A New-to-Me Meme: Cover Art Weekend Blog Hop

"You may not be able to judge a book by its cover, but they are sure fun to look at."
~Yvonne, Socrates' Book Review Blog

Cover Art Weekend Blog Hop is hosted by Yvonne from Socrates' Book Review Blog, and gives book bloggers a chance to display a book cover--or several. I realized that I had roses that were similar to the one on the cover of The Postmistress by Sarah Blake, a book I read and reviewed a few months ago, so I added them to this shot, along with a bit of mail. To join the fun, visit Yvonne's book blog.

Really Random Tuesday #22: Giving Thanks: The Note Project Giveaway

I haven't forgotten my promise. In appreciation of having reached my goal of 500(+!) followers, I'll be hosting an international giveaway soon, so please stay tuned. Of course, this giveaway will relate to books in some fashion. Thank you, faithful followers and steadfast readers, for showing your support, for including me in your blogrolls, and for sharing your enthusiasm for books and reading.

In the meantime, I do have a wonderful giveaway to offer, compliments of Mike O'Mary, publisher of Everything I Never Wanted to Be by Dina Kucera, a candid, powerful memoir that I read last autumn. Mike has written a book called The Note, published in 2009. In the book, Mike receives a note that touches him deeply.

"Every note you send matters more than you can imagine."
~The Note, Mike O'Mary

A simple, heartfelt note of gratitude led to Mike's book, and to the creation of the Note Project. The Note Project is about expressing appreciation, and will attempt to collect 1 million pledges for thank you notes. You can participate in the Note Project by pledging to send a sincere note of appreciation to someone who has made a difference in your life.

In the thanks department, I think I'm pretty well caught up myself (although I'm not such a goody two-shoes that I don't owe a couple of folks thank you notes). I try to remember to send out hand-written thank you cards to people when I receive gifts, and in this electronic age, I savor the art of writing them with a pen. It's become second nature to me to compose notes of appreciation, and I visited the Note Project as soon as I heard about it and pledged to write a note. I was thrilled to discover that the Note Project will donate to at least 12 literacy projects in 12 countries in 12 months, through GlobalGiving and GlobalGivingUK! Please stop by the website when you have a few moments for more details, and to make a pledge (it doesn't cost anything).

Something else to be thankful for! Kathleen and Mike O'Mary are generously donating a Note Project Starter Kit as a giveaway. The kit includes: 1) a hardback edition of The Note, 2) a DVD video based on the book, and 3) a set of three premium-quality thank you cards.

• To enter this giveaway, simply leave a comment.
• For another chance at winning, go to the Note Project and pledge to write a note. Then return here and indicate that you've done so in your comments.
• For another giveaway entry, become a follower of this blog, or let me know that you're already a follower, or that you subscribe in Google Reader.
• For an additional chance, post about this contest on your blog, Facebook, or Twitter.

Enter by 5PM PDT on Monday, April 25. One winner will be chosen randomly and announced on Tuesday, April 26. This is a worldwide giveaway. Good luck!

Kind and Generous by Natalie Merchant (the "Thank You" Song)

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Please congratulate Melanie L., who has won a paperback copy of The Postmistress by Sarah Blake. Thanks to everyone who took the time to participate in this giveaway. If you didn't win this time, there's an assortment of giveaways listed on the right side of this blog. If you're entering the giveaway for the Note Project Starter Kit, be sure to leave a comment at the conclusion of this post.

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Really Random Tuesday is a way to post odds and ends--announcements, musings, quotes, photos--any blogging and book-related things you can think of. If you're inspired by this idea, feel free to copy the button and use it on your own blog. Please leave a link in the comments if you’re participating and I'll add it to this post.

For other Really Random Tuesday posts, please visit Vivienne's blog, Serendipity, Kim's blog, Page after Page, and Avis' blog, she reads and reads. I appreciate that these lovely ladies do this meme at least as often as I do, and I hope that others will join in, too.

Thanks for reading!

The Postmistress: Review and Giveaway

"We think we know who will die and who will live, who is a hero, who will fall in love with whom; but every story--love or war--is a story about looking left when we should have been looking right."
~The Postmistress, Sarah Blake


Often as I read a book it resonates with me in an uncanny fashion. As I was reading The Postmistress by Sarah Blake, a NY Times bestselling novel that focuses on the importance of letters, my daughter and I were anxiously waiting to hear from the last of the colleges she'd applied to. Would there be a small envelope, a rejection letter, or a large envelope, an acceptance packet, in the mail for her? On Saturday afternoon I heard our mail carrier pull up to our mailbox. A few minutes later, I dashed outside to check the mail.
The Postmistress is a story that revolves around three woman, two in Franklin, MA (a fictitious town), Emma Fitch, the doctor's wife, and Iris James, the postmistress, and Frankie Bard, a female radio journalist stationed in London during World War II. While there are male characters in the story as well--Dr. Will Fitch, Jim Tom, and Harry Vale, to name a few--this novel, published in 2010, centers on the lives of these three women. Each had a different career in 1940, a time when roles were just starting to change for American women. Emma, young and tiny, adopted the most traditional role of the three, as the doctor's wife (and mother-to-be). The other women were responsible for communication in two distinct ways, highlighting the power of written and spoken words. Iris, red-haired and tall, was the careful, orderly postmistress of Franklin, and Frankie Bard was a striking pioneer as a radio announcer at a time when women were scoffed at because they didn't "belong" on the radio with their "high voices". All three of the women are connected because of the war.

From a feminist's point of view, I appreciate that these women are portrayed as strong and capable. We take it for granted today that American women can choose any career they wish for, but the book reminds us that this was not always the case, and that it wasn't easy to be taken seriously. In the book, though, even Emma, who was a housewife and looked as if she needed protection, was stronger than she appeared, and she wasn't portrayed as less important than the other two women merely because of her traditional role.

The Postmistress is richly detailed and beautifully written and brought certain aspects of World War II to life for me. I felt as if I, too, were running and hiding from bombs in London, or riding the crowded, dank trains described in the book--the only possible way to escape from the war for many people. It's not that I want to relive the war, or the persecution of the Jews, but the presentation of events in this book, which includes Frankie's on-the-spot recorded interviews with refugees, is a brilliant way to present the human side of this devastating war. I enjoyed the bits of romance throughout the story, although the war destroyed the relationships in various ways. The Postmistress kept me spellbound, and I wanted to linger on nearly every page of this novel.

But back to my own story, about Saturday's mail. Our mailbox had a large envelope in it, which I excitedly presented to my daughter.

More terrific news! The publisher, Berkley Trade, is generously offering a newly released paperback copy of the book as a giveaway (U.S./Canada only).

• To enter this giveaway, simply leave a comment.
• For another chance at winning, become a follower of this blog, or let me know that you're already a follower, or that you subscribe in Google Reader.
• For an additional chance, post about this contest on your blog, Facebook, or Twitter.
• For yet another chance, describe a time when you were waiting for something important in the mail.

Enter by 5PM PDT on Monday, April 11. One winner will be chosen randomly and announced on Tuesday, April 12. Good luck!

Special thanks to Lisa from TLC for sending me this book. For more reviews please visit the other stops on TLC's The Postmistress book tour.