Some Quick and Easy New Ideas for Getting More Book Reviews

A Fresh New Approach to Getting Reviews for Your Book

BY LOIS W STERN 

YOUR ADVOCATE FOR GETTING NEW REVIEWS FOR YOUR BOOKS!

Hi, I'm Lois W. Stern here, your Review Acquisition Coordinator for Carolyn Howard-Johnson’s THE NEW BOOK REVIEW BLOG. I have a fresh new idea for those of you on my list of book review requests to help you get more reviews for your book. 

I just initiated a mini review writing contest for Tales2Inspire, which I want to share with you, so that you can adapt it to initiate your own mini review contest.

Points North: Discover Hidden Campgrounds, Natural Wonders, and Waterways of the Upper Peninsula

Points North: Discover Hidden Campgrounds, Natural Wonders, and Waterways of the Upper Peninsula by Mikel B. Classen
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Imprint: Modern History Press 

Author: Mikel B. Classen 

ISBN-13: PB 978-1-61599-490-8 / HC 978-1-61599-491-5 

eBook 978-1-61599-492-2 

List Price: PB $ 27.95 / HC $ 39.95 / eBook $ 6.95 

TRAVEL/United States/Midwest/East North Central (IL, IN, MI, OH, WI) HISTORY/United States/State & Local/Midwest (IA, IL, IN, KS, MI, MN, MO, ND, NE, OH, SD, WI) 

SPORTS & RECREATION/Hiking 

Lighthouses must each have a ghost? Who knew? This book is a detailed guided tour of a vast amount of possible camping, boating, fishing, hiking, walking, and sight-seeing opportunities in Michigan's Upper Peninsula. For those who enjoy primitive, off the beaten path opportunities in nature where either boating is allowed or not - and those who prefer RV camping with amenities, Classen covers it all. How to see spectacular views, take a leisurely hike, have a grueling climb, take it easy, rough it on the N.C.T., and where to find fantastic meals (or where to take your own or be hungry) are all discussed. Directions are provided, maps are included, links to all locations are listed, and reading this will provide the knowledge of the locals for the occasional visitor. A lifetime of travel possibilities and enjoyment!

The North Country National Scenic Trail is the longest in the National Trails System, stretching 4,800 miles across eight states from North Dakota to Vermont. The most strenuous part is through Michigan and it may seem impossible at times, according to Classen. I had no idea as I have only heard of the parts where I live, in Minnesota, and thought that trail was long.  

People who love primitive camping and getting away from it all will be delighted with the many opportunities described in the book. Many allow boats which isn't always the case. Fishing is usually allowed, but check this book to be sure. RV camp sites are described and it seems there are fewer of these, but they are available. My parents were some who loved being away from it all, and this book would be invaluable to such people. A trip to a remote area would last as long as the food taken with and carried in. On the way out, great restaurants are mentioned, as you might be starving by that time. 

Classen has surely "been there and done that" as he writes with the confidence of a resident, letting us all in on the secrets and adventures that await those ready to travel to the U.P. area. The locals will wonder how you know so much! 

View all my reviews

Carolyn Wilhelm

Wise Owl Factory

More About #TheNewBookReview Blog The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. Authors, readers, publishers, and reviewers may republish their favorite reviews of books they want to share with others. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read and love. Please see submission guidelines in a tab at the top of this blog's home page or go directly to the submission guidelines at http://bit.ly/ThePlacetoRecycleBookReviews or to the guideline tab at the top of the home page of this blog. Authors and publishers who do not yet have reviews or want more may use Lois W. Stern's "Authors Helping Authors" service for requesting reviews. Find her guidelines in a tab at the top of the home page, too. Carolyn Wilhelm is our IT expert, an award-winning author, a veteran educator and also contributes reviews and posts on other topics related to books. Reviews, interviews, and articles on this blog are indexed by genre, reviewers' names, and review sites so #TheNewBookReview may be used as a resource for most anyone in the publishing industry. As an example, writers will find this blog's search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. #TheFrugalbookPromoter, #CarolynHowardJohnson, #TheNewBookReview, #TheFrugalEditor, #SharingwithWriters, #reading #BookReviews #GreatBkReviews #BookMarketing

Joy Lynn Goddard ReviewsTales2inspire ~ The Diamond Collection - Series V

REVIEW FOR: Tales2Inspire ~ The Diamond Collection - Series V

SUBTITLE: Stories of Turning the Page

 

SERIES TITLE: Tales2Inspire

AUTHOR: Anthology of contest winning inspiring stories

AUTHOR'S WEBSITE: https://www.tales2inpsire.com 

GENRE: Inspirational, non-fiction personal stories 

AGE / INTEREST LEVEL: 15 +

PAGE COUNT: 236

PUBLISHER: Independently Published

PURCHASE LINK: 

REVIEWED BY: JOY LYNN GODDARD

A True Inspirational Gem

As a voracious reader and a novelist, I look for two elements in a book before investing time in it. It must have emotion—a story that moves me long after I’ve finished the last page—and it must teach me something. In the Moonstone Collection Books 1 & 2, I found both traits in every story. The stories were honest and raw because the authors weren’t afraid to speak the truth, their vulnerabilities on display. Even if I were hard-hearted (which I’m not, honestly), it would be difficult not to stand up and cheer for them. In “Happily Ever After,” I was gobsmacked by the abuse writer Donna Peczak suffered as a child at the hands of her parents and applauded when she pulled herself up.

I don’t know whom I admired more in “Setting my Lifeline Free,” writer Ellen Lenox Smith or the service dog who saved her life. Both taught me about the indomitable spirit.Love and laughter weave throughout the pages of both books. Although there is sadness underpinning “The Last Laugh,” I laughed out loud when author Ronnie Padwa Pelie described her elderly mother driving a motorized shopping cart. I couldn’t help but remember my own elderly mother’s experience with her motorized scooter. In the last stages of her life, she rammed her electric scooter through a plate-glass window (didn’t get a scratch) and then blamed the scooter for the accident!

As a former teacher, I also identified with author Laura Coy’s “A Blessing in Disguise.” She left a teaching career she loved to put her life back on track. Many words wandered through my thoughts when reading these stories—real, poignant, bitter-sweet, happy, inspirational, and . . . But the word that climbed to the top was strength. Each author showed the strength to turn the page in his or her life and make it better! 

Many words wandered through my thoughts when reading these stories—real, poignant, bitter-sweet, happy, inspirational, and . . . But the word that climbed to the top was strength.

Each author showed the strength to turn the page in his or her life and make it better!

And behind each writer was their champion—Lois W. Stern—an accomplished writer who for more than a decade has embodied the spirit of writers helping writers. Kudos to her and all the authors in this collection of stories—a true inspirational gem.

REVIEW LINK HERE

The Bridges We Will Build by Kacie LeCompte Renfro Book Review

What if read for people who have thoughts about Jesuit Volunteer Corps or other poverty schools

by Carolyn Wilhelm

A "what if" read for people who have thoughts about volunteering and living in another city for the Jesuit or other diverse domestic service programs. The book centers on the interwoven lives of a few women and how they came to be paid or unpaid workers at a diverse primary school. From different backgrounds, life experiences, ages, and religions, they form a tight bond beginning with loving the students. Refugee and immigrant lives are explained so well readers will truly understand what they go through, and some endure unimaginable hardships yet survive. A story from the BBC alerts one of the retired volunteers, Lydia, to the fact that one teaching assistant has something very personal in her background she would rather not reveal, and keeps the secret. She does not reveal the information to anyone until a gathering in the cafeteria and as a witness in court.

A riveting read yet heartwarming book that might inspire actual volunteer participation for the brave at heart.

Highly recommended for those considering working in a diverse environment and teachers who dearly love children, as well as those who would like to understand more about the lives of refugees.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

Thank you for reading!

More About #TheNewBookReview Blog The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. Authors, readers, publishers, and reviewers may republish their favorite reviews of books they want to share with others. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read and love. Please see submission guidelines in a tab at the top of this blog's home page or go directly to the submission guidelines at http://bit.ly/ThePlacetoRecycleBookReviews or to the guideline tab at the top of the home page of this blog. Authors and publishers who do not yet have reviews or want more may use Lois W. Stern's "Authors Helping Authors" service for requesting reviews. Find her guidelines in a tab at the top of the home page, too. Carolyn Wilhelm is our IT expert, an award-winning author, a veteran educator and also contributes reviews and posts on other topics related to books. Reviews, interviews, and articles on this blog are indexed by genre, reviewers' names, and review sites so #TheNewBookReview may be used as a resource for most anyone in the publishing industry. As an example, writers will find this blog's search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. #TheFrugalbookPromoter, #CarolynHowardJohnson, #TheNewBookReview, #TheFrugalEditor, #SharingwithWriters, #reading #BookReviews #GreatBkReviews #BookMarketing

Lois W. Stern Reviews Write Right by Joy Lynn Goddard

Write Right is a book packed with clearly defined, easy to digest relevancy. Although primarily geared toward striving novel writers, I discovered much within its covers of equal relevancy to more experienced writers - writers of both fiction and nonfiction. And since TheNewBookReview has a huge audience of writers of all genre and levels of expertise, I wanted to point it out to our readers here.

Once you open this book, first check out the GETTING STARTED section. In her chapter, What’s Your Big Idea, Ms. Goddard writes, “Readers are drawn to a book by the way it makes them feel.  . . .”  Such a simple concept, perhaps easy to overlook, but Ms. Goddard brings it home with her personal reminiscent of the day her mother witnessed blatant racial discrimination and took action against it to right the wrong. And this is the mantra of all polished authors, SHOW, DON’T TELL.

Ms. Goddard continues to SHOW her readers by citing excerpts from well proven treasured works, such as those from To Kill a Mockingbird, The Push, and her own Charlie’s Song, along with pithy statements from beloved authors as J.K. Rawling, Stephen King and even Ernest Hemingway, on what makes strong characters. 

The final section of Write Right, with its chapters on Perfect Punctuation, Parts of Speech, Effective Editing, might appear a bit simplistic for the seasoned writer, but her final chapter offers something of value to them as well. Techniques from alliteration and allusion to symbolism and understatement, are topics even the most seasoned of authors might incorporate into some of their well crafted works, just to give them a bit of extra punch. 

It gives me much pleasure to recommend this book to seasoned authors and aspiring newbies alike. 

Ketak Datta Reviews Aussie Magdalalena's Newest Poetry Book "Compact Bone"

The Density of Compact Bone

By Magdalena Ball

http://www.magdalenaball.com

Genre: Poetry

Publisher: Ginninderra Press

100 pages, ISBN: 978-1761091865, Paperback

https://www.amazon.com/Density-Compact-Bone-Magdalena-Ball/dp/1761091867/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=

Reviewed by Dr. Kataki Datta

The Density of Compact Bone is a remarkable collection of poems from the prolific pen of renowned poet, Magdalena Ball. This is not her debut collection of poems. Hence, she is mature enough to carve a niche for herself among creative writers who are revered for their creations. This book has been divided into four interesting sections: “The Age of Waste”, “The Stronger the Entanglement the More Warped Space is”, “Chronon”, “The River Will Wash Us All Down”. Not less than ten powerful poems are included in each section. Environmental issues, Apocalypse, Time as an inexorable reality, the practicality of existence and its hapless yielding to the demands of Time, Space and Love and even the Anthropocene, we are inching on to—all serve as grist to her mill. The poet has addressed the difficult issues through the necessary terms borrowed from the pages of Science and fitted them into the emotional matrix of her poems, quite adeptly. And they never seem outlandish or misfit. 

A British lifestyle survey report once pointed out a hair-raising issue of wasting food and dumping of excess food in the garbage bins. This is sheer waste of food which is essential for sustenance. In nature, waste of many resources meets our eye very often. While we are in the times of Anthropocene, we should be wary of wasting our valuable resources like water, oil etc. In the very opening poem, Weed Garden, of this section, “ The Age of Waste”, Magdalena Ball wields her powerful pen,

  “A patch of weeds left to grow tall”, 

Which she decides to annul by walking next morning till …

…” I’ve left the farm

lost my body
with all its false softness

broken to sinuous fibre
too tough to digest.”

Losing the farm to destructive weeds is tantamount to losing a body to the rupture of “sinuous fibres”.  in poem after poem of this section, poet Magdalena Ball is warning the civilization to be careful about the threat of extinction it is going to face, with gradual depletion of all its resources:  

“Her name is Mud
 last of her kind……  

 Her name 
Is the Sixth Mass
Extinction
Glaciers, forest, buildings,

Man.”  (“FKA”)

Even humanity is touching low, as civilization is inching towards its extinction, when existence itself is threatened:

“Earth of course is
saturation blue
periwinkle in the morning
sumptuous even when 
melting
under the hot weight of 
humanity
bearing down.” ("Is Blue an Earth Tone?”)

Magdalena Ball leaves an indelible impression on our mind as she looks at all the conventional perspectives and challenges them with an analytical, scientific and a completely novel one. Just like Joy Harjo or  Adrienne Rich, Magdalena makes everything new in her world. Sometimes it feels like she is chiming in unison with Yeats’ “Surely some revelation is at hand” ("The Second Coming”) and sometimes she is with Wordsworth to give vent to her pent-up angst, “ Little we see in Nature that is ours/We have given our hearts away, a sordid boon!” ("The World is Too Much with Us”) and at times the work is Huxleyan in its search for a brave new world. 

In the second section, “The Stronger the Entanglement the More Warped Space Is” , the poet explores the future of earth, space and the ‘entanglement.’ The poet opens the third, title section with suspense, initially hesitating to relate her own experience to the world, and then she opening up into ‘feminine energy’ finding solace in the woods, amidst trees and nature as in the title poem: 

… “because my feet failed
beneath all that bluster

still bone.” 

The poems in this section are fraught with covert meanings and overt explanations:

“Every day is another chance
 to die of kindness
 the infinite regression of
 immortality.” ("Tomorrow’s Box is Quantum”)

Poems like "Shadow Genome” and “Transmission” explore the notion of being ‘transmitted’ into a different form, ‘second life, second soul’ may be. All these ideas are either the influence of Hindu religion or the Buddhist concept of transmogrifying into another soul in another birth. 

In the third section, “Chronon”, Ball explores many aspects of time, both as an indivisible unit, and against the hypothetical but still true statement that Time is not continuous. If such continuity of Time is questioned then, Eliot’s tall claim that “Time present and Time Past is contained in Time Future.” A length of Time is frozen in the matrix, it seems. Ball catches Time in all its varied facets and spectra:

“Nothing is lost, not even the moment
Shattered into light pulses, entangled
In the mother tongue, in the morning
leaves a taste on the lips, sharp
breaks through like the crack of a whip
reminds you that time is a construct
 you write every minute with breath. [Eastern Whip Bird]

Magdalena Ball might have been influenced by Jorge Luis Borges’s well-renowned essay, “A New Refutation of Time” (Labyrinths), where Borges says, “ I have accumulated transcriptions from the apologists of idealism, I have abounded in their canonical passages, I have been reiterative and explicit, I have censured Schopenhauer[not without ingratitude], so that my reader may begin to penetrate into this unstable world of the mind. A world of evanescent impressions: a world without matter or spirit, neither objective nor subjective; a world without the ideal architecture of space; a world made of time, of the absolute uniform time of the Principia; a tireless labyrinth, a chaos, a dream.”[256]

The last section of this volume, “The River will Wash Us All Down” is both interesting and mindboggling. The poems of this section highlight a desire of the poet to go with the flow yet follow her own course, paving a way for unique forms of understanding. For example, in “ If I could open a space”, she  declares of breaking  ‘every boundary’, ‘dissolving…every boundary’, taking ‘every burden on my (her) tiny  back’ and forgiving ‘ even myself(herself), every ragged mistake/to open this space.’ The Density of Compact Bone is a rare collection of poems to be treasured by poetry-lovers.  

INFORMATION ABOUT THE REVIEWER

Dr. Ketaki Datta is an Associate Professor of English with Bidhannagar Govt. College, Kolkata. Apart from academic publications, she has two novels, three translated novels, and a book of poems, “Across the Blue Horizon”[ funded by Arts Council, England]to her credit apart from a bunch of short stories: both original and translated. She had been to Lisbon, California and University of Oxford on an invitation to read out her papers, mainly on indigenous and World theatre.  She is Regional Editor of The Theatre Times from India, headed by Prof. Magda Romanska, Professor, Emerson College, Boston. She has contributed to Routledge Companion to Dramaturgy, edited by Magda Romanska; Beyond Improbable Lines: The Partition of India (Cambridge Scholar Publishing) by Daniela Rogobete and Elisabetta Marino. Lately, she has co-authored a book of photos and poems titled “ Urban Reflections” with Prof. Wilfried Raussert, Univ. of Bielefeld, Germany. Her book on Oral Stories of Totos is coming out soon from Sahitya Akademi. 



A BIO OR CREDIT LINE FOR THE AUTHOR OF THE BOOK

More about Magdalena Ball can be found at her website: http://www.magdalenaball.com

Snapshot Courtesy Joy V. Smith

More About #TheNewBookReview Blog

 The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. Authors, readers, publishers, and reviewers may republish their favorite reviews of books they want to share with others. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read and love. Please see submission guidelines in a tab at the top of this blog's home page or go directly to the submission guidelines at http://bit.ly/ThePlacetoRecycleBookReviews or to the guideline tab at the top of the home page of this blog. Authors and publishers who do not yet have reviews or want more may use Lois W. Stern's "Authors Helping Authors" service for requesting reviews. Find her guidelines in a tab at the top of the home page, too. Carolyn Wilhelm is our IT expert, an award-winning author, a veteran educator and also contributes reviews and posts on other topics related to books. Reviews, interviews, and articles on this blog are indexed by genre, reviewers' names, and review sites so #TheNewBookReview may be used as a resource for most anyone in the publishing industry. As an example, writers will find this blog's search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. #TheFrugalbookPromoter, #CarolynHowardJohnson, #TheNewBookReview, #TheFrugalEditor, #SharingwithWriters, #reading #BookReviews #GreatBkReviews #BookMarketing

My Octopus Teacher Film 10 Discussion Questions

My Octopus Teacher Film 

10 Discussion Questions

I loved the film, My Octopus Teacher. My daughter who has never liked cephalopods so much I could barely mention the title to her didn't watch it. She doesn't know what she is missing, in my opinion. Although there is a lengthy discussion guide online, I wrote ten discussion questions to encourage people to talk about the movie. The site's critical consensus reads: "A heartwarming look at the way a meaningful bond can transcend just about any barrier, this documentary will leave you asking your friends to come and see My Octopus Teacher with you." Living in a pandemic, that left me to watch it alone as no one in my so-called bubble wanted to watch (or discuss) the movie. So, that leaves me to write a blog post. Having watched it months ago, I still feel the impact of what I learned. 

For the questions that are less easily answered from only viewing the film, please see the long yet engaging official discussion guide. Here are my questions to get started:

Why did Craig Foster begin a daily diving regimen? How was it filmed? Where was it filmed?

2.    Did you connect with the protagonist, the octopus? Did the protagonist have a name? Did she have a memory?

3.    What portion of the life of the octopus did Foster record? What is the usual life expectancy of a cephalopod? How did you feel when he did not intervene or help at critical moments, like when the shark attacked or she gave birth?

4.    Do you think this movie was part of why the UK declared some octopuses, crabs, and lobsters as sentient beings in 2001?

5.    What is the range of temperatures in a kelp forest? Why? Describe the self-discipline needed to form a relationship with the octopus and record the information.

6.    How is climate change affecting kelp seaweed forests? How do kelp forests help climate stability?

7.    Why do you think Foster said, “What she taught me is to feel that you are part of this place. Not a visitor. And that’s a huge difference.”

8.    How did the story show love, friendship, connection, and hope? Do you think it was a love story?

9.    How does cold water stimulate brain activity? How long did Foster and the filmmakers have to hold their breath?

1             What is living science, according to the Sea Change Project?

Have you had a “teacher” in nature? Tell about your experience. 

If you have not seen the film, I hope to encourage you to do so. Here is a trailer that might help. 

Last, but hopefully not least as they say, here is the free instant download question guide I wrote. Click on the next link to download your copy. 
Discussion questions free instant download PDF

Thank you for reading, Carolyn Wilhelm of the Wise Owl Factory LLC 
 

 More About #TheNewBookReview Blog The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. Authors, readers, publishers, and reviewers may republish their favorite reviews of books they want to share with others. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read and love. Please see submission guidelines in a tab at the top of this blog's home page or go directly to the submission guidelines at http://bit.ly/ThePlacetoRecycleBookReviews or to the guideline tab at the top of the home page of this blog. Authors and publishers who do not yet have reviews or want more may use Lois W. Stern's "Authors Helping Authors" service for requesting reviews. Find her guidelines in a tab at the top of the home page, too. Carolyn Wilhelm is our IT expert, an award-winning author, a veteran educator and also contributes reviews and posts on other topics related to books. Reviews, interviews, and articles on this blog are indexed by genre, reviewers' names, and review sites so #TheNewBookReview may be used as a resource for most anyone in the publishing industry. As an example, writers will find this blog's search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. #TheFrugalbookPromoter, #CarolynHowardJohnson, #TheNewBookReview, #TheFrugalEditor, #SharingwithWriters, #reading #BookReviews #GreatBkReviews #BookMarketing