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A Promise You Will Want to Savour

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Grab your coziest sweater, your slippers and a cup of tea, then curl up for the weekend with Ann Tatlock’s Promises To Keep. This is a comfortable slightly familiar story with an extremely endearing child narrator named Roz, a plot that never quits moving and a great cast of characters. It conjures up moments of nostalgia and sad truths about adults and their weaknesses. This is my first experience with author Ann Tatlock and I was hooked almost before I even cracked the spine of the novel. Promises to Keep is the story of a mother who flees her abusive alcoholic husband, after many years of his empty promises to sober up and make it upto his family. Told from the point of view of Roz, his 11-year-old daughter, it is a story of domestic violence and love and the limits of dreams. The story begins with Roz and her family moving into a new home in a tiny city far from their old life. When an older woman named Tillie shows up on their doorstep and refuses to leave they find themselves in a bit of a strange predicament.
Tillie presents a plot complication, as the former owner of the house, which she argues is still hers. Her sons have moved her into an old age home against her wishes and every now and then she wanders back to the place that holds her heart and her memories. Roz’s older brother, Wally, a bitter young man about to turn 18 right at the time of the war in Viet Nam, is rigid in his beliefs and angry at yet another intrusion forced upon his tiny healing family. He wants Tillie gone. He was the man in his family that stood upto the father and on the occasion of one final big fight nearly ended up beaten to death for it. Wally was Janis’s first child from a different relationship and the very volatile stepfather seemed to hate Wally from the start, referring to him only as the boy and refusing to adopt him. After that initial visit in chapter one Tillie keeps returning and she makes the argument that the home will always be hers in sweat equity. It is clear that the house will not be big enough for both Tillie and Wally. One will have to go. Janis has three children and the youngest is a toddler. When Janis takes on a job in sales to support her family Tillie becomes invaluable helping out around the home and acting as grandmother to the girls Roz and Valerie. Although she is safe in this new home, Roz finds herself tortured by the vision of her father crying when they drove away and she is unable to move forward. She believes his final words that he will change and she needs to remember the good about him for fear there might not be anything good or loveable about her. Roz begins seeing her Dad everywhere and cannot tell if it is her imagination playing tricks or not. Roz, the newcomer at school, meets a lonely bright creative girl named Mara who dreams of being a writer, but whose skin colour makes her a bit of an outcast. Together they form a friendship and a bond, as they both have been harbouring secrets about their fathers. Their pact to get their fathers back leads them into dangerous territory and threatens more than one family’s fate. Slowly Roz glimpses tiny memories of the violent and sadistic moments they’ve endured at the hands of her father, but she is a guarder of secrets and refuses to share her pain or her misgivings with anyone. Her memories are revealed in an organic manner that flows and is somehow just perfectly in keeping with the timing and the characterization throughout the book. It is an amazing and artistic trick that proves the talent of the author. The reader is never jarred from the plot by a flashback. Ann Tatlock is the author of eight novels, including The Returning. She has won The Christy Award for her novel All The Way Home and the Mid-West Independent Booksellers Association Book of The Year for All The Way Home and I’ll Watch The Moon. She lives in Asheville, North Carolina with her family. In the beginning Promises to Keep is a powerful story about domestic violence and it packs an explosive punch at the end. But there is a great deal here about the nature of family and love and friendship that is every bit as uplifting as well. This is a truly beautiful story and Roz is a dynamite choice for narrator. Even the cover image is a gorgeous artistic shot of a girl’s pigtails. This is one I will keep on my bookshelf for a long time, so I can return to it and study the writer’s technique. Promises To Keep is the total package.

Promises to Keep, by Ann Tatlock, Bethany House, US $14.99, Feb. 1, 2011, 348 pages.
This one gets a 4 and a half rating out of five. It was a charming pageturner and a comfortable read with great characters.and 1/2

My only criticism is the title. There must be 90 books on Amazon.com with the same title and I think it might have been a tiny bit more original.

This book was provided for free courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications House. The opinion on this blog is all my own and is in no way impacted by this. This book is available from Bethany House, a division of Baker Publishing Group.

Little Princes: When Passion Meets Talent and Equals Change

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When I received Little Princes in the mail for review I made a snap judgement call that this was about to be a story of an American who adopted some children internationally. Turns out, I proved the old adage you can’t judge a book by its cover. Little Princes by Conor Grennan combines passion, talent and a desire to change the world. On a quest to journey the world and fill a gap year of sorts, Grennan chooses in 2006 to travel to Nepal and work in an orphanage named Little Princes. He is young and single. He is also not prepared for what meets him there. Grennan is plunged right into a civil war zone. Despite little experience with children, Grennan is quickly enamoured by the tiny orphans. Nevertheless he does his three months there and leaves to travel the Globe. In Thailand, while visiting a friend, he feels the need to return. This book is a lovely and inspiring memoir about Grennan’s passion. It is sparked when he first sets foot in the orphanage and it continues to grow after he leaves, causing him to return again. He stays to learn more about Nepalese culture and as he learns more of the nature of poverty, he also discovers that the orphans in his charge, are, in nearly all of the cases victims of child traffickers. Despite horrific violence and danger posed by Maoist rebels, Grennan risks his life to find their families and return them home. This is the story of a man who refused to look away when he realized death certificates had been forged and that government corruption was rampant in Nepal. It is a passionate story and a moving memoir. Over the years that he worked at Little Princes, Grennan, visited family in the United States. In 2006 on one of the visits home, he set up a foundation to protect the Nepalese children. Next Generation Nepal is still active in the country and has a web site for more information. In light of the discoveries made here in this book, others should more thoroughly investigate other areas of the world where child trafficking may very well be just as rampant.

Little Princes: One Man’s Promise to Bring Home the Lost Children of Nepal, Conor Grennan
ISBN 9780061930058, publication date Feb. 1, 2011, William Morrow publishers, $25.99, 304 pages with colour photo insert and Index.
Thriftymommasbrainfood rating $$$$$ out of $$$$$
I received a copy of this book to review. The opinions in this blog are all my own.

Twelve Pearls of Christmas: Guest Series and Giveaway: An Unforgettable Gift

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  Welcome to the 12 Pearls of Christmas! Enjoy these Christmas “Pearls of Wisdom”! Please follow along through Christmas day as each post shares heartfelt stories of how God has touched a life during this most wonderful time of the year. AND BEST OF ALL … there’s also a giveaway! Fill out the quick form at the link located at the bottom of this post to be entered to win a PEARL NECKLACE, BRACELET AND EARRINGS! 

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An Unforgettable Gift by Karen O’Connor
On Christmas morning, 1912, in Paducah, Kentucky, fourteen-year-old Charlie Flowers and his three brothers and two sisters huddled in their beds, fully dressed, trying to keep warm as the wind howled outside their small frame house. It was a desperate time for the family. Earlier that year the children’s father had died. And their mother had not found work. The coal had run out and there was little money––none for gifts. Their scrawny tree with decorations made from scraps of colored paper had been given to them the night before by a local merchant. “Can’t sell this one,” the man said with a nod of his head before handing it over to the eager children. To pass the time, the siblings joked and shouted stories from their bedrooms across the hallway from one another. Then suddenly a racket from the alley at the rear of the house broke into their games. “Charlie,” his mother called, “would you see what’s going on out there?” Charlie pulled on his shoes, grabbed a thick overcoat from the hook by the door, and ran out back. There stood a man in a wagon bent over a load of coal, shoveling it into the shed as fast as he could. “Hey Mister, we didn’t order any coal,” Charlie shouted. “You’re delivering it to the wrong house.” “Your name’s Flowers, isn’t it?” the man asked, still shoveling.  Charlie nodded yes. “Well then, there’s no mistake.  I’ve been asked to deliver this to your family on Christmas morning.” He looked the awe-struck boy square in the eye. “And I’m under strict orders not to tell who sent it,” he teased. Charlie ran into the house, his coattail flapping in the cold morning wind.  He could hardly wait to tell his mother and brothers and sisters. God had provided––just as he had on that first Christmas morning so long ago when He sent his only son to a needy world. Charlie Flowers died in 1994 at age 96. And right up to the last year of his life, not a Christmas went by that he didn’t tell the story of that sub-zero Christmas morning of his boyhood when two men gave his family an unforgettable gift. It wasn’t the coal that was remembered or cherished, Charlie often said––welcome as it was––but rather what two men brought to his desperate family. One, for his gift of recognizing their great need and taking the time to do something about it. And the other, for being willing to give up part of his own Christmas morning to deliver it. That gift of so long ago has continued to warm the Flowers family from one generation to another, as Charlie’s son––my husband, Charles––calls to mind these two unknown men each Christmas morning and whispers a prayer of thanks.

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About Karen: Karen O’Connor is an award-winning author and writing mentor living in Watsonville, California with her husband, Charles Flowers. Karen’s latest book is 365 Reasons Why Gettin’ Old Ain’t So Bad (Harvest House 2010).
For more information, please visit Karen on the web at http://www.karenoconnor.com/.

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A three strand pearl necklace will be given away on New Year’s Day. All you need to do to have a chance of winning is {FILL OUT THIS QUICK ENTRY FORM}. One entry per person, per day. The winner will be announced on the Pearl Girls Blog (http://margaretmcsweeney.blogspot.com/) on New Years Day! 12 Pearls of Christmas Series and contest sponsored by Pearl Girls®. For more information, please visit http://www.pearlgirls.info/

Red In The Flower Bed: An Interracial Adoption Story and Blog Tour

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Red In The Flower Bed is a sweet, imaginative and yet simple twist on a child’s adoption story. I am an adoptive parent of two children, an adoption advocate, speaker and writer and our home library is more than full of books that are for all ages and stages of the adoption journey. But, this one had a new twist I’d not yet seen which is why I recommend it. Andrea Nepa has taken a seed as a metaphor and while that might seem logical and simplistic, I haven’t actually seen it used in this manner. The seed is a lovely metaphor for an adopted child. While this book specifically tackles interracial adoption, I felt it missed the marketing mark here and limited itself. If you look at this as a story of any adoptee, it makes sense and appeals to a wider audience in my opinion. The child is like the seed of a poppy here, blowing in the wind, carried to a different pasture. The pasture is an obvious reference to the family created by adoption. This story is aimed at 3 to 6 year olds and is reliant on rhyme and cute cutout style pictures. “So there among the violet, rose and marigold the little black dot settled into her spot.”  What a surprise she will be when she blooms and is a bright red poppy in a field of predictable colours. Red In the Flower Bed is a nice addition to anyone’s adoption library. It is a gentle, sensitive story. Red in The Flower Bed is a nice alternative to the many animal metaphors and characters that are often used to explore themes of differences and adoption in children’s fiction. This story is clever and a good way to work the topic of adoption onto your bookshelf and into your child’s life.

Red In the Flower Bed is by Andrea Nepa, published by Tribute Books, December 2008 in the United States, retails for $11.65, also available as an ebook for Kindle.

The opinions in this blog are all my own. I received a copy of this book to read for review.

Friday 56 and FASD Day

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This is my second week trying out this cute blogger meme for book bloggers. Freda informed me that the meme is actually from http://www.storytimewithtonya.blogspot.com/ Sorry Tanya for last week’s mistake. My book is strangely nearby and I have read it multiple times as it is considered the bible for those of us who parent children with FASD Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder. Damaged Angels by Bonnie Buxton, a well known Canadian journalist, is the story of what happened when they adopted a child they didn’t know had FASD. FASD is a physical disability caused by a biological mother’s prenatal alcohol consumption. This is a bittersweet and sad tale of the struggles they endured, physical, financial and emotional, and the sad life of Cleo, their child by adoption. As FASD awareness day is right around the corner I have been looking through this book again and as luck would have it I have a copy right here. None for nine is the motto. There is no safe amount of alcohol, no safe time and so safe type of alcohol to consume during pregnancy.

 So these are the rules:

* Grab the book nearest you. Right now.

* Turn to page 56.

* Find the fifth sentence.

* Post that sentence (plus one or two others if you like) along with these instructions on your blog or (if you do not have your own blog) in the comments section of this blog.

* Post a link along with your post back to this blog.

* Don’t dig for your favorite book, the coolest, the most intellectual. Use the CLOSEST.

Damaged Angels excerpt: (much of page 56 is a list of characteristics that Buxton noted referred to in the news in court stories – the obvious inference here is that many criminals sitting in jails today are sitting there as a direct result of their disability going undiagnosed. FASD is often undiagnosed because it is so difficult to get an accurate history of birth mother’s drinking patterns while pregnant.)
This is the list on 56:
slight build, receeding jaw, unresponsive, quiet, seeming lack of remorse, model prisoner, learning disabled, ADHD, unemployed, welfare recipient, violent rages, alcoholic, addict, school dropout, repeat offender, alcoholic parents or broken home, native background, adopted, foster child.
This is a paragraph I like: “We are all interconnected. Our lives profoundly influenced by small events that may have happened years ago, involving people we may never know. Back in April 1979, a woman addicted to alcohol, whom I have never met, became pregnant with her third child, continued to drink through her pregnancy _and whirled my life into an unending orbit of love, grief, despair, and hope.”
Damaged Angels is a great read and a beautiful memoir about this tragic, largely preventable disorder. Buy it and give it to someone you know who plans to get pregnant.

Melvin The Magnificent Molar

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Melvin the Magnificent Molar is a cute and functional children’s book I received last week from TwitterMoms. My children have given it a resounding two thumbs up and loved the cute story about a tooth named Melvin. “Mommy, I am brushing my Melvin,” they holler every morning now. See Melvin is a molar and as such he is often covered in a sleep scummies and gook and generally neglected because he is at the back of the mouth and just gets missed. The sweet little paperback picture book about hygiene was written by Julia Cook and Laura Jana, MD. The illustrations are lovely by Allison Valentine. The story is full of cute rhymes and sing song tunes that get children involved in the book. “Brush us and floss us and help us to shine so we can be ready and look mighty fine.” Cook and Jana use Melvin to take a bit of the mystery out of dentists and the tooth fairy and baby teeth.

Melvin the Molar is published by the National Centre For Youth Issues.
For a copy contact http://www.ncyi.org/
Tennessee, USA, 2010
thriftymommastips rating $$$$ out of $$$$$.
thriftymomma does not get paid to review books instead she receives a free copy to read

Rainbow Magic Fairy Books and a giveaway

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 We discovered the Rainbow Magic Fairy series a few years ago when my oldest daughter was small and very into fairies. This year my youngest child Ainsley, now five, has picked them up again and so we’ve been reading through the numerous children’s mystery books one more time. This, at right, is a picture of Harriet the Hamster Fairy, one of our favourites, that I am giving away to one lucky reader  Dec. 1st. I received the book for free with purchase of several others recently and want to pass it on to you. The series, by Daisy Meadows, started with the weather fairies and moved on from there to dance and party fairies, colour fairies, jewel fairies, day of the week fairies, pet fairies etcetera. There is no end to the possibilities. This lovely little series starts with two girls who are friends Kirsty and Rachel and they communicate with fairies who help them solve mysteries when ill mannered goblins, usually under the control of Jack Frost, steal things that control the weather or control the pets in the city. These are simple chapter books, full of clues and pictures, good transitional books for solid little readers wanting to graduate from picture books to something a bit more challenging. The Scholastic series are available on line from Amazon and Chaqpters/Indigo. Usually they run about $4.99 US or $5.99 Canadian. To win this my latest giveaway, a book for a child between the ages of four and 10 at most, follow me on twitter

On Twitter @inkscrblr
Comment on either one of my blogs at http://www.thriftymommastips.blogspot.com/ or http://www.thriftymommasbrainfood.com/
Please note in the comments that you are interested in the Hamster Fairy book giveaway.

thanks and good luck. Contest will be drawn by Random.org on Dec. 1st.

Character Is The Key Book Review

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Very few could argue with the title of this book, Character Is The Key, by Sara Dimerman. It is to many parents an obvious goal of good parenting, teaching a child moral fibre and building great people, leaders and compassionate adults. But how to get there? It is so easy to get caught up in the daily ins and outs of parenting that character-building could easily be a topic that is neglected or placed on a backburner. For this group, Character Is The Key, subtitled How To Unlock The Best In Our Children And Ourselves, could be a worthwhile guide causing one to reevaluate old parenting styles and strategies for ones that focus on building the emotional intelligence of our children. For those who feel they are already on the path towards mindfully creating and moulding characters with integrity Dimerman’s book could be used as a supplementary tool. Dimerman, a parent, therapist, columnist, author and frequent contributor to Today’s Parent, was highly involved in the Character Matters program that was applied in schools throughout the York District in wake of the Columbine tragedy, and other high profile media reports of bullying and violence. The author draws on and refers to this program in many spots. Out of that program evolved 10 key characteristics that schools, parents and communities all agreed were key to producing young adults with substance and strength. The 10 virtues were: respect, responsibility, honesty, empathy, fairness, initiative, courage, perseverance, optimism and integrity. Dimerman advises families to tailor these to fit their own beliefs and priorities. Not surprisingly, Dimerman views modelling as a key tenet of consciously building children with strong character. Most of us already do this and much of Dimerman’s book is common sense parenting, but the next step to modelling in terms of character building comes with the reflection involved in evaluating why we as parents make the choices and actions we do. In reflecting gently and in age appropriate ways that are not heavy handed one can reinforce character or empathy or respect. When my own children were very small and even still now at five and eight, I would often say to them if a friend was sick, “Jack is sick today. He cannot come for a play date.” Then giving them permission to feel disappointed for a few minutes I would often take it one step further with: “I feel sad that he is sick. What can we do to help him feel better?” This type of reflection would often result in my own children drawing cards or baking cookies or calling their sick friend. Now, without any prompting at all both of my girls will often quickly do this type of reflection on their own and are usually the first ones problem-solving how to help people in heartfelt ways. While this has always been second nature to us in our home, I still enjoyed reading the book as it supports my own views that we are on the right path towards developing great children. Character Is The Key is by Sara Dimerman, published this year by John Wiley and Sons Canada, $23.95 Canadian and $19.95 US.

thriftymommastips rating $$$ out of $$$$$.

Forgetful Frankie

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First and foremost, a small disclaimer. Those of you who know me and read me know that I am a Mom of a little girl with FASD fetal alcohol spectrum disorder. So I may be the tiniest bit biased about this one but when I first saw hint of a book for children about FASD I was overjoyed. Anyone who parents a child with FASD struggles with what to tell them and when to tell them about their disability. This book is a way to help parents do that. So what follows here is my interview with Jill Bobula, author of this excellent new book, Forgetful Frankie, part of the WE Are Powerful series by Wildberry Productions, also available from Amazon.ca. The book retails for $16.95 and is written by sisters Jill and Katherine Bobula, illustrated by Rob Hall.

Thriftymommas Q:

1. How did the idea for the series come about?

Jill Bobula: “Our children’s series, WE ARE POWERFUL, came about because of a number of reasons. One of the main reasons was that my son was identified with Tourette Syndrome just shy of his 7th birthday. Before that, we didn’t have a clue what he had even though we had visited a number of health professionals including a neurologist, psychologist, psychiatrist, and the list goes on and on. Our son, Spencer, not only has Tourette Syndrome, he is also affected by obsessive compulsive disorder, anxiety, depression, ADHD and he has a sleeping disorder. I think the mere fact that he has so many conditions may have confused many people. The truth is that many children with Tourette Syndrome also suffer from co-morbidity disorders (ADHD and OCD the most common). In the end, through nutrition (vegetables, fruits, gluten-free, casein-free foods, fish, chicken, lamb), fish oil and supplements, we were able to control his behaviour (quite an extraordinary feat I must say). But through this experience, my sister Katherine and I realized there were very few resources available for children. And the stigma – the stigma attached to children’s mental and neurological conditions is unbelievable and heartbreaking. We want these children to know they’re not alone. There are parents who refuse to obtain treatment for their children because they don’t want to admit something is “odd” about their child’s behaviour. There are those parents who feel ashamed and do nothing. There are parents who feel it’s a big secret and don’t want to talk about “it”. It’s so very sad. 1 in 5 children in Canada and United States are affected by a mental and neurological condition. It’s time we created an environment of acceptance, tolerance and ofcourse, understanding. Not all educators are taught about these conditions, nor are they given the skill set to deal with affected children. We hope through our books to teach children, parents, educators, society in general, about these conditions and hopefully, create a paradigm shift in how we think and behave towards those who are affected.

Thriftymommas Q:

2. How many books you now have?
Jill: “We currently have 5 of 8 out on the market. Our 6th book, Anxious Annie, The World’s Greatest Thinker, Anxiety & Obsessive Compulsive Disorder is in production right now.”
Thriftymommas Q:

3. It’s both you and your sister who write together, correct?
Jill:”That is correct. We collaborate rather nicely for siblings. She’s my oldest sister so I have to listen to her otherwise I get in trouble… No, it’s not difficult at all. The good thing about being sisters is we can be honest with one another without fearing we’ll hurt the other’s feelings.”

Thriftymommas Q:

4. How did you find your illustrator?

Jill: “We could easily have had an illustrator who does his work on the computer – in other words, computer generated animation. But we wanted children to know that hand-drawn art was still something we valued (children are bombarded with computer-generated everything…). An old friend of ours, Rob Hall is an engineer with 3 kids and a very busy schedule. We knew Rob liked to draw and we asked him if he would be interested in drawing for our books. He jumped at the chance.
Thriftymommas Q

5. Why did you choose FASD?

Jill: “Katherine does a lot of consultative work and she has come across many families affected by FASD. I believe the prevalence is 1 in 100 children (same as Tourette Syndrome). FASD is also preventative. The more people know about the condition and its consequences, the less likely women might choose to drink during pregnancy.”

Thriftymommas Q

6. What do you hope children get from Forgetful Frankie?

Jill: “We think Frankie can teach affected children that they’re not alone. With this train of thought, we want children who do have FASD to feel as comfortable as possible with what they have and to know that they are worthy of love, support and respect like anyone else. Forgetful Frankie will be able to teach children about the condition so that when they’re at school, in their neighbourhoods or in the park, and they see someone behave a certain way, they may realize there’s a reason and not be so quick to judge other children. We want parents and educators to know there are ways of working and living with a child who has FASD. Generally, Frankie can help spread the word about FASD. Everyone needs to know what Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder is and what it represents.”

Thriftymommas Q:

7. What is Wildberry Productions?

Jill: “Wildberry Productions is our company which sells the books. Our last name is Bobula which in Slovak means berry (raspberry, blueberry, strawberry, etc). I was the Wild one in the family hence the Wildberry Productions.”

Thriftymommas Q:

8. Is this book widely available elsewhere – Indigo. Amazon?

Jill: “These books are available on Amazon. Some books are available at Indigo. We also sell them at our website http://www.wildberryproductions.ca/

9. Thriftymommas Q:

What would you like everyone to know about FASD?
Jill: “It’s a neurological condition that affects children in a variety of ways; cognitive, physical and emotional impairment and/or delays. There are some very positive ways of working and living with children who have FASD. There are also co-morbidities associated with FASD which may complicate things a bit as well. Overall however, I think people need to understand that FASD is a condition which affects children. We, as parents, educators and the community at large have a responsibility to provide an environment that’s conducive to understanding, tolerance, acceptance, support and plenty of love.”

16. Any other comments or thoughts?

Jill:” We love doing what we do. If we can change the lives of children and make their days that much easier, it’s all worthwhile. I hear what the books have done for children and it makes me proud. I know what I lived with for 7 very long years. I don’t think anyone should have to go through that and hopefully, the books bring a ray of light to families everywhere.”
Thriftymomma:
Thanks very much.

Jill: “And thank you!”