The 2K12 Days of Christmas Party - 2 for 1 Day!!!
The 2K12 Days of Christmas Party!!!
opens the door to find
Sarvenaz Tash !
&
Joanne Levy !
If you haven't met these ladies - both amazing & fabulous authors BTW - let's get to it!
Meet Sarvenaz Tash, author of The Mapmaker and the Ghost.
I'm so excited to finally meet you Sarvenaz! Tell us a little about yourself, please! *leans forward to catch every word*
"I was born in Tehran, Iran and grew up on Long Island, NY. I received my BFA in Film and Television from New York University's Tisch School of the Arts. That means I got to spend most of college running around and making movies (it was a lot of fun). I have dabbled in all sorts of writing including screenwriting, copywriting, and professional tweeting. I currently lives in Brooklyn, NY."
That is so cool, Sarvenaz! Running around making movies does sound like a blast!
Now let's meet Joanne Levy, author of Small Medium at Large! (Is that not the best title?! I love puns!)
It's so great to meet you Joanne! I'm so glad you made it! Please, tell everyone a little bit about yourself.
"My love of books began at a very early age. Being the youngest and the only female among four children, I was often left to my own devices and could frequently be found sitting in a quiet corner with my nose in a book.
After much teenage misadventure, I eventually graduated from university and now spend my weekdays as an executive assistant at one of Canada’s big banks planning meetings and thwarting coffee emergencies. When I'm not working, I can usually be found at my computer, channeling my younger self into books.
I live in Ontario with my husband and kids of the furred and feathered variety."
I'm so glad you're both here! *hugs Sarvenaz* *hugs Joanne*
I know everyone is dying to hear about your books! Sarvenaz, you first... tell us about The Mapmaker and the Ghost.
"Goldenrod Moram loves nothing better than a good quest. Intrepid, curious, and full of a well-honed sense of adventure, she decides to start her own exploring team fashioned after her idols, the explorers Lewis and Clark, and to map the forest right behind her home. This task is complicated, however, by a series of unique events—a chance encounter with a mysterious old lady has her searching for a legendary blue rose. Another encounter lands her in the middle of a ragtag gang of brilliant troublemakers. And when she stumbles upon none other than the ghost of Meriwether Lewis himself, Goldenrod knows this will be anything but an ordinary summer . . . or an ordinary quest."
Woo Hoo! What an awesome cover and a great plot! I've always been intrigued by the great explorers of this country. William Clark of your Lewis and Clark was the younger brother of George Rogers Clark, also an explorer and Revolutionary War hero. (A pretty important guy here in Indiana!)
Okay, Joanne! Please, tell us about Small Medium at Large! (I can't help but chuckle every time I type that!) 
"Lilah Bloom hears dead people. And boy, are they annoying! After she's hit by lightning at a wedding, twelve-year-old Lilah Bloom develops a new talent: she hears dead people. Among them, there's her over-opinionated bubby Dora; a comically prissy fashion designer; and an approval-seeking clown who livens up a seance. With Bubby Dora leading the way, these and other sweetly imperfect ghosts haunt Lilah through seventh grade, and help her face her one fear: talking to and possibly going to the seventh-grade dance with her big crush, Andrew Finkel."
Ha! Annoying dead people! I love it! And what a cute cover! This book sounds so funny! I'm really looking forward to it!
Well, ladies - I have two questions for both of you. Joanne - you first...
What does your main character want for Hanukkah?
"Lilah, my main character, is Jewish, so she celebrates Hanukkah and what she wants most, besides a date with Andrew Finkel, is a drum set. She and her BFF Alex are so jazzed to get their band going, but the girls don’t yet have instruments, so that’s definitely a priority. After the drum kit (and the date with Andrew), Lilah would wish for some more drumming talent and also a new girlfriend for her dad, who is kind of lonely and sad since the divorce."
How about you and the season? What's your favorite thing about this time of year?
"I’ll be honest here and say that although I love seeing my parents and my brothers and their families at my mom’s annual Hanukkah bash, the food is what I get really excited about. My mom is one of those legendary Jewish grandmothers who is an AMAZING cook. I haven’t seen the menu yet but there will be brisket and turkey and soup and fish and of course, latkes and other fried foods because this is the holiday where we eat fried stuff to commemorate the oil lasting 8 nights. I’d pretty much eat my own foot if it was deep-fried, so this is my kind of holiday."
LOL! I can see why you write humor! And, yes - my Gram was an amazing cook and holidays were the best!
Sarvenaz, what about your main character, Goldenrod? (I love that name!)
"It probably isn’t a big spoiler to tell you that my main character is a mapmaker. I think what she would want most of all is some fancier mapmaking tools: special surveying and measuring equipment, larger sheets of graph paper and maybe her own copy of the Encyclopedia of North American Flora and Fauna. Her best friend had one of those but she has since, very regrettably, moved away."
How about this season and you?
"Technically, I don’t celebrate Christmas, but that doesn’t mean I don’t love it! I live in New York and the whole city turns even more magical to me during the holidays. I guess it doesn’t take more than twinkling lights, red Starbucks cups and festive storefronts to put a spring in my step. Of course, then January hits and I wonder why I haven’t moved to Florida yet."
Ha ha! I know what you mean about the trappings of the season! It makes everything look pretty and merry! And, hey... I'll race you to Florida on New Year's Day! (Brrrr!!!! I do not like being cold either!)
It's party favor time! And today, Joanne has offered a copy of May B by Caroline Starr Rose (since Small Medium at Large isn't out until summer!) That's so sweet, Joanne!
I know y'all want to read about May B. - so leave a comment (with contact info) and don't forget - every comment helps with $$'s for the elephants!
Links for Sarvenaz:
Website: www.sarvenaztash.com
Blog: www.sarvenaztash.blogspot.com
Twitter: www.twitter.com/sarvenaztash
Facebook: www.facebook.com/sarvenaztash
Links for Joanne:
Website: http://www.joannelevy.com/
Twitter: http://twitter.com/" \l "!/JoanneLevy"
Facebook: "http://www.facebook.com/pages/Joanne-Levy-Author-Page/153054214712002"
