Book Shaming: Why Do We Do It?

When I was a teen I had to deal with judgment in a lot of areas in my life. My hair was a little frizzy (okay, so it was a lot frizzy) and I had a gap between my two front teeth. I didn't have the money to dress like the popular girls, so there was always the worry that my second hand clothes were going to draw some ugly words and judgmental stares. I drove a car that my friends nicknamed the Deathmobile and I lived in a trailer. There were lots of reasons for me to feel self conscious, but there was one area that none of this applied. Books. Books were something else for me. They were an escape.

When I went to the library, no one batted an eye lash at the titles I picked. Whether the pages were filled with blood sucking vampires that sparkled, hitchhiking serial killers (damn Christopher Pike for always making me fall in love with the bad guy), or a simple contemporary about a girl not much different than me. Hobbits or hobo's. Werewolves or witches. No one judged. Huddled over my book while other people passed notes in class. Hunkered down by the lockers in the hall. On the bus. At the dinner table. No one rolled their eyes and made me hide my book in shame.

When I got to college my reading tastes didn’t really change, but they did evolve. I read and enjoyed the classics and poetry, but I also devoured romance novels. They were stories filled with the kind of love that I didn't know anything about yet. Something a little deeper and let's face it, a whole lot sexier than the coming of age stuff I'd cut my teeth on. But again...no one cared. I wasn't accused of reading "mommy porn". I wasn't a "lonely housewife" because I read a book with a seriously hot guy on the cover and a few sex scenes between the covers.

When I cashed in my adult card and decided to throw my two cents into the literary pool, I decided to attend my very first writer’s workshop. This is the place where I encountered the dreaded "book shame" for the first time. Only this time is wasn't only what I loved to read, but what I loved to write. Young adult fiction? Grim reapers falling in love with humans? Surrounded by a room full of writers and a teacher that thrived on classic literary fiction, I was picked apart.

So, here is my question. The one that keeps me up at night and ruffles my feathers every time I see a mean comment online, or the you-must-be-crazy look I get when people get a glimpse of my bookshelf or ask me what kind of books I write.

When did reading become something to be ashamed of? When did it stop being celebrated?

As an adult, in a place that's filled with faceless online communication, I've been introduced to this whole new world of criticism as a reader. A world where you are somehow deemed less intelligent for choosing to read a book about sparkly vampires. A world where you are suddenly classified as a "bored and lonely housewife" who gets her thrills reading "mommy porn" because you decide to pick up a romance novel. A world where the book snob is alive and well.

Here is my advice. Let's stop judging each other, put an end to the book snobbery, and READ. Read often. Read what you love. And under no circumstances be ashamed. Go all Dead Poets Society on the world and shout out your love for the books hidden on your Kindle or shoved to the back of your bookshelves. You know, the one you've hidden behind the full works of William Shakespeare. Stand on a desk if you have to. Or your kitchen table, provided it's strong enough. I mean, safety first people, come on. But above all else, be proud that in a world of instant, mindless entertainment that you chose to use your imagination and brain. Let's stop calling the books we love guilty pleasures. Let’s call them what they deserve to be called. Art.

Now you guys are in the hot seat! What are the books have you worn out the covers too? What characters made you fall in love? Shout it out in the comments below!

YA Scavenger Hunt!!!

 

Welcome to YA Scavenger Hunt! This tri-annual event was first organized by author Colleen Houck as a way to give readers a chance to gain access to exclusive bonus material from their favorite authors...and a chance to win some awesome prizes! At this hunt, you not only get access to exclusive content from each author, you also get a clue for the hunt. Add up the clues, and you can enter for our prize--one lucky winner will receive one signed book from each author on the hunt in my team! But play fast: this contest (and all the exclusive bonus material) will only be online for 72 hours!

Go to the YA Scavenger Hunt page to find out all about the hunt. There are TWO contests going on simultaneously, and you can enter one or all! I am a part of the BLUE TEAM--but there is also a red team for a chance to win a whole different set of twenty-five signed books!

If you'd like to find out more about the hunt, see links to all the authors participating, and see the full list of prizes up for grabs, go to the YA Scavenger Hunt homepage.

 

 

SCAVENGER HUNT PUZZLE

 

                        

Directions: Below, you'll notice that I've listed my favorite number. Collect the favorite numbers of all the authors on the blue team, and then add them up (don't worry, you can use a calculator!).

Entry Form: Once you've added up all the numbers, make sure you fill out the form here to officially qualify for the grand prize. Only entries that have the correct number will qualify.

Rules: Open internationally, anyone below the age of 18 should have a parent or guardian's permission to enter. To be eligible for the grand prize, you must submit the completed entry form by DATE, at noon Pacific Time. Entries sent without the correct number or without contact information will not be considered.

  


SCAVENGER HUNT POST

 

 

Today I am so excited to be hosting K.A. Tucker on my website for the YA Scavenger Hunt!

 

 



Born in small-town Ontario, K.A. Tucker published her first book at the age of six with the help of her elementary school librarian and a box of crayons. Today, she remains a voracious reader, and currently resides outside of Toronto with her husband, two beautiful girls, and an exhausting brood of four-legged creatures.

Find out more information by checking out the author website or find more about the author's book here!

 

Official K.A. Tucker Website

 

 

 

"Evangeline has spent her teenage years in obscurity. Her foster parents have the emotional aptitude of robots and her classmates barely acknowledge her existence. About to turn eighteen and feeling like a social pariah, she is desperate to connect with someone. Anyone.
When Evangeline meets Sofie after literally stumbling upon her café, she believes she’s found that connection. Willing to do anything to keep it, she accepts a job as Sofie’s assistant and drops everything to fly to Manhattan, where she is thrust into a luxurious world of Prada, diamonds, and limitless cash.
With such generosity and kindness, it’s easy for Evangeline to dismiss certain oddities . . . like Sofie’s erratic and sometimes violent behavior, and the monstrous guard dogs. She’s even willing to dismiss her vivid dreams of mob-style murders, beautiful homeless people living in caves, and white-eyed demons that haunt her each night as figments of her imagination—especially when one of those figments is the gorgeous Caden. When she wakes up with bite marks on her neck, the fairy tale quickly turns into a nightmare. She slowly unravels the mystery surrounding Sofie and friends, and the reality of the bites and the “dreams.” What she discovers is far more mysterious and terrible than anything she could have imagined.
In a world where everyone has motive to lie for personal gain, Evangeline must decide which deception is least likely to get her killed"

 

 

Exclusive Content

 

For K.A. Tucker's exclusive content she has a special treat for us. The title reveal and a special teaser for the fourth and final book in the Causal Enchantment series!

 

And the title is...

 

ANOMALY

 

She was merely a pawn in their game. And then something happened.

Once a fragile, naive human, Evangeline Watts has become altogether... different.

A formidable force against them.

But is she enough to stop fate?

 

Cover release coming May, 2013

Book Release Fall, 2013

 

 

 

And don't forget to enter the contest for a chance to win a ton of signed books by me, Tara Fuller, and more! To enter, you need to know that my favorite number is 17. Add up all the favorite numbers of the authors on the blue team and you'll have all the secret code to enter for the grand prize!

CONTINUE THE HUNT

To keep going on your quest for the hunt, you need CLICK HERE to check out the next author GINA ROSATI

Tweet #YASH

 

 

Before you go... enter to win an
 autographed BLURRED Poster!!!

 

 

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Cover Reveal: A Tale of Two Centuries by Rachel Harris

Alessandra D’Angeli is in need of an adventure. Tired of her sixteenth-century life in Italy and homesick for her time-traveling cousin, Cat, who visited her for a magical week and dazzled her with tales of the future, Alessandra is lost. Until the stars hear her plea.

One mystical spell later, Alessandra appears on Cat’s Beverly Hills doorstep five hundred years in the future. Surrounded by confusing gadgets, scary transportation, and scandalous clothing, Less is hesitant to live the life of a twenty-first century teen…until she meets the infuriating—and infuriatingly handsome—surfer Austin Michaels. Austin challenges everything she believes in…and introduces her to a world filled with possibility.

With the clock ticking, Less knows she must live every moment of her modern life while she still can. But how will she return to the drab life of her past when the future is what holds everything she’s come to love?

A Special Excerpt from A TALE OF TWO CENTURIES!!!

 

Austin pushes the red and black Jet Ski into the water, past the first few crashing waves, then throws a leg over the side. He turns to me, extending an upturned palm, but as I watch the water pound against his legs, I slowly shake my head and inch away. Forget the confusion of the past few minutes or my concern if riding wrapped around Austin is appropriate…are jet skis even safe? So far, my experience with modern machines has taught me that they travel at terrifying speeds. What if I were to accidently let go and fly off? I don’t know how to swim!

Austin’s face gentles and he curls his fingers, coaxing me closer to the watery death trap. “I’ve got you, Alessandra,” he says. “I promise nothing’s gonna hurt you. You can trust me.”

The sardonic guise he hides behind drops for just a moment, but it is enough.

I say a quick prayer and place my hand in his.

With my legs straddling the seat, my arms wrapped tightly around Austin’s firm stomach, and my chest and face pressed against his back, I do not need the extra layer my wetsuit provides. I am quite warm without it. Under me, the engine rumbles. Austin grabs my clasped hands, ensuring my death grip. And then we are flying. 

Fear is left behind me on the beach. My laughter is swallowed by the wind. And I hold onto Austin. The rest of the world falls away as he powers the machine forward. Whistling sound envelops us yet there’s also silence in the midst of the roar. Out here, there’s no room for worrisome thoughts about the future or about the past. No time for concerns over when I will return or how much I miss my family. In this bubble of Austin, wind, and water, all I can do is live and breathe and smile.

Austin spins us in circles and then we fly straight ahead, free as the winged creatures overhead. He bounces us over a swell and a spray of water splashes my face, tickling the skin left exposed from my wetsuit. I squeal, and under my clasped hands, I feel his taut stomach muscles shake with laughter. Then he takes off again in another sharp turn, racing in the opposite direction of which we came. Excitement has me screaming, asking him to go faster. I close my eyes against the sting of the salty air and the lash of my hair and tilt my head back, feeling more uninhibited than I ever have before.

More free, more alive…just more.

 

 

 

 

 

About the fabulous author...

As a teen, Rachel Harris threw raging parties that shook her parents’ walls and created embarrassing fodder for future YA novels. As an adult, she reads and writes obsessively, rehashes said embarrassing fodder, and dreams up characters who become her own grown up version of imaginary friends.

When she's not typing furiously or flipping pages in an enthralling romance, you can find her homeschooling her two beautiful princesses, hanging out with her amazing husband, or taking a hot bubble bath…next to a pile of chocolate. A Tale of Two Centuries is her second novel. 

To Pre-Order clicky clicky on the links below:

Amazon

Barnes & Noble

Goodreads

 

 

 

                                                              a Rafflecopter giveaway

777 Post: "Secret NA Book" Excerpt

I would like to thank Kelsey Ketch, an awesome book blogger, writer, and friend for tagging me in this game. You can have a look inside of her current manuscipt A Daughter of Isis by reading her 777 post here.

 

Here are the Rules: Go to either page 7 or 77 of your manuscript. Count down seven lines and paste the next seven lines in a post. After that, name seven more authors to come out and play.

 

Most of my author friends that would have time for this have already been tagged, so I won't be tagging anyone today. BUT...I will give you a sneak peek into the super secret New Adult book I'm working on. ;)

 

Here is a seven line sneak peek from Page #7 of my currently untitled New Adult novel:

 

 

 

 

 

 

His tan skin glistens under a thousand tiny fragments of wet sunlight and droplets spray into the air around him as he shakes the salt water from his dark blonde hair. He looks so much like Boone that it hurts. It hurts in places that it’s taken months for me to make numb. Gage adjusts the surfboard tucked under his arm, but when his eyes find mine across the crowded beach, it slips out of his grip. He doesn’t bother to pick it up. For an instant I wonder if he might run the other direction, but he doesn’t. He leaves his board sitting in the sand and makes his way towards me, bringing memories with him that I know I'm not ready to face.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Entangled In Love Blog Hop!

Click here to check out what the other authors are giving away during the Entangled In Love blog hop!


On this stop:
Win an autographed poster of BLURRED (Kissed by Death, #2)!!

 

 

 

 

                                                             a Rafflecopter giveaway

Blog Tour: January Black by Wendy Russo

Psst. Hey you! Hi!

Okay…we should have a few minutes until Tara gets back from…whatever she went to do.  Hi. My name is Matty Ducayn, and I’ve just tip-toed onto Tara’s blog. And by tip-toed, (looking over his shoulder), I mean she doesn’t know I’m here.

Why? You ask? Well, why not? Tara’s blog is fun. The orange is pretty. The font is fun. Seemed like a good place to kill some time while Kelly Seguin interrogates Iris. January Black is in good hands with SM Boyce. And, I’m bored.

What’s there to learn about our friend, Tara? (Looks around him and spots biography.) Ah, there we go. Mom, wife, and Mystery Science Theater Addict. Sounds a bit like Ms. Russo, only she’s never mentioned mystery, science, or theater in her favorite things. What else? Writes books. Explains why this blog was on Ms. Russo’s blog tour. 

Grim reapers, witches, and kissing. Huh. Iris likes kissing. I like kissing, Iris. Yeah, this was definitely the right blog to sneak onto. What else does Tara have?  Couple of books, and (looks over his shoulder) uh oh.... 

Check out the other blog posts. Leave comments. You might win stuff! And read January Black. Tara’s back. Gotta go!

Sixteen-year-old genius MattyDucayn has never fit in on The Hill, an ordered place seriously lacking a sense of humor. After his school’s headmaster expels him for a small act of mischief, Matty’s future looks grim until King Hadrian comes to his rescue with a challenge: answer a question for a master’s diploma.

More than a second chance, this means freedom. Masters can choose where they work, a rarity among Regents, and the question is simple.

What was January Black?

It’s a ship. Everyone knows that. Hadrian rejects that answer, though, and Matty becomes compelled by curiosity and pride to solve the puzzle. When his search for an answer turns up long-buried state secrets, Matty’s journey becomes a collision course with a deadly royal decree. He's been set up to fail, which forces him to choose. Run for his life with the challenge lost...or call the king’s bluff.

Special Excerpt

While walking south on Main Street, Matty and Iris traded shopping bags. She cocked her head sideways while looking at the cover of the book he bought her.

“Black Sheep,” she read aloud thoughtfully. “Alice Glass. Why do I know that name?”

“She wrote the novel that ‘Marker’ is based on,” he replied, referring to a SteerNet serial about to be cancelled in its first season.

“Ugh,” she said, dropping her hand. The book slapped her leg. “That show is horrible.”

“Agreed, but never mind that. ‘Black Sheep’ is by far her best work.”

“I’ll give it a try,” Iris said. “Take a look in yours.”

He pulled the small paperback out his. Peter Oldham was his mother’s favorite historical fiction author. Matty recognized “Drops in August” as soon as the corner of the cover cleared the paper sleeve. He bit his tongue to keep from groaning.

“Oh, God,” she said, likely in reaction to the cringe he failed to hold back. “Maybe this was a bad idea.”

Thinking of his mother, and her repeated suggestions that he read the book, Matty’s initial disappointment dissipated. “No, this is good,” he told Iris.

“That’s not what your face says.” She reached for the book.

“Oh, no!” He shook his head and moved his hand out of her reach. “This will do very nicely.”

“Nicely? For what?” She crossed in front of him and walked backward, reaching for the book as he whipped his hand up and behind his head.

“For a joke on my parents.”

She stopped cold in her tracks. He planted his feet so that he wouldn’t run into her, but his momentum carried him forward anyway. She put her hands forward to stop him from falling, but when he hit them, she lost her footing and stumbled backwards. He lunged forward and caught her in his arms.

When he regained his balance and stopped her fall, she was shocked, breathless, and completely supported in his arms at a sharp angle to the ground. People around them on the sidewalk applauded.

One man who passed them said, “Nice catch, kid!”

Matty stepped back and brought her to her feet. She seemed to be searching his eyes for something.

Finally, she asked, “Are you a brat, Matty?”

“Depends.” He felt as if he would shake apart if he let her go. “Do you like brats?”

As her lips pulled into a smile from ear to ear, she touched her forehead to his collarbone. A few moments later, she looked back up at him and squirmed just slightly. He let her shrug him off, and when her arms were free, she slapped his cheek playfully before skipping south on the sidewalk. All of his internal organs melted into his legs. About ten steps later, she turned around.

“Are you coming?” she yelled.

Matty shook off his daze and ran to catch up with her.

To get another sneak peek excerpt click here and enter the password "matty"



Spotlight & Review: ALL THE BROKEN PIECES by Cindi Madsen

 

 

   What if your life wasn’t your own?

Liv comes out of a coma with no memory of her past and two distinct, warring voices inside her head. Nothing, not even her reflection, seems familiar. As she stumbles through her junior year, the voices get louder, insisting she please the popular group while simultaneously despising them. But when Liv starts hanging around with Spencer, whose own mysterious past also has him on the fringe, life feels complete for the first time in, well, as long as she can remember.

Liv knows the details of the car accident that put her in the coma, but as the voices invade her dreams, and her dreams start feeling like memories, she and Spencer seek out answers. Yet the deeper they dig, the less things make sense. Can Liv rebuild the pieces of her broken past, when it means questioning not just who she is, but what she is?

 

 

 

All the Broken Pieces is available for pre-order on:

 Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository Be sure to add it to your TBR pile on Goodreads!

 

 

 

Review

 

This book is amazing! I love a book with a good mystery that keeps me guessing and this one did not disappoint. Liv was such an interesting character to read and I felt completely connected to her and her story. And let me just say, I loved Spencer!! The perfect boy for Liv. Cindi Madsen is an author that knows how to grab your attention and keep you on the edge of your seat wanting more.This is definitely a book you want to go into spoiler free, so I will stop there. Engaging and beautifully written, ALL THE BROKEN PIECES is a book you will not be able to put down. Loved this book!

 

Big five stars from me!