Cheryl Rainfield's Blog, page 63

Parallel Visions is on sale for $0.99 on Nook

Nook readers – Parallel Visions is now on sale for just $0.99 on Nook! It took a while for my request to go through, but now it has. Enjoy!

Parallel Visions is on sale for $0.99 on Kindle and Kobo (and on Smashwords for Nook)

Parallel Visions–my new YA paranormal fantasy-is on sale for $0.99 on Amazon for Kindle and Kobo for Kobo ebook readers until Jan 19th.

It’s also available on Barnes and Noble for Nook for $2.99, or if you want to get it for Nook at the sale price of $0.99 you can purchase it for Nook at Smashwords.

If you want the print edition, you can purchase a copy on Amazon.

Having my first real good Christmas

I think this is the first Christmas that I’ve ever had that’s felt good/okay. I’ve had a rough month this December–some horrible abuse memories from this time of year, and some depression, deep sadness, despair, old feelings that come from the abuse and trauma–and during that time I also had to work on copyedits of Stained (which comes out next year). But I also had a lot of good. And today…today was actually good. I don’t remember a Christmas that I’ve ever been able to say that. This is new for me, and lovely!

Petal, my little Chinese Crested dog, brings me so much happiness. I started the morning with a lovely walk with her, and we saw and walked with many other people and their dogs who we both knew. That was a nice start to our day. I had fun giving Petal a bunch of presents throughout the day, including a really loud rooster toy (actually, three of them, to replace her favorite chewed up one), a bouncy bird toy, a soft stick toy, and a new bone, Christmas doggie cookie, chewies, and extra treats. Petal gets so much happiness out of little things–it’s a good reminder.

I also posted some photos of Petal and talked about her on Twitter and FaceBook, and had people responding, and that helped me stay connected to people and to good feeling. And I had email conversations with some of the people I care about most in this world, which also helped.

I unwrapped a beautiful, thoughtful present from a beautiful, thoughtful, dear friend of mine–Julie Shoerke–who also happens to be my book publicist.

She sent me this lovely piece of hanging art/poetry that says “You are so smart, caring, awesome” on one side, and “you are so witty, loving, amazing.” I don’t know about the “witty” part, but I do know that I try to be the others, and Julie insists they all fit. I really need reminders like that, still; my abusers taught me to hate myself and to not take in any good. I’ve learned, over time, to love myself more, but I can’t always hold onto tho positive, so this was a beautiful, perfect, thoughtful present.

I put up ornaments on the tree from two people I love dearly, including Jean (who is like a mom to me) which was a lovely reminder of them, and had two other gifts from some people I love, which helps so much. And I put up a flying pig ornament which arrived last night. I love flying pigs; I love the impossible becoming possible (which is a theme for me, and which comes out in my book Parallel Visions).

I bought myself most of my presents–it’s what I do without family, and it can often feel sad to me on Christmas and my birthday. As well as all the old stuff that comes up from my parents buying and then destroying my presents every year when I was a kid. But though presents felt sad this month, it didn’t today. Instead, parts of me enjoyed the things I’d bought them and receieved, and some favorite things came up with me and Petal on the couch.

I made a Tofurkey and potatoes and asparagus/spinach/onions/mushrooms – some of my favorite foods – and had chocolate cookies, and Petal had pure chicken dog treats.

I read and read–I’ve just gotten into Chris D’Lacey’s Last Dragon Chronicles, which if you haven’t read is comforting and fantastical and lovely, and I highly recommend them. (I went through Book One–The Fire Within–yesterday, and today I’m on Book Two, Ice Fire.) I also read my new picture books, all of which are new favorites and feel so good–Good News, Bad News by Jeff Mack; Andrew Drew and Drew by Barney Saltzberg; And Then It’s Spring by Julie Fogliano and Erin E Stead; John Jensen Feels Different; and, even though it feels a bit sexist to me, I also bought, opened today, and loved My Snake Blake by Randy Siegel and Serge Bloch (maybe because it feels like Crictor by Tomi Ungerer which I loved as a child).

I also bought and read some Christmas picture books (before the day), trying to open myself up to the idea that Christmas could be a good time of year. I now have some real favorite Christmas picture books, some that are sweet, some that are like poetry, and books I know I’ll come back to again next year: The Christmas Magic by Lauren Thompson and Jon Muth; A Pussycat’s Christmas by Margaret Wise Brown; Merry Christmas, Amelia Bedelia by Peggy Parish (I love Amelia Bedelia); and Llama Llama Holiday Drama by Anna Dewdney. I also found some winter picture books that I love and pulled them out; while not specifically Christmas, they still fit this time of year.

I watched part of a feel-good Christmas movie (A Holiday For Love); I’ve been watching feel-good Christmas movies all month. Feel-good movies and books help remind me of the goodness in people, and are so important for me when things are hard. I’ve spent time playing with Petal, and enjoying my gifts, having fun reading, and eating…and not working! Talking with good people on Twitter and Facebook and email (thank you, all!) And for the most part, I’ve stayed out of sadness and depression, and just…had a good day. I will hold onto this, and try to remind myself next year when things get hard around Christmas. I even found myself able to listen to Christmas music and be okay, even enjoy some of it, without it taking me down to the abuse. I didn’t think that could happen, especially when I was having a rough time this month. But it has, and today is good…and I am thankful. Thankful for healing and change, for the kind, good, loving people in my life, for people I connect with online, for my lovely, sweet little Petal, and for having enough food to eat, gifts to open, safety and warmth.

I hope you have all had, or are having, a lovely, lovely holiday filled with laughter, joy, and good feeling. I hope for healing, joy, and laughter for us all.

Parallel Visions On Sale for $0.99 until Dec 31st!

To celebrate the release of Parallel Visions: A Teen Psychic Novel, it’s on sale on Amazon for $0.99 until Dec 31st!

Kate sees psychic visions of the future and the past—but only when she’s having an asthma attack. When she “sees” her sister being beaten, she needs more visions to try to save her, along with a suicidal classmate—but triggering her asthma could kill her. Parallel Visions is the story of one brave, caring girl whose unusual gifts put her own life in danger.

I’ve let Ask David know about Parallel Visions being on sale. Authors, that’s a great way to let more people know about your book. Readers, you can find out about some books you didn’t know about by going there.

Books To Help Kids Deal With Trauma

SLJ created a list of picture books to help kids cope with tragedy because of the recent Sandy Hooks tragedy. I think it’s a great starting point–and I’ll bet we all have some books we would add.

I think books can help us deal with painful issues; books helped save me when I was a kid being abused and tortured. Books can help us by directly dealing with issues, or sideways through metaphor or fantasy. Books can make it easier to hear about and deal with painful things–and picture books are great at doing that.

Picture books aren’t just for young children; I think they can also be great tools for older children, and even adults, to deal with trauma or to find hope again. Because trauma and the loss of someone we love can also bring up anger, sadness, fear, grief, and depression, I would add these picture books:

The Heart and the Bottle


By Oliver Jeffers


This is a moving book that deals with grief and loss, and the way it can make you forget how to see beauty around you, or care about things, or be curious–and the way it can make you want to protect yourself and your feelings. And it reminds us how important it is to still feel and care about people, and the people we’ve lost–all using metaphor. It’s beautifully written and illustrated.

Michael Rosen’s Sad Book


Written by Michael Rosen, illustrated by Quentin Blake


This book deals directly with grief and death; Michael Rosen talks about losing his son and his mother, and how it makes him sad much of the time, or angry, and the way he deals with it and tries to make himself feel better. He does things like reminds himself that everyone has sad stuff, and he tries to do one thing he’s proud of every day and then focus on that when he goes to bed, and do one thing that makes him feel happy–and he writes about sad. He also talks about remembering the good times he had with his son and his mother. There’s a lot that people who’ve lost someone will relate to in this book. I wish the ending felt a bit stronger in a happy ending or more wrapped up, but it’s a good book.

Sometimes Bad Things Happen


By Ellen Jackson, photographs by Shelley Rotner

This book talks about some of the things that can make kids feel bad, including bad things they hear on the news, and then reminds them that most people want to make the world a better place. It also goes through some good coping methods for when bad things happen and you feel sad, scared, hurt or angry, including thinking of the good people you know, hugging a friend, looking up at the sky, etc. It has some good suggestions and a positive outlook, and may be a good tool for traumatized children.

The Boy Who Didn’t Want to Be Sad


By Rob Goldblatt


A book about a boy who doesn’t want to be sad so he tries to get rid of everything that makes him sad, shutting himself away from everyone and everything that could possibly make him sad–until he realizes that the things that make him sad also make him happy. It encourages readers to embrace even the things that make us sad, and to keep the people and animals we love in our life.

Red Sled


By Patricia Thomas, illustrated by Chris L Demarest

This is a simple, sweet book about feeling sad and doing something to change it. It starts out with a sad boy and a sad father and a red sled, and then has them having fun in the snow, and coming home to hot chocolate, a hug, a sleep and a read. It is lighter than the other books, and not as in depth, but a good reminder that sometimes distraction and having fun can help feeling sad or down.






The Blue Day Book: A Lesson in Cheering Yourself Up


By Bradley Trevor Greive


A book that uses humorous animal photos to lighten the mood and help the reader hear what it being said. The book first talks about how you may feel if you’re feeling down, and then has some concrete suggestions that can help lift your mood, like taking a short nap, singing your favorite songs, be creative, talking to your friends or thinking about someone you like. It can help to lighten your mood (though it may also feel hard to read when things are really down).

When I Feel Sad (The Way I Feel Books)


Written by Cornelia Maude Spelman, illustrated by Kathy Parkinson.


A sweet, reassuring book about feeling sad. It talks about reasons you might feel sad, the way sadness feels, and some ways to deal with being sad and feel better, such as talking to someone, crying, getting a hug, and then using distraction. The illustrations are sweet and comforting, and may help some children.

And there are also many, many picture books that offer comfort and hope and escape.

What are your picture book suggestions for dealing with trauma and grief?

Guest Post by YA author Lorca Damon: Books Don’t Do Anything

Today’s guest post about the importance of books is by author and teacher Lorca Damon (YA novel The Earth is for Dancing). I so understand the escape a novel can bring, the way Lorca talks about. Take it away, Lorca!





Books Don’t Do Anything

You’re right. They just sit there. They don’t play music or stream YouTube videos. They don’t even beep, although they do make a thudding noise if you throw them on the floor. But for the price of a book, someone who is hurting can be transported to a place away from the pain, loss, and hopelessness, even if it’s just for a little while. For my students, books represent a whole other dimension.

My students are between the ages of nine and eighteen years old, and they are in jail. For them, books take on a whole new meaning: choice. When you go to jail, there are no choices. THIS is the jumpsuit you will put on, including these previously worn socks and underwear. THIS is the cell you will live in, even though it is ten feet by twelve feet and has only a cot and a toilet. THIS is when you will eat, when you will shower, when you will exercise, when you will make a phone call. THIS is how many sheets of paper you can have in your cell, THIS is how you will walk in line. There are no choices.

Except the books.

In our jail, we have a gorgeous library filled with books on a wide range of subjects. To the teachers and the staff, the library represents taking pride in our facility and using our funds wisely. To the youth, it represents being able to make one choice, four days a week. Just that once, they can run their fingers along the spines, read the back covers, and find something to read without anyone telling them what to do or how to do it.

I would have to argue that all teenagers are in jail. No matter where they live or what they have or have not done, there is so little choice in their lives. THIS is where you will go to school. THIS is when you will wake up and go to sleep. THIS is the nice neat little box that your peers have decided you fit into, even if it’s not the box you wanted.

So go to the library. Run your fingers along the spines, smell the pages like I used to do when I thought no one was looking. Read every back cover until you know which one you want to read. Take it home, and escape.

Lorca Damon is a teacher and YA author. Her debut novel, The Earth is for Dancing, is available from Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and Kobo. Her second title, Driving the Demon, is due out in May 2013 from Winter Goose Publishing.

A sweet, heartfelt video review of Scars

Check out this sweet, heartfelt, honest review of Scars by reader Jacob Lasher. Jacob’s read Scars five times already! (beaming) What a feel-good review from a reader.

Contest To Celebrate My New YA Fantasy Parallel Visions. Win a Kindle, Kobo, or Nook!

I’m excited that my new YA fantasy Parallel Visions is now out in the world! To celebrate, I’m having a contest. Help me get the word out about Parallel Visions, and you’ll be entered to win bookstore giftcards and an ebook reader. It’s $2.99 ebook, and $7.99 print. It’s up on Amazon, Kobo, and Smashwords (where you can get it in every ebook format, including for Nook), and will be up on B&N in a few weeks.

Parallel Visions deals with being different, domestic violence, attempted suicide, rape, and asthma, all in a fantasy setting. Like all my books, it’s also written with suspense and hope, and some of my own trauma and abuse experience.

Evelyn Fazio, the same editor who edited my books Scars and Hunted, edited Parallel Visions. I care a lot about Parallel Visions, just like I do all my books. I hope you’ll help me get the word out.





Check out the book trailer! (Apologies to people on Dec 6th; I put up my test book trailer instead of the finished one. It’s now correct. )

Help me get the word out about Parallel Visions, and you can win:

1 of 2 bookstore giftcards for $10 (at Amazon, Kobo, Barnes and Noble, or any other online bookstore)

1 of 2 bookstore giftcards for $5 (at Amazon, Kobo, Barnes and Noble, or any other online bookstore)

A Kindle, Kobo, or Nook! (Your choice.)

You can get multiple entries to the contest:

1 entry for watching the book trailer

1 entry per tweet about Parallel Visions or my book trailer http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gcq1veOfnbI (up to 5 entries)

1 entry per post on your blog, FaceBook, Google+, or other social network about Parallel Visions or my book trailer (up to 5 entries, 1 per social network)

20 entries per ebook or print book bought of Parallel Visions (email me the receipt)

So you could have a total of 31 entries to the contest.

Contest is open worldwide, though the ebook reader is US and Canada only. (UK if the stores ship there.)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Recent Picture Books I’ve Loved: I’m Bored; Mine!; The Stone Hatchlings; and Rocket Writes A Story

I have so many fantastic picture books I’ve recently read and loved, and I’ve been wanting to share them with you, but I keep getting buried under all my work. So I decided to do a bunch of shorter reviews, all together, of my most recent favorites. I think any of these books would make fantastic gifts!

I’m Bored

Written by: Michael Ian Black

Illustrated by: Debbie Ridpath Ohi

Published by: Simon & Schuster

Date:

Recommended Age: 3 and up

My rating: 5 out of 5 stars

I loved this book so much I bought two copies–one for myself and one for a three-year-old boy I love. The story interested me and is well written, but for me it was the lively, expressive illustrations that really made the book.

In I’m Bored, a little girl is bored until she finds a potato that talks to her. The potato is not any potato–it’s a talking potato–and it’s bored, too. The potato thinks kids are boring, so the little girl sets out to prove that kids are NOT boring. In trying to convince the potato, the little girl realizes just how much she can actually do and what fun she can have. She doesn’t change the potato’s mind–but the grumpy potato is in for a surprise!

Black has written a dryly funny text that both kids and adults will enjoy. Kids will love joining in with the potato’s expected response: Boring, boring, boring! I loved how Black showed how kids can do both real-world things to have fun (turn cartwheels, skip, spin around) and use their imagination (be a ballerina, lion tamer, or fly), and also how he has the child realize that she’s glad she’s a kid. And the twist at the end was perfect! I was also so happy to see a mixture of things the girl could be, that kept it from being really sexist (such as that she could be a lion tamer).

Ohi’s illustrations are so full of life and emotion. Think a potato can’t have expressions or look like a person? Open up I’m Bored and you’ll see differently. With just a few lines Ohi makes the potato come alive just as she does the girl. Ohi’s style reminds me a bit of Mo Willems; I think Ohi will become just as well known and loved.

The illustrations are done in bold black lines, filled out with some color, and the characters really stand out; there is little to no background in most of the spreads. Where the background comes in is when the girl is using her imagination, and then we see dragons and lions, etc in pale blue lines that help the reader understand she’s using her imagination. When the girl uses real-world objects, like a paper box with the faceplate cut out for an astronaut’s helmet, it’s also in bold lines like the girl.

The girl and the potato are both very expressive; I love the expressions on the potato’s face, especially, when he’s bored or surprised. I also love how Ohi gave the girl a pretend sword when she’s a fairy princess with dragons and unicorns, which for me helped that page not be sexist.

I’m Bored is a funny book that will encourage imagination, play, and remind kids that they can do anything they want. It may also help kids (and adults) see that while not everyone may not find you interesting, everyone experiences that, and you can have fun all by yourself. Highly recommended!

Source: I bought the two copies myself. Full disclosure, I know the illustrator, but that does not affect my review. I only review books I absolutely love.

Mine!

Written by: Shutta Crum

Illustrated by: Patrice Barton

Published by: Knopf Books

Date: Aug 2012

Recommended For: Ages 1 and up

My rating: 5 out of 5 stars

This is a book I’ve been meaning to review for a while; I first read it as a hardcover picture book and fell in love with it. I recently got the board book as well, and fell in love with it all over again.

In Mine, a toddler who has trouble with sharing learns not only to share, but to make friends–with both the baby and the dog.

This delightful picture book is almost wordless; the only two words that appear are “mine” and “woof” (from the dog).

Shutta captured the childlike joy of play and copying something silly (such as dropping toys into the dog’s water bowl and enjoying the splash, after the dog did that first), as well as the desire to have something be your own. I love how Shutta shows the natural openness and kindness of children (who haven’t been hurt).

Patrice Barton’s style is warm and soft, almost fuzzy, reminiscent of Shirley Hughes. She captures the emotions of the two children and the dog so beautifully, with expressive faces and body language. The illustrations look like watercolor, gouache, and pencil, with shadow grounding the characters and the toys on the ground, and lines to show motion (like throwing a toy). A cute, expressive little dog appears in almost every image, and will be fun for little readers to see what she/he is up to.

There is such a lovely sense of play and fun in this book, and the ending is sweet and heartwarming. It may encourage co-operation, friendship, and play. Highly recommended.

Source: Review copy from the publisher for an honest review. I only review books I love.

The Stone Hatchlings

Written by Sarah Tsiang, illustrated by Qin Leng

Published by: Annick Press

Date: June 2012

Recommended for: Ages 4 and up

My rating: 4 out of 5 stars

In The Stone Hatchlings, Abby adopts two “eggs”–two smooth stones that she finds in her backyard. She makes a nest for them, sits on them to help them hatch, and then feeds and sings and takes care of her “birds”. Abby spends many happy hours with them, until her interest starts to wane, and she sets them free in her backyard again. This is a wonderful story about the power of a child’s imagination.

I love how Tsiang had Abby’s parents be both honest with her “Those are stones,” and encourage her creativity and imagination by allowing her to sit on the sweater nest and “eggs” during dinner, and trying to see and hear the birds that Abby could so strongly see and hear. This is a warm, friendly story with caring parents and a very creative, nurturing little girl. There’s enough text to make this a book for slightly older children (four or five), but the text never feels too much; it keeps moving the story forward.

Leng’s illustrations are expressive and often humorous, adding little details that weren’t in the text, such as the dog sniffing the father’s smelly feet when Abby tries to take his shoes, or Abby taking the scarf off her mother’s neck for her nest. There’s lots of movement in the illustrations, and a sense of liveliness. Some illustrations use the white page for the background and only show the important foreground details (and so feel more light), and others have a background that helps you see Abby’s house and world (so feel more complete). I liked the movement back and forth between them.

The stones stand out from the watercolor illustrations; they look like photos. Leng deftly adds to the stones when Abby imagines them as birds, adding necks and beaks and wings, showing the reader what Abby imagines but still keeping it grounded in reality.

The Stone Hatchlings is whimsical, imaginative, humorous, at times sad, but with a happy ending. The Stone Hatchlings can encourage creativity, imagination, creative play, and finding joy in simple things. It can also, in a way, deal with loss. Highly recommended!

Source: I bought the book myself from an indie children’s bookstore (Mable’s Fables in Toronto)

Rocket Writes a Story

Written and Illustrated by: Tad Hills

Published by: Schwartz & Wade

Date: July 2012

Recommended for: Ages 4 and up

My rating: 4 out of 5 stars

In Rocket Writes a Story, Rocket loves to read and to find new words. When his teacher, little yellow bird, asks him what he’s going to do with all the words he’s collected, Rocket decides that he’ll write a story. When Rocket gets stuck, his teacher helps him, and then Rocket learns how to write through his stuckness. When Rocket decides to write about an owl he passes, he gains a new friend.

Hill gives many hints in this book on how to write–from needing good characters, to writing about something that inspires or excites you, to taking time to mull over the story you’re writing, to showing that writing doesn’t always come easily, and that sometimes it helps to take a break from writing to write well. Aspiring and veteran writers will identify with and enjoy Rocket’s attempts–and then success–at writing. I enjoyed the story, though I felt at times that there could be a little less text, and a bit more actual things happening (but that may just be me). I also felt like I didn’t quite connect enough, that I was missing something emotional in the story, though that again could just be me. I loved how Rocket learned to write and enjoy the process, and made a new friend through his story. The ending was feel-good, and felt just right.

Hill’s illustrations are sweet, with soft colors and a softness to the characters. Rocket is adorable, both child-like and dog-like in his exploration of the world and words and new-found love of words and writing. I loved how when Rocket “found” a word, it was through finding that object (like a buttercup). I think that will help children connect to the idea that words are all around us and help us describe our world. This was also echoed in the word pictures that Rocket made, with each word having a drawing next to it (except for words like “to” and “at”). Some spreads have one illustration, some have multiple illustrations per page, moving the reader through the story.

Rocket Writes a Story may encourage a love of books and reading, a love of writing stories, and an interest in words. Recommended!

Source: Review copy from the publisher for an honest review. I only review books I love.

The print version of YA fantasy Parallel Visions is now up on Amazon!

I was so thrilled to see this morning that the print version of Parallel Visions is up on Amazon already! AND it’s also in Amazon’s 4-for-3 promotion–buy four books, get the lower priced one free. (Parallel Visions is $7.99 print, and $2.99 ebook.)

Every print copy (and every ebook copy) has my signature and a message for you.

Parallel Visions is my latest YA fantasy. In case you didn’t hear about it yet:

Kate sees visions of the future and the past–but only when she has an asthma attack. To save her sister and a suicidal classmate, she must trigger more visions–but that could kill her!

This is book one in a series.