by Kay | Oct 18, 2014 | Events for the Bookish, Giveaway |
Hellow fellow read-a-thon-ers!
Thinking about sneaking a nap in? No way! Grab a cup of tea or coffee (or a Red Bull) because you’re in for the long-haul now. While you’re at it, get out your camera’s for the Hour 8 “Show It Off” Mini-challenge.
Here’s your challenge: I want you to show off a book (or books) from your shelves that you are extremely proud of. The unique, signed or simply dear-to-your-heart editions that you’d grab if there were a fire.
Need some examples? Well, how about that signed, personalised edition by your favourite author? Or how about that shelf of painstakingly-collected of every Jane Austen-related book in existence? Perhaps you’ve an extremely dog-eared copy of a book that’s been passed down through your family? Anything goes – just make it something special to you.
Last year, I showed off by wonderful signed copy of Bill Clinton’s Giving: How Each Of Us Can Change The World. The year before that, I highlighted my near-and-dear to me copies of The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit (beautiful editions that have been in the family for decades).
This year I wanted to show you guys two wonderful books I have signed by one of my favourite writers: George R. R. Martin. Seeing as how I chose one of his books for the readathon, it made sense to share these volumes for Show it Off.
Back in 2011, Game of Thrones had REALLY taken off and the Iron Throne was making a tour around the world. I was one of those new fans who rushed to pick up a signed copy of A Dance with Dragons the minute I realised I could. Then, the next year, I got to meet GRRM a few times at Eastercon! It was a thrill and he was the most awesome person in…er… person. Despite con rules (which I didn’t know about until much later), he was the first to sign my Tea poster (to the left) along with a ton of other authors (including Gail Carriger, Tricia Sullivan and 20 others – I think everyone was willing to get on board once they saw his autograph!). He also signed this first edition of his novel A Song for Lya (I adore the psychedelic 1970s cover).
In short: GRRM is awesome.
Now, show off yours!
- Take a picture of a book/books from your library you really want to show off: signed editions, rare editions, obsessively-organized Sherlock Holmes collections – just whatever is special to you!
- Post your photo on your blog, twitter, facebook, flickr, etc. then add your link in the Linky below.
- Use the hashtag #showitoff and #readathon if you are sharing on twitter/instagram
- This challenge will close in three hours (just before hour 11)
- One winner will be chosen to receive $15/£10 gift certificate to Amazon/Book Depository OR this SIGNED COPY of The Eternity Cure by Julie Kagawa
Challenge closed and the winner is… #49 Elishia! I will be in touch soon with your prize.
Thanks EVERYONE for your FANTASTIC entries – this year was an amazing success! If you’re stumbling across this post months from now, go and check out some of the links above for some beautiful books. 🙂
by Kay | Oct 15, 2013 | Events for the Bookish, Giveaway |
Illustrated by Suzy Lee
Last month, I while attending a conference in Washington D.C. for work, I stumbled across the Library of Congress’ National Book Festival. I had had no idea it would be on while I was there, but I was happy to fit it into my schedule!
Not being a US Resident, I had no idea what National Book Festival was. In short: it is a massive, two day, open air event during which over 100 authors give talks to crowds about their books, the genre and – well – anything else they like!
The festival site was divided according to genre, with pavilions dedicated to: Children, Teens & Children, Fiction & Mystery, History & Biography, Contemporary Life, Poetry & Prose, Graphic Novels & Science Fiction and Special Programmes. There was also a huge signing area – which reminded me of BEA – and a tent hosted by Barnes & Noble where you could buy books by the authors attending.
Despite some torrential rain, there were hundreds upon hundreds of book fans in attendance. School groups, pension groups and single book lovers all merged together to form a really diverse audience. Most of the pavilions were overflowing!
What I loved about my experience at the festival was the diversity available. I decided not to focus too much on the YA scene, and took the opportunity to listen to authors I usually wouldn’t pick up. Namely, I heard a great talk by historian Henry Wiencek about Thomas Jefferson (I bought his book, Master of the Mountain: Thomas Jefferson and His Slaves, despite not being a history buff); I listened to Thomas Kenealley (author of Schindler’s List) discuss writing about the Second World War from a Pacific perspective; and, I learned about how the Library of Congress is restoring archived audio footage.
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National Book Festival 2013 (with the Smithsonian Castle in the background).
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The Teens and Children Pavilion at the Festival.
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Veronica Roth’s talk was absolutely packed. I couldn’t see over all the heads!
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The Library of Congress asked what books we think changed the world: as usual, the argument descended into a religious debate (although my friend here did not go that route 🙂
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Book Signing Schedule – yes, that’s the Washington Monument in the background!
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Thomas Kenealley addressed a huge crowd despite the rain!
That said, I did attend one (very, very full) talk by YA author Veronica Roth. She was very personable and made some really interesting points about the portrayal of “strong girls” in YA novels. She discussed how the type of “strength” that we celebrate in YA heroines is a very masculine strength: being able to shoot arrows and beat people up. It made me consider my own biases. Am I too focused on this very male strength? What is feminine strength? And when can we see that type of strength in male characters? Very, very interesting.
On a superficial note: the festival poster is absolutely stunning. It is illustrated by Suzy Lee – whose wordless book, Wave, actually sold out during the Festival – and features creatures of all sizes reading books!
I picked up a few extra posters which I am happy to be giving away! Just fill in the form below and get yourself a gorgeous piece of wall art. Here’s what mine looks like on my wall:
My National Book Festival poster looking shiny. You know you want one.
Giveaway details!
The Prize: One of THREE National Book Festival 2013 Posters illustrated by Suzy Lee
To enter (Terms and Conditions):
- fill out the form below.
- entrants must be 13 years of age or older.
- contest open WORLDWIDE (i.e. Lunar residents will be excluded)
- the winner will be notified by email and will have 48 hours to reply else a new winner will be chosen.
- the winner will have to share their postal address – shocking, but a necessary evil when using antique forms of contact such as mail.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
by Kay | Oct 13, 2013 | Events for the Bookish, Giveaway |
Hey there, fellow read-a-thon-ers!
Thinking about sneaking a nap in? No way! Grab a cup of tea or coffee (or a Red Bull) because you’re in for the long-haul now. While you’re at it, get out your camera’s for the Hour 19 “Show It Off” Mini-challenge.
Here’s your challenge: I want you to show off a book (or books) from your library that you are extremely proud of. The unique, signed or simply dear-to-your-heart editions that you’d grab if there were a fire.
Need some examples? Well, how about that signed, personalised edition by your favourite author? Or how about that shelf of painstakingly-collected of every Jane Austen-related book in existence? Perhaps you’ve an extremely dog-eared copy of a book that’s been passed down through your family? Anything goes – just make it something special to you.
Last year, I chose to show off my near-and-dear to me copies of The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit. They are beautiful editions that have been in the family for decades. But this year – to give you something different – I thought I’d share one of my favourite signed copies ever: Bill Clinton’s Giving: How Each Of Us Can Change The World
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Giving: How each of us can change the world by Bill Clinton
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Giving by Bill Clinton
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Tried getting my hound Odin’s opinion, but he mainly wanted to address why I woke him from his nap!
I met President Clinton in London in 2007 and was absolutely over the moon. Technically – my mother reminds me – I met him when I was a little girl and he was campaigning. He was so ridiculously nice in person; he made it seem like he was talking only to you, even though he was meeting dozens of people. It was a great experience and I wouldn’t change this copy for a thing. (OK, that’s not true. If you had a book signed by John Adams, I’d trade you in a second. Adams is, and forever shall be, my favourite US President.)
Now, show off yours!
- Take a picture of a book/books from your library you really want to show off: signed editions, rare editions, obsessively-organized Sherlock Holmes collections – just whatever is special to you!
- Post your photo on your blog, twitter, facebook, flickr, etc. then add your link below.
- One winner will be chosen to receive $15/£10 gift certificate to Amazon/Book Depository
- This challenge will close in three hours (just before hour 22)
Thank you everyone! I loved looking at everyone’s entries – you guys have great collections!
And the winner is…
Congrats Tanja @ Time for Reading! I will be in touch soon 🙂
by Kay | Jun 19, 2013 | Giveaway |
MIRA sent me two lovely copies of With All My Soul by Rachel Vincent, one of which I have hoarded away for myself, and the other which I am now sharing with the world! Yup, this giveaway is open WORLDWIDE – so, if you’ve been coveting a UK edition of one of her novels, this is your chance to get in on the action.
After spending the last year undead, Kaylee Cavanaugh has had enough of the paranormal creatures who have plagued her ever since she came into her banshee powers. Now she’s ready to take her school back from the evil hellions, once and forever.
To protect her friends, Kaylee will need to find a way to turn the living incarnations of Avarice, Envy and Vanity against one another.
Yet when one more person close to her is taken, Kaylee realises she can’t save everyone she loves without making some powerful sacrifices…
GIVEAWAY DETAILS!
The Prize: A finished UK copy of With All My Soul by Rachel Vincent
To enter (Terms and Conditions):
- fill out the form below.
- entrants must be 13 years of age or older.
- contest open WORLDWIDE (i.e. Lunar residents will be excluded)
- the winner will be notified by email and will have 48 hours to reply else a new winner will be chosen.
- the winner will have to share their postal address – shocking, but a necessary evil when using antique forms of contact such as mail.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
by Kay | Oct 14, 2012 | Events for the Bookish, Giveaway |
Hey there, fellow read-a-thon-ers!
Thinking about sneaking a nap in? No way! Grab a cup of tea or coffee (or a Red Bull) because you’re in for the long-haul now. While you’re at it, get out your camera’s for Hour 20 “Show It Off” Mini-challenge.
Here’s what I want you to do: I want you to show off a book (or books) from your library that you are extremely proud of. The unique, signed or simply dear-to-your-heart editions that you’d grab if there were a fire.
Need some examples? Well, how about that signed, personalised edition by your favourite author? Or how about that shelf of painstakingly-collected of every Jane Austen-related book in existence? Perhaps you’ve an extremely dog-eared copy of a book that’s been passed down through your family? Anything goes – just make it something special to you.
Me? I want to show you two very special sets of J.R.R. Tolkien books. The Hobbit belonged to my grandfather and is a 1966 stunning hardcover edition. Then there’s The Lord of the Rings trilogy, from 1965, that belongs to my mother (she kindly lets me read them) and that she’s had since she was a girl. These books have followed us across oceans and into several different homes – they’re special and they’re beautiful. They are the representation of Tolkien that I grew up with, and I can’t imagine his writing any other way.
The complete trilogy (left) and The Fellowship of the Ring (right) without its dust-jacket.
The Hobbit with its slipcase.
As you can see, they are well-loved but still in fantastic condition considering they are almost 50 years old! If you can’t tell from the photos, both editions have engravings on them: Dwarvish on The Hobbit, and the Black Speech of Mordor on The Lord of the Rings.
Now, show off yours!
- Take a picture of a book/books from your library you really want to show off: signed editions, rare editions, obsessively-organized Sherlock Holmes collections – just whatever is special to you!
- Post your photo on your blog, twitter, facebook, flickr, etc. then add your link below.
- If your email address is not on your blog/twitter/etc., please post it in the comments with the number of your entry. (i.e. “I’m Sarah, entry #5, my email is…”)
- One winner will be chosen to receive a $15/£10 gift certificate to Amazon.
- This challenge will close at 5 am CDT / 12 noon CET.
ETA: CHALLENGE NOW CLOSED! If you missed the deadline but have taken a picture, please share it in the comments! Winner:
Kim @ Page after Page!
by Kay | Jan 11, 2012 | Giveaway |
Thanks to the PGUK and Quirk Books, I am happy to be hosting a giveaway of a finished copy of Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs. Here’s some more details on the novel, in case you’ve somehow not heard of it:
A mysterious island. An abandoned orphanage. And a strange collection of very curious photographs.
It all waits to be discovered in Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, an unforgettable novel that mixes fiction and photography in a thrilling reading experience. As our story opens, a horrific family tragedy sets sixteen-year-old Jacob journeying to a remote island off the coast of Wales, where he discovers the crumbling ruins of Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children. As Jacob explores its abandoned bedrooms and hallways, it becomes clear that the children who once lived here – one of whom was his own grandfather – were more than just peculiar. They may have been dangerous. They may have been quarantined on a desolate island for good reason. And somehow – impossible though it seems – they may still be alive.
A spine-tingling fantasy illustrated with haunting vintage photography, Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children will delight adults, teens, and anyone who relishes an adventure in the shadows.
GIVEAWAY DETAILS!
The Prize: A finished copy of Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs
To enter (Terms and Conditions):
- fill out the form below.
- entrants must be 13 years of age or older.
- contest open to UK ONLY.
- the winner will be notified by email and will have 48 hours to reply else a new winner will be chosen.
- the winner’s postal address will be shared with the publisher (Quirk Books), who will send out the prize.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
