Sunday Words of Encouragement March 24, 2013

Today is Palm Sunday. Our Pastor gave a message entitled "The Hands of God."  Pastor shared a story of a cowboy hearing the Palm Sunday story for the first time. The man marveled. He said: 'Jesus must have had amazing hands to bring calmness to an untrained colt while crowds shouted, waved branches and threw clothes before his path.' Those hands that hold the universe and created all things still reach out to us in daily acts.  They bring us comfort, healing, strength and peace.

Jesus made a triumphant entry into the city of Jerusalem but the people were looking for a King, not a  Saviour/Reedemer. When you see the splendor of the world around you do you acknowledge the Creator? Are you willing to acknowledge the Savior? When we praise God we demonstrate what we believe to be ours - redemption and eternal life.

There is a song we are singing for Easter that includes the phrase:

"I am determined, ain't no rock ever takin' my place."
I searched out a song that speaks of the rocks singing out.

Verses for today:
Luke 19 (New International Version)
35 They brought it to Jesus, threw their cloaks on the colt and put Jesus on it. 
36 As he went along, people spread their cloaks on the road.
37 When he came near the place where the road goes down the Mount of Olives, the whole crowd of disciples began joyfully to praise God in loud voices for all the miracles they had seen:
38 “Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord!”[b]
“Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!”
39 Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to Jesus, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples!”
40 “I tell you,” he replied, “if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out.”

I thank God for creating the Universe, Earth and me. I thank Jesus for being the Kinsman Redeemer - for even me.  I will continually give thanks and praise, and worship Him.

Sharing Beyond Books #92 Comment Giveaway March 23, 2013

Hello, Welcome to SBB.
Ah - Saturday night. It's been a busy week back in the office. I had sort of a relaxing day today, taking my DH to a pot luck for afternoon socializing. I hope everyone else is doing well.
Thank you to all who shared last week.

I think Carol may have been surprised how few of you had read the Outlander series. If you like a Scottish hero, action and romance that reaches across time then you should enjoy this series. I think I will have to see The Spartans (suggested by nrlymrtl) to check those actors.

I guess I like more flowers than I realized as I kept agreeing with all the suggestions. :-) Roses got the most votes with 6, tulips were next with 4 and lilacs were chosen by 3.

~~~~

The Winner from SBB #91 comments is: #20 Carol L, (fitting she wins on her own question!) who can make a book choice from the ARC/Review titles, Christmas titles or Love titles - all linked near the end of the post. Please let me know your choice by completing the WINNER FORM.

WEEK #92 Questions

Q1. Becky asks: What are some questions you ask yourself when you're thinking of buying a book?

A:  When thinking about buying a book I consider a) if I like previous titles by the author; b) if I like the genre; c) if I like the blurb; d) if I think the heat level is acceptable; e) is the price acceptable and f) will I be able to fit reading it in my schedule ... sooner or later!

Image found at Taylor Books.

Q2. My non-bookish Question this week: What is your favorite juice?? (Guess I'm on a 'favorites' roll.)

A: My favorite juice may change from time to time. I used to like orange juice; then V8; but right now I like apple juice as it seems to give me some energy if I am really hot and tired.  

 Image found at My Health Master.

Thanks to those who are sending in Questions. DON'T BE SHY! Surely everyone has a Q or two you'd like to ask. Input suggestions in this Suggested Question Form. At the end of each month I draw from the suggestions I used during the month and that person will get a book choice or GC. I thank everyone for submitting questions. Thanks for sending in questions! We can always use fresh questions.

Your turn to share:

Q1. Becky asks: What are some questions you ask yourself when you're thinking of buying a book??

2. My non-bookish Question this week: What is your favorite juice??

SBB Comment Winners can choose a selection from the new Valentine and "Love" books  or the new Christmas Giveaway Books. Also I have added the Updated ARC/Review List now.
 
SBB Rules:
a) Must be a follower.
b) Share a comment on any (or all) of the two/three questions above.
Open internationally and an international winner may get a smaller book or a $5.00 GC if I decide the mailing is too much.

I will pick a Comment winner from all comments made by Friday, March 29, 2013 at 10 PM central.

Four Winners!

Congratulations to Winners!

I forgot the Second winner of ebook of The Midwife's Revolt so I am announcing that now too:

Fallen Star 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Giveaways Ended March 22, 2013.

ARC Giveaway: Lady Eve's Indiscretion 

Cassandra

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Giveaway: Maiden Lane Series by Elizabeth Hoyt -A FULL PRINT SET OF ALL FIVE BOOKS IN THE SERIES to one lucky US winner!!  

Lisa A. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Print Giveaway: White Picket Fences by Susan Meissner

Brooke

Fallen Star, Cassandra, Lisa and Brooke Please fill in the Winner's Acceptance Form or email me at mesreads AT gmail.com to confirm the win and send your address so I can mail the book or notify the Publisher. Please reply within 72 hours!
Thank you to all who entered these giveaways. 

Book Review and Tour Giveaway: The Persnickety Princess by Falcon Storm

This is a fun fairytale told by a delightful Bard named Upon A. Time.

The Persnickety Princess (Tales from Upon A. Time - Book 1)
by Falcon Storm

• Paperback: 94 pages
• Publisher: Evolved Publishing (March 7, 2013)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1622530470
• ISBN-13: 978-1622530472

Genre: Children
My Rating: 4.25 of 5.0

About the Book - About the Author - Prizes!!!

About the book: 
High up in the tallest tower of the purplest castle in the Kingdom by the Sea, Princess Lavender awaits rescue. Desperate as she may be, only the most dashing, well dressed, properly mannered prince will do. Oh, and he must stand exactly four and three-quarters inches taller than her. A princess has got to have standards, after all.

When, finally, one such prince comes to her castle—not to rescue her, but her younger sister—Lavender refuses to be ignored. Instead of waiting for the next suitor to come along, she devises a plan to put herself in danger, thus forcing the upstart prince to forget her sister and rescue her instead.

Well accustomed to getting her way, there is only one thing, unfortunately, that this princess can’t control—her luck. When her plans go awry, putting her in very real danger, will she allow the prince to rescue her as he sees fit? Will he even want to try?

And will anyone be able to find a way to rescue Lavender from her persnickety ways once and for all? Find out in this comedic tale of princes, dragons, and dreams that just may come true.

The Persnickety Princess is a lower grade chapter book intended for kids 6 to 9 years old (although kids of all ages are sure to enjoy it!

Pick up your copy through

 Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Smashwords or Kobo Books.

Image: Frans Hals, Jester with a Lute

Review:
Upon A. Time is a Bard who gets caught on a stolen pig. He has to persuade the two city guards to let him go rather than put him in jail. He distracts them with an amusing tale about Lavender, a most Persnickety Princess.

Lavender lives in a purple castle with a resident witch to help ward off undesirable suitors. Princess Lavender has waited at her window a long time for the perfect Prince to rescue her. Finally Hugo the Happening, a handsome Prince who meets her criteria shows up. But instead of responding to her he rides off to rescue her sister, Petunia, who is carried away from the castle by a fierce dragon.  Lavender determines to put herself in need of rescue and ends up in one silly predicament after another. But every time she is in a fix, Hugo’s companion, Dave, who she believes is his squire, comes to her rescue instead of Hugo.

The story reads easily and is delightfully entertaining with a few twists and surprises. The descriptions include fun characters, a few creatures and settings fitting to a fairytale castle and surrounding forest, including Mount Chipmunk, which Lavender renamed Mountain of Horribleness.  Upon plays a fine trickster. I think this story could be enjoyed by middle graders as well as younger. It will be fun for parents to read to their children too. I appreciated the light break from my usual reading of romances and thrillers.

I received this ebook for review as part of Novel Publicity Book Tour.

About the Author, Falcon Storm

I was born in the frozen wasteland of Alaska with the unfortunate stigma of being both a daydreamer and left-handed. Starting from an early age, I’ve filled my life with stories of every sort from my father’s hunting trips to the Holy Trilogy (read: Star Wars). In the fourth grade, I became more interested in telling stories of my own than listening to those of others.  Doctors—being doctors—attempted to medicate them out of me, but the best cure has always been a pen, a notebook, and my crazy, unrestrained imagination.
I continue to whittle away at these stories in my endless search for the one that will finally bring me back to reality. All the while, I secretly hope such a story will never come along. I hear “reality” is far too boring.
Connect with Falcon on his website, Facebook, GoodReads, or Twitter.

THE GIVEAWAY

About the prizes: Who doesn't love prizes? You could win (1) a $25 Amazon gift card, (2) a $50 Amazon gift card, or (3) a Princess Prize Pack, which includes a plush purple dragon, necklace with lavender pendant, The Fairy Godmother's Guide to Being a Princess, tiara and wand party set, and a DVD of The Princess Bride.

Here's what you need to do...

1. Enter the Rafflecopter contest
2. Leave a comment on my blog.

That's it! One random commenter during this tour will win the $50 gift card. Visit more blogs for more chances to win--the full list of participating bloggers can be found here. The other two prizes (including the awesome Princess Prize Pack) will be given out via Rafflecopter. You can find the contest entry form linked below or on the official Persnickety Princess tour page via Novel Publicity. Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Saturday Snapshot (March 23, 2013) Early Spring

I forgot to add one last picture related to our Hawaii trip. I always bring the 'home' family a little something.  Here are my Florida Grandchildren modeling their Hawaiian clothing gifts. :-)

Our weather has been strange, warming up then getting cold again.
Here are our little Hyacinth on January 30th

Below are some of the finches that we feed during in winter.
The shots were taken in early February. 
They aren't too good as they are all taken through screened windows.

This is one I call Woody The Woodpecker for obvious reasons!

The cardinals are out now but I haven't gotten their picture yet.

Thanks again to all the nice people who have commented on my Saturday pictures. I am so sorry I have not been getting to return the visits. :-(

To participate in the Saturday Snapshot meme post a photo that you (or a friend or family member) have taken then leave a direct link to your post in the Mister Linky hosted by Alyce of At Home With Books. Photos can be old or new, and be of any subject as long as they are clean and appropriate for all eyes to see. How much detail you give in the caption is entirely up to you. Please don’t post random photos that you find online.