Book Review: Chester Raccoon and the Big Bad Bully by Audrey Penn

Chester Raccoon and the Big Bad Bully by Audrey Penn
Genre: Children's, Picture Book
Source: Netgalley
Purchase: Amazon

Summary: In this latest addition to the Kissing Hand book collection, Chester Raccoon must learn to deal with another common problem of childhood: a bully at school.

When Mrs. Raccoon learns that there is a bully problem at school, she decides to investigate the situation. But after seeing the bully for herself, she shares a story about a forest that was full of smooth yellow stones, and how the animals living there changed a pointy stone they found into a smooth stone so that it wouldn't hurt any tender paws.

Chester, Ronny, and Cassy follow the spirit of Mrs. Raccoon's story when they next encounter the Bully. Approaching him as a group, they invite him to play, proving that the best way to get rid of an enemy is to make him or her a friend.

This book encourages children to understand that many child bullies are themselves unhappy and gives readers a good example of settling differences by peaceful means. Educators will embrace this story about a positive strategy for dealing with a bully.

Review

This book is perfect for small children, especially this five years old and under. Chester and his friends are scared of a bully from school. Not only does he tease them but he physically scares them as well. While the children are afraid and unsure what to do, it is decided that telling an adult is a good idea. Not only that but Mrs. Raccoon uses a story, kisses and kind words to encourage her children as well as the other kids to be kind to the bully instead of bullying him back or just running away.

I enjoyed this book because it was a nice short read and even though some reviews think it's too long for children ages 3-4 I disagree. The author clearly thought a book longer than five-twelve pages with lush visuals and a beautiful story is a great read for small children. It's time adults and publishers stop treating kids like they're too dumb to learn and I believe this book does this. Also a moral that doesn't preach at kids but invites them to make the right choices and show kindness is a read any adult would be willing to share with their child. Highly recommend. 

Rating: 4.5 Stars

Getting Personal: Doctor's visit

This month end I plan to visit two doctors. First the eye doctor to replace my glasses and also our family doctor because I've been having ongoing joint pains and feeling lightheaded or fatigued. Wish me luck that it's something minor. Love you guys.

P.S.: No Friday post this week but Saturday I will be back to posting book reviews.

Book Blitz: Breaking the Reins by Juliana Haygert

Please Note: Woven by co-author David king has been cancelled by it's publisher. But what is truly awful is the reason behind it. I will discuss my feelings in another post but click Amber on Woven Being Unfairly Pulled for more details.

Today I'm participating the Book Blitz for author Juliana Haygert. A fine blogger and novelist, her latest book is sure to be both pleasing to the eyes and the reader soul in all of us.

Breaking the Reins

by Juliana
Haygert

Release Date: 08/19/13

Summary from Goodreads:

Horses,
mansions, tea parties, and lies are twenty-year-old Hannah Taylor’s life. To
others, her family and her relationship with Eric is perfect. But she knows the
truth. She lives it.

After a fire takes her grandma's life and kills her horse, Hannah's immaculate
life spirals out of control. Her father disapproves of her decision to run her
grandma’s ranch instead of focusing solely on learning the family business;
Animal Control brings her Argus, a mistreated horse that she can't turn away
even though she's not ready for another horse; and her boyfriend, Eric Bennett,
a world famous polo player, becomes possessive and authoritarian. Despite her
best efforts to disguise it, Hannah grows wary of him.



Then, Leonardo Fernandes struts onto the polo scene. A cocky rookie with a
messy life of his own, he’s drawn to Hannah and isn’t afraid of showing it,
even when Eric makes it clear she is his and he’ll do whatever it takes to keep
it that way. Hannah suffers for Eric’s jealousy. The abuse only gets worse when
Leo steals the title of best polo player in the world from Eric.



But the title isn’t enough for Leo. He wants Hannah too, and she can’t deny her
attraction to him either. Somehow, she must find a way to break free from
abusive Eric before he breaks every bone in her body.



**New Adult Contemporary Romance Novel**

Available from:

 

Praise for Breaking the Reins:

 “Breaking The Reins by Juliana Haygert is a
real treasure. It’s a sexy, heartbreaking and romantic ride you won’t want to
miss.” —Sawyer Bennett, USA
Today Bestselling author of Off Side, Off Limits, Off
the Record, and Off Course.

“A breath of fresh air in the New Adult market.
Juliana Haygert’s new contemporary novel is one not to be missed!” —Magan Vernon, international
bestselling author of The Only Exception

“A swoonworthy love interest and a fantastic
backdrop make Breaking the Reins a New Adult read you don’t want to miss!”
—Alyssa Rose Ivy, bestselling
authorof The Crescent Chronicles, Clayton Falls Series,
and The Hazards of Skinny Dipping.

About the Author:

New
Adult author and contributor at NA Alley blog.

While Juliana Haygert dreams of being Wonder Woman, Buffy, or a blood elf
shadow priest, she settles for the less exciting—but equally gratifying—life of
a wife, mother, and author. Thousands of miles away from her former home in
Brazil, she now resides in Connecticut and spends her days writing about
kick-ass heroines and the heroes who drive them crazy.

Author Links:

    

***GIVEAWAY***

2-ebook copies of Breaking the Reins (INT)

1-ebook copies of Destiny Gift (INT)

a Rafflecopter giveaway




Book Blitz hosted by:

The Next Big Thing....is Monsters?

Please Note: I have been behind on my book reviews. While I will try to post this Saturday, there won't be one tomorrow. So my next post will be Wednesday where I'll be participating in a book blitz. See you there.

I was tagged by Nancy Laronda for The Next Big Thing. The last time I did this it was fun and today I hope this one will be as much fun for you to read as it was for me to write.

1. What is the working title of your book.

Monster City.

2. Where did the idea come from for your book?

In May while reading Best/Worst Movie Blogfest & Monster Madness Day 7 on Dani's blog I saw an image which was just a white box with the words 'I just told the monster under my bed that rent is due'. And because my brain is a crazy idea generator what do I get? An idea for a novel? But not just any novel, it turns into an MG novel which I was always terrified of writing. Why? Because I'm uncomfortable with the restrictions in writing MG. They're things you can do in YA that you can't do in the same way with MG. So for a long time I refused to touch that genre.

But this idea wouldn't go away and at first was going to be about kids hiding monsters under their bed in exchange for valuables. Sadly this hit some snags and eventually was scraped. Yet that was how I went back to the drawing board and came up with Monster City. I kept the kids and monsters but replaced the valuables with a special connection that could make the monsters invisible. Add a city that mostly hates them and the few humans who want to change that and a W.I.P. was born.

3. What genre does your book fall under?

Middle Grade Fantasy

4. Which actors would you choose to play your characters in the movie?

                                                       








Thomas Horn as Jupiter

Jupiter's twelve and has dark hair but Thomas is a close match.

Joey King as Max Butters (one of two of Jupiter's best friends). Add darker hair and you have the perfect lively girl who can roughhouse with any boy and has a heart of gold.  While her rich parents want to tame her this girl finds a friend and confidant in Jupiter and a unique friendship with Bo.

Samuel Joslin as Ian, Jupiter's other best - and oldest- friend. While they are close unlike Max he doesn't know about. Also he fears monsters and think they should just be gotten rid of. Shy and kind he might not seem like the top choice for an active boy like Jupiter but neither care about that.

Samuel Joslin as Daniel, Ian's twin brother. While both are handsome boys their similarities are obly skin deep. Daniel has a mean streak he hides it well from teachers and adults alike. Jupiter sees a darkness  in Daniel and so does his own mother and brother Ian.

Emily Skinner as Pristine Myers' who is Jupiter's crush. While this actress is nine right now I think she's perfect and she was in Lifetime Movie 5 (2011).

Zoey Dechanel as Jupiter's mom. She's a great choice.

Oh where did this photo come from? Moving on.

Sorry no photo of Dad. But he was the one who raised Bo and kept him hidden after the laws changed.

5. What is the one sentence synopsis for your book?

(A) Jupiter wants Monster City to be Monroe City again, but to do that he needs to prove a monster didn't murder a child decades ago.

(B) In Monster City no human is allowed to harbour monsters yet Jupiter and his parents harbour Bo, who can't come out in the open until citizens believe monsters aren't a danger or child murderers.

(C) Jupiter is determined to prove monsters aren't evil, all he needs to do is disprove findings of a decades old murder while keeping the fact he has a monster hidden in a world where kid's are heavily protected and monsters locked away and used as slaves.

I will digress though that C sounds more YA. But these are my best ones.

6. Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency.

I'd like to try for an agency first and since I put off looking for one until around 2015, I have time.

7. How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?

Haven't finished in yet. Started in June but now I'm on a break as I prepare to self-publish my first book this December.

8. What other books would you compare this to in your genre?

At first I couldn't think of any books but now I think ParaNorman. Both star a boy trying to do the right thing. While Jupiter isn't an outcast like Norman both have tough odds to face to achieve their goal. Also Norman's openness about his ability to see ghosts is in beautiful contrast to Jupiter's secrecy about having Bo (his monster).

9. Who or what inspired you to write this book.

Aside from Dan'i's post I must say my willingness to face challenges no matter my initial hesitation. If I didn't decide to venture into MG this novel would never had gotten started.

10. What else about your book might pique the readers interest?

You get to read a Middle Grade book that moves along the edges that keeps it from going YA. In other words while kids can read it there is room for adults and also no character will be cuddled. Bad things will happen and some of it will come from those you least expect.

Hope that was good. Now to tag five people and I'll go by their blogs.

Entertaining Interest

Panda Ninja

David Powers King

Simply Sarah

The Character Depot

Express My Fantasy

This week's question:  Which book/movie do you wish you lived in?


Harry Potter for books and X-Men for movies. Both of these worlds are rich in setting and character. Who wouldn't want to use a wand or hang out with Wolverine? Bad news? Voldemort and Mutant Bashing/Sentinels respectively.

Still sick but on the bright side I got the games I ordered from Amazon. Including Final Fantasy IX since from last year it's nearly impossible to find PS1 games in local stores. Enjoy your weekend and no review tomorrow so see you Monday when I will be doing The Next Big Thing that I was tagged for by Nancy.

Out of Play and Big News

Please Note: Due to life and a bad afternoon of the flu I will not post tomorrow. Will be back on Friday.

I had planned to post about this book on it's release day but life got in the way. I purchased my e-copy last Tuesday August 6 after 3:00 a.m. and can proudly say I grabbed a copy right on time on release day. Congrats Jolene and Nyrae on your newest collaboration! So without further ado.

Blurb: Rock star drummer Bishop Riley doesn't have a drug problem. Celebrities—especially ones suffering from anxiety—just need a little help taking the edge off sometimes. After downing a few too many pills, Bishop wakes up in the hospital facing an intervention. If he wants to stay in the band, he’ll have to detox while under house arrest in Seldon, Alaska.　

Hockey player Penny Jones can't imagine a life outside of Seldon. Though she has tons of scholarship offers to all the best schools, the last thing she wants is to leave. Who'll take care of her absentminded gramps? Not her mother, who can’t even be bothered to come home from work, let alone deal with their new tenants next door.

Penny’s not interested in dealing with Bishop’s crappy attitude, and Bishop’s too busy sneaking pills to care. Until he starts hanging out with Gramps and begins to see what he’s been missing. If Bishop wants a chance with the fiery girl next door, he’ll have to admit he has a problem and kick it. Too bad addiction is hard to kick…and Bishop’s about to run out of time.

Purchase: Amazon, Barnes and Noble

Big News!

I have won a Marketing Package from Black Firefly. When I found out I'd won the giveaway I was so and even better got the package I had hoped for. Today I've started discussion with Courtney, the representative who will be helping me market Sacrifice Her and I couldn't be happier. She is a YA fan herself (and a Harry Potter fan, how can this go wrong?) and her emails are so fun and professional you feel like you're communicating with a really good friend. She is ready to not only help me with Facebook and Twitter but to also make my promoting blog posts SEO friendly (when I tried understanding SEO it felt like swimming in seaweed so I just focused on writing my posts to the best of my ability instead). There is so much more available to me now and since I'm no marketing whiz this makes me so happy. Check out Black Firefly's Marketing Package for yourself. Enjoy your day and like London from The Suite Life of Zack and Cody says, "Yay Me!"

 Lastly I have 5 likes on my Author Facebook Page. Thank you to those who have liked so far and to those who will like my page in the future.

Switched Cover Reveal and Anti-Blogfest Gary Fest

*Drumroll* The cover for Switched by Cassie Mae will be revealed....now.

Blurb:

Kayla likes Talon, who's dating her best friend Reagan. Wesley likes Reagan, who's dating his best friend Talon.
Complicated? Just a little bit.

Kayla and Wesley have only one thing in common: loving their best friend's significant other. So when they've had enough lonely nights, they contrive a plan to switch it up. By the end of the year, all four friends will be happy, nestled in the arms of their soul mates. They just need to pull it off without their best friends catching on.

But as their plan unfolds, guilt sets in, and Kayla wonders if Talon is more important than her friendship with Reagan. It doesn't help Wesley is questioning whether Reagan is the girl for him, or if he's meant to be with someone else.

Switching partners looks possible, but it may not be the perfect ending Kayla and Wesley had planned.

Purchase: Random House

About The Author: Cassie Mae is a nerd to the core from Utah, who likes to write about other nerds who find love. She’s the author of the Amazon Bestseller REASONS I FELL FOR THE FUNNY FAT FRIEND, and is the debut author for the Random House FLIRT line with her New Adult novels FRIDAY NIGHT ALIBI and SWITCHED. She also has a three book deal with Swoon Romance Publishing, including her book HOW TO DATE A NERD. She spends time with her angel children and perfect husband who fan her and feed her grapes while she clacks away on the keyboard. Then she wakes up from that dream world and manages to get a few words on the computer while the house explodes around her. When she’s not writing, she’s spending time with the youth in her community as a volleyball and basketball coach, or searching the house desperately for chocolate.

Today I'm taking part in the Anti-Blogfest Gary Fest hosted by  Mark Koopmans, Ninja Captain Alex J. Cavanaugh, Tina, Rockin’ Robyn Engel and Morgan Shamy. All you have to do is give the titles of three made up blogfests you'd never join and a short description.

Snuff You Out Blogfest

What I'd do if I met you on the street.

Me: O-kay. I'm going to go.


Hackers Unite Blogfest

Where hackers converge.

Me: Yeah, good to know where not to go so I can protect my information.


Forever Mine Bloghop

Want to make someone yours forever? Come and learn how to serenade, seduce or tie the resistant to a metal chair.

Me: No. Should I call the police on this hop?

So that's my three everybody. Probably pushed the appropriate level a bit but what edgy post doesn't. Right. Have a great day and seriously, stay away from these creepy events.