Read 4 Free: The Goddess of Fried Okra

There’s a new book available to download  (for a limited time) at Amazon for free – The Goddess of Fried Okra by Jean Brashear. You can read this on a Kindle, Ipod, Ipad, Iphone, Android or Blackberry phone.

Product Description:

Grief. Hope. Love. Sword fights. And the crisp glory of fried okra. Ex-cocktail waitress and “convenience story professional” Eudora “Pea” O’Brien is filled with grief and regret, low on cash and all alone. Headed down the hot, dusty back roads of central Texas, Pea is convinced she’ll find a sign leading her to the reincarnated soul of the sister who raised her. A sign that she’s found her place in the world of the living again. At least that’s what the psychic promised. In an unforgettably funny and poignant journey, Pea collects an unlikely family of strays-a starving kitten, a pregnant teenager, a sexy con man trying to go straight, and a ferocious gun dealer named Glory, who introduces Pea to the amazing, sword-wielding warrior goddesses of Texas author Robert E. Howard-creator of the Conan the Barbarian novels-and celebrated in festival every year. Six foot tall, red-headed Pea looks good with a sword in her hand. Glory, the goddesses, and a grandmotherly café owner become Pea’s unlikely gurus as she struggles to learn swordplay and the art of perfect fried okra. She’ll have to master both if she’s going to find what matters most-her own lost soul. “Jean Brashear writes with warmth and emotion truth. The depth of her understanding of human nature marks her as a writer to watch, a writer to read and a writer to enjoy.” –Debbie Macomber, #1 NY Times Bestselling Author “THE GODDESS OF FRIED OKRA is a fabulous read. Riveting. Original. Those characters grabbed my imagination and didn’t let go.” –Cathy Maxwell, NY Times Bestselling Author

DOWNLOAD the Kindle Version Here, Remember you don’t have to own a Kindle.  You can read these books on your PC, your Ipod, Ipad, or Iphone, Android or Blackberry phones.

This is not the only book available for free. There are free classics and out-of-copyright, pre-1923 books, as well as limited-time free promotional books available for Kindle at Amazon.

Limited Time Offers

Popular Classics

Free Reading Apps Software to read Kindle books

• Android (Search For “Kindle” in the Android Market on your phone.)
• Blackberry (Type “amazon.com/kindlebb” into your BlackBerry browser to download)
• Ipad (search at Itunes)
• Iphone (search at Itunes)
• Mac (Download)
• Windows PC Software (Download)

Freebie: Woman’s Day Magazine

Not sure how long this one will last so you better act fast.

Get a free subscription to Woman’s Day Magazine at Mercury Magazine.  This is a real, in print, arrive at your house subscription, not digital.

Notes:

You must enter something in Industry and Job Function. (you can enter that your are a stay at home mom by choosing other on the first drop down box and then Homemaker, but you must choose something!

After you fill out the first form, you will be offered “other offers.” Just ignore and go to the bottom and click “continue” so you can give them your address.

You will also have to enter something in title on the page that you input your address.

After you input your address, you should receive this message:

Read 4 Free: Falling Out of Fashion (Kindle)

I’ve decided to add a new feature to A Novel Mind – Read 4 Free. This will be links to places to find reading materials for FREE! Yep! Free!

For my first Read 4 Free I want to share with you, a digital version of Falling Out of Fashion by Karen Yampolsky.  You can download it at Amazon for FREE!  It’s a Kindle version, but if you like me (no Kindle?), have no fear. There are other options for those of us still lacking.

DOWNLOAD the Kindle version of Falling out of Fashion.

This is not the only book available for free. There are free classics and out-of-copyright, pre-1923 books, as well as limited-time free promotional books available for Kindle at Amazon.

Limited Time Offers

Popular Classics

I’ll feature more each week, but if you are anxious and want to check out the other free ones go ahead and click the links above!

Free Reading Apps Software to read Kindle books

• Android (Search For “Kindle” in the Android Market on your phone.)
• Blackberry (Type “amazon.com/kindlebb” into your BlackBerry browser to download)
• Ipad (search at Itunes)
• Iphone (search at Itunes)
• Mac (Download)
• Windows PC Software (Download)

Guest Post: How Far Is Your Body from Perfect?

How Far Is Your Body from Perfect? And Why You Don’t Need to Know
By: Barbara DeShong

The Story Behind the Story: TOO RICH and TOO THIN, Not an Autobiography.

On a Saturday afternoon when I was fourteen, my older sister invited me along on a guest pass to the fancy spa where she was a member. The idea appealed to me as a kid who spent fifteen to twenty hours a week riding horses, but had no experience with the more glamorous side of exercise. I donned my shorts and T-Shirt, excited and ready for my introduction to the world of women’s fitness.

On arrival, my sister greeted her spiffy pony-tailed trainer and I tagged along, spasmodically trying out a variety of machines that looked suspiciously like some I’d seen pictured as favorites of bitter European queens during the Dark Ages. But, I was having a good time, all and all. With my outdoor schedule, I wasn’t likely going to end up a regular at the spa, but I was enjoying the heck out of my guest pass.

At least I was having fun until a spandexed trainer roaming the spa with a clipboard spotted me floundering naively amongst the equipment and offered me a free body appraisal. Free being in my price range, I jumped on the opportunity to add value to my guest pass. The pretty lady led me into an office and whipped out a tape measure. As a fourteen year old with the above mentioned lack of spa sophistication, I sat, stood, turned, held out my arms, and offered up my sunburned neck. She was at least twenty-five and had instruments. Thus, I obeyed. Also, remember, at fourteen free was still a big draw.

Then the woman took the page off her clipboard and made entries into a calculator on her desk. After a few minutes of electronic humming, she swiveled her chair to match up her knees to mine. She knitted her forehead with great importance and proceeded to inform me that: my upper arms were 1.4 inches too big, my forearms and wrists were slightly out-of-sync, but perhaps, acceptable given my overly large hands. My waist-to-hip ratio was off by 2.4 inches, my neck was .4 inches under-sized which could be my age, and my ribcage was too large for my breast size. I lost conscious attention before she got to my thigh and lower leg deformities.

Amazingly, after informing me of the specifics of what was wrong with my body, with an absolute straight face the woman looked me straight in the eyes and asked if I would like a copy of the information. A free copy. I declined. Talk about some information a fourteen-year- old doesn’t need. Something no woman needs.

We have mirrors. We have clothes that fit and those that don’t. I couldn’t possibly think why any woman could possibly benefit from to the decimal records on how her body differs from the “ideal.”

When I chose the cover and the title for the humorous mystery, TOO RICH and TOO THIN, Not an Autobiography, I reflected on my teenage spa experience. The women who come into my psychology office, like the one who peers at me out of my mirror, tend to see a face and body worse than the reality. The cover for the book shows a regular-sized, normally saggy, middle-aged woman with un-fussed-over hairdo painting a self-portrait using a mirror. On her easel she has painted a slender woman with great hair. Studies show that people who over-estimate their physical and social desirability have more fun in life. Knowing those studies, I’ve often thought, “What if, as a psychologist, I could help people see themselves as better-looking than they are?

To approach the body image issue a bit differently through fiction, one of the lead characters is so obsessed with the way she sees herself that she has her bedroom walled in distortion mirrors reflecting a younger and slimmer woman.

Behind the mystery in TOO RICH and TOO THIN, Not an Autobiography is the story of women’s struggle with self image in an image conscious world.

Barbara DeShong is an award-winning speaker, practicing psychologist, and the author of “Too Rich and Too Thin: Not an Autobiography,” a humorous mystery novel. For more information, please visit www.mysteryshrink.com or www.toorichandtoothin.com.

Too Rich and Too Thin: Not an Autobiography is available at Amazon for $4.99!

Review: 20 Easy Ways to Save the Earth

It is becoming more and more popular to become “green.” Not only are more and more families making wiser decisions, it is also becoming a popular topic of conversation in classrooms. My daughter did a major unit last year in 3rd grade on “the 3 R’s” – Reduce, Recycle, Reuse. Over the summer, she was a part of the summer reading program which included a Recycling Art Project contest to be turned in at the end of the session.  20 Easy Ways to Save the Earth is a children’s book that focus on simple things that children can do in their goals of implementing the 3 R’s in to their lives.

The book is authored by Pedro Rita, who is a husband and father in Ann Arbor, Michigan.  Part of his parenting duties, included coaching youth soccer. One afternoon, while walking along the soccer field, he noticed the amount of trash laying around, and knew that most of this was left around by the children on his team.  He wondered how he could get them to realize just how wrong this was, and thus the birth of 20 Easy Ways to Save the Earth.

20 Easy Ways to Save the Earth focuses on how kids’ actions can affect thir homes and communities or offers them easy-to-use, Earth saving tips to protect the environment.

What I Liked About the Book

1. The graphics/colors.  It is so colorful and eye appealing that you want to read it.
2. The language – The book is in both English and Spanish.  Not only is this great because both English and Spanish speaking children can read it, but for older children (like my 9 year old) it is a great tool for them to go back and forth and learn a little more of the other language.
3. The tips. While some are more challenging (like planting trees), many are very simple and easy actions that we could all incorporate into our lives such as picking up others and throwing away your trash, not giving animals human food, turning off the water when you are not using it, turning off electrical stuff when you aren’t using it, and using rechargeable batteries.

Review: The Friday Night Knitting Club

Surprise, tears, and the desire to share. After being an avid reader forever, I find that I usually see an ending coming. I’ve usually recognize the foreshadowing and even though I enjoy a book, it’s rare that a book actually totally surprises me at the end. It’s even rarer for it to surprise me with tears. The Friday Night Knitting Club did just that though. I had read good reviews for the book so I purchased it one day on a whim, and I’m so glad I did.

I’ll be honest and tell you that I started this book three times before I actually read it though. There was something about the beginning that seemed slow, and I had a hard time getting involved; however, after the first few chapters I was anxious to get to know the characters more. By the time I made it halfway through the book, I did not want to put it down. I was so anxious to continue the story. And then when the end took such a surprising twist. I was SHOCKED! Kate Jacobs truly did an amazing job of coming up with a real shocker.

The Friday Night Knitting Club is the story or Georgia Walker and her yarn shop, Walker and Daughter. Georgia is a single mom to a teenager in New York City. She’s raised her daughter on her own (maybe one of the reasons that this book appealed me as I’m doing the same?) – only having the help of store employees and customers who have become friends. The group of friends forms The Friday Night Knitting Club as a time to bond (and for some to knit). One amazing quality of the club is that they don’t even all knit well. It’s more of a social bond – a connection.

Of course, then things go crazy – each of the women seems to have some major issues in their personal lives – from an unexpected pregnancy, Georgia’s daughter trying to find herself, an ex love coming back into the picture, children who think they should make decisions for elderly parents, and a divorce – it’s a roller coaster of emotions. However, The Friday Night Knitting Club presents a place for each of the women to find an escape and ultimately because of the friendships formed a peace with their problems.

I enjoy most books I read.  I just have an appreciation for reading.  However rarely do I read a book that I start telling everyone I know that they need to read it too, but this is one of those books.  I’ve already passed it on to my grandmother who read it and enjoyed it because she said “it was so realistic.”  I’m passing it on to a coworker next and then another friend of mine that loves to read.

The book has a sequel, Knit Two, that I have already purchased and will be reading and reviewing soon.

Review: Halfway to Each Other

I tend to not like many nonfiction books. I like a story. I like fiction. In Halfway to Each Other, I didn’t get fiction, but I did get an amazing story. In fact, Susan Pohlman wrote it in a style that actually could have also been a first person fiction book. This made it a very enjoyable book for me.

Halfway to Each Other is the story of Susan and her husband (Tim)’s attempt to salvage their marriage. Some of us try sitting down and talking when we are at odds with our significant others. Some try marriage counseling. Susan and Tim had a completely different approach. They left everything they knew (their entire lives) behind and moved themselves and their children to Italy for a year – a place where they didn’t know the customs or the language – where they only had each other to turn to – where they were forced to communicate. Where they moved in Italy, technology was not anywhere like what they had here in America – not only did Tim and Susan begin turning to each other, but their two children stopped the constant arguing and also started playing and entertaining each other.

That kind of moved proved to be stressful – there were moments when I wasn’t sure if the move was going to save the family or tear them apart even more. However, they did make it. This “disconnection to reconnect” worked for them in amazing ways.

Divorce has become so common – the idea of working on a marriage foreign to so many that it was enlightening to read about a man and woman who would go to such extremes to save their marriage, and knowing this book was true made it that much more impressive.

About Susan Pohlman
Susan is an educator and freelance writer. She and her family now live in Scottsdale, Arizona. Halfway to Each Other is her first book.

Giveaway: Fairy Godmother Academy Party Pack

As I mentioned previously, there’s an exciting new book series and online world for little girls on the horizon – The Fairy Godmother Academy. My daughter loves to read. I would hate to calculate what we spend on books in the average year.

Our newest book arrived yesterday, and I’m happy to say it was free. Yesterday we received a Fairy Godmother’s Party Pack that included the first book in the series (Birdie’s Book), iron on transfers for the girls at the party to make their own Fairy Godmother’s shirts, a music CD, handouts for the girls to research their lineage (I’m thinking pre-party – maybe of sending these with the invitations), wisdom cards, stickers, and then a nice customizable book for recording everyone’s lineage.

As I stated, I just received this party pack yesterday. I’ve just started the book so I can’t tell you much about it yet, but will come back and post a more thorough review after I finish it. However, I have great news for you. The company has been generous enough to not only offer my daughter a party pack, but also a party pack for one lucky reader! This contest will be a live contest.

Here are pictures of our Party Pack:

Live Contest Rules

1. Comments will be opened  at 7:00 pm CST
2. The comment number of the winner will be announced prior to comments opening.
3. Topic will be announced at beginning of contest.  All posts must be relevant to conversation.
4. No duplicate comments.
5. You may comment as often as you like – as long as all comments are relevant.
6. No comments back to back.

See you Monday!!

Contest Time!

Topic: Conversation must begin about who you will throw this party for, ideas of how to use everything, and other activities you might include.

Conversation can evolve from this however comments should make sense with everyone’s current conversation or be on the original topic.  No off topic, no duplicate comments, spam, etc just get the comment numbers up. The same person CAN NOT post back to back.

One extra comment per person per day allowed for follwing me on Twitter and tweeting this live contest. Must post link to your tweet in contest. (this can be back to back with another of your comments)

One extra comment per person for blogging about this contest and posting the link. (this can be back to back with another of your comments)

Comment #123 will win.

I will go back through comments and delete off topic comments if necessary so final winner will not be announced until previous comments are reviewed.

Contest will continue until comment #123 or August 30th. If we do not have 123 comments by the end of the night, one comment will be randomly selected.

Support the TSC!!

Today I want to do a shout out and ask for everyone’s help in supporting the Tuberous Sclerosis Complex in Silver Springs, Maryland. I got this request from Carissa who has a little one with Tuberous Sclerosis Complex. One charity will win up to $10,000 and how great it would be for us to support this charity. So I’m asking you to help me help Carissa and the TSC.

Head over and enter the I Love Christie Cookies contest and nominate the TSC.

Charity Name: Tuberous Sclerosis Complex

Charity City: Silver Springs

Charity State: Maryland

Charity Contact: Jenny Smiley

And spread the word and ask everyone you know to vote too!! And if you vote for the TSC, I’ll give you 10 entries into any contests for the entire month of August hosted here or at Southern Girl Reviews! Just be sure to put 10 comments on the contests after you vote!

Winner: Adventure at Brimstone Hill

It’s time to recognize a winner here at A Novel Mind.  It’s time to announce the winner of the book Adventure at Brimstone Hill.  And here’s the winner:

Yep….the 9th person to comment was the winner…Oh wait? You want to know who that was?
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Congratulations to Colleen at The Princess and the Monkey!

Colleen, send me your address within 72 hours and I’ll get this book in the mail to you ASAP!

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