. I think I hit the maturity level right though. Enough action and cool magic to keep kids entertained while not dropping down to the silly kind of humor that turns off adults because it doesn’t feel like there is enough depth to it.
Me: What was your inspiration for this story?
Scott: I’m not sure there is one inspiration. But it’s more like lots of little pieces suddenly coming together. I’ve always like the idea that magic is all around us, we just don’t know it. Everybody has to find their own magic.
Me: So I hear there will be 5 books in all when the series is completed. How in the world can you predict that? Am I the only person on earth who doesn’t plan out just how a story will end and when before I sit down to write it? Hmmm, maybe that’s why I haven’t finished any works yet…
Scott: Wow lots of questions on that one. I think that sometimes you start a series thinking this could be one book or it could be several depending on how well it does. That forces you to write a book that could be a stand alone. In this case, the series had to be five books. No more, no less. I know what will happen in each book. Not every detail. But the big picture. To answer the second part of the question, there are writers that can jump into a story without knowing the end and work all the way through. But it’s not easy. For me, I need to know where I am headed before I start walking.
Me: Ok so back to the story itself. I don’t recall ever reading a book with a hero in it as severely handicapped as Marcus is. At times I really couldn’t see any possibility of him getting out of whatever bind he was in. Did you ever find yourself in a bind trying to work his escape plans out? As the story evolved, was it more difficult to write than you thought it would be because of Marcus’ handicap?
Scott: My favorite books are the ones where the challenges seem insurmountable at times. How many times in LOTR does it seem like there is no way Frodo will get out of this one. So that’s what I write. It did make it harder to write Marcus because of his physical disabilities. Sometimes it was very hard to figure out what would happen. But I never doubted that Marcus was the character I had envisioned. I never considered changing him. In fact, if I had to, I think I would have scrapped the whole series. It just wouldn’t have been the same story I needed to tell.
Me: Well thank you so very much for taking the time to answer my well thought out and oh so intelligent questions.
Scott: The pleasure was all mine. Oh, I also wanted to mention that I will be having a release party at the Spanish Fork, UT library on Saturday, September 13th from 12-3. We’ll be having free food, free posters, drawings, and all that good stuff. And 20% of the proceeds will go to the library (is there a better cause?) If your blog gets many Utah visitors and you could give it a mention, I would appreciate it. Also drop by the new website www.readfarworld.com and take a look around.
Me: Sure thing!
What a gracious author eh? Flying me out to Austria like that and all. What? Oh yeah, I mean Switzerland, yeah.
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Farworld, Water Keep will hit store shelves this Friday, Sept. 12, 2008 and I think you’ll love it just as much as I did. But one of you, one very lucky one of you, will win your very own Advanced Readers Copy of Farworld, signed by Mr. Savage himself. Even better you can request whatever personalized message you want!
RULES:
1. You must have a U.S. or Canada shipping address to enter
2. You must leave one comment on this post
3. Would you like 2 extra entries? Blog about the release of Farworld and this giveaway. Make sure to include a link back to this particular post and to www.readfarworld.com.
4. This giveaway will end Sunday Sept. 14, 2008 at midnight.
Have you noticed?
I’ve been MIA for the past few days. A family member stopped by unexpectedly and brought with them a very stressful situation. Stress=can’t think. Can’t think=can’t blog. But now that family member is gone and things are getting back to normal, sort of. Except I can’t seem to shake this melancholy mood I’m in.
I got word on Sunday that my grandmother doesn’t want to fight anymore. She’s been battling cancer for a while now. I should have known something was up when she contacted me to see if she could fly me and Angel girl out for a visit. She hasn’t met her only great grand daughter yet. So with heavy hearts we’ll go with the realization that it will likely be for the last time. Maybe it’s good that I can start the grieving now. I don’t know. I just know that sometimes I’m fine and sometimes it hits me so hard I can’t keep back the tears. I love her. She has been a rock to her family and an unwavering example of faith and courage to me. I don’t want her to go yet but I take comfort that she’ll be rid of the crippling panic attacks she’s faced since she was 25, that she’ll be rid of a body that has been plagued by various cancers for most of 10 years. I take comfort knowing that soon she’ll be reunited with the 2 year old son that was taken from her 36 years ago. I’m happy for her when I think of those things. And I know that things will be ok. However they end, whenever they end I know that we’ll all get through it one step at a time.
P.S. I’ll be back tomorrow with an author interview and book giveaway. You won’t want to miss it!
Winner of the Yoplait Kids Yogurt Pack…
… is Jessica at Little Bits of Everything.
Congratulations Jessica! You’ll be receiving an email shortly so don’t forget to check your spam box just in case.
Imagination Movers
I know Friday is nearly over but we’ve had some serious “stuff” happening around here since late last night and I just don’t feel like blogging when things are in high drama mode. Thankfully it should all be over by tomorrow morning. In the meantime I need to get this post up because Imagination Movers premieres tomorrow at 10/9 central. It’s kind of like America’s version of the Wiggles, but less annoying. :)
Anyway, I got to view an episode of imagination Movers this week and I think it’s going to be a really fun new kids show. Is it cheesy? Yes. Is it silly yes? Is it fun? Yes. Does it educate? Yes. All things that both kids and parents look for in youth television programming. Besides all that that they play some really groovy music. Definitely the kind that will have you up dancing with your kids. So check out the premiere tomorrow and see if it’s worthy of being added to your list of regularly watched kids shows.
Cabbage Patch Kids have returned!
So Team Mom recently informed me that Cabbage Patch Kids is celebrating their 25th Anniversary. Cabbage Patch Kids is releasing a new line of original cabbage patch dolls, meaning that each new ‘Kid will be an exact reproduction of an original. They’re being created using the original sculpts/molds and the same materials they used in the classics. And they’ll each still come with their own name and certificate of adoption. Team Mom was awesome enough to send me my very own 25th Anniversary Doll. It’s still in the box waiting for Angel Girl to open it on Christmas morning.
Obviously they timed this release to coincide with holiday shopping but I’m certain this re-release would have been a huge success at any time of year. How many of us don’t love our beloved ‘originals’, be they Cabbage Patch Kids or other toys. Sometimes we hate to see toys evolve. I know I’m excited for Angel girl to have her very own Cabbage Patch doll (and a doll that doesn’t do creepy stuff like blink her eyes and pee and poo and talk) and hopefully she’ll play with it a little more…gently, than I did.
My only memory of my cabbage patch doll is of an atrocious butch cut and her dingy unclothed body (who knows where doll clothes every disappear to) flung about on the floor or outside in the yard. Suffice it to say I was Tom boy. My Barbies, all 3 of them, faced the same fate. But I digress.
Were you old enough to remember the Cabbage Patch craze? I was but 2 so I don’t. Do you think A 25th Anniversary doll will be on your holiday shopping list? They are a limited time release. Are there other classic toys you’re hoping will someday return? I’m voting for Rainbow Brite. If I could get me an original Rainbow Brite Doll, some sprites and a DVD of all original episodes I would be a happy camper.
Help me with my laundry please!
Yeah, I’m a little embarrassed to admit that I’m not very good at doing laundry. I mean I get it done, I just don’t do anything other than throw it in the washer. See, I keep hoping that the washer by itself will miraculously take the stains out but I’ve finally come to accept that is not to be. So give me your best advice:
* What stain removers do you recommend?
* How long are you suppose to let the item chill out with just the stain remover on it?
* How about on whites? My boys wear white shirts to school and come home with markings and dirt all over them every day.
* Isn’t there some miracle product that will remove old stains or stains that weren’t discovered before the clothes were thrown in the dryer?
* Any other recommendations?
Healthy Snacking with Yoplait Kids Yogurt
THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED
Yogurt is one of my favorite healthy snacks to offer the kids and fun brands like Yoplait make them even more eager to eat it. Their favorite characters like Dora, Diego and Blue are featured on the yogurt cups. What I didn’t realize before I was asked to try and review Yoplait kids yogurt, was how unhealthy yogurt can actually be depending on how much sugar is added.
Yoplait kids yogurt not only tastes good, it has 25% less sugar than most children’s yogurt and now has 16mg of Omega-3 DHA in each serving. Something we all know is important for our growing kids. There are also no chunks of fruit in Yoplait Kids Yogurt, something that’s important for younger babies or for texture sensitive tots.
Would you like to try Yoplait kids yogurt FREE? Yoplait is offering up one Travel Fun Pack to one lucky winner. The pack includes: 1 Yoplait Travel sized cooler, 1 educational travel game and one coupon for a free 6 pack of Yoplait Kids Yogurt.
TO ENTER:
1. Leave a comment on this post and tell me what your child’s favorite flavor of yogurt is.
2. Only one comment per person
3. Giveaway ends Monday Sept. 8, 2008 at midnight
4. Giveaway is only open to residents of the United States
GOOD LUCK!!
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All content on Summer's Nook, unless credited to someone else by the author, is the sole property of Summer Owens and may not be duplicated without permission.
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