Sarah Ockler's Blog, page 10

Sarah's Fantasy Book-Lovin' Holiday Gift Guide

I love reading fantasy literature in the winter. Maybe it's the magic still lingering after a childhood of mysterious Santa visits, or the delicious escape of wrapping up in a blanket on a blustery winter's night with a cup of hot chocolate and an adventurous tale. Or maybe it's all the Baileys I load into said hot chocolate as an unhealthy but effective coping strategy for what has undoubtedly become a season of commercialism and unrealistic expectations complicated further by…

*cough*

Sorry...

fLiP iT fRiDaY: Thao @ Serene Hours

Today's interview is especially cool, because in true Freaky Friday style, the special guest and I have switched places. While Thao chats with us over here for fLiP iT fRiDaY, I'm hanging out on her Friday Flavor feature, vlogging about a few good reads and giving away an ARC of Sara Zarr's ONCE WAS LOST. So after you've had a chance to get to know Thao on fLiP iT fRiDaY, skip on over to her blog, Serene Hours, to watch the video and enter the giveaway. You can also follow Thao on Twitter

A Taste of Summer for a Winter's Night

The warmth of summer seems a distant memory, but you can get a taste of sultry beach days and summer secrets this winter. All you have to do is enter to win this steamy gift pack from debut authors Sarah MacLean, Saundra Mitchell and Sarah Ockler.

It includes hardback copies of The Season, Shadowed Summer & Twenty Boy Summer, DVDs of I Know What You Did Last Summer and Suddenly Last Summer, summer lip balm, saltwater taffy, sea glass, a summer song mix CD, shades, a bottle of sunscreen and a...

fLiP iT fRiDaY: Vania @ Reverie Book Reviews

Happy day after Thanksgiving to my American friends! I hope you're all enjoying the food coma – slash – family time overload – slash – day of consumerism (for those of you who love to shop on this busiest shopping day… hopefully you hit up the book stores)! Thanks for taking a break from the turkey (or veggie chili, as in my house) and checking out today's fLiP iT fRiDaY, where we're chatting with Vania from Reverie Book Reviews, aka @ReverieBR on Twitter.

Describe a typical day in your...

Ockler to Berk: You Lie!

YA author Josh Berk, perhaps known best for his outrageous on-camera phone calls to medical professionals, clergymen, and others who probably can't afford to be interrupted because they're busy saving lives and solving the existential crises of our times1, exposed himself in front of hundreds of authors, teachers, and book industry pros on the floor of the NCTE conference this afternoon… as a fraud.

Camera man Jon Skovron, author of newly released Struts & Frets, told authorities that he had...

fLiP iT fRiDaY: Lauren @ Shooting Stars Mag

Welcome Lauren from Shooting Stars Mag to today's fLiP iT fRiDaY! Follow her at @Shootingstarmag on Twitter. Shooting Stars Mag is a bit different in that Lauren blogs about music and movies in addition to her YA book reviews, so definitely check it out!

Describe a typical day in your life.

A typical day in my life, huh? Well everyday is usually different though nothing completely out of the blue. I normally have at least one class since I'm a freshmen in college at the moment. My favorite...

Knives, Mascara, & Other Dangerous Things

I hate shopping. I hate shopping for other people and even worse, I hate shopping for myself. Working from home cuts down dramatically on my required trips to to the mall (how many pairs of work pajamas does a girl really need?), but sometimes it's unavoidable.

Like now. I'm attending the NCTE Conference in Philadelphia this weekend, and I need, among other things, a dress and shoes for a dinner event. No big deal, right? It's just a dress and shoes. I figured I could probably get them both...

How Do You Judge a Book?

As a reader, I spend a lot of time analyzing fiction. It's automatic for me, like breathing or sleeping or ordering from India Gate when I don't feel like cooking. I've tried to read solely for enjoyment, but on each page, I catch myself identifying and thinking about the elements, styles, and constructs that make the book jump or fall flat. I wonder what the author was thinking here and there. I consider what I might've done differently in a scene or with a character or relationship. And...

Dutch Twenty Boy Summer

The Dutch version of Twenty Boy Summer, titled Onze Zomer (Our Summer) is out. And thanks to the miracle of Google Translate, I can now obsess over book reviews in another language! Not that I did that or anything… it's just nice to know the option is there if I need it. Well okay maybe I tested it on one review… ahem. Anyway. If you happen to be in the Netherlands and near a bookstore, and you speak Dutch, check it out. I'm trying to figure out a way to justify a trip there. You know, to...

Hamburg Librarians, Readers, & Bulldogs Rock!

Last night I had the honor of participating in the 5th Annual Family Read Night for Hamburg Middle School, my former junior high (yep, it was still considered a junior high way back then). The last time I'd been in the school, I was finishing up 8th grade more than 20 years ago.

Events are difficult for me, no matter how many I do. It's the public speaking part — especially with kids and teens, who are the toughest kind of crowd because they're so honest. Deep down I'm still an introverted...