Tim Westover's Blog, page 4

Auraria Now Available! Release Giveaway

At long last, Auraria: A Novel is now available wherever books are sold. Here’s the official publisher’s page with links to online stores, or visit your local indie bookstore — many throughout the Southeast are stocking copies of the novel. Learn more about Auraria and get your copy today! Celebration & Giveaway I’m giving away [...]

Auraria News and Updates

We're still two months away from the July 10th publication date of Auraria: A Novel, but there's a few pieces of news to share:

1) Hereward L.M. Proops at Booksquawk posted a nice review of Auraria: "Westover's English language debut is beautifully written and manages to bring to life the rich folklore of the Appalachians."

2) Nicki J Markus posted an author interview with me. And here's her review from back in March.

3) I have a guest post and giveaway running at Bound & Determined to Find a Good Read.

4) Advance review copies are still available on NetGalley, too.

Baby of the World: Elachee Nature Center

On dozens of trips up I-985 towards the north Georgia mountains, I’d passed the signs for the Elachee Nature Center. Two weeks ago, I decided it was finally time to visit. The Lime and I arrived on a wet, warm Saturday morning — the rain had stopped, but the air was still humid, the sort [...]

Auraria Novel News Roundup – 4/18/2012

What’s new with Auraria as of 4/18/2012? 1) Hereward L.M. Proops at Booksquawk posted a nice review of Auraria: “Westover’s English language debut is beautifully written and manages to bring to life the rich folklore of the Appalachians.” 2) Nicki J Markus posted an author interview with me. And here’s her review from back in [...]

Goodreads Giveaway for Auraria

My newest novel, Auraria, is available as part of a Goodreads Giveaway. You can enter on Goodreads to win a physical copy of the book three months before it's published. The giveaway runs through March 31st. .goodreadsGiveawayWidget { color: #555; font-family: georgia, serif; font-weight: normal; text-align: left; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; background: white; } .goodreadsGiveawayWidget [...]

Baby and Books

This is Baby, Book, and Banjo, and there hasn't been a whole lot of the first one recently. Therefore, here is the baby, sitting in my library. Among the books her library, her favorite book is Winnie-the-Pooh, which her mother is reading to her in English, and I am reading to her in Esperanto.

Books I Read in 2011

Amazon.com Widgets 2011 was the Year of the Lime — the year that "Book and Banjo" became "Baby, Book, and Banjo." I'd predicted that having a newborn in the house would cut into my reading time (and it was a tradeoff I'd gladly make). But, having a newborn seemed to give me more time for [...]

Radium Springs, GA

One of my hobbies is visiting old and forgotten tourist attractions in Georgia. The kinds of places that we value now either didn't exist or weren't valued in years gone by. One can learn a lot about a culture from its leisure activities. Among my favorites of the places I've visited is Radium Springs, located [...]

The Whacking Cane – A Lawrenceville Legend

The new city council of Lawrenceville, GA, is putting up new signs in the downtown square. No longer does one have to go hunting in poorly mimeographed books for local lore — it's posted right at the place it happened. Love it! Here's the story of Mrs. Philadelphia Winn Maltbie and her famous anti-liquor advocacy. [...]

Do Reviews Spoil Books? The Case of "The City and the City"

I just finished reading China Mieville's The City and the City.  It's a wonderful book, and I was enjoying the heck out of it – until I was about halfway through and looked up the reviews on Amazon.  Most were very positive, which corresponded with my experience. But there were a few recurring themes in [...]